 How do you find enough time for your art practice? Our lives are filled with demands, pressures, and commitments to others that seem more important than our own good intentions. We all get lost in the everyday. For artists this dilemma is especially powerful, because people think you don’t have a “real job” so you must have lots of extra time to volunteer for worthy projects. Then you internalize their assumptions and say YES to everything but your own practice. Over time you lose track of your artist self. We know that making art requires time and space and mental freedom. You often need to “waste” time being creative, since the process of making art sometimes looks a lot like doing nothing. You play with materials, you reorganize your studio, you stare out the window as you think about ideas for new work. If you allow yourself this freedom you will eventually find your way forward. Making art requires patience and commitment. After failures and disappointments, you need time to recover. You begin, and then you begin again, as you grow and develop. But to sustain this creative freedom, you also need its opposite: structure and organization. Think of your art practice as your real job. Show up every day. Put in the time even when you don’t want to. Have a plan for the week. Create a list of goals and keep it visible. Establish rules for your workplace as though it were a regular business. Maybe you don’t allow cell phones, or you cannot take private calls until lunchtime. Don’t be a mean boss to yourself, but develop working rules and structures that help you stay focused. These are the left brain skills that right brained people need. ~ Mary
Mary Edwards, Ph.D Career & Life Coach for Artists “Left Brain Skills for Right Brained People” Instagram: coachingforartists.maryedwards Comments are closed.
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