I have a secret. Well, maybe not a secret, but something I try not to talk about here. I try to talk about photography. About creativity, and art. I try to talk about things that will encourage others to engage in art, because I so deeply believe we all need art and creativity in our lives. And I deeply believe that iPhone photography is one of the most accessible ways to create art in our modern world. So that’s what you hear about here.
What you don’t hear is the whole story. I try not to talk about how busy I am, how much I have going on between work, and family, and my creative business. I try not to talk about how hard it’s been to find time to create art lately. About how full my calendar is with a teenager in high school, and how much more stressful it is to navigate the ups and downs of an adolescent. Not to mention the projects and travel for work the last few months. I enjoy many great opportunities and challenges in my corporate job, but it all has an impact on my time and energy.
That’s life.
I don’t talk about it because I feel like it’s something we are all dealing with. It feels like whining. First world problems. These things are all my choice, and I could make different choices.
But if it’s more than me dealing with it, why not talk about it? Why not talk about strategies for maintaining personal, creative time when busy? Why not discuss efficient ways to grow as an artist, to grow a creative business while meeting other commitments in our lives? Why not open a conversation here, and get more thoughts on how to manage living as an artist/parent/spouse/student/employee/<fill in the blank> in our modern world?
What do you say, are you interested? If you are, I’ll start talking about these topics more, but I need you to chime in. I need to learn from you too.
Living a creative life is more than making art. It involves the whole person, living in the real world. It’s time for me to acknowledge that truth. I am more than my art. You are too.
Kat, there are tons of people out there who are living in what I call “survival” mode. You could be of genuine help to them in sharing how you personally cope; as well as, providing an opportunity for others to do the same. Personally, before I retired, my passions were essential to my survival; (for that matter, they still are).
Thanks Jack. “Survival” can mean a lot of things, can’t it? I look forward to hearing your thoughts as we continue this conversation.
I hope this doesn’t come across as a rant..
I have friends and family who tell me they are busy, busy, busy bees..
But they aren’t working outside jobs or volunteering..
They aren’t caregivers to themselves or somebody else medically needy ..
These are the people who say they have difficulty in finding the time or patience to upload their camera rolls of pretty photos to their computers..They are so busy that they have no time to follow blogs, do crafting, nature walks, knitting or crochet..
Maybe it is my perspective that is negative, lol..When I talk about my favorite activities to such people, when they respond by telling me that they never have time to do such things, I feel like my time and life is trivialized in their minds..
I think most people, myself included, want lives that are full and positive..So they will be very busy some days 🙂
So I agree with you, managing our time is all about priorities..
And everybody’s priorities are different..
My son’s time spent tinkering on motorcycles is no less important than my time spent walking in the woods, spinning my yarn or promoting my photography…When I spend time with him, when I talk to him, I like to pick my words… I want him to know that his life and spare time is just as meaningful as mine!
Not a rant… Beautiful thoughts. We all need to realize that our personal pursuits are important, and those of others as well 🙂
Edited to add, my previous comment is talking about retirees who are very similar to me with the balance of work/play in their lives..
I agree with Jack…
People have those stages in life when we are overwhelmed with things they HAVE to do.With little or no spare time left..I would love to read how you and others personally cope when life gets crazy :-))
Yep, I think we can agree we can feel overwhelmed at any time of life. We’ll be talking about it!
I SO believe that each person created by God is an artist. Art should be a REQUIREMENT for schools from Day 1 of entry to preschool until graduating from college! Then make it a daily exercise!
The latest findings on the brain and how it works for us, are quite simply stunning. I speak from an experience I have had; a traumatic brain injury less than 2 years ago.
Fantastic, your experience provides a unique point of view.
I do feel overwhelmed . Trying to find time for my creativity is very difficult . IT is LIFE, we all know that. I think it would be very helpful to hear how others cope and find the time to let the calm take over and enjoy what we love best,.
Mary
Great! Let’s do it!
