Today, I am declaring my creative freedom.
Then…
Most of my life has, and is, spent creating in one form or another. I love it. I can’t get enough of it. It’s like breath to me. It’s what I want to spend my life doing. I mean, I’ve always been a crafter (yes I have early memories of making objects). That lead me to jewelry making, hand made gifts, hand painted clothes, scrapbooking, designing and making gift baskets, to now knitting and crocheting.
In some ways I am living creatively. I have a job where I design websites for an institution and a library. I’m called on (or volunteered) to create CMS based sites for other organizations and associations. I get to create at work. I used to love it.
I have a business where I get to play in the bath. Ok, not like that! I’ll clarify. I’m a certified aromatherapist and I have a small aromatherapy bath and body business. I hand make products using natural ingredients and essential oils. It’s great! I create the formulations, make the blends, pick the ingredients that are most beneficial to my desired outcome and then I put it all together. I get to create a soothing experience for someone else. I get to create in my business. I used to love it.
I used to love doing it all. That is until it began to feel like work. I know it’s all work, but when you’re so engrossed in the process it feels less like work. The process is what keeps me going. It makes me want to do more. You take something that is blank and give birth to what it’s supposed to be. You create what it’s supposed to be. I love that! I want that back.
Now…
Lately, it seems I’ve been going through a creative purge of sorts. Or, I should say, it feels like I’m being told to go back to basics. Back to when the process is what moved me forward and not necessarily the end result. To me, part of creating is the constant opportunity to learn. They both go hand-in-hand.
So, how does it stop feeling free and more like work? When you feel a constant pressure to be apart of the next big thing. I’ll give you an example. I’m a small business owner. As a small business owner, you are sometimes governed by your bottom line. It’s also very easy to be distracted and lose focus of what’s important to you and your business.
I closed my business for a year to regroup and assist my mother in her recovery. Before I got it back up and running this year, I sat down and made a list of everything I made in the past. Remember, I am the only person operating my business. Outside of researching, designing the products, balancing the books, designing labeling, picking the right packaging and trying to keep up with my customer base, I was also making the products I sold. Here are the numbers:
- 7 different product lines
- 18 different scents within those lines
- 17 types of bath & body products
- 140 individual products across the 7 product lines
- 25 different bath accessories
Sound like work to you, because it sounds like a lot of work to me. I was making all of that, all of the time. After seeing that list, it occurred to me I was way off track and I couldn’t reopen and operate the same way I used to.
Right Now…
That’s why today, I am declaring my creative freedom. That means no longer creating based on fear (inhibits me from stretching out more), expectation, preconceived outcomes, balance sheets and obligations. Instead, I’m going back to basics and creating the life I want based on the blessings and talents given me. I will create aromatherapy experiences based a desire to help people heal and relax in this hectic time we live in, not because I’m trying to keep up with the competition. I will create on different platforms and not feel I can’t because I don’t have the credentials.
I am giving myself permission to create based on the process, the lessons of the process and where I am now in my life. I am giving my permission to move beyond the creative box I’m in and do what’s in me to do. Live creatively.
What declarations do you need to make to create the life you want? Share it in the comments below.
