Valerie: 0:00

I'm going to just come right out and say it. I think that there is a lot of bad advice out there given to artists and creatives that it's been given so many times, that we just accept as being how it is and what we need to do. I'm going to talk about one particular piece of very bad advice today. Thank you so much for being here. I am your host, valerie McKeon. You're listening to the Peaceful Creative Podcast. This is a podcast for artists and creatives who want to do art differently. They want to feel the benefits and the wonder and the magic and the peace that comes from creating. Not the angst and the struggle and all of the cliches that we hear of the struggling, starving, angsty artists. No, the peaceful creative is here to put the beauty into the world that they know they're meant to bring and feel good doing it, experience joy and peace in the process of doing it. I'm so glad you're here.

Valerie: 1:17

I remember vividly I was in. I was watching a live of an artist and a mentor that was teaching and the question came up what do I have to do? What is your advice for getting more serious about my art, about getting my art out there? I don't actually even remember the exact question, but it was something along those lines of how do I make this a thing, how do I go for it with my art? I will never forget her response, and I quote work your ass off. I was mortified by this. That was the advice. Mortified by this. That was the advice, and it was just kind of left at that. That you have to work really, really hard, you have to struggle a lot, it's going to be grinding and you just gotta keep going. Now tell me if that isn't the typical advice. We've probably heard that a hundred times from various sources. This wasn't an odd piece of advice for somebody to tell an artist if they want to make it at their art, this is what they have to. I'm sure we've all heard something along those lines.

Valerie: 2:53

I think that is terrible advice. I think it is hurting artists. I think that it is stopping people that would be amazing and get amazing things from their creativity, but they think to themselves one, I just don't have it in me. Maybe you have another career path and you're thinking to yourself well, if I can't work really hard at this and make this a career, then it isn't worthwhile. Or you might be thinking, okay, I'm here for it, I'm going to work really hard, I'm going to do this, but then what inevitably happens? You burn out. We're not meant to do that, that's not meant to be the flow of creativity and making art. So I think it stops people who say, well, I'm not willing to do that, I'm not going to do what it takes. Therefore, the art that I want to create isn't worthwhile.

Valerie: 3:52

If you don't put blood, sweat and tears in it, then somehow it's not worth it, which is just entirely untrue and it just makes me. It makes me mad, actually, because there are people who could be healed by their creativity. Art and and exercising that muscle of creativity is healing. There's so much, even from a scientific standpoint. We're reading your brain on art in my membership, which is the Magic Makers membership, and I am finally having some scientific language, some research-backed, actual facts to put with what I know to be true from my lived experience, which is your art, coming from a place of spontaneity and letting go and feeling good and not being tied to the outcome and being present and mindful in the moment, can literally heal you and be medicine for your physical well-being, your mental well-being, your emotional well-being. It helps you work through stuck traumas and emotions in the body. That is incredible. But why do we want to put a stop in that? Why do we want to put a cork in that and say, no, it has to be serious. I have to work really, really hard in order for it to be serious. It's stopping a lot of people from doing something that can be entirely life-giving for them. Then, like I said, there's the side of people who I would fall in this category, the second category of the artists who say, okay, this is what I'm supposed to do air quotes, and I'm going to do it and I'm going to work harder, I'm going to be disciplined, I'm going to make it happen because I love this, I love creating art, and if this is what it's going to take for me to be legit and make something out of this, well then, let's go, I'm gonna do it. So you have that person.

Valerie: 6:12

And then what does that lead to? Well, in my story, it leads to extreme amounts of burnout, dissatisfaction in my life, dissatisfaction in my art, feeling stuck and trapped, feeling like I've lost myself. And the thing about that way of being is maybe it will reach you to a certain goal that you want, but where does that lead from there? How is that a sustainable way of being? And if you are just grinding and working hard in order to get to some destination, that's a losing battle. That's not a good formula, because that destination is never going to be what you think it's going to be. It's never going to fill you and fulfill you. The way that you're telling yourself that you're doing all of this hard work to get to it's going to fall flat and it's never going to be enough.

