I had to learn that my expression did not need to be justified—it is valid because I am a valid human being, the same as you and everybody else.
But in the meantime, I tried all the classic writing routines of the greats, the promised formulas for consistent, rhythmic creation. I tried to be structured, did anything to induce “flow,” intentionally probed at the deep dark untouched corners of myself, was routine even when I didn’t want to be, and found every bit of it to be dead-ended.
I was trying to create structure where structure need not be placed. It did little more than make the process stagnate.
The reason being, mostly, that we do not ebb and flow in and out of creation. It is an unseen constant, from the clothes we choose to the sentences we say to the way we arrange our desks at work.
It comes down to imagining writing (or painting, or singing, or whatever it is you do) as coming as naturally as breathing does: It’s an effortless process, it draws upon what is outside you and transforms it as it goes through you, and it is tensed, stressed, ebbed, and made more difficult when we consciously try to do it.
In fact, anything creative tends to be most hampered by end goals. It is almost imperative that you are completely mindful of the moment, creating from a place of simply allowing whatever is going through you to flow out.
Because when you have a pre-prescribed path in mind, it means you are trying to align with somebody else’s. It means that the inspiration you have found is you creating your own version of somebody’s something else that made you tick and flow.
You’ll seldom be inspired by work that is coming from a core truth, and that’s because it shows you something about yourself. Not just something, the truest truth—that’s what makes the process so goddamn unbearable.
And that’s why we reach for structure, that’s what makes us stopper the process. That’s why we want inspiration and validation and external support.
In the true essence of real Zen, the most creativity can be fostered when you learn to do so without passing judgment, similar to how observing your thoughts and feelings objectively are the path to peace as well.
Some of what you write down you’ll want to share or make consumable.
Some you won’t. That’s okay, too. It’s imperative to realize that even the greatest artists weren’t consistently prolific, especially not publicly. But considering that “inactivity” a lack, loss, or failure is just attaching another ego-meaning to it all.
You cannot quantify your creativity, and though it is an extension and impression and expression of yourself, it does not define you.
You are free to keep the sacredness of your most inner self only within your own existence. The more you can express that and live that without judgment, and in the moment, the more you’ll feel free to be honest, and open up to yourself. The more you feel comfortable with that core self, the more you’ll feel able to create from a peaceful place. Just because.
Whenever you want.
23
EVERYTHING
is here to
HELP YOU:
HOW INTRINSICALLY
MOTIVATED PEOPLE
become the
BEST VERSIONS
of THEMSELVES
The single most powerful, liberating thing any one of us can do is choose to believe that everything is here to help us.
If you want to understand why you perceive your life the way you do, ask yourself what you think the point of it is. This isn’t a lofty, philosophical question that you can maybe entertain if you ever develop a penchant to do so. This is the underbelly of how you think and behave.
You either see yourself as a victim of what happens to you, or as someone given opportunity to change, grow, see differently, and expand. You either see uncomfortable feelings as suffering you have to deal with or signals you have to learn from. You either see the world as something makes you feel, or you see your interpretation of the world as a projection of your feelings.
When we think there is a purpose for our pain, the discomfort of it dissolves. It turns from an annoyance to an opportunity. Our suffering ceases.
The difference between this mindset (intrinsic) and the opposite (extrinsic) is whether or not we believe that we create our experience, or that our experiences are created for us (and imposed on us) from an external force. We spend most of our lives being taught that the latter is true—and there’s a reason for this.
Society (likes to believe) it thrives when we are extrinsically motivated.
At least, this is how capitalism runs, this is how people stay in power, this is
how we are kept small. When people believe that they are victims, they forfeit their power.
They funnel their energy on other people’s ideas, dreams, products.
Do we know for certain that there is some higher plan in which we confront obstacles in order to grow? Nope. But we never will. What we do know is that people who are able to create happy lives for themselves right here and right now are the ones who think that way.
Unbearable suffering awaits us all. A brief glimpse through history can confirm: None of us is guaranteed a happy life. If we want meaning we have to create it. If we want to find peace, we need to know there’s a purpose for suffering.
You will either sit in discomfort for the rest of your life, or you will grow and be better for the things that are most difficult. It is very clear who does what.
24
HOW TO KNOW
when the only
THING IN THE WAY