Today is a going to be a good day…
I’m just wondering how looking ahead to 2023 is going for you?
I mean, it always feels like this will be the year where everything fits into place. Won’t it, surely?
Perhaps there is a point where, yes it’s good to dream of what could be, but if we don’t do today well, then it defeats the tomorrow that we are dreaming for?
What can I do today that makes it purposeful and worth something? What one thing can I bring to the table that is the best of me?
Taking risks into the space that we inhabit? Taking risks, even, in the thoughts that inhabit us?
What we think changes us.
I picked up a brill book recently at the DEMELZA Charity Shop in Maidstone by Madelaine Dore called ‘I didn’t do the thing today’ all about productivity guilt. It’s brilliant and with a great price tag of £2! Over many years Madelaine has asked lots of creatives about how they structure their day to make it more productive. Getting those creative brains geared for success and all that …
My summary of the book so far is that her research has led to the conclusion that success is less about routines and structure that you plan in to every moment, and more about creating fertile ground within so that good things grow. Fruitfulness in your day if you like. That sounds like a good plan to me, it shifts the focus from the to-dos to the to-be’s - forgive my lack of grammar here - so let’s do kindness, patience, perseverance, and gratefulness to see what spring’s up!
Anyway, that was my happy thought for today.
Here it is. Worth a read.
In the last year, the Mental Health Foundation completed a Survey with over around 4.5k participants, the largest-ever survey on stress. 74% of those people had experienced stress. You can read more here https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/mental-health-statistics/stress-statistics.
This is just one of the mental health illnesses permeating our culture. It may be that nowadays, we are more aware of these illnesses and they were always there previously but we didn’t see it, or it may be that how we have built our culture is having an impact on our resilience and ability to move forward and thrive. Whichever is the case, the constant need for production and delivery and success is having an impact on a lot of the population.
As an artist, what is my response to this ‘crisis’? Well, I think mostly it’s starting and seeing what brings me peace and giving that to the world. Let’s start there.