Living The Artist’s Way, Week Two: Inviting Strength

This is my series on Living The Artist’s Way, a workbook focused on writing for guidance to find creative inspiration. Check out my post on week one if you haven’t already done so. This week is about committing to self-care, which leads to clarity, strength, and a greater sense of self-worth.

Looking to the positive

In the first part of this chapter, Cameron shares pinpoints the importance of a daily gratitude practice, through morning pages, prayer, or walks. While I wholeheartedly agree that gratitude can change the chemistry of your brain, I disagree with the necessity of practicing it first thing in the morning, only because my body clock is completely disjointed. As a graveyard shift worker, I work when most people are sleeping, sleep when most are working, and start ramping up for my day when others are winding down, so “mornings” for me are complicated. As long as you have built some routine in your day of gratitude, that is what counts, not what time of day you practice it.

These are some of the ways I practice gratitude:

• In my day planner, I write down three things I’m grateful for when I start my work day and write down the highlights of my previous day.

• I take my camera on my daily dog walk to look for and capture the beauty surrounding me.

• I try to say “thank you” to others as much as possible throughout the day.

Writing Prompt:

“Consciously expressing gratitude is a powerful spiritual tool that also puts us in touch with the power of our guidance. Fill in the following:

• A person I am grateful for is…

• In my career, I am grateful that…

• I am grateful that my guidance…”

The power of slowing down

Cameron emphasizes that the best thing we can do for our creativity is to slow down, ease up on ourselves, and listen to our bodies when we need a break. If you know anything about me, you know that my life is nothing but to-do lists, if I don’t write it on a list, it doesn’t get done. But to be honest with you, nothing on my to-do list is so entirely pressing that it absolutely needs to get done.  I’m so lucky to be at a point in my life where I feel that ease and allow frequent breaks. I have a job that I clock out of and don’t think about hardly at all when I’m at home. I’m not in school, so there are no pressing deadlines to meet or readings to catch up on. 

Here are some ways I invite more ease into my life:

• I meditate for at least five minutes a day.

• I listen to my body when it needs rest.

• I have regular “do nothing” days where I forgo any to-do lists and mostly just lie around and relax all day.

Writing Prompt:

“Ask your guidance on what you could do to ease the pressure on yourself. Can you take a break or a nap? Can you push a deadline? Can you give yourself a full day of “no expectations,” where you ask for nothing from yourself? What do you hear? Can you give it a try?”