Escaping Creative Purgatory: Give Fewer F*cks, Make More Art! | Podcast Recap | Episode 25

Abridged from the Mindset, Mess & Magic podcast transcript | Episode 25 | Escaping Creative Purgatory: Give Fewer F*cks, Make More Art!

Listen to the episode in full here

Hello, welcome back to Mindset, Mess and Magic. I’m your host, Hayley Scott Summers. And as always, I am so happy that you are here!

So last week, I think I started the episode off and I didn’t even give you a little life update — I just dove straight into the topic at hand. And I’ve said for a long time now, I want this podcast to be a bit more engaging and interactive and conversational… because the whole “how to do this” and “how to do that” thing just sounds really boring to me.

And if we’re being really honest… my life at the moment isn’t particularly exciting. Like, I’m not doing anything that is newsworthy. This is very much a season of work right now.

I am doing a lot of really cool internal work in regards to energetics and frequency — and I’ll share more on that later — because I’ve been really enjoying that. It’s been a real gift in my life. You know when you learn something as a theoretical concept, but you don’t embody it… and then you hear it again later, and suddenly you start to absorb it and utilise it? That’s what’s been happening for me with the energy work.

But apart from that, everything has been very much about work.

The restaurant is the main focus right now. Christmas is around the corner, and it’s all about getting the restaurant nice and busy and packed out and making sure everyone is excited for the season ahead… which is going to include rolling out some staff training and all these things — which they don’t know yet. All part of getting ready for Christmas.

I haven’t been out doing anything super adventurous. It’s just been getting my head down, getting the work done… and I’ve been enjoying it.

And do you know what? I’m not going to lie — the big thing in my life right now (apart from obviously baby Devon, who is still, just in case you were wondering, absolutely delicious… seven weeks old on Tuesday)… is my brand new studio, which I’m sitting in today.

I’m actually not recording any video today because I’m really fucking cold. I’m not going to lie. So I’m sitting here in my dressing gown — big fluffy pink dressing gown with a hood — because I didn’t want to sit here and basically freeze my tits off whilst I did the podcast. That’s not the vibe for me, to be honest.

But I’m sitting in my new studio and I have been absolutely loving it. I have been loving it.

It’s been a bit of a game changer when it comes to raising my vibration daily and leaning into gratitude. It’s made me think about the environment you’re in and how important it is to have a space that is dedicated to your work and your creativity.

It’s been… transformative. I know it sounds dramatic — but it has been.

And I haven’t always had the space to do it. This is a privilege. I’m not sitting here boohooing through my privilege. But if you run a business or businesses and you are creative… having space to work and think and breathe away from work or family or staff — if you can get it, fucking get it. Honestly. It’s been huge for my productivity and my daily joy.

It’s become such a haven. I was actually toying with the idea of calling it the sanctuary because it just feels so calming and so chill. I’ve filled it with plants, obviously. I want to fill it with more plants. Everything in here I selected myself. It’s become very sacred for creativity and for my headspace and peace of mind… and to be able to bring into life the things that exist within me.

So my advice to you is: if you are a creative or a business owner, an entrepreneur, a side hustler — whatever it is you identify as — if you’re creating something that resides within you and you’re trying to bring it to life in the external environment… find a space.

It doesn’t have to be a whole studio. Even if it’s a corner of a room. Somewhere that can be sacred to you and what you’re trying to do. Or maybe it’s not even in your home — maybe it’s co-working, shared office space… there are opportunities out there.

Just having space to create… it is a game changer.

And that actually leads perfectly into what I want to talk about today.

Creativity became my non-negotiable

One of the things I discovered this year — happy accident, really — is that creativity for me is a non-negotiable. It is a huge integral part of who I am, my happiness, my joy, my feeling of abundance… to be creative, to have space to create, and just to be creating.

And this is why I say I’m not a fast learner…

Because I’ve spent the past 15 years with creativity at the forefront of all my businesses. And it was only this year, when the dynamics in our business shifted — staff went on maternity leave, we were restructuring, redefining roles — and I ended up taking on more practical roles and less creative roles.

And at first I was like, “yeah, this is great, this is practical, I’ll be using the logical side of my brain… it does exist, it is there, I promise.”

