“One of the chief motives of artistic creation is certainly the need of feeling that we are essential in relationship to the world.” — Sartre
Sometimes our life’s purpose doesn’t align with our current situation. We figure out what we want to do along the way. We must live our life to discover our purpose in it. It takes a lot of courage to begin the process needed to integrate your calling into your everyday life. If we live parallel to what most intrigues us, we prevent ourselves and the world from experiencing all we have to offer.
What if you were to create your own life? Completely shape it to include all the things you love most. Imagine living a life where you didn’t have to squeeze yourself in. How could what you do for a living inform your life’s work?
Do you have an idea for a book that you want to write, but you are waiting until you’re in a better place in your life? Such as a future moment when you have more time to dedicate to your work? Or maybe you’re a musician and a new song still hasn’t come into fruition, and for whatever reason you feel at tug-of-war with yourself?
People who feel drawn to their craft often find themselves feeling lost when inspiration has run dry; or disappointed for not creating even when the urge to create felt present. The further we get from where we were, we begin to wonder if we will ever get back to that monumental life’s project that sits shelfed bearing more meaning the further time seems to displace us.
No matter where we end up, we still experience our lives the whole way there. If you spend every waking moment focused on only one thing other things will begin to deteriorate. The way in which we live our everyday life has a significant effect on how we interact with the world. There needs to be some level of balance within your life that allows time for you to have space for all that is most meaningful to you. Therapy will help you to re-integrate what has intrigued you, moved you, and relentlessly sparked your curiosity. Creating a balance in life that carves space and time for reflective thought, meaningful relationships, creative work, and social engagement.
Common felt experiences of the creative life:
- Constant flow of ideas
- Fleeting motivation to create
- Frustration that comes from not starting a project, and or finishing it.
- Keeping your work to yourself out of the fear of not being good enough.
- Feeling as though you don’t know where to begin.
- Feeling like the project is never done because it could be better.
- Anxiety around the blank screen, blank page, blank canvas, and empty track.
- The weight of time lost, and the sense of urgency that follows when a new idea emerges.
- Segments of time where you feel a lack of inspiration, and unmotivated to pursue your passions as you once had before.
- Feeling like time has been wasted.
- Wishing you had already started.
- Time where you are not creating (creative blocks) feels like despair, loss of purpose, feelings of meaninglessness, and self-doubt.
- Lack of organization.
- Not feeling productive, ever.
- Overwhelmed by how much you’ve already created not sure how to create the final version.
- Always starting from scratch.
- Disappointment in oneself for not living up to your own expectations.
- Ideas that never make it beyond your own inner dialogue.
- Writing sentences in your mind instead of paper.
- Moments where you feel frustrated for suppressing your creative agency, urge, or inspiration.
