I have a confession to make. I haven’t started. I mean, I have started, but then I stopped. And I haven’t started again. Well, the truth is I started, stopped, started again, and then stopped again. A few times.
What am I talking about? Writing. Writing a screenplay, specifically. But I could be talking about just about any goal, especially a creative goal.
Do you have a confession to make, too? A creative goal you haven’t started or put aside and want to get back to?
There are a ton of reasons that people like us who have the urge to create something put it off or get started and then stop. Really, if we dig down deep enough, the real reason is fear.
We’re afraid of stinking it up, people thinking less of us because we’re no good. Or we might be afraid of actually being really good and having to deal with the changes success will force on us.
And then there are the reasons we don’t create that seem like they’re not based in fear. Maybe you don’t have the time, you don’t know how to come up with good ideas, or if you do have some good ideas you don’t know how to develop them. Maybe you think you need help with your idea and you don’t know how to find the right collaborators.
Look, the fear is real. And those other reasons won’t just go away on their own.
I have some good news. Two things, really.
#1 YOU ARE NOT ALONE
(Obviously…hence, this blog.)
In fact, some of the great artists of our time have trouble getting started. To illustrate, check out the following video. You really only need to watch about a minute and half to get the gist, but once you start you probably won’t stop. And it’s BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH! He’s reading a letter from the artist Sol LeWitt to another artist, Eva Hesse, who is…stuck. She’s blocked. Not creating.
I think it’s wonderful, and if you’re stuck, it may help you get unstuck.
#2 SOME IDEAS I have some suggestions for how you can overcome some of these problems: finding time to create, coming up with ideas, developing them, and finding teammates to help with your project.
I’ll be diving into those in future installments, but in the meantime, hope you’re enjoying Mr. Cumberbatch.
An image from the letter from Sol LeWitt to Eva Hesse. Click above to see the original letter.