How to Develop Your Creative Practice

If you’re having trouble developing a creative practice that works for you, consider your creative space, how you use your time, what support you have, and your commitment to your creative expression.

Space

You need space to create. Whether that’s your own studio space, a shared studio, a writing room, or a coffee shop, depends on your needs and resources.

What is your creative space like? Are you able to spread out if you need to? Do you have the right stimulation to support your creative process? How is the lighting? Sometimes we adapt to circumstances that we can easily change. Are there any changes you need to make?

Of course, dedicated space is more than just the area needed to create your art: it includes your inner space. Your mind needs to be uncluttered, without distractions.

To help focus, some artists develop rituals. A thoughtful ritual can turn your attention from the every-day world to the sacred space where you connect to your creative muse. It grounds and centers you in the creative work you are about to do.

Candle on desk

For example, I like to light a candle before I write. A lit candle is a beautiful metaphor for the creative spark and a visual reminder that I am doing my creative practice.

If you don’t have a ritual, what can you do to focus on the present, and not on your to-do list?

Consider playing with this. Just do whatever works for you!

Time

Time; it seems like there’s never enough, yet it’s all we have.

Clock face with wavy distortion

We experience time differently depending on how we focus on it. When you’re busy, time seems to move quickly because you’re focused on what you’re doing. But when you don’t have much to do, time can seem to stretch out like taffy.

You don’t really have more time or less time, depending on how busy you are. It’s really about prioritizing what you do in the time you have.

So if you’re not painting, or singing, or making pottery as much as you want, why aren’t you? What priority do you give your creative expression? What are you doing instead that you can put lower on your list, at least some of the time?

Support

We all need some kind of support, such as:

  • Inspiration—The invisible breath of life that pours into you, filling you with energy and ideas.
  • Encouragement—Allies who champion your efforts.
    People catching woman in air
  • Accountability—Allies who hold you accountable for deadlines you promise to meet.
  • Routines—Daily habits that form the architecture of your days that include creative time.
  • Self-care—What you need to do for yourself, to refill your own well.

What support are you lacking? Do you ask for help when you need it? How can you get the support you need?

Commitment

You can have the ideal space, time, and support to do creative work, but if you don’t pick up the brush, or the pen, or the guitar, nothing happens. You have to show up and do the work.

(And if you “can’t find” the space, you “don’t have” the time, or you “need more” support, take a deeper look at your commitment to express your creative gifts. Commitment drives you to make the changes necessary to create the space, reprioritize, and ask for help.)

To create—in some way—is a central part of being alive. So if you’re not creating, that’s a huge loss for you, and for those you would touch with your art. We need to read what you have to say, and see what you want to reveal, and experience what only your music can make us feel.

Commitment

If you’re not feeling committed enough, re-focus on why you have your creative dream. Why does it matter to you? What is important about what you have to express? How will you feel if you never realize your creative dream?

Remember to simply appreciate your gifts. Be grateful for what you can bring to the world!

The Soul is Here for Its Own Joy

Rumi had it right. The soul is here for its own joy, among other things. That quote often comes to mind when I’m doing something I love, like walking my dog Lucy on a sunny, blue-skied, summer morning.

Cute dog wearing hat

Lucy wearing one of my hats

Those moments—spending time with the family member I often call Sweetie Face—bring me joy. (Right now she’s halfway on my lap, demanding my attention. Her goofy face makes me laugh!)

Could I live without a dog? Maybe. Could I thrive without a dog? Absolutely not.

What do you need to thrive? In hopes of inspiring your list, here is a partial list of mine:

  • Quiet time in the morning
  • Deep talks with my husband
  • Lots of laughter
  • Walks with my dog
  • Learning
  • The ocean
  • Painting
  • Stories and new worlds! (Books, movies)
  • Writing
  • Flowers
  • Travel (exploring)
  • Stretching and working out
  • Connection

Take a closer look.

What do you need to thrive? Make a list and order them, top to bottom, by most essential to least essential. (My list above is not ordered.)