Valerie: 7:18

Because here's the point that I really want to make it's not about what you want. We often don't get what we want. We get who we are being. So let me say that again we don't get what we want. We get who we are being, and that goes for every area of our lives, but for artists and creatives, sometimes we think what we want is this outcome. We think that that's what we want. I want to feel successful and this outcome successful and this outcome if I land this collaboration or if I sell X amount of pieces, that is then going to make me feel this way. But that is just not the case, because who you're being is somebody that is in lack. You're being somebody that doesn't allow yourself to feel good. You're holding yourself apart from what you want. So when you get what you want, it's still you. It's still that same person. It's still that way of being.

Valerie: 8:34

And even if that outcome gives you a temporary jolt and makes you feel good, it's going to be short-lived and then it's just going to be on to the next thing, because if you're operating from this place of lack and being starved, maybe you'll taste a little bit of a dopamine hit, but it's not going to really satiate what is going on inside of you. So then the chase continues. You're just going to be chasing that next level, that next goal, the next outcome. It's not going to satisfy as much as you think that it is. So this idea of just work harder, it doesn't work that way.

Valerie: 9:24

You thinking that if only now I work harder and I sacrifice how I'm feeling and I don't listen to myself and I burn myself out and just keep going and going because I need to be disciplined. I need to work harder if I want to get where I burn myself out and just keep going and going because I need to be disciplined. I need to work harder if I want to get where I'm going. Who are you being in that? And as you take that person with you along this journey, to what end? At what end would it feel enough? At what end are you telling yourself that you were doing all of this hard work to get to?

Valerie: 10:04

Because, for me and my experience, there was always the next thing. It was like once my book is done, then I am going to feel so accomplished, I'm going to be this published author and then I'll be able to take a load off. And right now I have to work really, really hard to make this happen and I'm miserable. But on the other side of this, I'm not going to be miserable anymore. I'm going to feel good and relaxed. It just doesn't happen that way. It's not what you want, it's who you're being, it's the choices that you're making.

Valerie: 10:42

So I think work hard or work really hard. It's just bad advice and, I think, a better way of thinking about it, a better way of going at it if you are unhappy with where you are in your creative practice, if you're unhappy with the art that you're creating, if you are just feeling unsatisfied with what it is you're creating instead of going for the advice we've all heard yeah, yeah, okay, work harder, practice more, be more disciplined, blah, blah, blah. No, that's not what I want you to do. What I want you to do is think of the artist and not the art, because the art is coming from an artist and, as the artist, you are a vessel. You are the energy in motion, you are the heart, you are the creator, you are the magic. It's you.

Valerie: 11:49

So if you're not satisfied with the outpouring, it's coming from you. You're the vessel that is outpouring this art. So maybe let's not look at the art, maybe let's not focus on how much more we can work hard and produce an outcome. Maybe, instead, let's look at what is going on with the artist. If you are constantly creating from the mindset and from the way of being because, again, it's all about who you are being and if you are operating and creating from a way of being that says scarcity, lack, frustration, criticism, never enough, never good enough, that is what you are going to get more of. And even if your art and creativity progresses in a way that is maybe technically moving forward, you are still going to get back what you are putting out, which is all of those things you are putting out. Which is all of those things. So instead, if you are coming, if you're filling your vessel and your vessel is outpouring from a place of wonder, joy, delight, peace, awe, magic, that's what you are going to get.

Valerie: 13:26

Because in creating art and creating anything, the number one way to not enjoy it is to focus on the outcome. But the fact is, outcomes don't turn out the way we want. It's never a surefire thing. We try to protect ourselves and our brain tries to protect us from an outcome that it perceives is going to hurt us because it's unknown. But the fact of the matter is, anytime you create anything, you are going to have failures. That is to be expected is to be expected. That's not a if, that's a when, and it happens to everybody and it is completely normal.

