Five Creative Ways to Care For Your Inner Artist This Year!

To My Creatives Colleagues!

While we worry about the things we need to do to survive, we cannot forget why we turn to the arts in our times of need.

To recharge.

To escape.

To confront.

To dream.

To act.

To connect.

To be heard.

This is you daily reminder that:

YOUR ART IS JUST AS MUCH FOR YOURSELF AS IT IS FOR OTHERS.

In that same way, artists need to attend to things that will allow them these freedoms as well!

While the world of live entertainment and live performance is halted, we can take a long look back at our past and reflect on the ways we can better care for ourselves. We can prepare for our new future. We see a lot of articles out there about how to take care of yourself during this pandemic physically and mentally.

I want this post to be about how you can take steps to take care of yourselves ARTISTICALLY as well as those other capacities. What are some ways you can take care of yourself while continuing to pursue your craft during these uncertain times?

1. Get Moving and Notice Your Surroundings

I am sure you have seen this a lot lately, but I can’t express how IMPORTANT it is for you to move whenever possible. As a country, our baseline for anxiety has collectively INCREASED. So, if you were someone who was often dancing on the edge of panic before the pandemic, chances are you are more likely to feel more susceptible to those feelings of anxiety.

Start Small

I know times are tough, but if you want to continue to move forward during this time and maintain your creative brain, make it a point to move around. Even if it is back and forth from your living room to your bedroom, stretching for five minutes, or just strolling around your block, carve out time to get your body moving, so you get the energy you need to do the next few things on your creative and regular to-do list.

BONUS: If you make it a point to notice something new about where you move around, you are not only grounding yourself and fostering a tactic meant to help with anxiety. You are also training your eyes to be observant and active. This will aid you in the future when you are trying to come up with new material for your creative projects. The beauty of art is in the details we tend to overlook.

Trouble Getting Started?

If you struggle to get out of bed in the morning I completely understand. This is Step 0 of your plan to care for yourself, and it is arguably one of the harder steps. To accomplish anything, you need to start. To make art you must be able to notice the world around you. Starting is hard in an environment that constantly feels so monotonous. So set this smallest goal for yourself. Move at least once a day. Not to exercise or meet some sort of standard, but to gain energy and inspiration from your surroundings.

2. Set SMART Goals

The concept of SMART goals is not my own, but I think it is extremely helpful for people who feel burnt out, worn down, or for people who just don’t know how to start for themselves.

SMART stands for:

Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timed.

Ask yourself if the goals you are setting, creative or otherwise, meet these criteria. When you make goals that meet these terms, they become easily attainable and will motivate you to go onto the next thing. Soon you will build momentum in your creative projects and day-to-day work.

Celebrate The Victories

I do want to stress also that even though these are meant to be achievable goals, do not stress if you don’t get them all done. Being kind to yourself, and celebrating the straight forward victories (like getting out of bed and getting dressed) is important.

Remember that these goals are for you. They are meant for the purpose of serving you, your wants and needs as an artist and human. You are not a servant to your achievements. If you can’t get everything done on your list, say, “I did my best, and my best is enough.” Let the day wash away and reset for a new one.

3. Check In With Yourself Too!

Think about the amount of times that you have probably scrolled through the news, watched the news on tv, or checked up on the world around us as it changes minute to minute. We should also be taking time to check up on ourselves also! It is okay to check in with yourself and carve out time to reflect on the things you are missing, things that are scaring you, people you wish you could see, feelings that you can’t quite place and anything like that.

Allow yourself the grief.

All too often, I feel like the famous phrase “the show must go on” makes it hard to believe that you deserve to sit with your feelings. It is a phrase that I often associate with pushing those feelings away, and negating their importance. I say do the complete opposite. Yes these emotions can be a lot, and if you need to talk to a professional in order to provide yourself that reflection and expression time in a healthy way, please don’t hesitate to do that. BUT, if you are a person who interpreted this pandemic as a time when you were supposed to be more productive, just remember:

None of us were properly prepared for how to co-exist with a global pandemic. Your progress, whatever it is, is good progress.