Kat:
I am different from you: I am retired, 74 years old, and my children are grown, married, and have their own grown children or almost grown! I am so into what you are saying though! I am a busy volunteer, swim 3 mornings a week with water aerobics, then go lift weights, and come home to either a nap, yard work, sewing, quilting, volunteering at JUMP which I would love to share the project and ideas with you. At JUMP we volunteers encourage our visitors to create an environment of inspiration, cultivate the potential in all of us for a better shared future . . . so this appears to fit right into what you are talking about. I am working currently for my own personal growth to be less judgmental, and to be more in control of a “good attitude” every day. It has been very interesting to pursue my attitude — focusing on a “good attitude” has made me so aware of when I do not have a good or interested attitude toward others. It has been an interesting year so far working on ATTITUDE! Please tell me if you think I might fit into your intention here?
TY — Mary Ann Hurt
Thanks for sharing that your life is so different yet you feel the same! I definitely think you fit in with the intention here.
What a good subject, Kat!
I’m newly retired and am enjoying my new-found freedom. There are still the usual things to do that everyone else does: paperwork, housework, shopping, cooking, etc, but these days I can choose when I want to do things. Even when I was working, I found time to give to my passions and just let some of the other stuff go. Now I can read more too without feeling guilty! I have more time for my grandson which is precious!
I love the image you have used at the beginning of this post. The pinks and lilacs are so nurturing.
Excellent topic. It is nice to know I am not alone. I wish I could have better Balance but life gets in the way! It helps to know there might be some ideas that I have not thought of that could help. I am very interested in continuing this conversation. Thanks for the honesty.
Yes! Very cool question and I think totally worthy. You are a great teacher, and it would be great to learn more about your strategies of navigating the life / creativity balance- both when you think you made the right tradeoffs, and the times that you didn’t and would like a do-over. I don’t even have the creative / teaching / publishing element going on and I find this whole family / personal / work balance thing overwhelming.
Single mom of middle and high schooler with the desire to live a creative life. Oh, yes! This is something I really want to talk about, listen to others about. I struggle with it. Let’s talk about it!
I think talking about making time in this busy world for creativity is an excellent subject.
Great topic to add to the blog. And the cool thing about iPhone photography is that it’s so quick to snap a photo and edit it that the creative muse can be engaged in just a few minutes a day, even for those without time for photo walks, setting up the perfect shot, in-depth post-processing, etc.
So very true! It is the type of creativity we can do in small snippets of time.
What a wonderful topic. At all stages of our lives, there are different priorities. Sometimes “creativity” goes to the back burner. The light still glowing… Being retired this priority has jumped to the front. Getting older is not a picnic, although I am very fortunate health-wise. Still make weekly trips to help with the youngest grandkids, take part in a weekly workshop along with home/garden/ spouse etc.
What a wonderful phase you have transitioned in to! I bet you will have lots to contribute to the conversation.
Yes, yes, yes. This is the conversation I think has been hiding for so long. It does need to be talked about. I’ve been searching for blogs written by artists who are more like me … meaning those who are also juggling working full-time outside the home, raising a family, AND trying to find time for art. I hear crickets out there when it comes to this topic. And that may very well be because those of us in that situation simply don’t have time to write about it! I too try to keep my blog on the positive side, and my posts have become less and less frequent simply because I haven’t had a whole lot of art or photography to share because all those other parts of life — job, family, everyday chores, husband having a major health crisis — have taken over. I’ve heard the old “you make time for what’s important,” but frankly that line of thinking has always bothered me. There’s only such much time in the day. You can’t make more time and sometimes those “required” priorities (job and family) take up all the time you have. It’s not because the art/photography is not important – it’s sooo important – but “real life” happens and sometimes real life doesn’t leave much time for squeezing in other things we’d love to do but aren’t required to make that real life keep functioning. I must sleep! 🙂 Does that make sense? Would love to continue this discussion further.
OK, no crickets here! We’re taking this on…
Me again! This discussion reminded me of a blog post I wrote a few years ago, so I just went back and found it and see that you commented on it! I never got that faculty position and ended up moving into a even higher level administrative role (sharing the struggle of the change on my blog over the last year). Here’s that original post about surrendering my superpowers: http://happyshackdesigns.blogspot.com/2011/05/surrendering-my-superpowers.html
I loved re-reading this post AND my comment. It feels like full circle, doesn’t it? Maybe it’s just a topic we need to revisit every once in a while!
