The world is pumping out the New Year hype, and I do enjoy a good excuse to dream and give form to my vision for any given period of time. I’ve enjoyed naming a word of the year for a few years now, and I’ve made my share of resolutions and goals for the clean slate of a fresh calendar page. I’m learning from these experiences and taking what works for me and letting go of the rest.
Looking back at what has worked before I notice that setting intention holds more meaning for me than naming a SMART goal in most scenarios. Last year I had this goal to blog weekly and document the making of 52 creative projects. The intention behind it was simply to create more often, and I followed through on that intention. The goal to blog about it, however, was outlined with some rigid expectations that this recovering perfectionist managed to avoid and resist entirely, and although some projects were created and blog posts were written, I never got around to posting anything because nothing met the criteria.
I wanted to blog about becoming a more dedicated maker/artist/creative, and my defined goal got in my way. Eek. I did manage to become a more dedicated maker/artist/creative over the course of the year, though. I could probably even comb my morning pages, text messages with friends, and photo stream to find at least 52 creative projects completed within 2021. I’m not doing that though. I choose to trust my memory and this feeling that I am a dedicated creative being who makes pretty things.
I still want to blog. I can build from that intention: I want to share stories on my blog.
Here I am. In action. Shipping it. I’ll show up in this blog space weekly with a story for you about everyday creativity. That’s the extent of my instructions for this adventure. I’ll allow my creative energies to nudge the direction from there. Maybe I’ll share a kitchen story about a meal worthy of an encore, or maybe it’ll be a more artsy share about a collage I’ve pieced together. It might be as simple as sharing a question that seems to be influencing my creative shenanigans. Whatever it is, these stories will shine some light on my creative process and how creativity ripples through everything for me, and my hope is that these stories will open doors for you to recognize how your own creativity is playing in your everyday existence, too.
What about you? Do you have new intentions emerging, or maybe old ones that need to be revisited and dusted off? Leave a comment or send me a message (if it feels right). I’d love to hear from you.