AND

YOUR WORTH IS NOT DETERMINED BY HOW PRODUCTIVE YOU ARE ANYWAY!

4. Take Care of Your Body...in Fun Ways!

You probably already know the basic ways to take care of yourself that are being circulated as ways to cope with the anxiety and stress of this pandemic (like eating well and exercise) but did you know there are ways to make your self-care fun? Doctors are often quick to suggest these things but they don’t tell you how to do them!

Creative Ways to Make Wellness Fun and Motivating

• Make running/walking a game! Apps like Zombies, Run! and The Walk: Fitness Tracker are created to transform your run or walk into a thrilling adventure.

• Learn a musical instrument! This one surprised me. If you look up how much energy it takes to play guitar, you can see that you burn almost as many kilojoules as you would if you weight-lift. This is a great time to move your body AND add new special skills onto your artistic resume.

• Drink water. (Hydrate or Die-drate). I know there are many apps that exist to help remind you to drink your recommended daily cups, but there is also simply filling up a gallon of water and having it near you at home. You strengthen your arms AND the amount of work your arms must do is motivation to get rid of as much water as possible.

• Make your own meals at home! This can spark the inspiration of your inner chef and motivate you to try new recipes and new foods that you didn’t think of before. There are so many different services that are out there that can also provide you with new recipes every week with all the ingredients you need to make them. Here are some meal-kit delivery services you can try!

I know that I don’t really go into detail into why exactly this kind of self care is important. The reason for that is that eating more mindfully and exercising should be things you want to do for YOU if you do them. The mind and body are not separate entities, so taking care of your body will in many ways also benefit your mental health.

HOWEVER

Caring For Your Body is a Celebration. Not a Jail Sentence

At the end of the day, your self care should be about celebrating your body and mind. The motivation for exercise and mindful eating should not be based on weight loss, or determining your worth as a human. These are just tools to strengthen your body. These are practices that help teach how to truly LISTEN to yourself. Your body will always tell you what it needs and if you listen to that, you will give your body the energy to do anything you set your mind to.

So don’t let these tips or suggestions keep you from enjoying the things you really enjoy. Hankering for a cookie? Eat one! Wanna stay in and watch netflix? Do it! Just listen to your body. It’s all about balance and creativity.

Physical and nutritional health can be practiced in all sorts of ways. How can you use the things you enjoy to take care of you? Use that creative brain of yours. I would love to hear more suggestions about this!

5. Reclaim your art for yourself!

Artists who make a living out of their art, or have exhausted their artistic hobbies, might not view the art they specialize in as refreshing anymore?

This advice is for you.

While we sit and ponder the stillness our lives have taken, I think this is the best time to reclaim your art for you! It is all too easy to forget the reasons why you enjoy the art that you do, and who you do it for. Yet in every article, book, or rogue reddit advice I stumble across, art and artistic expressions are first on the list of things that can help you take care of yourself during this pandemic.

Now this might sound like obvious advice for artists who read those lists, but what do they mean when they suggest making art? Art is expression. Expression is fluid. When we make art for ourselves we give ourselves fully over to the process and come out the other side refreshed.

Remember why you love what you do, and do it for you! Do it when no one else is watching. Dance, sing, draw, write for YOU. It is what we enjoy. It is what brings us unfiltered happiness. Make the time to do art on YOUR terms. No one else will make that time for you. If you don’t enjoy your art anymore, or it has become more of a chore for you, let yourself fall in love with it again. Do it differently. Create challenges for yourself.

Try Something New

You can also explore a new art! Try a new thing. Be bad at it! Creativity comes at the most inconvenient times in the most inconvenient places. Don’t believe you have to be good at something to enjoy it. Art feeds the soul. Also, who knows?

You might surprise yourself with a new hidden talent :)

I hope these tips were helpful! I don’t profess to have all the answers, but as artists we must work to make sure we carve out time for ourselves. Our creative flow and our lives depend on it.

Now Let's Get This New Year Started!