I try to do a small creative thing everyday.
To get to that easily, I use the Daily Create Assignments of Ds106 at http://daily.ds106.us.
They’re small assignments that shouldn’t take more than 20 minutes.
They keep my creativity active, even when I got a busy day.
Check out: http://daily.ds106.us
or join us at our Google Plus community DS106.
What can trigger my creativity?
I blogged on that some time ago:
https://ronleunissen.wordpress.com/2016/01/23/what-can-trigger-my-creativity/
Check out the link to the interview (it’s on the blog) with Sarah Honeychurch during last year’s Digital Writing Month
I to struggle with time to do photography.i work from 40 to 60 hrs a week as a crane operator.sat mornings are the only time I have.im in church on sun so I have very little time for my passion.for me the balance is hard. The woods are my happy place!
I know the struggle. My art is calling my name. My mother just passed away, and her services were in Missouri. Previously I was back and forth with her helping her through the final struggle of COPD in the Dallas area.
My home is in South Texas, a 9 hour drive or 70 minute flight from Dallas.
Today is my grandson’s 1st birthday too in NC. Then I have to go back to Dallas to start dealing with her stuff, her house, etc. So I have been bouncing around the country when I long to submerge myself in artistic endeavors.
But I try to do one thing everyday. And right now it’s about all I can do. I take at least one picture on my IPhone. I save it to my journal on my IPad. It’s not optimal but it’s what I can do right now. Yesterday my oldest grandson (age 5) asked me why I was taking a picture of their daffodils. I told him I had to capture their beauty.
Sometimes we have to go with the flow, give ourselves a big hug, and do what we can do. Doing that one thing every day helps me know that one day soon I will back doing what I want to do. Each day I look for the extraordinary in the ordinary.
Sometimes even retired people can get burnt out. The past couple of years have been challenging for me (recovering from breast cancer, trying to sell a house for 2 years, building a new home, president of a photo club for 2 years, etc, etc). Dealing with all that has left my creative well dry, and I have been really struggling to try to get it back. I have yet to purchase a cell phone, but I love reading about your creative cell phone photography.
I think most humans want to feel a “personal” contact, so having a conversation about real life is something we all crave and can relate to in one way or another.
I’ve been working on making time too. A key time waster for me is TV, and Facebook. I’ve been walking away from TV a lot more than ever. I ask myself why I’m watching someone else’s life…. Facebook is harder, but I’m getting there.
Dave, I understand your dilemma. I spend several hours a day on Facebook and the computer. I am trying to remove the temptation by unsubscribing to many newsletters and art groups I belong to and that has helped some but, not enough. I would like to get down to 30 min. a day spent on the computer. I don’t know if that’s possible.
Terry,
I feel your need to unplug! I admit I am an NPR junkie. I tuned in to news local & national all day. It certainly kept me informed but also feeling anxious, nervous, angry and frustrated. Enough! said I.
I now listen to morning & evening news for a bit, then turn to music only. I find it soothing or inspiring. Sometimes rousing, too. Depends on my mood and the genre of music. I sometimes sing along or play my Peruvian drum to Latin rhythms.
I find this has greatly increased my creativity.
So, perhaps unplug. Try music. Or, just silence. It’s beautiful.
Barbara, you are so right! I never listen to TV or the radio. Silence is my friend, especially since being diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I can no longer tolerate noise, and the constant drone of TV/radio makes me anxious and stressed. I too used to get upset and depressed by the news. The past few years I’m focusing more on positive things such as sites like ServiceSpace.org, the Bible, praying, and silence. Thank you for your kind comment. I couldn’t agree more. 🙂
I stopped listening to talk radio when I realized all it was doing was making me cranky, and not actually, you know doing me any good.
I like to listen to NPR in the car. That’s about enough news for me each day. If I can’t change it, then I’m not gonna worry about it anymore.
