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Michelle Russell recently posted..Holodecks and String Quartets

Yes, you read it right. And there’s a part of me that still can’t believe I tossed all those tapes, even after all this time. But it was like having an entire mountain in front of me, knowing that there were some nuggets of gold hiding below the surface but also (gradually) realizing that it was folly to expect myself to have time to dig through an entire mountain to find them.

And now I’m chuckling because I just looked up at my post and realized I’d used the “gold” analogy even when I wrote it.

I just checked your website and it looks like you’re up the “Left Coast” in Washington . . . is that where you learned tabla? Anyway, I’m glad you found me here, and I’m glad you enjoyed the post.

Leaving you with a “Dha – [ ] – Te-Re-Ki-Te-Ta-Ka” ! ;o)

I did think about whether or not to use the phrase “channeled through you” because I realized it might be taken as implying some sort of external intervention. I don’t necessarily mean it that way–I was using it loosely so that it could just as easily mean you can “channel” creativity from your own unconscious–but I went with it, partly to see if it would provoke comment–so thank you!

I do think you’re highlighting a really valid point, though. You’ve made me realize that since Molly’s original post came from an entrepreneurial business context, I responded with a very goal-oriented flavor. Even using something as subjective as music for my metaphor, I approached it from the intent of “externalizing what you imagine,” which is, um, definitely an externally oriented goal.

Could it be all those perfectionistic, goal-oriented tendencies (which inspired me to start this blog in the first place) making me view things this way by default? Naaaaahhh…

Seriously, though, you’re drawing an important distinction that I missed between creative work with a preconceived goal and creative work done for a particular reason.

In the former, the flow state itself is probably the main goal (see, there I go again!), with the end result being, as you said, a by-product. That by-product might have value in and of itself, to you and/or to others, but it’s incidental to the creative process.

In the latter, the creative process is subservient to the result you’re aiming for. It’s always nice when you can get into a flow state with it, but when you don’t, you basically keep slogging along, probably running into Steven Pressfield’s Resistance-with-a-Capital-R (see http://www.practicemakesimperfect.com/creativity/how-to-declare-art) along the way.

You’re making me think more deeply about this stuff. Very cool.
Michelle Russell recently posted..Holodecks and String Quartets

And I agree that you don’t always have to have a grand vision—that would be exhausting! Sometimes you just need to play.

For the stuff that’s meaningful enough that you really do want to go for the gold, I like your suggested methods—the “beta version” approach and the “hard deadline” tactic. The only problem for me with the latter is that I experience the resulting pressure as negative stress rather than positive encouragement. I’ve been so hard on myself for so many years, I’d rather err on the side of being kind to myself instead of deliberately placing myself in situations that increase my stress level. But I know it’s a method that works well for many people! (I remember back in college how many of us would wait until 10:00 p.m. on the night before the big report was due to start on it…)

Thanks for the really insightful comment!
Michelle Russell recently posted..Holodecks and String Quartets