Re-Calibrating Your Creativity

It is important in this new year you are re-calibrating your creativity. Why? Because it is easy to get lost in busyness, events of the day or worries of tomorrow. And after the craziness of the last two years, it can be hard to stay focused and pivot as needed.

But challenging times are where you can use your creativity to adapt and find new ways to create, collaborate and generate income from your art. The question becomes this: How do we stay focused? I want to encourage you today that first you need to connect with “Your Spiritual Why”, and second you need to take time to re-calibrate. These two practices can help you clear out the fog of the past, and reconnect your heart and soul to what God is doing in your life.

Your Spiritual Why

God has given you gifts and given you the desire to express your ideas creatively for a reason. He didn’t inspire you to be an artist only for your benefit, as cathartic and satisfying as it may be. God didn’t inspire you to be a creative for you to be famous or to find financial success, as wonderful as that can be. God gave you your gifts so that you would echo His creative impulses and experience the joy of creating, just like He did when He created the world.

But more than that, God has intended for your creative work to be a deep part of how you live out your love for God Himself, and your love for your neighbor. This is your spiritual why. Without this deeply spiritual grounding, we can get lost in the work, the collaboration with others and the deadlines we face. Our soul is fed when we stay connected to God and connected to our spiritual why, in all we do.

The Need for Re-Calibrating Your Creativity

Everything in life requires maintenance. Flowers need to be pruned. Weeds need to be pulled. Cars need new tire and oil changes. Even the apps on our phones need updates to fix bugs and other issues. It is part of life in a fallen world. The same is true of your spiritual life and your creative life.

Wandering through life intuitively works when you are a child, and you can get away with it if you are independently wealthy. But if you want to be faithful with the gifts God has given you, you need to take time re-calibrating.

What does this mean?

It means taking time to assess your goals, your accomplishments, your failures and your calling. If we never take the time to do this, we will drift off course and never end up where we wanted to arrive.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself in order to begin the process of re-calibrating:

1) What is my vision for this year?
a. How does that vision connect with my spiritual why?
b. How will pursuing that vision bring me joy?

2) What (or Who) do I need to achieve my goals this year?
a. What resources do you need?
b. How do you need to grow and push yourself to achieve these goals?

3) What were my mistakes this last year?
a. Why were they mistakes?
b. What did I do wrong or not anticipate in that situation?

4) What were my successes this last year?
a. Why were they successes?
b. What did I do right in that situation?

5) What will life be like when I accomplish these goals and pursue this vision?
a. How will you feel? (proud of accomplishment, etc.)
b. How will your career change? (new opportunities/ connections)
c. How will your personal life change? (confident, inspired, grateful)

Enjoying the Process

One more thing I want you to hear: Have fun with the process. Don’t beat yourself up. We all make mistakes, and we all have tough years. If you had great success don’t fret about how you will top last year. Just take time, set aside a day or two and answer the questions above. Breathe deep.

Start by praying and asking God to show you what He wants you to see about your talent and your career. Pour a cup of coffee, or if it is late at night and you prefer it, grab a glass of wine. Then write out your answers so you can learn from the past and let go of it, and you can celebrate your successes and begin building on what you learned from them.

Share Your Journey

You were never meant to go alone. One of the most powerful parts of re-calibrating is sharing it with others. If you are married, share it with your spouse. If you work with creative partners, you may want to share it with them. You can share it with your small group, or you can share by putting some of your answers to the re-calibration questions in the comments down below.

Seriously, we would LOVE to hear what you are learning, and how you are growing creatively and spiritually. Share in the comments below!

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Copyright © 2022 Joel & Michelle Pelsue. All Rights Reserved. Used with Permission.