Hilariously, I had this whole post typed up and ready to go and the site froze up and I managed to lose the whole post. Let’s try this again…
I’ve been reading the book Growing Gills: How to find creative focus when you’re drowning in your daily life by Jessica Abel and it is slowly changing how I view and approach all creative projects I want to work on. Abel has a free workbook you can print out to follow along in and I’m chipping away at the self-reflective exercises and reading almost daily.
What ideas are floating around my brainpan shouting to become a Thing?
What “open loops” are taking up valuable time in some shape or form?
What “shoulds” become the cudgel I use to beat myself up?
All these questions, and others, get dedicated time for me to dive deep and reflect. How am I holding myself back? What changes can I make to help me help me? What clutter, both in my physical and mental spaces can I try and clear away to let words and ideas flow?
Growing Gills is proving to be a real game changer for me in the best of ways. For anyone pursuing a creative path and possibly struggling, or even wanting to refine things, I highly recommend both the book and the workbook.