The 5th Key to Harnessing the Deep Flow of Your Heart and Soul: Courage.
Skipping ahead in my “7 Keys” series, prompted by relevant material from the book
Big Magic —Creative Living Beyond Fear, by Elizabeth Gilbert.
I recommend the audio version, read by the author. She’s passionate about her material, and the personal connection makes the narration incredibly engaging.
Liz makes the distinction between fearlessness—a complete lack of fear—existing only in sociopaths and some 3-year-olds, and courage—feeling the fear and doing it anyway. Here’s a priceless jewel: the speech Liz Gilbert delivers to her fear before setting off on a new creative project:
“Dearest Fear,
Creativity and I are about to go on a road trip together. I understand you’ll be joining us, because you always do. I acknowledge that you believe you have an important job to do in my life, and that you take your job seriously. Apparently your job is to induce complete panic whenever I’m about to do anything interesting—and, may I say, you are superb at your job. So by all means, keep doing your job if you feel you must. But I will also be doing my job on this road trip, which is to work hard and stay focused. And Creativity will be doing its job, which is to remain stimulating and inspiring. There’s plenty of room in this vehicle for all of us, so make yourself at home, but understand this: Creativity and I are the only ones who will be making any decisions along the way. I recognize and respect that you are part of this family, and so I will never exclude you from our activities, but still—your suggestions will never be followed. You’re allowed to have a seat, and you’re allowed to have a voice, but you’re not allowed to have a vote. You’re not allowed to touch the road maps, you’re not allowed to suggest detours, you’re not allowed to fiddle with the temperature. Dude, you’re not even allowed to touch the radio. But above all else, my dear old familiar friend, you are absolutely forbidden to drive.”
It gives me great pleasure to read other writers talking about creativity Their different expressions and ways of relating to the word expand my understanding and underscore my belief in its power to transform our lives.
For fun: Click here to read a great blog post by Nataly Kogan of Happier.com entitled “Why I paint.”
Coach’s Challenge: As Ms. Gilbert relates so beautifully, fear has a singular, Universal song: “STOP, STOP, STOP, STOP STOP! Anytime you hear it within, you know who’s talking. When you hear it hollering this week, do like Liz does, and ban it from the driver’s seat!
