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LIVING BY DESIGN NEWSLETTER
by Leslie Karen Sann, MA, LCPC
V3, #14
November 4, 2003
IN THIS ISSUE
The
Power of the Creative Process
Quotes
Practically Speaking
Wonder Questions
THE
POWER OF THE CREATIVE PROCESS: STRUCTURAL TENSION
LIVING
BY DESIGN
(Part 9)
(This article is a continuation in a series
about the creative process.)
As long as I am taking action, I am moving forward.
An object at rest tends to stay at rest. An object in motion tends to stay
in motion. Putting things in motion creates momentum. What the action is,
is not as important as taking action.
You've heard it before. The only way to get there is
from here. The path of creativity is embracing where we are and using our
current reality to fuel the creative process.
Many of us don't fully embrace where we are AND
where we want to go. We either drift into daydreaming about what we'd like
as a way of denying our current conditions. Or we fall into defeat as we
assess our reality, and give up the possibility of our dream.
The power of the creative process is to hold both
what is and what we want at the same time.
The difference or discrepancy between what you have
(current reality) and what you want (vision) creates structural tension.
Structural tension may be resolved in either of two ways. It may be
resolved through a change in current reality, so that your outward
circumstances correspond to your vision, or through creating what you
want. Giving up on what you want and choosing what you have will also
resolve the tension.
Envision holding your hands out in front of you,
bent at the elbow, with your pointers sticking up. Let's call the right
pointer what you want, your vision. And let's say the left pointer is your
current reality.
Now visualize a rubber band stretched between your
fingers.The natural tendency of a rubber band would be to resolve the
tension created by pulling your fingers towards one another.
Instead, suppose you can participate in the
resolution of this tension. Imagine an inner conversation that sounds
like: "Oh, I never get what I want, so why bother." What you are
doing is focusing on your current reality, taking your eyes off your
vision, and thus directing the natural tension of the rubber band to
collapse into your current reality. And you get to be right. You don't get
what you want.
Now imagine saying to yourself, "Wow, this is
how it is right now. I'd like it to be like that. I choose to create what
I want." Now your focus is on what you want, and the resolution of
the tension will pull you toward your goal.
It really is that simple. What you focus on you will
move toward. We have the power to direct our thoughts and our intentions
toward what we want.
Acknowledge what is, and choose what you want. That
simple formula will set up the structural tension that will create a
forward moving energy toward your goal.
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QUOTES:
"Dreamers only dream Creators bring their
dreams into reality."
~ Robert Fritz ~
"The
Path of Least Resistance"
"Don't be afraid of the space between your
dreams and reality. If you can dream it, you can make it so." --
Belva Davis
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PRACTICALLY SPEAKING:
- Remember structural tension is essential to the
creative power. The difference between what you have and what you want
is an energy that fuels movement toward your vision.
- Practice getting comfortable with the discrepancy
between what is and what you want.
- Notice what is. Describe it to yourself. Be aware
if it is what you want. If not, declare your desire. Say to yourself,
³I choose ....²
- Become aware of the flow you experience as you
participate in this process.
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WONDER QUESTIONS:
- What do you really want, what is your heart's
desire?
- What is your current reality?
- Are you willing to experience the discrepancy
between what you have and what you want?
- Are you willing to commit to what you want, by
choosing it, focusing on it, and calling it to you?
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COPYRIGHT/CONTACT INFO/REPRINT PERMISSION
c Copyright 2003 by Leslie Karen Sann, Living by Design
Visit this link for contact information:
leslie@living-bydesign.com
Reprint permission granted in part or whole when the following credit appears in full:
Copyright 2003 by Leslie Karen Sann,
Living by Design.All rights reserved.
Web site. http://www.living-bydesign.com
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