Creative Wellness Letters - Gratitude for the road not taken 💗

Hi Reader, 

Welcome to all of you new folks who are here from the Scrap School Summit, and thanks and welcome back to all of you who have been around longer! 😀

Last week I attended a meetup for creative entrepreneurs (my local chapter of Tuesdays Together / Rising Tide Society) which is always well-attended by photographers. I was chatting with a few of them, and when the conversation went in a really camera-specific direction, someone apologized, assuming the conversation would be boring for me.

I didn’t mind - I find it interesting to learn about other people’s worlds and things they’re passionate about.

Then it dawned on me, in a Sliding Doors-esque realization, that if I had made different life choices, I could have been there as a photographer peer, discussing my own gear!

I almost majored in photography in college - I started as “exploratory” (AKA undecided major) with a music minor, because I wasn’t sure I had what it took to major in music. (Spoiler: I did, and I still graduated in 4 years. 🙏)

My “fork in the road” moment came near the end of my freshman year, when I was disappointed by how joy-killing the critiques were in my photography class, and found myself taking (and enjoying!) way more music electives than I needed for my minor, so it became clear to me that I should be a music major. I don’t think about it all the time, but I am still really glad that I made the choice to be a professional musician, and that was the beginning of that path.

Of course, that seemingly all-or-nothing choice wasn’t the only defining factor in my career path or my growth as a creative human.

There are different weights and gradients of choices - a big choice like a college major isn’t equal to “I will never do this other thing again”. 

We get to choose what type of role each interest has in our lives - small regular doses, seasonal, every 5 years, whatever works!

Each form of creativity informs the others, even if in not-so-obvious ways. Even though I only take photos with my iPhone, I still enjoy it, and who knows what role photography will take on in my life in the future.

However you practice creativity is up to you, and for you!

Sometimes in the grind of the everyday, like doing the mundane and tedious work in your creative business, working through frustration when learning a new skill, or the day job that helps pay for your art supplies, we don’t fully remember or feel connected to the reasons why we pursue our art.

We forget to notice those moments of confirmation, those moments of “Yes, I am meant to be doing this thing, I am living out my purpose.”

Or, if “living out my purpose” feels too weighty, maybe it’s just realizing, “I am really enjoying this right now!” and being present in that feeling. It’s not always easy to conjure these moments of gratitude, but we can choose to be open to them.

I’m already in an extra-reflective mood this year, with a milestone birthday coming up in a few months, but thinking about my choices 20 years ago has me feeling gratitude for that past self who did her best to make the most authentic choice at that time. 

The path since then has certainly not always been clear, linear, or everything I’ve wanted it to be, but would 19-year-old me be happy with how things are going for 39-year-old me? I think she would!

My wish for you is that you get to connect to that gratitude and enjoyment for your creativity in some small way this week, like:

• Reflecting on a past choice that you made about your creative life direction, and thanking your past self for making that choice. (All of those past versions of you are still in there, supporting you!)

...and/or

• Next time you have a moment of creative joy, like a discovery in a project, or a juicy conversation about art, stopping, noticing, and really savoring it - saying, “I GET to do this and it feels great!”

Did this letter bring up any gratitude moments for you? I would love to hear about it - hit reply and let me know!

Stay well, my friends - I'm always rooting for you. My inbox is always open, so please feel free to reach out if I can help in any way. 

I always love hearing from you!

Have a lovely week! ⁠

Rebecca

• What happens when I trust myself? Another Nicole Antoinette link, yes! Her writing is so beautiful and honest.
• A Soft Murmur - A cool website (and app) that provides ambient sounds, in case you work better with background noise!
• Don't Work on Vacation, Seriously - On the relationship between overworking and intrinsic motivation.

BAWP is currently on winter break, but I popped in with a new year update: 

• Ep. 71: My 2023 Word of the Year + Reflecting on 2022

I still love the practice of choosing a theme word for the year, to help guide new year intentions and goals. It can be a wonderful filter for what feels intuitively right to do and create, whether in place of or along with more structured planning and goal setting.

In this episode I share about my intentions for my 2022 word PLAY, how it turned out in practice, why I’m excited about my new word for 2023, and some tips for choosing your own word of the year.

Join us in Compassionate Creativity Coworking Club 

(Your first session is free to try!)

Book a free discovery call to learn more about coaching and get a mini-session

Coaching Offerings:

• Rise Above the Overwhelm: laser-focused 1-time sessions

• Creative Season (3 months)