Mar 11th 1-2-3: Do Anything
1: Do Anything ( 1 minute read )
You’re sitting down thinking, thinking about how you want to do something.
Does this sound familiar to you at all? I know I have been here countless times in my career and life and every time it results in me getting a whole lot of thinking done but not a lot of doing. At the end, I have some new thoughts, some changed thoughts, and not a whole lot to show for it.
Why do we do this?
It can be so much easier to focus on how to get the end result perfect and the process efficient but the harsh reality is that this just prolongs the act of doing. This is called, perfectionism and it is a common plague amongst creatives of all types. All this is is paralysis of the worst kind.
It really is key that we look at perfection for what it is: a way to trick ourselves into thinking we did something when we didn’t.
So what is the answer?
That is simple, do anything.
That’s right, do anything. Anything is better than nothing, because it is something. What a freeing thought!
If we look at creating as a continuing of momentum, perfectionism is having no momentum.
This is why doing anything is so important, it generates the initial momentum to getting that creating going. Once you have it going, your only job is to keep it going. This builds discipline, routine, and habit.
Creating is just as much about habit as it is about the actual creating.
This also has the beautiful effect of eliminating regress and “what ifs”. We know that we are doing it, so we have peace which allows one idea to flow into another. One creation into another.
It is human and understandable to want to stop, but I would urge you not to.
I have seen it time and time again in my creative career that when I put the pencil down, the guitar down, writing down, that picking it back up is just that much harder. This is why doing anything makes the picking it back so much easier.
Write anything, draw whatever, play something, and you will quickly find yourself regaining momentum, regaining peace, and regaining creative flow.
Go do anything today! I am sure it will be a blessing to you.
2: Creative Prompts From Us (ex. Write a short story, a poem, a song, or draw a quick illustration of these! Let your imagination run free.)
I. Set a timer for 2 minutes and then get to creating. You don’t have to stop when it goes off, but you do have to continue until it does.
II. Do this again the next day.
3: Inspirational Quotes From Others
I. “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” - Jack London, Novelist and Journalist
II. “The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” - Sylvia Plath, Writer
III. “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” - Walt Disney
Thank you so much for reading!