Recovering a Sense of Possibility – Artists Way Week 5

The Artists Way Week 5 takes us on an exploration of how we put limitations on our own possibilities by what we are willing to receive. Even more than that, those limitations can create blinders to us even seeing the gifts waiting right outside our front door.

If we do see the gifts, we often refuse them or return them because we are stingy with ourselves and what we think we deserve or have earned.

Good golly, that Julia Cameron, was preaching to me with every word and line in the chapter. Sitting here chomping on carob chips and a ginger molasses cookie as I contemplate the truth of her words and how that has played out in my life. It’s all-encompassing.

Look and you will find it—what is unsought will go undetected. – Sophocles

Wisdom of the Ages

Ancient wisdom teaches us valuable lessons. If you’re not looking for something, it’s highly unlikely you’ll recognize it when it shows up. Kind of like the serendipitous events and meetings we talked about in Going Global!

You gotta wake up, look around, ask for what you want, and be open to seeing it show up in a different form or fashion. Oh, but when you finally do open your eyes to see what you’ve been missing, you will not be disappointed!

“As each idea comes to us, we must in good faith clear away our inner barriers to acting on it and then, on an outer level, take the concrete steps necessary to trigger our synchronous good.” – Julia Cameron

The 4-Step Process for Taking Action

Feel stuck? Not sure how to take action or what concrete steps are next. Here’s a short process to go through when ideas visit you.

1. Capture.
   Do not make the mistake of thinking you’ll remember later. You won’t. You’ll pop over to Facebook, watch a funny SNL video and then completely forget what you were thinking. The idea will be gone, back out into the ether, searching for another creator to bring it to life.
2. Conceive.
   Once captured, give the idea room to grow and bloom. That could be a few minutes, a few hours, a few days or even a few years. No need to rush ideas, just give them room to develop on their own. Provide a space (notebook, journal, posterboard, etc.) to brainstorm various iterations and ideas.
3. Create.
   Once you’ve got the go-ahead from your intuition to move forward, take action immediately. Act upon the impulse to create, design, write, and put motion to the ideas you captured and conceived. Don’t worry if the reality doesn’t match the vision. That’s what editing and revision are for… re-vision – re-imagine – re-design… they are all opportunities to explore possibilities.
4. Complete.
   Defining completion is completely up to you. When you’re done, or the idea has run its course, feel free to express your gratitude for the idea, the learning and the process… and then release it.