How Spaciousness Increases Your Creativity
Do you sometimes feel like you suffer from “rushing syndrome?”
If so, you’re not alone, and in this video, I wanted to share with you how fostering a sense of spaciousness in our life actually increases our wellbeing and leads to more creativity. Let’s get started!
Video Transcript: How Spaciousness Increases Your Creativity
The other day, I had a beautiful friend staying for a business retreat. We did some planning together, she stayed for a few nights, and in the mornings, we would wake up and make a cup of tea, (I’ve always got a cup of tea close by) and we’d go and sit out on the balcony, or in the garden, and we’d have a chat, before we launched into the day.
When we were sitting down talking about what to put in my new book about creativity, my friend said, “You know, Nic, what I really love is how we get to ease our way into the day when I’m here.”
She said, “I feel like I suffer from rushing woman’s syndrome. Can you give me some tips about how to overcome that, so when I wake up, I don’t feel like I’m already behind, and that, ‘Oh, my god, my to-do list is so long, and I’m already wasting time?’”
It got me to thinking about spaciousness. Now that’s a term I think of, not in relation purely to physical space, but in fact how I like to live my life. I’ve fostered spaciousness in my life to be able to be more creative.
5 Ways to Use Spaciousness in Your Life to Foster Your Creativity
I wanted to share with you the five ways that I use spaciousness in my life, and some practical tools that I hope will help you in your daily life.
I love this phrase. “The muse is often shy.”
Our inspiration will often be hiding behind things, and if we’re so busy that we can’t even slow down enough to take notice of it, or if we’re feeling so much pressure to get things done, or our environment is cluttered, that we can’t see clearly the materials that we need to do projects, then it’s hard to find inspiration.
The muse is often shy, so by cultivating a sense of spaciousness in our life, we actually make it easier to be productive, and to follow our heart’s passions, and create the things that we desire.
#1. Spaciousness in Your Mental Space
The first area in which I like to cultivate spaciousness in my life is actually in my mental space. When I’m feeling off center, if I’m feeling stressed, I’m feeling overwhelmed, I’m feeling out of sorts, upset, or I might even just be feeling happy, and I want somewhere to release it, I use one tool in particular, and that is writing.
I use it in two ways.
I firstly will use it in a structured way to write to-do lists, and that creates a mental space where I can be sure that I haven’t forgotten things that I need to do. I also use it in the form of journaling.
I don’t necessarily write in my journal every day, but it’s a safe place that I can come to when I need to download, and I need to explore, and follow a thought through to the end.
I often find that through doing that, I’ll gain clarity about what I’m thinking. “Oh, that’s what I’m actually feeling. That’s what’s going on.”
Sometimes, I’ll also find some kind of solution, or some kind of way that I can take action to ease that discomfort, or that stress in my life. I use writing to create a sense of spaciousness for my creativity to be able to flow, through my thoughts, rather than just being stressed.
When you’re stressed, it really doesn’t do a lot for our creativity.
#2. Spaciousness in Your Schedule
The second area where I like to foster spaciousness is in my schedule, so I like to keep a spacious schedule. I do that by really trying to focus on one main thing a day.
I understand that we’re all busy, and if we’re going to be able to live in houses that are not pigsties, and continue to feed ourselves, there’s definitely the minutia of daily tasks that need to take place.
So I’m not talking about not doing anything else.
I’m really just talking about being able to focus on one main creative project for that day. I find that works really well, because with that focus, I then can get a chunk done, and feel like I’m moving that creative project forward.
Usually on my to-do list, I’ll have one main project, and there might be steps that need to take place in that project, but just one main thing. Sometimes on my to-do list, I actually write, “Paint, Nic J,” because I like to remember, I have to go and paint, and it’s important to schedule those times into your routine.
#3. Spaciousness in Your Finances
The third area where I like to cultivate a sense of spaciousness is in my financial life. For me, I use a tool where I like to track my income and outgoings, so I have a picture of how much money I actually have. I use just a simple Excel spreadsheet, and I’ve been doing this since I was 18.
I’ve found it to be a really useful tool, particularly in my creative life, because it means when opportunities arise, for instance, say I see a workshop that I really love to go and do, or a course, or I want to invest in some new art materials, or a tool for my creativity, then I’ve got a really clear picture of how much money I’ve got, and what is going to be of good value, so I can make an informed decision.
My financial life is another place I like to cultivate spaciousness, by keeping a regular eye on what’s going on. I don’t always do it every week, but I do it regularly, so that I know where I’m sitting.
#4. Spaciousness in Your Physical Environment
The fourth area where I like to cultivate spaciousness is in my physical space. It’s what you naturally think of as spaciousness when you hear the term. I do this by regularly de-cluttering.
Now, I wanted to just mention that all of these areas are naturally going in and out of flux in my life, and probably in everybody’s life, really. I don’t think it’s possible to have everything sorted out all of the time, and it’s completely normal to have one thing get out of balance, and then have to readjust, and you make progress from there.
I feel like it’s lovely to just have these touch points of practices that are supportive, that we can come back to when life gets a little bit chaotic.
So, for me, physical space, I like to keep it spacious by de-cluttering regularly.
Things that are broken, that no longer bring me joy, things that I can compost or donate. I like to make sure I’m going through that process regularly, so that there’s not stuff in the way of the tools that I need, and the materials that I need, in order to be able to create.
The other way I like to keep a sense of spaciousness in my physical life is by using boxes and containers to keep materials organized. I’m a huge fan of having boxes stacked with labels on them, and it sounds a little bit anal, I know, but it has changed the way I’m able to operate in my studio.
You might like to find a way to start using containers, to contain items of similar likeness in your life as well.
#5. Spaciousness in Your Emotional Life
The fifth and final area where I like to keep a sense of spaciousness is in my emotional life. This crosses over back to the mental space, where I definitely find an emotional support through the process of journaling. I find that really helps me emotionally, but there’s two other things that I wanted to share with you.
One is, in my emotional life, I like to give myself a sense of safety, and I do that by giving myself permission to have privacy in my creative projects.
Whether it be writing a first draft, or it’s filming a video with you, or it’s creating a painting, I like to feel like I’m safe to keep the door closed. I’m doing this with the understanding that it’s just going to be for me, until I’m ready to release it into the world. I find that emotional safety is really, really valuable.
Finally, the way that I help to create a sense of safety in my life emotionally is by cultivating playfulness. I don’t know about you, but I can sometimes have a personality that gets very serious, and you have to have everything, the T’s crossed, and the I’s dotted, and it needs to be done properly.
I’ve found the more I tap into that side of my life, that side of my personality, the tighter I become, the less things flow, and the less fun I have.
As a counterpoint, I find it really useful to foster this sense of playfulness, have fun with it, and see how things turn out.
There you have it.
Those are my five areas where I like to foster spaciousness in my creative life. I’d love to hear from you in the comments below about which of those areas resonated with you, and any tools you return to in your creative life that help support you in finding a sense of safety and spaciousness to be able to create.
Have a beautiful week! Be kind to yourself and nurture your creativity.
-Nicola
Did you miss last week’s post? Check it out here: Procrastinating in Your Creative Life? These Tips Might Help!
P.S. If you’re new to my blog, and you would like some help to get started with painting or creativity, I’ve created a beautiful ten-day free e-course that takes you through just that, getting started with painting and creativity. You can find that at nicolanewman.com/flourishwithpainting. In there, you’ll be taken through how to paint an abstract painting, or do some writing, and some photography exercises, and it’s loads of fun.