Separating the Thinking From the Doing
While somewhat counterintuitive to those who have a romantic view of the creative spirit: consistency, planning and built habits are the foundations on which a productive art life are built. Establishing creative rituals and blueprints provides structure and discipline, actively cultivating a habit of creativity, fostering a sense of commitment and ultimately building momentum.
Two actionable items that come to mind when considering this:
Journaling: Let the mind go where it wants to
Every morning before starting work, I encourage my team to spend 30 minutes writing in a journal. I genuinely don’t care what they write. It can be personal. It can be work related. Perhaps they jot down ideas, consider plans, reflect on the prior day or previous projects, or simply free-write without judgment. By making journaling a daily habit, you create a space for creative exploration and self-expression, setting the tone for a productive day ahead.
Separate the Thinking from the Doing with a Way Too Detailed To-Do List
For every project, our team creates a “Way too detailed To-Do list.” Every step of the process, from creating project folders on the computer, to specific scenes that need to be scripted to the number of times a project will probably be exported. All is written down. This is not just a kind of busy work, it has the opportunity to become an essential guide, a road map, both a starting and an end point on a project’s journey.
There are great project management software options out there right now. And those are used frequently and often, but there is nothing as powerful as taking pen to paper to list out the steps, allowing your hand and mind to flow freely without worrying about the constraints of whatever specific application platform you might be using at any given time.
The strength of the “way too detailed to-do list” is that it allows your brain to focus on whatever it wants to focus on WHILE you are completing a task. You are able to both focus on that specific task more fully AND/OR allow yourself to become a little detached from the minutiae because you are aware of the big picture and not bogged down by details that won’t end up mattering.
And while it may sound petty, the action of scribbling or crossing out an item on your list is WAY more satisfying than changing a field on a spreadsheet or website. There is a certain dopamine fix in the physical action that can’t replicated when done virtually.
By incorporating these two habits into our creative endeavors, we have enhanced our productivity, focus, and overall well-being.