But then I just took on more and more and more. And I got to the point where I was swimming in the practical side of the business, doing day-to-day stuff that wasn’t usually what I would do.

And oh my God… I took on too much. It made me really unhappy.

And I didn’t realise why until I kind of popped out the other side and started doing more creative stuff again. And I was like…

Oh my God. This is what’s been missing.

It’s not that I don’t want to do the other stuff. I just cannot do the other stuff in the absence of creativity and creating.

This is who I am. This is what I’m meant to do.

I came here to create.

And it was such a profound revelation for me… which, again, not a quick learner.

My first business was as an artist — I used to professionally paint Warhammer for a living. My second business, I was a photographer. Everywhere I go, I’m photographing something or mentally writing something in my head. It’s a huge part of who I am.

And then I removed it, because the business needed flexibility at that time… and my ability to creatively input anything went down to zero.

I remember feeling empty. Like, “I’ve got nothing to give.” Even in the time that I did have, I felt exhausted. Classic case of you can’t pour from an empty cup.

And the ratio was so off — so much output in the logical, practical stuff — that when I finally had the opportunity to create… it felt like scraping the barrel.

And you never want to feel like that when it comes to your creativity or your passion.

So that was the lesson: the more I create, the more aligned I feel. And the less I create, the more out of alignment I feel with myself.

And the thing is… you don’t always recognise it in the moment. You’re not walking around like, “ah, I’m out of alignment with myself, how interesting.” It shows up in other ways.

For me? I felt grumpy. Tired. Meh. Autopilot. My joy and frequency dropped.

And then when I started creating again… I felt alive. I had spark back. I felt so good. And it was like…

Oh shit.

It’s not that your life sucks right now. It’s not that nothing is working. It’s that you’re not operating in alignment with who you are and what you came here to do.

Creative purgatory

So that brings me to creative purgatory.

This is how I understand it: it’s a season of thinking and not doing. A limbo state. It’s not that the ideas aren’t there. The ideas exist — but the actions don’t.

And it is the slowest kind of ugh feeling.

And I think as artists and creatives, a lot of people keep themselves there.

And I say this with love — because a good friend tells you when your face is dirty. And I’m a big believer in calling yourself out as well. If you want to be your own best friend, you have to have the capacity to call yourself out on your own bullshit.

Because keeping yourself in creative purgatory is self-sabotage. It doesn’t bring you closer to your goals and dreams. And if you’re a true creative and you’re not creating… you’re probably feeling out of alignment with yourself.

So how does this show up?

Here are the patterns I see (and yes… I’ve lived them).

1) Worrying what other people will think

This is a big one. And I did a post on this the other day — I even Googled the number because I didn’t want to make it up.

There are 8.1 billion people alive on Earth today.

That is a big fucking number.

You cannot possibly track the amount of opinions or care for 8.1 billion people. So why even try?

Everyone’s got an opinion — and everyone will give it to you for free, which tells you exactly what it’s worth.

The principle I live by now is: I can’t be offended by someone whose opinion I don’t care for.

And honestly, I don’t know if it comes with age, but I’m going to be 39 next month… and I just give less fucks.

People will think something whether you create or you don’t. And they don’t actually care as much as you think they do. They’re too busy thinking about themselves.

So sack it off. What matters more than anything is what you think and what you feel — and walking in alignment with those two things.

2) Not feeling good enough / ready enough

I lived in this for a long time. But here’s the thing with creativity…

It’s subjective. What one person dismisses, someone else can connect to in a way they connect to nothing else. This is why people like different genres of music, different forms of art.

And yes, to hone your craft you need repetition — but you can’t have repetition if you don’t start doing the thing.

You won’t get any better by doing nothing.

So take the messy consistent action. Be brave. Show up for yourself. Be prepared to discover who you are and what you have to give by creating.

People who are masters didn’t start out as masters. They evolved. But you can’t evolve if you refuse to begin.

If your work is authentic and honest and true to you… then as far as I’m concerned?

You fucking nailed it.

3) Attaching self-worth to the outcome

This one is big in the modern age.

If you put content out and you check the likes and views and you decide what it means about you… it’s just not a vibe.

