I do not always honor my creative muse, or nurture her the way I could, but I always manage to get back in her good graces somehow. At times the route is circuitous, filled with blind corners and sheer drop-offs, but if I press on I make it back to her. Often the fruits of this laborious journey are nothing like I imagined, and it has been these moments that have taught me the most.
Sadly, our culture does not value artists to the degree that we might be sustained materially in the same manner as someone in the world of business or finance. Often, we are told to have a backup plan in case our passion and talent don't allow us enough access to our basic needs. While it is true we may not always be able to pursue our work to the degree we would like due to our need to eat, wear clothes, and have a place to live, it does not mean we have to give up. Complicated? Yes. Impossible? No.
It's easy to lose hope when circumstances don't facilitate the muse, and it is precisely in these moments of despair that the artist must get out of his/her/their own way. Believe me, I know this is easier said than done. First, it requires a phenomenal amount of self-empathy. When the stars are not aligning, and you are working more than you are creating, it's tempting to start down the dark path of depression, frustration, and apathy, leaving the muse to fend for herself. It becomes an exercise in self-pity and mostly unfair self-flagellating ("I must not be good enough, smart enough, original enough...") and the further you go down that rabbit hole, the harder it is to climb back out. Making matters worse is the fact that many of your friends and supporters might not "get" why you are suddenly so distraught. In these moments you have to care for yourself by finding the muse where you can.
"Necessity is the mother of invention" is never more true than when the muse is suffocating in the realm of the workaday. How do you honor your artist self and still manage to survive? Rather than get caught in the cycle of negative thoughts, which sap creative energy and steal precious moments, you have to double down on your creative capacities. Surprising inspirations are lurking in the work you do every day. Use your energy to look for, and find, them. Solve a problem in a unique way no one's thought of. Listen to the people around you, ask questions of nature, and be open. All the time you've spent un-inviting the muse will now ignite her, and you will find yourself getting all kinds of new sensory, intellectual, and emotional experiences. Put them in your toolbox for later.
This may all sound suspiciously "simple," and believe me I can see why, but I'm hawking it as a solution to the creative doldrums because I have been that muse murderer in the very recent past. I moved through it by forcing myself to look for creative opportunities outside of my comfort zone. Ultimately, this method led me to form this company, an entrepreneurial arrow I would have never imagined finding in my artistic quiver. So, to all of you who are searching for the muse that got away, work to extend some grace to your artistic self, and be intentional about shifting your gaze, and see where that changing perspective takes you. Commit to not wasting another second to negative thoughts and self-sabotage. Instead, ask yourself how you might view the mundane task in front of you "like an artist!" No matter what you are doing to earn your bread, you are always, and foremost, an artist. Quit trying to convince yourself otherwise.
