It’s springtime, it’s warming up and so many ideas are running through my head about what to do next. If you recall, I am still scouting out my next big dream after reaching one of my biggest life goals in January.
My challenge to you all this week is to start somewhere – anywhere – on your dream and go for it. Don’t plan it out in finite detail or wait for the “next big break”. Just go with your first inclination and R-U-N with it.
I do this quite frequently. I take an idea and I just start chipping away at it. I don’t worry about perfection or waiting for the “right” moment. I just get it started. Doesn’t matter if I can’t finish it right at that moment. I can always stop and come back to it, but at least I’ve started on it. I usually put no thought or planning into it other than the initial brainstorming session.
Why does this work?
The human mind is incredibly complex and creative. Oftentimes we “can’t see the forest for the trees” because in the planning stages we haven’t yet taken the time to excavate the landscape. When we dive in and start working on an idea, it usually morphs into something else and then something else until we have a finished product. We do this by removing one tree at a time and allowing our minds to fill in the blanks and make decisions along the way.
Making it up as you go along is one of the greatest ways to reach a dream. It can be scary and sometimes intimidating depending on the circumstance, but you can’t reach your dreams without taking some risks. Trust me on that one. ;)
How do we know when we’ve arrived?
Excellent question. I’m glad you asked. As an artist, it’s sometimes impossible to tell when I am done with a project. We creative types like to tinker and change and try out new colors and go nuts long past what someone else might consider “done”. I tend to base my “final” works on one basic criteria: Am I proud of it? If I’m not embarrassed to show it off to others or put it into my shop for sale, then it passes the test. I don’t have to be accountable to what others think of it. After all, it’s my dream. This is typically a “gut feeling” and I know when my work is not up to par. Take, for example, my post called The Evolution of Girls Can’t WHAT? to see what I mean.
If I waited until I was 100% comfortable about every little aspect of Girls Can’t WHAT? before I launched it – there would be no GirlsCantWhat.com. I’d still be sitting at my desk drafting it in my notebook. Instead, I started chipping away building the site, then drawing characters, then adding features…slowly, different ideas emerged. The site evolved and grew in it’s own organic way. It is almost completely different than my initial brainstorm, but it’s waaaaaay better than I ever planned. And I’m no where near done implementing my ideas or adding designs. So much to do…
So what are you waiting for?
Make a list of things to try, people to talk to, books to read… Do something today to push your dream forward. Start chipping away at the forest. You never know what you’ll find until you do.