I’ve enjoyed leaving the TV off and picking up one of the 40 or so art books in my “to read” pile quite a bit in the last 6 months.
I’m trying to focus on things I can do or learn from.
I love having a stack of art books near my bed, ready to browse through at night when I’m too tired to do anything else. I like what you said about trying to focus on things you can do or learn from. Thanks for sharing!
Dear Kat,
Fabulous subject and a much needed discussion. I, too, am retired as others here have indicated. Life is full of “busy-ness” for me in a bustling city like Los Angeles. I find it necessary to go within to find inner peace and calm in order to carry on nurturing others, and myself!
I recently found iPhone photography and watercolor art, creative things I never imagined I could do. I have never been a crafter or produced art. Now I feel fulfilled, complete and driven to learn more about these forms of art. However I find I have to be staunch about making time to do it. I feel a bit selfish guarding my time but at the same time unfulfilled if I do not. What a conundrum!
I can relate to you most recent posting; I found myself in the abyss of my life for no apparent reason, and it’s so hard to climb out. Do you have any solutions? I need help!
My art is suffering and I just cannot find my muse again; even joined an art group, but so far…nothing. Where can I start?
Like several others who commented my kids are grown, I am “retired” from my profession as a software engineer and pursuing photography full-time. And I have similar difficulties with getting busy doing things that are not my primary purpose. It is so easy to say “Yes” to things that do not bring me joy. I think this topic will interest artists of all ages and stages in their lives.
With so much on our plates, and the busy-ness of the daily routine, it is easy to lose our way and become frazzled.
If we could just get out of our own way…
Mindfulness is a practice that will put all things into proper perspective. But it is a practice, not just a one time thing. Close your eyes and take a deep breath, Kat. You are not alone.
Breathe
Survival mode over here too! Two teenagers, part time job, volunteering and a few activities that I do for myself (my happy place/activity) do not leave as much time for creating as I would like. I do have very small blocks of time, but unlike others who can use every spare 5 minutes, I need to time to get my mind back into that place where I last left off. Not to leave out – confidence that what I’m creating is not just a waste of my time.
Often it is the stress that actually initiates my creativity. There is that need for release, for pause, for reflection. Art often presents itself through situation. A notebook in the bathroom is filled with little pieces of ideas and insights. You laugh…but some of my best collages have miraculously appeared while in the “reading room”. I try and snag what ever moment is offered. For eight years I was the only care-partner for my husband who lived with AZD until this past December, when he was freed. I found the sudden abundance of “time for me” overpowering as I was used to working my magic between my other responsibilities. I found he was my inspiration, my walks with him actually was “my time”. I needed only to claim it. So it was my photography was richer as I recorded the seasons for us to reflect on when we got home. Now…this fresh abundance leaves me unfocused and without direction. I know I will learn to focus again, that the river needs to settle so that clarity once again presents itself. All this dear ones, to say…”the time” is always there, perhaps it does not present itself in the manner we so desire. Perhaps a “day in the studio” is not possible, but each of us can grasp a glimpse of the possibility and preserve it in a journal, or an i-phone instead of stressing over what is impossible to accomplish in this minute or this day, or even this week. Go easy on yourself, accept the down times and trust the process. This might simply be “prep time”. Thank you Kat for all you do, for creating and grasping the time you do to nurture us. xoT
Dear Teena,
Thank you for sharing from the depths of your heart. While I have not been a caregiver for several years now, I empathize with your need to allow yourself time to resettle and renew into a different plane of life.
I found there is a sense of freedom together with a deep sense of loss and guilt.
It is healing to have our creativity to sustain us through times like these.
Peace.
Thank you so much Barbara for those kind words and support.
Beautiful words I like the idea book in reading room. I also like your attitude. Sorry for your loss.! Sounds like you are dealing with it well. Peace, hugs.
I keep a little zipper bag in the drawer with pens, scissors and a glue stick! 🙂
Thank you Christine
Wonderful thoughts Teena 🙂 God Bless 🙂
<3 you
Teena, great use of “reading room” time!!
Oh Yeah, overload here too. Definitely an interested artist here 🙂