Have you ever been working on a project — a report, development of a class, a blog post, a speech — and gotten to a point where the whole thing just felt messy?
I have. I do.
For me, it goes something like this:
1. I start working on project with enthusiasm.
2. I notice that it’s not flowing like I thought it would.
3. I notice a strong desire to avoid working on the project.
4. I slowly chip away at it anyway, trying to keep it moving forward, in a quest for creative flow.
5. It’s still not flowing, despite giving myself space to dream and consuming inspirational content to spark creativity.
6. Full-on identify crisis ensues: Who do I think I am that I could do this? Why did I take this on in the first place? What was I thinking?
This place? Number 6? It’s not a good place to be. It feels like I’m wading through mud, with heavy boots, and no dry ground in sight.
But I’ve got no choice but to keep on trudging ahead, one slow, heavy, muddy step at a time. And then something always happens.
7. The mud dries up.
I don’t know exactly what sparks this shift. It usually happens very suddenly, without warning. But where I once felt so lost and confused and unsure about where I was going and what I was doing, now I feel confident, knowing, excited. I’m running on grass.
I’ve come to realize that messy process occurs with every single project I take on. (Yet, somehow it still surprises me…?)
For me, this is part of creating. I have to wade through the mud to get to the grass. And I always get through it. I just have to trust that I will and keep moving forward.
How about you? How do you get through the mud and mess of your own creative process?