A friend of mine recently posted a photo of a pair of new running shoes on social media. What made it remarkable was they were next to the shoes she had been marathon training in so far. The older shoes were essentially useless. They tread was worn down so far they might as well have been socks.
There are two kinds of people. The ones who get all of the new “stuff” they need in order to accomplish a goal OR the ones that start doing to work first in order to “earn” the stuff. My friend and I are the latter. At least when it comes to running shoes.
The same could be said for a lot of other things too. Do you think you need a fancy new camera before you can start taking good photos? Are you waiting on the right computer or tablet and the best accessories to start digitally creating designs? If you just had a juicer, you could get your health under control.
don’t fall for the excuses.
You don’t need ANYTHING to start. Have you ever seen a little kid on Christmas Day? They are surrounded by all kinds of new flashy plastic crap they thought they wanted. Usually, you can find them playing with the big box it all came in.
We want to create. We want to experience. We want to play.
Train yourself to spend 10 minutes a day reflecting. If you can’t think of anything remarkable that happened in your day, start practicing the skills you need to notice.
SEE
What did you see today? How does the light move through your home? Is it different depending on the seasons? Are there birds where you live? How do they behave? What are the regular patterns of your neighborhood you can rely on outside your window?
Hear
What did you hear? I have a neighbor who rides figure 8s through our cul-de-sac on his bicycle because he’s lost access to his training center because of Covid. He often squeals and talks while he’s riding and it’s one of my favorite audible cues of the day. My mail carrier talks on the phone every day. All day. Doesn’t matter where I see him in the neighborhood, he’s on the phone talking to someone. I wonder if he’s quiet when he goes home at night?
DRAW
Draw your name in bubble letters and try to see how many different versions you can make. Change the colors, shadows, and typography.
Get a pencil and paper. Close your eyes. Think of something you want to draw. Don’t worry if you don’t think you have any drawing talent. It doesn’t matter for this exercise. Close your eyes. Draw the image in your head without lifting the pencil. Now open your eyes and laugh. You probably didn’t nail it. That’s the point. For an added bonus, ask a roommate to finish the drawing for you based on what they think it is. If you live alone, text the image to a friend and ask them to finish it using the draw application in photos.
CREATE
The outcome doesn’t matter as much as beginning in the first place. Look, listen, make.