Working with the waves of creativity during uncertainty

Large scale flower displays in the Flatiron District

Hello from New York, dear friends. I am on a quick trip for some of the product design work I do and am meeting with some design partners to discuss the 2023 fall/winter season. I have not talked much about my corporate design work in the past although it has been a big part of my worklife for the last 6 years in particular, although i have worked in product design and development in the fashion world for over 20 years.

I do a lot of different things throughout the year, depending on the season. It is part of how I have built the creative flow of my life, and at times things overlap considerably. As I navigate the seasons, I continue to develop and evolve some of the tools I have honed for folks in their Creative Guidance Sessions. Procrastination? Perfection paralysis? Total creative block with a side of exhaustion? Yeah, I have been there. We all end up there. Repeatedly. To be creative is to be in an ongoing state of tension with the hope for satisfaction and the occasional flash of genius. My goal is for us all to at least enjoy the process now and then, and to definitely know we are not alone in our struggles and success.

So how to find creativity when things feel uncertain? So many of us have felt anything but creative and inspired these past 2 (3?) years, and the news on the horizon does not feel much better. Hopefully there are some things within our lives that still bring us joy- most of us still have the “little things” which really makes a difference. But when we are in survival mode, our first and second chakras are stressed and it affects us more than we realize. If we are ungrounded and uncertain, we lose a big part of our ability to bring creative projects to completion, especially ones that may not feel like a priority to our survival. Along with this, a depleted second chakra leaves us feeling blah and like we don’t even know what we want in our lives.

We already spend so much of our lives in our heads, so when things get difficult it is hard to want to be in our bodies, but that is precisely what we need to do. This is no time for intellectualizing our healing. We need to take care of our basic needs and our senses. So this would include making a simple and nourishing meal. Yes, soup can help your creativity! Do things that make you feel safe and secure, rather than just zoning out. So close that app on your phone and call someone who is kind and sweet to you and ask them how they are doing. Dance to music that makes you feel silly-alive-sensual-energized. Fix that thing you have been putting off. Pay that bill. Write a letter to your grandma.

Take care of your foundational needs and desires and slowly you may feel your creative flow sneaking back in to your everyday.

xoxoMs.AnnaLee