How a Consistent Creative Practice Helped Me Listen to My Intuition

Photo by Annie Spratt

I talk a lot about how to create a consistent creative practice. I believe this is THE way to build a body of work as an artist, no matter your medium. 

But what if you’re not necessarily trying to build a portfolio? What if you don’t have a goal to make a big pile of paintings or write 100 poems? I believe you can still benefit from a creative practice. 

In fact, I believe everyone can benefit from a creative practice. 

To show you why I believe this, I’m going to tell you a little story: 

I grew up as a very indecisive kid. I always had such a hard time making any sort of decision, whether it was what to wear or what to order at a restaurant. It really impacted my life in a negative way, because I would spend so much time stressing over what the right decision was that I missed out on so many opportunities to just enjoy my life in the meantime. I remember when I was in 7th grade and I had to decide whether to take French or Spanish classes in school — I went back and forth so many times and spent so much time worrying that it makes me really sad to think about. It was also stressful for my family to be around me when I was worrying over a choice like that. 

In retrospect, I believe what was really going on was that I was disconnected from my intuition. 

I believe that each of us has access to a source of inner wisdom that knows what is best for us. I believe that the way for each of us to live our most fulfilling, most satisfying life is to listen to that voice within us. And in order to hear that voice, we need to make space in our days that is calm, quiet, and receptive. When I was preoccupied with asking everybody for advice or overthinking everything, I certainly wasn’t making that space. 

Since then, I’ve made space to listen to my intuition through a regular creative practice. 

Trusting your intuition can be tricky at first. It can feel scary to put the list of pros and cons on the back burner and choose something based on what feels right. I won’t say that I’ve mastered listening to my intuition by any means, but I can say that I’m much more in touch with it than I used to be, and one of the things that has really helped me make that connection is my creative practice. 

When I’m feeling indecisive, it’s usually because I don’t trust myself to make the “right” decision. Making art has been a way for me to practice taking each next step, and trust that whatever choice I make will be right. I may not know where a poem is going to end, but choosing the next line, the next rhyme, or even just the next word is an opportunity to pay attention to where my intuition is leading me, and a low-stakes way to try following it. If I write a terrible poem, it’s fine! No one gets hurt. There’s really nothing to lose. 

What I’ve found in doing this is also that there really are no “wrong” decisions. Even if I choose a color that looks really bad in an illustration I’m working on, I can often shift some other things around to make everything work together. And if I can’t, I probably learned something! 

The truth is that you cannot fail. You can only learn. (I’ve been telling myself this a lot lately because I often forget!) 

I’ve always felt more connected to my intuition when making art, but I know that’s not the case for everyone. It takes practice! I would encourage you to commit to a little bit of art-making, whatever that means to you, each day — and during that time, see what happens when you let yourself be led by your inspiration. Trust each idea as it comes. The more you make space for your intuition, the more space there is for it to come out and play with you. If you’re not sure what kind of art to start with…try asking yourself what would be the most fun right now and seeing what bubbles up in response :)

I hope this helps inspire you to connect more deeply to your intuition through a creative practice!  If you’re feeling really stuck with getting started, or in staying consistent with your creativity, you’re not alone! I’d love to support you. Send me a message, book an Awaken Your Artist call, or apply for one-on-one coaching. You may also want to check out the Never Wear Boring Socks podcast for more creative inspiration.