Finding Your Way ... Creatively

Havasupai Indian Reservation

Last week, I posed the question: Where does a dream begin? to artists (painters, sculptors, photographers, directors, dancers, writers, musicians) and business executives, teachers and students, parents, doctors, people in marketing, accounting, manufacturing and construction. The response was not only brilliant but overwhelmingly similar! Each person expressed either his own process or what she thought might help a person begin.

It is no small task to share the wisdom that came forward! With permission, I am reproducing postings from 2 people who are professionals in creative fields and have practiced imaginations. Each of them shared personal experience with dreaming I think is valuable - practical, playful and profound. Also with permission, I am publishing observations from other professionals from a variety of vocations in the comments section of this blog posting. It is my hope that YOU will add to these with a comment of your own, sharing from your own experience what works for you so other readers and learn and can be inspired!

The first posting is authored by a musician/composer/film director, Ben M:

"Dreaming is everything to me. I, like many others actually look forward to sleep just so I can dream. On your blog, I read about information overload and I couldn't agree more. We are over-stimulated and the effects can and are negative if we don't learn to find the stillness in the midst of chaos. One of these conditions is known as "paralysis by analysis". Over thinking is a disease and I am an over thinker.

In my field of work I am often required to conjure up ideas out of thin air and manifest them into reality, be it an idea for a music video or how to better a commercial script or treatment, or when thinking about and writing my own movie script ideas. I have to use my imagination gland all the time and sometimes it can get overly taxed ... and just shut down. Imagination cannot be forced and ideas have to be allowed to come when they come. It is up to us to create the right atmosphere that allows the fickle ghosts of imagination to wander in and bless us with their jewels. From my experience, the imagination bunnies like a quiet place to wander into, with maybe a warm breeze to boot.

I usually find that if I think about something long enough and deeply enough, I can most of the time find my answer. Not always, but most of the time ... this may take minutes, hours or days; there are no guarantees.

After I watch all the movies, read all the books/magazines, listen to all the songs and completely overload my senses, I find that enough is enough ... and too much of a good thing will harm you in the end. I constantly have a need to regulate my stimulus intake and lately have found that looking inward for inspiration is often more fruitful than my local bookstore!

In my teens, I discovered that nature was the only thing that quieted my mind, body and soul. Frequent trips into nature were a must, be it forest, desert, ocean or the mountains. I am particularly in love with the desert and much like Georgie O'Keefe, I find it has an instant way of transforming me and causes me to contemplate my meaning of existence within hours of staring at a sublime rock formation. Camping in New Mexico for a week can charge my battery for almost a year.

As I got older, I discovered meditation - TM - as an extremely helpful tool for quieting my overactive mind, as a way to tap into my subconscious anytime, day or night, as long as I committed my 20 minutes of sitting. I admit that I have discipline issues and that I have not stuck to my twice daily necessary meditation ritual as much as I need it. However, I do recognize and have experienced the tremendous benefits of doing so. I am a huge believer in visualization and I use it daily whether I realize it or not. There is absolute truth in the saying that if you can visualize something, you can achieve it. Olympic athletes do exercises where they picture themselves making that score, crossing the finish line, etc., and this absoltuely helps on so many levels. Dreams are a dialogue with your subconscious that can and often do manifest into the real world. I am sure many people do this, but when I go to sleep I think of whatever it is I am wanting to solve or get further clarification on, be it creatively or personally, and most times I end up controlling what I can dream about ... at least in the beginning and usually by morning time my mind has drifted into a Salvador Dali painting of subconscious abstractness.

It has been said that "knowledge is what you learn in school and wisdom is what you remember". I could go on and on but I hope this does the trick, Kittie ... I guess sometimes all it takes is for someone to ask the question."

Ben

Ben shared the photograph that heads this blog posting. It's a place that replenishes and inspires his creativity. He frequents it and other places in nature when he can ...

The next post is from artist Lucy Boody. Lucy's mediums are textile, watercolor and pastel, photography and words. Lucy lists some of her goals and not all of them are in her professional life ...

"An excellent question and I'm up for the review. Sometimes dreams come into the world with us. For example, I always knew I would be a mother. I knew I'd make a nest (home) for them. I hoped to have my home paid in full, long before the maturity of the 30-year mortgage ... and I did. These are lofty images and they altered my life.

Okay, when your dreams are accomplished, how do you replenish the ever-important list of goals, aka 'bucket list?' There may be years of practicality and commitment involved in order to realize your dreams. Some gain importance and momentum along the way while others go by the wayside. Envisioning them is part of it. If you can imagine it, you can make it happen. If you are a "yeah, but ..." sort, the likelihood of fulfilling dreams becomes less because you are your own worst enemy. Or, if you need a pill as a quick fix to get the job done, again, you are sabotaging both the opportunity and the process. Open mindedness and greeting each day as a gold gift of opportunity is key. Surrounding yourself with positive energy, starting with yourself, is critical. People respond to energy fields, and negativity is just as infections as positivity. You choose how you think ... choose your friends wisely. 'If you want to change yourself, change your mind.'

When the primary bucket list is realized, there is sometimes a "now what?" phase.

Well, enjoy reaching a goal and reward yourself. Take a break and sit back, then when you're ready, begin the process again. Decide what captures your attention. It's as individual a process as the unique design of a snowflake. Just make it happen. Without sorrow, it is said, there is no real joy. We all have our ups and downs. Life is like that. It isn't so much the situation as much as how we deal with it that matters. 

As creatures of habit, how can we expect different results by doing the same thing over and over? Only you can shake things up and get the ball rolling. Want to meet new friends? Join a gathering where there is a common interest - a knitting group, a book club, take an art class, travel. Make yourself do it. A good quote: "Is what I am doing today going to get me where I want to be tomorrow?" So you seem directionless. Nothing seems to turn your head. Try editing the things you know don't work for you and focus on being in the present.

This musing is loaded with others' pearls of wisdom, but they make sense to me. Here is one I read today .. 'If I am suffereing, it is because I expect a different outcome than what is.' Look at yourself in the mirror and try to grasp the idea that what you are seeing is what others see. Is the outside a reflection of the inside??

A dream can be as short as the time span of a quickie day dream. It doesn't have to take all night to experience it. Test things out. See if momentum builds or wanes. Was there something that turned your crank at some point in your life? What was the process you experienced that made it fulfilling? Spend some focused time with vision. Of course, you have to have a vision. Volunteer your time so others can benefit from their dreams while you are working on yours.

I'm often skeptical of those who give so much credit to luck., 'Oh, you are so lucky to live here, or have that'. You can be sure that very little of life fell into my lap without my help. Yes, luck exists, but not when related to accomplishments. 

Some folks are natural path makers. Others prefer walking the established road. It's all good as long as you are enjoying yourself and feel a sense of comfort, joy, peace. Passion enters the picture when you are ready to pay for it. The currency used has many shapes, colors and sizes. It doesn't matter if you gather inertia like a snowball or with baby steps. Some have loftier dreams than others. They are all important. Webster's definition of 'DREAM' has a number of meanings. Choose the one that works for you and go for it.

It doesn't have to please anyone but you.

 

   Lucy Boody/Telluride, CO

THANK YOU Ben and Lucy! Thank you, too to those posted in the comments section! Be sure to check the comments section of this post for other 'pearls' and PLEASE be sure to add your own!