What does Resistance look like for you today & what are you doing to fight it?
http://letsmakebetter.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/header-logo-transparent-24.png00Blainehttp://letsmakebetter.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/header-logo-transparent-24.pngBlaine2015-04-10 03:22:092015-05-15 20:43:55Module Three: Let's fight resistance together
Robert Felker
Like Blaine noted in the lesson, Resistance for me is also rooted in fear. Fear of not being any good at what I do; no one will buy my stuff, or even like it; fear of leaving my current job to pursue art and how that would impact the family, our financial situation; a belief that making art is not a viable/practical option. My wife’s doubts that I could manage my own schedule responsibly. Besides fear, I’m also prey to distraction/procrastination and finding any excuse to put off working. Sometimes it’s well-disguised as a family obligation, or guilt-driven feeling that I should be spending more time with my wife & kids, or working in the yard, or cleaning the garage, my golf game, or just plain feeling lazy — you name it. Other demons include bouts of depression/anxiety, physical fatigue/low energy, poor sleep/habits and my past issues with alcohol addiction which I have to contend with on a daily basis to avoid relapse.
How am I fighting it? I’m trying to put more structure into my daily routine to hopefully get more consistent about when I go to bed and when I get up. Related to that, I’m attempting to live healthier. I’m of the belief that if I enlarge my spiritual life, I’ll straighten out mentally and physically. I’m investing in personal development with courses like this as well as other educational reading. And I’m reaching out to others for perspective, guidance and direction, more than my pride would ever allow before. The willingness to do this has probably helped me more than anything. However, I know I’ve got a long way to go, and meaningful change doesn’t happen quickly, so I’m trying to convince myself to stick w/the process and know that actively searching for a better way to live is a worthy pursuit.
Thanks for sharing Robert. You’re also fighting Resistance by being so vulnerable. You really are leading the way here. Awesome work!
Ane C . Hegén
I can identify with all of these points of resistance, especially fear of failure or just that what I’m doing isn’t good enough. I realize more and more that I’m a very practical person, so if something doesn’t seem practical in that moment, nor for the future, I will most likely not do it. This is sad, because it steals away some of my free expressive creativity. I need to learn how to fail, how to try and try and try and try again on the things that I set my mind to. And to do things even if I don’t see the Immediate result.
Another point of resistance is people. What is the balance between taking time for others and taking time for your self? How about when your in a really good creative process, and then dinner is served? Or when someone knocks on your door to ask for a favor, and puts an end to your chain of thoughts. Why does my finger always click on the Facebook icon to see what people are up to, even when I don’t want and don’t really care? I am still searching for this balance. When to be social and avaliable, and when to be focused on my own, or could I find a way to healthily combine them?
Ah yes…the Resistance of Practicality. I know it well. I wonder if there are small ways you can try doing impractical things? You’ll need to figure out what those experiments are, but what would that look like for you?
You’ve named another bugger…The Resistance of Distraction. This is also a tough one for me. I often have to unplug my wifi just to get work done. The key really is being mindful of the distractions. Maybe keep a tick mark sheet handy and simply start noticing how many times during a day (or just one hour) you’re distracted. Then, slowly try to decrease that!
I’m a bit late to the party with Module 3 after being on holiday, so playing catch-up!
Resistance for me comes from loneliness. I really struggle with staying in on my own during week nights, and weekends to get my work done (which I really enjoy), when I know friends and loved ones are out drinking, having dinner, camping etc, etc. It feels like a very solitary process for me, and as a very sociable person this is a struggle. I also struggle with having friends who are now settling down, or that are just not creative. I don’t get the opportunity to create with others which I love doing.
To combat this I’m trying several things. First is balance – planning my week out so I have the time put aside for socialising, and time planned to be creative. I’m also trying not to be too hard on myself, and allowing myself to take time out with friends without feeling guilty that I should be doing other things. I’m also trying to look after my health, and hoping that by having more energy it will allow me to juggle my time as well as feel happier generally. I’ve also joined a local creative group. It’s pretty fledgling but hopefully it will give me the opportunity to meet others who love to get creative.
Robert Felker
I really like what you said here. It is an interesting parallel to equate resistance w/loneliness, or what it sounds like to me: choosing friends and socializing over creative work. I guess I would ask, “is the social life fulfilling?” If so, perhaps you have a better balance going than you realize? I think if we hole up in the studio too much and don’t get out, that’s no good either. If not, and you find the work more fulfilling, maybe you can feel more empowered to stay home and work, because you know it’s good for you.
If you get the balance thing figured out, please let me know I do think your idea of scheduling out your week sounds very healthy, admirable even! I’m attempting to get ahead of my week a little bit too. Whenever I do, it feels like I have more control, or living with more intention — not reacting to whatever hits me next.
Brooke Lehman
I’m a bit behind on things but here is what resistance is like in my life. In agreement with everyone else, Distractions are my biggest one. I accept those distractions as something of greater importance and even take longer than needed sometimes, but underneath is just my way of avoiding. But I also resist doing things because I have a feeling that whatever I’m going to make won’t be good enough/how I pictured it to be. Or I will totally have to change my ideas/expectations and I just don’t want to have to deal with that. But that is not the type of maker I want to be. I want to strive to take risks and be ok with changing my ideas. I feel like the only way to fight it is to just do it. Like what everything in this module has already said.
Robert Felker
Brooke, it was nice to meet you on the Q&A today! I totally relate to what you’re saying here. There’s definitely a lot of overlap with what you’re saying and what I, along with others are saying. Avoiding something and justifying that, or masking it with fear of how something will turn out, or fear that it won’t turn out like I envision by procrastinating is something I’m always fighting. I like what Blaine said about trying to look at things on a timeline, or instead of perfecting some small piece, take a larger view and make smaller, quicker steps toward the goal and finesse the quality later. Anyhoo, I thought you had some great things to say and look forward to hearing more.
Pingback: 3 – The Grindstone | Make Better | Better Humans. Better Art.()