Staring at a blank canvas or page can be intimidating. Can you make tangible the images, words, or notes in your head? In your mind’s eye? In your imagination? It takes courage to believe in yourself and let your true inner voice be heard. It requires vulnerability to put ideas or sounds in a form for everyone to see or hear. After all, what if you fail? What if your creation is no good or only mediocre? What then?
Vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity and change.
— Brené Brown (b. 1965) American professor, lecturer, author, and podcast host
Maybe you look at the blank page and you feel free to go wherever you want, wherever your heart desires. You see the potential—a place where your imagination can run wild and your ideas can take shape—free to take on a life of their own as they fill the empty, blank canvas or page. Or, perhaps you become puzzled or confused with the innumerable options staring back at you. Where do you start when the sky’s the limit?
Without hesitation, follow your heart, your inner voice, your natural instincts. Follow that small “something” inside that says: “You can and must create.” The act of following and doing will instill confidence. As you exercise your creative muscle—you gain experience. You begin to know what works and what does not.
Put Your Experiences onto a Blank Canvas
You are the only person who has walked your road and seen the things you have seen. You are the one to process those experiences and put them into art—music or words or paintings or a flower garden—whatever medium you choose.
Instead of letting doubt or too many choices leave you feeling defeated and drained of energy, try putting aside five minutes for planning each night or first thing in the morning. Thoughtful preparation will help focus your energies on what you want to accomplish that day. If you still do not have a clear idea of what you want to create—go ahead and start anyway. If having a plan holds you back, then merely set aside the time, sit down, and begin to write or create. Start and see where it leads you. It is important to get something on the page or canvas. I have heard it described as “vomit on the page and clean it up later.”
Perfection is Not the Goal
And, don’t worry about the finished product when you are in the middle of the process. Don’t edit or listen to the inner critic. Enjoy the action of creating. Work the process. After you have done enough that it is finished or close to being finished—let it rest for a while. Set aside time later to examine it for things that could be different or better. Editing and reworking are part of the process, too. We work to make things the best we possibly can. However, perfection is not the goal.
Have no fear of perfection—you’ll never reach it.
— Salvador Dali (1904-1989) Spanish Surrealist artist
The fact that something may not be “perfect” should not discourage you from having the courage to create. Perfection—if it exists—it highly overrated. It is the bumps, bruises, oddities, strangeness that makes art (in whatever form it takes) interesting. That is what keeps us coming back again and again to art—be it in the form of a song, movie, or a painting. We enjoy the familiarity, but we also are challenged each time to see or experience something we did not notice the previous times.
Whether you see the blank canvas or page as scary or daunting . . . remember it is also filled with wonderful possibilities. Begin with baby steps. Dare to be vulnerable. Vulnerability is essential to the flow of ideas. Unlock your creativity. Begin to fill your blank canvas!
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What is your inner voice telling you to put on your blank canvas or page? What possibilities do you see?
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