For me consistent creative practice would be something I do monthly or weekly, but I would really love it to be daily. But I do struggle with it. I sometimes go months before I pick up a brush. Last time I think it was almost a year, and I didn't even know it was that long until saw the dates. It made me sad. What brings me back...I don't know really. The wanting of it? A new idea I have or a video/newsletter I saw?
I guess you can say I'm retired but too young to use that word. I'm chronically ill with Fibro, POTS, and an unidentified connective tissue disorder. My days revolve around what is happening from day to day, where my pain is at, if the brain fog is doing me. But I do want a consistent practice, I just need to figure out what that looks like.
I love that you consider monthly or weekly practices to be consistent—it’s so different from the usual exhortation to have a daily practice. And the implied assumption that consistency is daily, or almost daily.
Living with chronic illness is difficult—creating a rhythm based on what is happening day to day seems like the best option for coming to grips with the situation. Do you generally have a lose to-do list for things you’d like to be able to do during the week?
I have a list of things, like work on a crochet project that I’ve been procrastinating on, do a daily-ish mixed media piece on 4×6 index cards, work through the number of classes I have to work through, get back to trying to write a novel.
The current crochet project should be a little smoother for the next part of it now that I am over the intimidating part. But all of it, the crochet, the writing, the art…all depends on how I feel in a given day and if my hands and brain will cooperate.
That makes sense. And having a list of projects would, I imagine, make it a bit easier to pick something to do when you are feeling up to it. Otherwise I think we can often spend quite a bit of time just trying to figure out what to focus on, and then the day just runs away from us.
Even with my list, I sometimes find it difficult to choose what to do. I end up feeling guilty about doing one thing over another, which is absolutely silly…I know. Or I get so overwhelmed trying to decide, the next thing I know the day has gotten away from. It’s those days that I usually ended falling down the internet rabbit hole endlessly scrolling because I can’t decide. Or it’s a day where doubt and imposter syndrome has set in really good and I get stuck in that. Still working on not letting that kind of stuff derail me from making art.
Here'w what I've learned about the inconsistency of habit after retiring. When the pressure to squeeze in creative time was gone, it became very easy to say, "There's always tomorrow." Every tomorrow is a long, full, day of beautiful time and in my mind I'll spend it writing, or making art, or even completing creative projects around the house. But then I don't, because . . . there is always tomorrow. However, on the days I do create, it's often because I thought I would just do this little thing, 15 or 20 minutes. But of course, once I start, it lasts much longer.
I think the idea for creating some kind of consistent flow, is to schedule a short time (the way one does when still working another job). And instead of saying I have all day tomorrow, tell yourself you will just do one small thing, and if you don't feel like continuing, then there is all day tomorrow.
I find this works in many areas of life. I don't particularly like garden and yard chores this time of year (autumn in the U.S.). But I tell myself I'll just clean up and rake that one flower bed, or that small section of the yard. Once I start, I usually do much more than I planned.
That is excellent advice! And very helpful. I do often have plans to do many lovely, nourishing things, but I often put them off, and I think it’s because there are no time constraints any longer. I keep thinking I’ll get to things eventually, but often I don’t, and tell myself tomorrow is another spacious day. But the days just roll on by, don’t they?
For me consistent creative practice would be something I do monthly or weekly, but I would really love it to be daily. But I do struggle with it. I sometimes go months before I pick up a brush. Last time I think it was almost a year, and I didn't even know it was that long until saw the dates. It made me sad. What brings me back...I don't know really. The wanting of it? A new idea I have or a video/newsletter I saw?
I guess you can say I'm retired but too young to use that word. I'm chronically ill with Fibro, POTS, and an unidentified connective tissue disorder. My days revolve around what is happening from day to day, where my pain is at, if the brain fog is doing me. But I do want a consistent practice, I just need to figure out what that looks like.
I love that you consider monthly or weekly practices to be consistent—it’s so different from the usual exhortation to have a daily practice. And the implied assumption that consistency is daily, or almost daily.
Living with chronic illness is difficult—creating a rhythm based on what is happening day to day seems like the best option for coming to grips with the situation. Do you generally have a lose to-do list for things you’d like to be able to do during the week?
I have a list of things, like work on a crochet project that I’ve been procrastinating on, do a daily-ish mixed media piece on 4×6 index cards, work through the number of classes I have to work through, get back to trying to write a novel.
The current crochet project should be a little smoother for the next part of it now that I am over the intimidating part. But all of it, the crochet, the writing, the art…all depends on how I feel in a given day and if my hands and brain will cooperate.
That makes sense. And having a list of projects would, I imagine, make it a bit easier to pick something to do when you are feeling up to it. Otherwise I think we can often spend quite a bit of time just trying to figure out what to focus on, and then the day just runs away from us.
Even with my list, I sometimes find it difficult to choose what to do. I end up feeling guilty about doing one thing over another, which is absolutely silly…I know. Or I get so overwhelmed trying to decide, the next thing I know the day has gotten away from. It’s those days that I usually ended falling down the internet rabbit hole endlessly scrolling because I can’t decide. Or it’s a day where doubt and imposter syndrome has set in really good and I get stuck in that. Still working on not letting that kind of stuff derail me from making art.
Here'w what I've learned about the inconsistency of habit after retiring. When the pressure to squeeze in creative time was gone, it became very easy to say, "There's always tomorrow." Every tomorrow is a long, full, day of beautiful time and in my mind I'll spend it writing, or making art, or even completing creative projects around the house. But then I don't, because . . . there is always tomorrow. However, on the days I do create, it's often because I thought I would just do this little thing, 15 or 20 minutes. But of course, once I start, it lasts much longer.
I think the idea for creating some kind of consistent flow, is to schedule a short time (the way one does when still working another job). And instead of saying I have all day tomorrow, tell yourself you will just do one small thing, and if you don't feel like continuing, then there is all day tomorrow.
I find this works in many areas of life. I don't particularly like garden and yard chores this time of year (autumn in the U.S.). But I tell myself I'll just clean up and rake that one flower bed, or that small section of the yard. Once I start, I usually do much more than I planned.
It's like priming the pump.
That is excellent advice! And very helpful. I do often have plans to do many lovely, nourishing things, but I often put them off, and I think it’s because there are no time constraints any longer. I keep thinking I’ll get to things eventually, but often I don’t, and tell myself tomorrow is another spacious day. But the days just roll on by, don’t they?