I’m a master of avoidance. Once I’m in my studio I”m ready to roll but getting there past all the distractions and excuses can be tricky business. Really, does laundry need to be folded and put away first? The “Thing” that needs to be manifested from your psyche in words, paint, ink, or whatever medium you work in is the priority. Here is a system that works well for me…
- Make an appointment for an assigned studio time. The earlier in the day, the better. Your cell phone is not invited.
- Enter studio, close door set timer and say to yourself “for one hour I will focus on nothing else but THIS.”
- Do not answer the phone, check email, or do anything not essential to your project on your computer- NO EXCEPTIONS!
- Work, work, work for one hour and then STOP. Continuing for more than this often leads to overworked material.
- Take a break for at least a half an hour and do something mindless like weeding or doing the dishes. Stretch and get outside for a breath of fresh air. This acts as a reset for the creative part of the brain that’s been working hard.
- Repeat steps 1-5 if needed
Most of the time I can get an amazing and satisfying amount of work done in a focused 60 minutes and I’m good for the day. If I have more to do, I find that by taking a break I come back to work reenergized with “fresh eyes”. I also use the timer method for unpleasant tasks around the house in 15 minutes increments (ex. cleaning out the fridge- ugh). You can accomplish great things in a small measured amount of time!
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