How to restart your creative project or practice AGAIN!

Coming back to creating. A place to begin (or carry on from).

When there’s been some distance between you and your sketchbook, a pause in your creative practice or project. Whatever the reason - whether it’s procrastination, a change that disrupted your habit, or simply other priorities getting your attention.

The most obvious thing to do is to go back to what you were doing before.
To pick up your creative practice and carry on.

But often between us and our desire to get back to creating is a whole lot of…
Judgment

We’re judging ourselves for having taken a break or for not following through on a commitment we made. We’re judging ourselves for not being a good artist, for not creating enough or for procrastinating (again). We’re judging ourselves for starting and stopping a project or for taking longer than we planned to complete one.

And the thing is…all of that judgment, none of it helps us get back to creating again.
It repels us from being creative and drains us of energy. It keeps us in a state of being critical of ourselves and can lead us to feeling worse.

Judgment doesn’t help us plan practical and doable steps we can take so that we reestablish a habit or get back to working on that project.

None of that judgment brings you closer to experiencing connection.

Connection with the parts of yourself that awaken when you write.

Connection with the ideas that bring you hope.

Connection to the intuitive creativity that rushes out of you when you paint.

What can bring you closer to that connection (and ultimately creativity)....

Curiosity and making note of any judgemental chatter that’s happening inside your mind. 

Journal it out, so you can acknowledge any of the negative ways of thinking that may be showing up for you.

Accept as best you can the reality that you haven’t been creating as much as you would’ve liked to have been and that you can’t go back in time and change how the last month or two has gone (AI can’t help us there).

Let yourself visit with your project or practice. It’s okay if there’s some apprehension or uncertainty - it’s kind of like when you make plans to meet up with an old friend for a latte and stroll around the park. You’re not sure if the connection is still there or if you still share things in common, but you’re committed to spending time together and catching up. 

Same goes with your creativity.

Treat this like a catch up.

Physically hold the painting in your hands. 

Pick up your writing pen. Run your hands across your collage.

Flip through your sketches. Hold it. Feel it. Reconnect.

As you're catching up, notice….

What do you see and feel?

What bits of this creation are still pulsing with inspiration…with magic?

If restarting your practice/project could be SUPER simple, what might that look like?

Then bring in movement….because movement is magic….

Write. Make marks on the page. Dance. Sing. 

Let your hands and imagination get lost in making.  

And then carry on playing and creating from there.