Welcome to Day Two of the Creative Freedom Challenge!
I recorded an interview recently with , and she was asking me about my creative process.
She mentioned that she never feels that her creative process is “right” because her initial work is always so messy. I said to her, “Sam, that’s what a first draft is supposed to be!”
We read amazing books or look at beautiful works of art, and we think that they just poured from the mind of their creator fully realised. As someone who has published two books, let me tell you, they absolutely did not.
The first draft of everything I’ve ever written has been filled with scribbles and doodles and [insert cool thing here] marker text.
There have been x-rays taken of the Mona Lisa showing how many times Da Vinci drew and redrew the lines, painstakingly trying to realise his vision.
Mistakes and mess are part of the process – and a necessary one, because through these supposed mistakes we often discover new ideas, connections or opportunities that we hadn’t seen before.
We’ve been so conditioned in our culture to be afraid of mess and mistakes, that often we hold ourselves back from doing anything in case we don’t do it perfectly.
Spoiler alert: you’re never going to do anything perfectly.
Perfection doesn’t really exist.
There are stories that certain creators – including Native American quiltmakers and Persian rugmakers – would intentionally put mistakes into their work because only god can create perfection. (Thanks for teaching me this!) There are debates about how true this is, but it definitely reflects a deeper truth that perfection just isn’t something humans are meant for. We make mistakes, we make mess, and we learn and grow from the experience.
So today, I want you to lean into making mistakes and allow it to happen, then see what you can take from that experience.
Worksheet
Spend 10 - 15 minutes creating whatever you like - writing, drawing, painting… but, whatever it is, you’re not allowed to erase anything.
No rubbing out, no crossing out, get your finger away from that backspace key.
Any “mistakes” you make or “unwanted” bits you put in, leave them there.
Finish the piece, then look back over it.
What do those mistakes tell you? What can you learn from them? Do they spark any new ideas? Are there any connections? Perhaps it’s inadvertently created something new… maybe even beautiful?
If you want to share your work, you know we’d love to see it! But you absolutely don’t have to.
PS. If you’re autistic and perimenopausal, you NEED Sam Galloway’s platform in your life:
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