Permission To Be An Artist — Granted!
By Linda Dessau, the Self-Care Coach
Since I've been offering Artist
Retreat Day programs, I've been hearing a
lot about the concept of "permission". Some artists who said yes
to a retreat day shared that this was a much-needed structure to enable and
empower them to FINALLY give themselves permission to take time for their creative
work.
Others just couldn't say yes, just couldn't give themselves permission.
What does it mean to have permission to do something? My thesaurus tells me
that other words related to permission are: consent, sanctioning and authorization.
Consent signifies agreement, validation that what you're doing meets with
specific expectations, criteria and guidelines. It sounds solemn and like someone
has faith in you. Sanction is an even more formal declaration of acceptance
and faith.
Authorized to Create
Authorization — well, that implies that you're something special. That
not just anyone is meant to be painting this painting, writing this song or
designing that jewelry. You have been specially authorized to do it.
And why? Because you have the unique gifts that are necessary to bring that
creative project into being. Who authorized you? The same power that granted
you those gifts and skills — whether you choose to think of that as God,
the universe, Spirit, or another name. As we read in the Science
of Getting Rich, we're not given the desire to do something without also giving you the
skill to carry it out.
Why is it so difficult to authorize ourselves, grant ourselves permission
and consent, to sanction our own creative work? Sometimes we seek this permission
from others, unconsciously (or consciously) hoping they'll deny it, so we won't
really have to venture into the scary world of living up to our potential.
A lot of these words symbolize that external permission is needed. And sometimes
it is.
Permission from Others
Whether you want to attend an artist retreat day, meet a deadline or just
develop a new idea that came to you overnight, you'll sometimes need permission
from the people you share your life with to take the time for your creative
work.
It might mean delegating household work or child-care or rescheduling a date
or planned event. All of you might also need a willingness to be flexible and
to accept that sometimes things don't get done right away. It also means ensuring
an environment of support for your work.
Will others give you permission? Of course you can't control what anyone else
thinks, says or does, but consider this: our loved ones will take cues from
us about how serious our creative work is to us. If we're constantly putting
it on the back burner, putting our work down, and letting it be the first thing
to go when things get stressful or busy, we're teaching others to treat it
the same way.
If we don't take our creative work seriously, why should they?
Permission from Self — Artist at Work
I think what's even more important is the permission we give ourselves. There
are so many reasons we deny ourselves permission to pursue our creative work.
Fear tops the list. Fear of success, fear of failure, fear of what people will
think of us, fear of being good, fear of being terrible, or fear we'll let
someone else down, to name a few examples.
Sometimes we hold on to earlier instances when we were denied permission,
denied access, not sanctioned or authorized, or when our work was criticized
or belittled. Some of us have even been told, directly, NOT to pursue our creative
work ("don't give up your day job", "find another path", "you
have no business doing this work"), which hung a big UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS
sign on the door of our creative hearts.
So hang a new sign on your creative heart — one that reads "Artist
at work". And in fine print, "This work has been sanctioned by _______" (the
name of your source of Power).
10 Signs That You've Given Yourself Permission to be a Creative Artist
- The first words out of your mouth when someone asks "and what do
you do?" are "I'm a songwriter/artist/sculptor/writer, etc.".
- You work steadily at your craft, whether it's working on or re-working
pieces or promoting your work.
- You teach your loved ones to treat your art seriously.
- The materials and resources that you need to create with are part of
your budget and are planned expenses every month.
- You're committed to your learning, growth and development, participating
in artists groups and discussion forums and seeking out mentorship and
coaching.
- You don't let mistakes or criticism stop you from taking your next steps.
- You're building the resources you need to support yourself financially,
emotionally and spiritually.
- You're conscious of your physical lifestyle habits and choose the ones
that won't interfere with your creative work.
- You find opportunities to pass on your knowledge and support wherever
possible, to someone who's had less experience than you have.
- You consistently say no to requests for your time, energy and commitment
that will take you away from your creative work. •
© Linda Dessau, 2005.
 About the Author | More by Linda Dessau
Linda Dessau, the Self-Care Coach, helps artists enhance their creativity by addressing their unique self-care issues. Feel like your creativity is blocked? Sign-up for the FREE e-course, "Roadblocks to Creativity" by visiting www.genuinecoaching.com.
10/26/05
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