{"id":7178,"date":"2017-05-29T18:28:44","date_gmt":"2017-05-29T17:28:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.blueeyedsun.co.uk\/blog\/?p=7178"},"modified":"2017-05-29T18:29:25","modified_gmt":"2017-05-29T17:29:25","slug":"big-magic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.blueeyedsun.co.uk\/blog\/big-magic\/","title":{"rendered":"20 lessons in creativity from Elizabeth Gilbert’s: Big Magic"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Big<\/i>This year I\u2019ve been rediscovering my creative self via my YouTube channel: The Greeting Card Project<\/a>. It\u2019s got me thinking a lot about creativity.<\/p>\n

I recently devoured a fantastic book on the subject. I found it refreshing, life affirming and incredibly inspiring. In fact, I loved Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert, so much that I thought I\u2019d share my key learnings from it with you<\/p>\n

Fear<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are many ways we can be afraid to live a creative life. You can be afraid that you have no talent. Afraid that there\u2019s no market for your creativity. Afraid that other people are already better. Afraid that the greeting cards you create are not original. Afraid that you\u2019ll embarrass yourself. Afraid that nobody will be interested in what you make. Afraid you\u2019ll waste your time. The list is endless. It\u2019s terrifying. Fear is boring. It stops you from living. You must be brave.<\/p>\n

Courage<\/strong><\/p>\n

Being brave is not the same as being fearless. Being creative requires courage. The courage to bring forth the treasures within yourself. Acknowledge your fear and allow it to join creativity and you on your road trips. Just don\u2019t allow it to make any decisions – and definitely don\u2019t let it drive!<\/p>\n

Magic<\/strong><\/p>\n

Creativity is a force of enchantment, like magic. Gilbert believes that the planet is inhabited by ideas that are disembodied, energetic life-forms looking for places to manifest by collaborating with a human partner. If you don\u2019t pursue an idea it\u2019ll leave and resurface somewhere else with someone else (I\u2019ve seen this happen with card range ideas we never pursued).<\/p>\n

Ownership<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ideas don\u2019t belong to any one person. They are born out of collaboration with the creativity of people. Ideas can collaborate with more than one human and arrive in similar forms. This is an artistic form of multiple discovery – a term used in the scientific community whenever two scientists from different parts of the world come up with an idea at the same time. A common occurrence throughout history. In the end, it\u2019s all just flowers seeking light.<\/p>\n

Torment<\/strong><\/p>\n

You don\u2019t have to be a tormented artist that brings forth ideas at a cost to your relationships and yourself. In the end it\u2019s all about the work, not the suffering. A different way is to cooperate fully, humbly and joyfully with inspiration. You can support other\u2019s creativity. Measure your worth by your dedication to your path of creating beautiful cards, not by successes or failures, wealth or fortune.<\/p>\n

Genius<\/strong><\/p>\n

Unlike us, the Romans didn\u2019t believe that a gifted person was a genius. They believe they had<\/i> a genius. Like a sort of spirit guide. This psychological construct is useful to keep the artist\u2019s ego in check by distancing them from taking the glory or blame for the work. That way they are not burdened by the reaction to anything they create. It\u2019s useful to think of your creative talent as separate from you, so you don\u2019t beat yourself up when your latest card range flops in the marketplace.<\/p>\n

Making Space<\/strong><\/p>\n

You have to make space for the work. Setting aside time each day or week. Creative work is labour; like farming. It\u2019s not a never ending series of enlightened moments. It\u2019s hard. Forces of inspiration cannot be seen, proven, commanded nor understood. Yet they are relied upon in our industry as a way of generating income for tens of thousands of people. Be disciplined with regular design time.<\/p>\n

Permission<\/strong><\/p>\n

You don\u2019t need anyone\u2019s permission to live a creative life. You don\u2019t need to do a course or get a certificate. We are inherently creative beings. The earliest example of human art is 40,000 years ago, thirty thousand years before the earliest evidence of human agriculture. Which means we were more interested in creating than regularly feeding ourselves! Give yourself permission to create.<\/p>\n

Originality<\/strong><\/p>\n

I remember my high school art teacher telling me that nothing is original. Try not to get hung up on this. Most things have already been done – but they have not been done yet by you. Say what you want to say with all your heart. If it\u2019s authentic it will probably feel<\/i> original.<\/p>\n

