Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Integration & Efficiency for Artists: A Short Writing Exercise


As an artist who is also a mother and a wife and a professor and a lover and a friend and a dancer and a beginning ukelele player and and and... I don't have a lot of spare time. I would guess most of my readers don't, either. This post is aimed especially at my artist readers, but I think it could be beneficial for anyone, really.

For our mutual benefit, I have created a brief writing exercise meant to help us make the most use of our limited time AND spur some potential for interesting mash-ups or cross-pollination of various areas of our lives, including collaboration with loved ones.
  1. Make a column of all the things you're interested in and wish you could spend more time doing/engaging. 
  2. Then, make another column on the other half of the page, lengthwise, of the same items in a different order. 
  3. Lastly, draw random lines between items in each column. Imagine how those items might partner or pair together. 

For example, from my list, if I drew a line between "quality time with Mollie" and "flow arts," that would mean I'd use my free time tonight to get out my hoops and I'd teach her how to hula hoop while also practicing my newest tricks.

If I drew a line between "quality time with Titus" and "submitting for publication," this might be an opportunity to sit him down and have him watch me go through the process, because he's also an author already growing interested in publishing his own writing.

If I drew a line between "making love" and "yoga," well, heehee, I'll leave you to your own imagination there.

That being the point, actually: stirring your imagination and pointing it toward how you spend your time!  When you unite different areas of your life, the sparks will fly in productive and innovative ways! You will conceive ideas you might not have had before for how to spend your time, both creatively and more efficiently.

Here's an example from a Lyft ride I took.  I told the driver about this exercise, and he said he sells cars for a living. He buys them and fixes them up. But his real passion is mural painting. In fact, he has a couple of murals in the Mission District of San Francisco. I had actually seen them the day before I told him about this exercise. He had this Epiphany that I felt rise up in his body and out onto me in the cab. He realized he could decorate the cars he fixes up with his art, and maybe become that guy who sells those cars. He was so excited, and it was really infectious.

I share this exercise with all my students, and Lyft drivers, as you just heard, and people on public transportation, etc. And I've been doing the exercise again myself, focusing on developing my plans for somatic writing coaching, which is the main way I want to bring my healer self into the world. It's resulted in me making huge break throughs in visioning where I can take that. The kinds of collaboration and partnerships that are possible! I'm alive with ideas. Like merging theatre and role play, some of my oldest interests, into somatic writing experiences. BDSM + writing. Cuddle puddles + writing collaborations. These ideas feel good traveling around inside my body.  And that's also the point.

Getting new perception. Integrating disparate experiences and interests. This is what I'm coming to know as some of the roots of what healing means to me.

I hope you find this exercise productive and healing for you, as well.  

Well wishes!  Let me know if this works for you!