Process Over Perfection
One thing that has helped keep me writing and sending my work into the world is learning to be less of a perfectionist and more of a process person. I have purposefully made myself be imperfect in silly little ways (like not matching my shoes to my bag - hey, it might sound stupid now, but back in the ‘80s, this was hard!) Practicing imperfection has helped me to manage my frustration along the way to creating anything.
As a recovering perfectionist, learning to live with imperfection doesn't make me a slob. It doesn't mean I've got low standards. It means I know that there is a process, and so much of the process is creating placeholders for the work that I dream of, for the scene I love, for the timing of the lines and the way the punchline functions. So much of recovering from perfectionism is about holding the flawed work with respect. Knowing I will improve it on the next pass. And offering myself kindness along the way.
In some ways being a creative person means being saddled with unlimited ideas that always feel far off and better than any real creation. I can spin a lot of nonsense in my mind. This is where writing things down or sketching things out can be really helpful. But when I get bit by the Comparison Monster, nothing I do feels worthwhile. This is where - again - writing my way into something new, some kind of puzzle that will give me a feeling of possibility again helps!
It's the process that matters. When you let the process matter, the product will happen. Practice doesn't ever make perfect; practice makes process!
I like to think of writing as creating a series of layers that continue to deepen the work. I ask a lot of questions to help myself get to the core of whatever it is I'm doing. I guess this is necessary since I allow a lot of my process to be unconscious, without direction, allowing whatever arises to change the piece I'm working on in an intuitive way. I'm not saying it is the only way to work. It is merely the way I work, my process.
Knowing your own process is important. Understanding how you work or even how you work on this particular material, whatever it is, is this process. A process can change depending on the piece you are working on.
When you are creating, what makes it a good day for you? How do you feel about the work you do? What matters to you? What gives you joy? What makes you want to keep on creating? What stops you? How can you get back into it?
After we write or create in Brave Space, we talk about process: how it went, the rhythm of the process, what worked, what didn’t work, and what we learned. This articulation - which I write down and send in an exit email after each session - helps us all see processes. We inspire each other! We learn from each other! The process of spending time in Brave Space can help us all be more aware of process as a thing. And we can all benefit from this.