At this moment, in this time of uncertainty, so many of us are feeling big feelings. And our emotional state, our general overwhelm is seeping into our making with lots of people messaging me to let me know that they are having trouble either choosing a project or making at all. A space where nothing feels that exciting and that their making has ground to a halt.
In overwhelm we are unable to think coherently, strategically, and this can lead to a kind of listlessness or ambivalence where nothing feels exciting and possibility is absent. Now of course it is totally valid - and some of you might want to put your making aside for a bit.
But for those of us who get so much joy and nourishment and everyday wellbeing from our making this can feel a little distressing and pretty frustrating. It can feel like we've (temporarily) lost our favourite tool in our wellbeing kit.
Overwhelm and flatness and big feelings take up a lot of head and heart space; space that we would normally use to engage in the little things we do each day that make our lives good. Here is where things get even more complicated. Our overwhelm or our flatness can lead to us picking up numbing tools like scrolling through instagram or streaming crappy tele. This stuff can be useful of course as a mini-break but for me lately it no longer feels break-like. I come out of it, feeling worse not better, which Brene Brown suggests is a sure sign it was a numbing tool rather than restorative break.
And what's even more problematic is that many of us makers believe that what we are lacking is inspiration. That that is why we are feeling so flat! Whereas actually for many of us I think it is the opposite. That scrolling to “find inspiration” is actually adding to the overwhelm. For me it feels like I'm throwing more noise at my already noisy brain - with the choices I'm making in my overwhelmed state (to scroll) creating more overwhelm.
Overwhelm strips us of possibility and inspiration!
So how do we shift through it, back to a state where our making is supporting us and connecting us.
HOW TO MOVE THROUGH OVERWHELM!
#1 Create Constraint
Overwhelm is noise. So tone it down with some constraints.
- Write a list of things you need to make - for yourself or someone you love OR even better….
- Write a list of how you want to feel when you make and the types of projects that make you feel that way.
Pick one. Any one. It doesn't matter which and do #10minofmaking to move it forward.
#2 Clean, Tidy, Order
I had let my craft space get totally bloody chaotic over this time as I lacked the energy to clean it - especially my ridiculously large scrap pile. Last weekend I bit the bullet and gee it made such a difference. It meant I could see what I had and seeing what I had meant that I felt possibility flowing back into the room. There are so many fun projects to be had - especially scrap projects which are essentially just cost-free play.
I made this little reel to demonstrate what I did with my scraps. I cannot tell you how much joy this pile has given me over the last few months. I look at it all the time and it is brimming with possibility - joyful possibility as it is full of constraint. I only have a certain amount of particular colours, of lights and darks, and so the ideas aren’t overwhelming. But they are every changing. I’m waiting for that moment that one reaches out and grabs me for an hour or two. When I can’t not make the thing I have in my mind.
The incredible Gees Bend: Architecture Of A Quilt is endlessly inspiring.
#3 Grab A Craft Book
Otherwise entitled as get-the-begeezus-offline.
Look I know this one might feel like stating the obvious but I found so much joy sitting with my favourite craft book last week with a pen and a sketch pad. Just for a few minutes (as my making time for that day) rather than scrolling the gram.
Tone down the so-called “inspiration”, slow the pace and see what comes up.
#4 Low Goals & Tiny Acts
The idea for #10minofmaking comes from what I have learned about writing and crossfit. Sometimes our beautiful loving-but-somewhat-stupid brains - in trying to protect us - make up stories about how hard something will be. The thing about our brains is that we don't need to listen to every story they tell us or every feeling we have. Instead we can soothe them by telling them that we are only going to do a little bit. We are going to take a tiny step. And it won't hurt them.
Set a tiny goal - maybe just doing 10 minutes of something to get you started - and by engaging in that tiny act each day for a few days you might find your way back into your making practice.
Because the thing about motivation is that it actually works in totally the opposite way to how we think it does. We don't need inspiration to find our motivation to then act BUT rather by acting and engaging we find motivation - and often a dose of inspiration.
Big love to you all in these tricky times.
Felicia x