And I get it — it can be disheartening when you spend hours creating something and it gets three likes, and one is your best mate and the other is your secret account.

But your worth isn’t linked to engagement.

There are so many variables: the algorithm is constantly changing, people don’t even see what you post… I only realised the other day there’s literally a button at the top where you can change what you see — and I was like, why is there two different formats?!

So please don’t take low engagement as proof that your work isn’t valuable.

Detach your self-worth from the outcome so you have the freedom to create.

Because if you start creating from “what will people like?” and you live inside that… you stifle your authenticity. You end up creating for the masses instead of creating what’s true for you.

It’s giving pick me energy. And that is not what you want for your frequency.

4) Self-sabotage disguised as prep

I mastered this one.

Systems. Lists. Plans. Endless preparation… and then nothing comes of it because you move on to the next thing.

You have to look at your behaviours and ask: is this actually serving me?

Do you need the fourth webinar on building a landing page… or do you need to open your laptop, pull out your notes from the first four courses, and just build the landing page?

There’s only so much prep you need before you start really getting in your own way.

You learn through doing. Through fuck-ups and failures. Fail quickly. Learn quickly. Move again.

Messy, aligned action is how you get out of creative purgatory.

5) Burnout

Burnout can keep you in creative purgatory too. Spiritual, physical, emotional, creative burnout.

I remember saying to my partner, “I don’t fucking want to write. I’m so tired.” And I meant it. I didn’t even feel like I had the words. My creative field felt like a barren landscape — dust rolling through it.

So what did I do?

I restructured what I was doing in my businesses because I realised the creativity was missing — and that was what brought me joy.

I took a step back.

I gave myself grace. Like: fuck it, I can’t create.

I took time off social media. I think it was like three months. I just didn’t post. And a couple of years ago that would have given me anxiety, but I was like… nope. Don’t care.

Nothing bad happens. No one even notices for ages. It took three months before anyone messaged like, “hello, are you okay?” which was sweet — but it shows you how much we overestimate how much people are watching.

So if you’re burnt out: put down the pen, the paintbrush, the camera. Go do something else. Read a book for the sake of reading. Go into nature.

Nature is fucking medicine. It is medicine. It’s scientifically proven. It’s good for the soul, for regulating your nervous system.

Go walk. Go lie in a forest. Go hug a tree. Go blackberry picking. Connect back to the creative force that connects us all.

And be compassionate to yourself.

Not everything blooms all year round. There is an ebb and a flow. If you’re in the ebb right now… that is okay.

If you create space, the flow will come back.

You have no idea where your creativity could take you

I’m looking outside of my studio right now, and the sign for our restaurant hangs right outside our window. And that sign means a huge amount to me.

I remember hand-painting it when we were doing the refurb and the refit for the restaurant — literally on my hands and knees — with paintbrushes from my first business.

And I remember thinking: I would have never known this is how I’d be using these brushes.

It made me think of the Steve Jobs quote I absolutely fucking adore:

You can’t connect the dots looking forwards. It’s only looking backwards.

Whatever you’re doing creatively now — you have no idea where it’s going to take you. You have no idea the journey you’ll embark upon if you give yourself permission to create.

I ditched art when I was young. Teachers told me to do maths and get a job — because I moved out of home by 16. And ditching art was always my biggest regret.

And when I started my business as an artist… I had so much doubt. Who would buy my work? Would I be good enough? And then the first time someone bought my work… that feeling…

Honestly, I’m going to make myself emotional.

And now I sit here looking at that sign I painted with those brushes all these years later and I just think…

You just don’t know where your creativity and your passion will take you if you show up for yourself.

It’s absolutely wild.

The biggest takeaway is: tapping into your creativity should be fun. Liberating. Playful. Whatever feels right to you in this season.

And it’s so important to strip back the limiting beliefs that keep you trapped in creative purgatory.

Give yourself permission to create with wild abandon.

You have no idea where it might take you.

Thank you so much for being here. I love you all. If this episode resonated with you — leave a review, send it to a friend, send it to the creative souls in your life who need a permission slip… or a gentle, loving kick in the ass.

Okay. Thank you guys. I’ll see you next week. Bye bye.