Hello!
It has been one whole month since I last wrote to you. How are you? What have you been up to? I've been swimming. In oceans, rivers, lakes, quarries, ponds, marine pools, swimming pools and even in a good old fashioned paddling pool. Perhaps swimming is too official a term for the kind of aimless swirling, floating and frolicking I've been doing. (Some pics of my favourite spots below. Which one would you most like to go skinny dipping in??)
Naked swimming aside, I wanted to write to you about what to do when we feel blocked. Experiencing blocks when it comes to our creative endeavours is a very normal thing. The trouble is, if we aren't careful, a block can go from something as seemingly small and insignificant as say, one missed week of pursing our dreams to something as huge and devastating as living a whole life never manifesting our true potential.
Being in the business of creative coaching, I see all sorts of people bring all sorts of ideas to life - from re-imagining creative careers and businesses to igniting brand new ones. From theatre productions, live events, films, retreats, courses, workshops, podcasts, websites, screenplays, apps, characters, short stories, novels, clothing designs, photoshoots, exhibitions, film posters, their next life chapter... you name it, my clients are creating it.
But it's what they create behind the scenes that really matters. Because behind the scenes of any and every 'thing' they create, will always be the most important asset of all - the person creating it. This is where I meet my clients. This is where the subtle yet powerful work begins. Creating and cultivating the conditions for the creations and the creator to thrive.
We tend to know how to pour love into our creations. We care about them. We want what's best for them. But for some bizarre reason, we tend to be less good at directing love towards ourselves. Can you relate?
My clients, they have big ambitions. It matters to them that they bring their dreams and ideas to life in their lifetime. But it's not always easy to do something as bold and courageous that that, especially not all on our lonesome. We get stuck and blocked.And this makes us sad, because we want nothing more than to be free.
Without an outside eye, it can be harder to spot when blocks are at play. Harder to notice when unkind thoughts, unfair expectations or self sabotaging patterns have crept in. And before we know it, we've lost precious time. Because fear, our ego - whatever you want to call it - is clever and deceiving, often sneaking in through the back door, desperately trying to help us by keeping us safe (aka stuck). Plus, when we're in the throws of a creative process, it can be pretty hard to tell the wood from the trees. Hard to zoom out and see the big picture when you're immersed in the detail.
Sometimes the work we must do is very practical. Other times it requires a bit more personal digging and depth. Have I booked in some time off? Am I getting enough sleep, water, nourishment? Are the thoughts I think and the language I speak creating a kind and supportive environment for me to thrive in? Am I being honest with myself? What am I avoiding or delaying? What's really going on here? What do I need? What does the work need?
When we feel blocked, we so often don't need to crack the whip harder. Instead, can we loosen the grip and see what solutions naturally flow from here? Softening helps. Laughter helps. Honesty helps. Forgiveness helps. Kindness helps. Love helps. Love has this wonderful way of unlocking motivation, discipline and creativity. Oh, and skinny dipping helps too!
There is this beautiful poem in Nayyirah Waheed's, Salt and it goes...
“you do not have to be a fire
for
every mountain blocking you.
you could be a water
and
soft river your way to freedom
too.
- options”
Be more water.
With love,
Fi X