In the last newsletter, we chatted about finding pockets of creativity in our daily lives (and if you missed that newsletter, you can read it here!) I believe it’s SO IMPORTANT to take even a few minutes a day to be creative in some way or another. It’s good for your creativity, it’s good for your mind, and it’s good for your health.
But as I’ve begun to think more about pockets of creativity, I realized there’s an underlying problem here for most of us: we’re too busy. We’re filling our days with so much stuff that we don’t even feel like we can take three minutes for a doodle in our sketchbook or plunking out a song on our piano.
Some of us literally don’t have any space available for these pockets of creativity, and it’s hurting us.
I spent most of May sick and unable to do pretty much anything. It was a brutal reminder to me that my body doesn’t play by normal rules, as well as a wake-up call to lessen the “busy” in my life. I began to look at my life as a whole and where my time, attention, and efforts were really going. Many things stood out to me as hurting my health and my creativity, but one thing in particular caught my attention the most…
INSTAGRAM. For me, it was a time-waster in a multitude of ways. I spent countless hours trying to “master the algorithm” for my art business and countless hours doom-scrolling the explore page. The doom-scrolling always left me feeling like I was falling short in every area of life from health and fitness to my art to the way I decorate my home. Like I wasn’t “doing enough.” And the hours spent trying to reach people on Instagram with my art did absolutely nothing for my business, and ended up soaking up time that would’ve been better spent elsewhere.
So, I made the decision to let go of Instagram. At least for now. And you know what? I feel GREAT.
My headspace is much clearer. My art feels more like “me” than like “everyone else”. I’ve been able to put more time into my sketchbook, into YouTube and Patreon, and into the non-artsy things that I love in my life, too!
So, if you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, like you’re too busy, like you can’t find space for pockets of creativity, I want to encourage you to ask yourself “is there anything negative in my life that’s pulling my time and attention away from what truly matters to me?” What’s something YOU can let go of today to make space for what you love?
For a cozy little sketchbook painting and more tips on making space in your life for what’s important to you, I’ve made this YouTube video for you!