Create a template

One of the best ways to complete a repetitive creative task is to create a template for your work. Recently I was asked to arrange some songs for a concert I’m playing in at the Salem Community Theater. There are 14 original songs by singer/songwriter Natalie Sprouse. Before I began the task of writing out chord charts, I took the time to develop a template in Photoshop that had the structure and layout I needed for each chord chart:

While this took some time up front, it became incredibly freeing because I now had a framework and could re-use all the elements on the page for each song. So if you have a repetitive task that relies on a similar layout or framework, take time to build a template. It takes discipline to do it, but can save time when you get to the end of the project.

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

OK, I added the moon - got it off a Google image search. It just seemed like it should be there...

 

More on purpose

One of the best selling books ever, Purpose Driven Life, reminds us that there is a higher purpose than can drive our lives if we allow it. All of our many smaller creative pursuits can fit into an overarching Purpose that ultimately makes perfect sense. Consider these quotes on purpose:

When a man does not know what harbor he is making for, no wind is the right wind. - Seneca

If you don't decide what your life is about, it defaults to what you spend your days doing. - Robert Brault

If you're alive, there's a purpose for your life. - Rick Warren

Here is the test to find whether your mission on earth is finished. If you're alive, it isn't. - Richard Bach

The purpose of a man's heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out. - The Bible (Proverbs 20:5)

Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life ... Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated. Thus, everyone's task is as unique as is his specific opportunity to implement it. - Viktor Frankl

One person with a belief is equal to a force of ninety-nine who have only interests. - John Stuart Mill

More men fail through lack of purpose than lack of talent. - Billy Sunday

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

In honor of Valentine's Day...

Passion = gas, Purpose = the track

In my mind, passion is the gas and purpose is the track for meaningful creative pursuits. I also believe that God has a specific purpose for each of us that includes some form of creativity. If we are in His image, and He is a creator, we are creators in one form or another.

Consider these quotes on passion:

There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living. Nelson Mandela

It is a fact often observed, that men have written good verses under the inspiration of passion, who cannot write well under other circumstances. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Passion is the genesis of genius. Tony Robbins

Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you. Oprah Winfrey

Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world. Harriet Tubman

Passion is in all great searches and is necessary to all creative endeavors. W. Eugene Smith

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

On the way home from a meeting this week I stopped by McConnels Mill's State Park in Butler, PA for about 10 minutes and found this peaceful place. (backstory: I slipped on a rock, through my camera in the air, it hit the rock, and I landed on my rear. Camera is OK, rear is sore.)

 

More quotable quotes

Here are some of the best quotes on creativity I've found:

Anxiety is part of creativity, the need to get something out, the need to be rid of something or to get in touch with something within.
David Duchovny 

Anxiety is the hand maiden of creativity.
T. S. Eliot
Creativity comes from a conflict of ideas.
Donatella Versace
Creativity comes from looking for the unexpected and stepping outside your own experience.
Masaru Ibuka

Creativity has more to do with the elimination of the inessential than with inventing something new.
Helmut Jahn

Creativity is a highfalutin word for the work I have to do between now and Tuesday.
Ray Kroc

Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.
Scott Adams

Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn't really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That's because they were able to connect experiences they've had and synthesize new things.
Steve Jobs

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

A city scape of Chicago. The lady just fit the scene - one person in the midst of millions - she's still significant and important.

New tools new rules

I don’t know of any creative pursuit that doesn’t require some kind of equipment. A writer needs a typewriter or a computer or a pencil. A dancer needs rhythm or music. A composer needs an instrument. A painter needs a paintbrush and something to paint on.

Sometimes adding a different type of tool can jumpstart your creativity. I recently bought an inexpensive neutral density filter for my camera and took it out to see what affect it would have on my photography. I knew it wasn’t the best quality but I was interested to see how it would change the way I approach picture taking. It turned out to be very interesting and fun because I looked through the lens with a different perspective. I could now take some shots that I couldn’t have before and visa versa.

So try a new tool and learn some new rules. It may give you a new perspective that brings something fresh to your artistry. Just make sure you don’t get caught up in the “if I get this I’ll really be an artist” trap. I could have easily spent $80 or more on this filter, but I opted to spend $20. Maybe I’ll upgrade in the future, but right now I’m interested in learning what all can be done with this one.

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

Here's one I took using my new ND filter. You can hold the shutter open longer for more color saturation.