Stop Complaining<\/strong><\/p>\n

The world is busy. Nobody wants to hear you complaining about being an artist or that it\u2019s difficult. Get on with it. Stop getting in your own way. The commercial results of your work don\u2019t have a lot to do with you as creator. Your job is to produce the work itself. That job is tough enough. This is where it helps to have a business partner who focuses on selling and marketing your greeting cards as a separate job. It\u2019s tough doing both.<\/p>\n

Child\u2019s Play<\/strong><\/p>\n

Children make up things all the time. They aren\u2019t burdened by being artists or by the work. They create and toss their creations out like paper airplanes. Relax. Enjoy creating your card designs. Be light. Have fun with it.<\/p>\n

Criticism<\/strong><\/p>\n

What people see in your work has nothing to do with you and everything to do with them. People make all sorts of connections and assumptions driven by their own emotional stories all the time. Don\u2019t get caught up in this. Your focus is on the work.<\/p>\n

The Paradox<\/strong><\/p>\n

Art is absolutely meaningless. It\u2019s also incredibly meaningful. Sending someone a card is the same. It can be completely meaningless. It can be incredibly meaningful. It needs the freedom to be both. We need to be able to throw away what\u2019s not working and start afresh when creating.<\/p>\n

Suckage<\/strong><\/p>\n

Everything sucks, some of the time. What are you passionate enough about that you can endure the most disagreeable aspects of the work? Similarly, you will never find all the hours you need for your creativity. You have to find ways to fit it in.<\/p>\n

Perfection<\/strong><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t worry about what other people think either. Other people are mostly thinking about themselves and not you. Remember that done is better than good. I\u2019ve found this with The Greeting Card Project, some videos are better than others. Twenty two videos done is better than trying to make one good video.<\/p>\n

A Chore<\/strong><\/p>\n

Creativity is a chore. If it\u2019s too painful, you may want to quit. Life is short and should be enjoyed. Take up a new hobby, travel, spend time with friends. After a while, if you find yourself drawn back towards creating because nothing in life brings you the same pleasure, then you will have no choice.<\/p>\n

Playfulness<\/strong><\/p>\n

Be a trickster with your work , not a martyr. Have fun with it. Make it work for you. Be playful. Your work is not your baby. Let it go. If you have to cut it or adjust your new card range to make it happen in the world then do so.<\/p>\n

Curiosity<\/strong><\/p>\n

Forget about your passion, follow your curiosity instead. Rather than waiting for passion to strike or deciding which passion to pursue, be inquisitive about things. It may lead you somewhere, it may not. Following it opens up things. The Greeting Card Project has definitely done this for me. I\u2019ve learnt more about greeting cards this year than all my pervious years in the card industry.<\/p>\n

Failure<\/strong><\/p>\n

You will fail. It sucks, but it\u2019s true. Creative risks won\u2019t always pan out. Sometimes your work fails on your own terms, sometimes it fails to connect with anyone when you put it out there. That\u2019s the nature of creativity. Nobody simply designs a best selling range of greeting cards. It happens outside of them. Successes are rooted in the manure of failures. When you fail, let it go. Forgive yourself.<\/p>\n

Top Dog<\/strong><\/p>\n

How do you top a best selling range of cards? This assumes that reaching the top and staying there is the only reason to create. If anything it\u2019s a hindrance. The mysteries of inspiration do not operate on the limited human scale of commerce and reputation, of units sold and markets won. If you only have one designer in your business, it\u2019s important to acknowledge the commercial limitations of this and not put pressure on your creativity.<\/p>\n

Summary<\/strong><\/p>\n

Be sure to live a life driven more strongly by curiosity than by fear. A creative life is an amplified life, where Big Magic is to be found.\u00a0Time marches on. Look within to unearth your creative treasures. We don’t have the time anymore to think small.<\/p>\n

Eight Ways to Deal with Failure<\/a><\/p>\n

Freedom from Standard Thinking<\/a><\/p>\n

How to create best selling greeting cards<\/a><\/p>\n

Watch Liz Gilbert’s TED talk on creativity by clicking on the image below:<\/p>\n