A 10-Minute Daily Practice To Boost Your Creative Productivity
What’s good in your life? Let’s capture it and use it to support you in times of creative trial…
At my last performance class, I gave each of my singers a new journal and a piece of paper full of words. I invited them to join me in a practice that I am beginning in the new year. I would like to share it with you as well…
In a previous posts, I have talked about the importance of allowing room in your life for all your emotions, and today I want to offer you a way that once you have given yourself permission to feel all, to then magnify the emotions that make you feel the best. The strategy being that by focusing on the good in your life, more good will come your way.
As creative people, we hold close to our hearts big dreams and visions for our art. Daily action is necessary to meet our goal, but some days are easier than others to walk our creative path. We must rally ourselves each day, to face our personal resistance and overcome the inner critics that want to keep us in a “safe” place. It is easy to become beaten down by outside criticisms, conflicts, and industry hurdles. One of my friends once said to me, “We will all fail at one point or another, but the goal is to fail faster, adjust our course, and stay true to our vision.”
One way to fail faster is to speed up the recovery time, and the recovery time can be accelerated by creating your own journal of “Positive Aspects” as offered in the book “Ask and It Is Given” by Abraham-Hicks.
The idea is to capture on paper what is good in your life.
The benefit of this idea is echoed in some psychology camps… this is the link to one of my favorite TED talks. Shawn Anchor highlights five basic actions proven to improve personal productivity; recalling a positive memory on paper is one of action items.
There is a bible verse that comes to mind when thinking about this practice…
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.” Philippians 4:8 NIV
Here how it works, as inspired by Abraham-Hicks
1. Purchase a small notebook
2. Set aside 10-20 minutes each day for the practice
3. Write a topic heading on the first page
4. To get you started, ask yourself the following questions; “What do I like about you? “What about our relationship feels good?” ‘What do I love about you?” “What are your positive aspects?” Shift the questions if the topic is a place, thing or event
5. Allow your pen to capture the flow of your thoughts
6. It may feel a bit awkward at first, you may get stuck or stall… it’s okay. Be gentle with yourself and enjoy the process. Reread your words and enjoy how they make you feel
I like to keep this book out in sight… in my office or by my piano… for even a glance at it will bring to mind the feelings associated with what I have written, and it is a reminder of all the good in my life.
Here is an excerpt about my husband from my new journal I started last week…
“I love his gentle eyes… when he smiles the soft edges of his eyes crinkle into deep folds of sun-kissed happiness. His gaze is as if he has known me for an eternity. His soul’s vision carries an innocent wisdom… an idealism that he would die for. His compass is ancient, and weathered, but reliable.. like that of a stalwart sea captain; navigating his own mighty ocean with determination and vast perspective. His decisions are quick and clear with no turning back… perfect for urgent situations, emergencies or when shopping for just the right outfit 🙂 He is there – he is here… physically close… ready to listen. He will put aside his momentary focus from books to research to writing to let me share my newest revelation, idea or goal. He is real; no pretense or superficiality. He sees me. He loves me and he seeks to love me in ways that help me feel his love more deeply. He places our togetherness as his life priority. He is an anchor for my soul – beyond life times and universes.”
Here are some positive words to infuse into your writing. Expanding our vocabulary with good feeling words can’t help but expand and deepen our ability to express all the feelings in our lives.
Have fun with this process!
Join me in making it a daily action … and watch the goodness grow!
Always Rejoice In Your Voice™
xoxoxox, Tricia
