Creativity is My Life Project

Love-hate and keep creating

I consider my relationship with creativity one big life project. A never-ending project, at that.

I have a love-hate relationship with creating. I get so excited when something comes together just right. It gives me a little dopamine hit of gratification. I feel at my highest potential. Other days I get so frustrated, I promise myself I’ll never go back. I declare it. I swear it!

Then I can’t stay away, and I’m back at it the next day.

Because the project carries on.

Ebbs and flows

Projects have phases. There are timelines, ebbs and flows of quick movement and needed pauses. There are milestones, tasks, to-do lists. There are celebrations and sunk opportunity costs.

My creative process is similar. Some phases feel smooth and energetic. The ingenuity is magic. I make my list; I check things off. I celebrate the amount of output I can produce. I’m in such a state of FLOW, it’s addicting. Other times, I feel like I wasted more hours than I want to count, spent on steps that felt like walking backward on an escalator.

Some parts of the project are planned well in advance, and everything stays on track. It goes exactly as I expected. Sometimes the plan is completely derailed, and there are a million steps of catching up to do. Other times, a detour is in order and the outcome is better than anyone could have imagined.

When I look back at those final creations that started out great, derailed into despair, and then bounced back to become masterpieces, I am most satisfied.

Building the steps

There are times one phase builds on another, which builds on another. There are often many projects happening at once. Learning new art forms is like this. One medium lends itself skillfully to another, then another. But I don’t want to give up the first phase or the second. And next thing I know, I’m creating a mind map of all the spinoffs I want to try.

I am not a project manager by any means, but I feel like one when it comes to my creative process. I have developed habits. Those habits allow me to practice, practice, practice, even when I don’t want to. Those habits serve as the conduit for manufacturing motivation when my mind and body feel far from in the mood.

I try to use my naturally timed energy cycle to my benefit. Mornings are best for deep thinking. Weekends are best for an unscheduled, unmonitored creative exploration. Evenings are best for reviewing tasks and lists and organizing plans.

Embracing the unexpected

My favorite type of creative process is when the unexpected happens. Like most things in life, something pleasantly surprising feels welcoming. When a creative riff turns into an innovative idea or an inventive plan, it puts a little kick in my step and keeps the flow state moving.

There is just enough push-and-pull tension in creativity to keep it both interesting and fulfilling.

Not too difficult but not too boring.

Not too frustrating but not too mundane.

Both enjoyable and challenging.

Both restoring and extending at the same time.

Creativity’s dependability

When life needs either a disconnection or a reconnection, creativity answers.

When my mind needs a distraction or a way to get deeply focused, creativity provides.

When my soul needs either an unraveling or an awakening, creativity is there.

So, love-hate relationship or not, and declarations of walking away, I know I won’t, because creativity is not just a life project; it is a way of life.

*Any likes, comments, and follows are greatly appreciated if you enjoy my work!*

Sarah Norris ©

I’m a creative. Writing, art, music, movement. Designing, crafting, engineering, strategizing. It’s all up for grabs. I find it too confining to focus on one hobby, one medium, or one interest. They each provide such a different experience, answer a different question, meet a different need, or provide a different level of depth to my humanity.