Valerie: 14:13

So, knowing that, knowing that it's very normal for the art not to turn out sometimes, for you to have moments where you're just not satisfied with what you've created, when you're operating from the outpouring of all of the things I mentioned the wonder and the joy and the peace even with that very normal outcome that may not be exactly what you set out to create you're still going to feel those things. You are still going to get that back from your art practice, regardless of the outcome, because that is who you were being and you're going to get back who you are being. So, instead of working hard and grinding at some, getting at some outcome and, you know, burning out to get there and spinning your wheels to get there the better strategy, the better advice is how can you fill your vessel, how can you make yourself feel so good and fill yourself up with all of these desirable feelings and experiences? That's going to be your outpouring, that's what you're going to create from, and you get to keep that, regardless of what the outcome is, because it's who you are. You are filled to the brim with these delightful and positive vibe feelings. So the real strategy is when you're unsatisfied with your art or you're trying to make it happen, whether in an art career or any other goal the real strategy is who am I being and how can I make this feel so good? How can I outpour from a vessel that is filled with all of the delightful, juicy, lovely feelings and emotions that you want to feel? Because you feeling that way and you feeling like you, like the magical lit up version of you once in a forever, you acting as you, in all of your magic. That's what you want to create from. That's what you can outpour from. It's about you being you and feeling good. That is the work, that is the focus.

Valerie: 16:57

If I'm going through a period where I'm not happy with what I'm creating, I'm not just feeling what I'm producing and I'm unsatisfied with that. My question is not how can I grind at this farther? My question is what do I need to do to bring myself back to myself, to feel good, to feel the spark and the delight? That is what we are designed to do as creatives and artists. That is not frivolous, that's it's almost like. Sometimes I feel like we have to prove ourselves by saying I worked really, really, really hard to get here. But because maybe it's not culturally or socially acceptable to say you know what? This was really easy. I created this from ease and flow, because I was feeling so good and so lit up. It just kind of shot out of my fingers and here I am. That's maybe not as culturally what you normally hear. What you normally hear, what you normally hear is the blood, sweat and tears story. But there's another way and I'm done with that story. I'm ready for this new story of ease and flow and peace, and that is what I want for you.

Valerie: 18:15

So if you are hearing that advice, work harder, put your head down, pour in the blood, sweat and tears and you gotta put in the hours and all of this stuff, and you're feeling overwhelmed and you are looking at that fork in the road kind of like to say, well, wow, I really maybe I'm not cut out to be an artist because I don't really want to go down that path. Or if you're saying, all right, here I go, I don't, this doesn't feel good, but I'm going to go down that path. Or if you're saying, all right, here I go, I don't, this doesn't feel good, but I'm going to go down that path. If you are kind of faced with those decisions, I want to give you this third option to say, no, that is bad advice. Get back to you. What is it for you? Is it taking walks? Is it a certain song? Is it a place that gets you in that headspace of feeling like you? That's the work that you should be doing for your art. I hope this was helpful. If so, I always love hearing from you. Please drop me a DM @valeriemckeehan and I had mentioned before about my membership, that is, the Magic Makers membership, and we are a group of artists doing art differently, coming from this place of the peaceful, creative where we paint, we think about nature and landscapes and all of these amazing things, and come at it from this knowing that it's going to make your whole entire life better.

Valerie: 19:43

This is something to enhance your life. So if painting, if painting with soft pastels, exploring nature, exploring your creative heart deeper, this membership is for you and I would love to see you on the inside with this kindred spirit group of community that we have. We have book clubs. I put out a digital magazine every month and it is just so, so, filling for your creative soul, and if you want to know more information about that, you can go to valeriemckeancom slash membership. I would love to welcome you inside and if this episode was helpful to you, if you know somebody that could use these words, I would be honored if you would send it to them, if you would leave a review. It will help other creatives find this message so that they can go from being angsty to peaceful. Thank you so much again and I'll talk to you next time. Bye.