This is my ideas journal
...well it's really a binder
yeah, it's BIG!
I wouldn't be surprised if there were over a thousand ideas in here. Many so well planned all they need is the smallest part to make them come alive - the action. There are enough ideas in here to last a lifetime, several. And they are added to practically every day.
I cannot think of it as a burden to have so many ideas constantly coming
It's energising
But it's also confusing
and it always begs the question 'which idea should I work on next?' (and usually before any of the current 15 projects are anywhere near to being done)
'what if I pick the wrong one?'
'which one most calls my heart to be done?'
'why do thirty ideas call my heart all at the same time dammit?'
What I've realised recently is I have a lot of inner critic stuff surrounding me around this (which is handy really seeing as that is the soothing healing aspect my 21 Secrets Art Lesson is about - I do believe the universe gives you what you most require, even if it feels very, very uncomfortable!)
but...I'm beginning to learn how to get out of my head a bit more...'cause that's where all the questions live!!! If I don't, then I can (often) be paralyzed by sheer overwhelm. To sum it up in the recent words I wrote in my journal I'm 'feeling' my next move, rather than 'planning' my next move.
It's really not easy for me to get outta my head when 1000s of projects are cultivating, expanding and morphing, and I don't think it'll get easier anytime soon, and constant second-guessing yourself questions are just one of things my inner critic likes to keep himself busy with....so releasing and going with the flow, rather than concentrating and going with the 'logic' (in ' ' as the inner critic can often give very good arguments to the point where we believe a inner critic dig is actually a truth!) is something I need to learn to keep myself in alignment with.
So I'm so curious about this I might set up a discussion on Journal Workshops; does anyone else have this issue (too many ideas, not enough time? which way to go? who knows, let's go make a coffee instead!??)
and if so how do you choose which (of all the very fabulous) ideas to go with first?
and does anyone ever just work on one idea at a time? (aka am I just a freak working on so much, or it is a usual habit to have what feels like a years worth rolling at any one time?)
Leave your thoughts in the comments below, or on the Journal Workshops discussion here I'd really like to hear how everyone else deals with what I'm sure if a very common tripping issue for many creatives.
Hi Jennibellie, I am new to following your blog. I can sew, crochet, knit, I do scrapbooking and card making and I have recently started to teach myself to play the piano, oh yeah and now getting back to my creative roots by doing a weekly art journaling challenge. So yes I have had a few days where Ive spent so much time trying to decide what I actually want to do I end up doing not a lot. It is a pain. So recently I have bought a planner/diary and I am hoping to be more scheduled. I do not think there is a right or a wrong answer to our dilemma. While you mention you want to feel your next move, I want to plan my next move lol Good luck and hope you find the answer you are looking for. Though it has been my experience in life that, I only ever find what I am looking for when I stop looking for it, usually when I have bought another to replace what I thought was lost, I believe that is called sods law lol Ps Thanks for the inspiration so far, I have enjoyed watching your tutorials on YouTube :)
ReplyDeleteWell, you're certainly not the only one with more ideas than time. I don't even know how many embroidery and quilt projects I need to finish. It's less than the number of ideas I have, though. I'm still merely trying to actually do some art journaling or painting or collage or something! My mom (who was a big fan of yours) left us a very well supplied art studio and I want to do something with all those gorgeous papers, paints and ephemera. (And continue doing all the things I've been dabbling at... AND do/finish more.)
ReplyDeleteOMGosh woman you are not alone... I call them Idea Book one , two and three...lol Really folders but STILL, full, full of ideas...just waiting for my attention... Enough to last me my lifetime and then some... crazy.. But i have these ideas and if i don't put them down somewhere i forget... I too always have 50 projects going at once. Its just how i work. And i stopped beating myself up about that. Thats just who i'am. If i only worked on one project at a time i'd never get anything done.. And sometimes it can be so overwhelming its paralyzing and i DO just go get that cup of coffee and say eh...tomorrow... So what i do is this... I sit.... I go in my craft room and sit....take it all in.... just BE in there... Some days i get up and walk back out and thats okay but then some days i clean and straighten and pick up, some days i'll start painting or sketching or gluing or something and that will turn in to the next thing... The important thing is to BE there for a little while each day... OH! And one thing that has helped that overflowing idea book thing... About every 6 months or a year i sit down over coffee and go thru it and you would be surprised how many projects you realize you are just over and are no longer interested in doing... tastes change... You should try it. Big Hugs! Jennibellie! deb
ReplyDeleteI write to do lists for the day job, but never for art. Perhaps I should. Perhaps that will help order me. Because sometimes there is so much bursting to get out, but I just don't know, or have the energy to find, where to start. And I slump down with the dog I front of the fire and get nothing done! I am inspired to start a to do folder!!
ReplyDeleteI would turn to Dr Bach remedies. The 38 natural flower remedies help in so many different situations and conditions but people only seem to know them for the Rescue Remedy.
ReplyDeleteScleranthus helps with indecision. Walnut for change, Larch for confidence, etc.
I am not a crank and have used the remedies successfully for over 30 years for myself, my family, friends,and pets and will leave it up to you to ask if you want more info or read about them.
Jo x
Yes, I have so many ideas and constantly want to plan them, jot them down and will get to them one day before I forget them. BUT, I just discovered something that really helps me. Instead of jotting them down, I run to my art table, MAKE a small whatever, or paint a small bit in my journal or just splash some stuff over one of the cards I have gessoed and waiting. I am amazed at all the things I have finished in small scale and have no regrets at working this way. Now my ideas are out of me, onto something small and available. The big art I need to work on is to record all media used on the back or next to it so when I go back I have a clue as to what I did. The piece is usually wet and I don't turn it over then when its dry, I have forgotten. Oh well. Still needs improvement on my system. My favorite way that has room for notes is homemade watercolor journals (small about 4"tall x 6" wide) and I make notes on the side or on the page. It is fun to do and fun to look thru later.
ReplyDeleteHello JenniBellie, Like you I constantly have ideas running through my head. Others get tucked away in a folder. Some make me stop and start them others just come by and remind me they are waiting for their time. I often only get a project finished here and there. Always more going than I finish. It only bothers me on those rare occasions that my husband asks "Have your finished _______ yet?"
ReplyDeleteI'm just the same as you!! What I have found over the years is to get the ideas written and sketched into my journals and then to go through the journals frequently. This keeps the ideas alive in my head and what I realised, is that I process and develop them there, frequently thinking about the techniques I will use and how to bring the work into being. When the idea has 'matured' that is when I have to create it, and because I have planned it fully in my head, I am always amazed how quickly it comes into being. Over the years I have learned that ideas will come into being when they are ready and so I just don't stress about it. My journals and ideas folder are just part of my creative process. They keep me inspired and spark new ideas all the time.
ReplyDeleteEnough ideas and plans and projects on my mind (and in notebooks) to get even my grand-grand-granchildren going... I choose 'with my guts' which one I want to work on - rationalisation doesn't work when it comes to making art!
ReplyDelete