Look at the top five, and note how often you need each one before your life feels out of balance and your stress level rises. Is it once a day, once a week, once a month?

Consider:

  • What’s life like for you if you don’t get those things in the frequency you need?
  • How often do you put those things off, telling yourself you’ll get to them next week, or next month, or next year?
  • What is the cost to your spirit when you put those things off?
    What is the cost to your body? Your mind?

How can you bring more joy into your life?

Woman running with balloons

We all have life circumstances that get in the way of those things—some of the time. But how much more free time could you have, if you made different choices about how you spend your time?

To determine how much time you actually have in a week, subtract the time you spend doing each activity listed below, from the total number of hours in a week (168 hours):

  • Working/commuting
  • Spending time with your family
  • Doing Housework
  • Cooking/eating
  • Exercising
  • Participating in leisure activities (TV, books, computer games)
  • Sleeping
  • Other

What’s the total number of free hours you have? Is it more time than you expected? Or less?

Make a commitment to yourself

In the next week, schedule time to do one of the top five things on your list. Tell someone close to you that this is a commitment you’re making to yourself, and ask for support and accountability.

Then, do it. Notice how it affects your attitude, your energy, your joy.

Next, ask yourself what you want to commit to doing the following week.

What lights you up?

Schedule it. And do it! (This is how you build new habits that support who you are.)

Wishing you a week of new discoveries and joy!

You Can Get There from Here

The choices you’re making now are actively creating your future. And the life that’s unfolding for you, at this moment, is the result of what you did six months ago, a year ago, twenty years ago.

Of course, events happen that you have no control over. But to a large extent, you can move toward a life that you consciously choose, or a future that you unconsciously endure.

Woman standing on edge of cliff

Realistically, many of us live in a combination of both.

If you’ve created the life that you want for yourself, that’s wonderful!

If, however, you want to change something in your life, then take heart. You can get there from here.

Taking responsibility for these aspects of your life will help you get where you want to be:

  • your beliefs
  • your clarity
  • your habits
  • your support system
  • your commitment
  • your actions

What you believe, you create.

If you don’t think something is possible, you undermine it from the start. Doubt is an active, destructive force. Hedging on believing in your future won’t protect you from disappointment, it just sets you up to fail. When you believe in bigger possibilities, you actively co-create those possibilities, with whatever resources you have. It takes a bigger view to see a new path.

Examine your beliefs. Be curious. Go deeper. Choose a bigger perspective.

Clarity gives you direction.

When you’re clear, you make decisions that truly support your dreams. You can also strategize better and take more effective steps. Talk to someone. Meditate. Journal. Make a vision board. Your imagination is a powerful force for getting clarity.

Take the time to get clear, in whatever way works for you.

Habits either support or undermine your dreams.

If you want to write a story, you must write on a regular basis. Schedule time to devote to your creative expression. Keep to that schedule. If your habit of checking email undermines your writing, disconnect.

You must build new habits that will help you get there, and let go of the habits that get in your way.

People holding hands

No one does it alone.

Life is full of challenges, distractions, obligations, and surprises. I cannot say this enough: get support!

Join a local MeetUp group that supports your creative dream. Take classes that require you to show up and produce something. Hire a coach to support you on your journey and hold you accountable. Join a writer’s group, rent some art studio space.

Find the real support you need.

When you truly commit to something, the wheels begin to turn.

Be grateful for the unseen forces that will support you when you make the commitment to live your authentic life. Other people sensing your commitment to your dream provide a helping hand. Little—and big—synchronicities and coincidences occur. Natural forces help you grow the way rain and sunshine help the trees grow. Trust in this. Believe.

Put your heart and mind into realizing your dream.

Water dripping from hand onto soil with sprouts

Nothing happens if you do nothing.

Take conscious action, one little step at a time. Do one thing, and then another, building on previous actions to move you in the direction you choose.

Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.
— Vincent Van Gogh

Start your journey now.