Overcoming Artist's/Musician's Block

[Michelle]

Perhaps my experience can be of use to someone? I am always happy to answer questions or help a fellow artist if I can.

For around two years now I've lived as somewhat of a hermit. I meditate 4-6 hours a day, read, eat, sleep and take any other inspired action but do nothing else.

For a while I thought God/Source was asking me to make a professional transition from classical singer to spiritual teacher or life coach or something. Singing felt really bad. I was internally blocked and unhappy. No professional success in this area could compensate for that fact, which is the main reason I stopped and turned inward. However, whenever I tried to let singing go completely from my life it would bound back at me with a force.

The same happened when I tried to release my intense spiritual focus. At one point, I forced myself to stop meditating "so much" and get back to my singing work. Ugh. It was horrible and felt horrible. It seemed to me that my singing was getting simulteneously better and worse. Very confusing and frustrating indeed.

In time I learned to deal with the tension of internally following two seemingly separate paths. I learned to trust in my inner guidance and in the mystery of God's or the Universe's divine plan. I learned to embrace the silence because singing was no longer my daily reality. Each morning I would wake up and my new divine lesson plan for the day would be provided in the form of a feeling. After completing my lesson for the day through meditation or some other work, God let me off to do as I pleased.

Each day the fog cleared a little. I made great spiritual/emotional/mental strides. My physical body increasingly reflected this, my ever increasing love-based actions reflected this, my whole word reflected this... except for singing. Still blocked. I still wondered what the hell my purpose is on this planet and why bother even living if all I am going to do is sit around and meditate.

Then, one day, while listening to one of my favorite pieces of music I started to cry at the sheer beauty of the interpretation. It touched me deeply. So deeply, in fact, that I realized it was not a man singing there - it was a man allowing God to sing through him.

In that instant my two paths merged and the tension subsided. I realized, my spiritual path over the last couple years had to do with surrendering to God/Source and allowing Him to take the reigns. It had to do with becoming humble and realizing I am nothing without God/Source. That it is extremely arrogant to believe I know what is better for me and my life than God/Source does. No action I may take, nothing I can want or have has any meaning to it without God/Source. No song I may sing has any power to it unless there is divine love, source energy and inspiration in the driver's seat. This is what great artists mean when they say they are "channels" of something higher. They realize it has nothing to do with them, and everything to do with God/Source.

Just thought I'd share. I know artist's block can be very tough and many artists never find their way out.

[ar81]

Inspiration is a state of mind.

[Michelle]

Originally Posted by ar81

Inspiration is a state of mind.

Inspiration is.

We can choose to allow it or not.

[FazK]

I do a lot of writing and i can tell you - JUST START, produce anything and don't care weather or not it's good or bad. You can even throw it away afterwards. Just do this over and over and you will build up a powerful momentum that can blast through any block

[ar81]

Another source of lack of inspiration is to be tired. If that's the case, rest.

[brendannz]

Blocks are not usually from a lack of ideas, but more from too many ideas, I think. Rather than wait for the perfect keypoint just do something and wait for all the other ideas to pour with time..

Or it may be that you just need a breather from it

[NicB]

Great post Michelle. Very interesting to see others' experience with it.

From my experience, for me, having writer's block vs not having writer's block has been dependent on where my focus is. If my focus is on "trying to make it good" or "trying to make it something" or "trying to make it this or that", then it never works out. It's because it makes me too analytical in the mind and it blocks things.

Instead, if i focus on allowing the creativity/inspiration/emotion/whatever to come to me, and just play/write, that's when the best pieces are done. Then you start to feel imaginative and you start to get "in the zone" and start to focus on the creative things, such as the energy flow of the piece and stuff like that.
(that's why FazK's post is a good one, because just STARTING a lot of writing without worrying about whether it's good or bad can help to shift your focus from analytical zone to creative zone)
So the conclusion i come to with writer's block is this: Write with your soul and not with your ego.

[Dimond]

Michelle, thank you for your beautiful description of your experience. Using spiritual practices and being in a spiritual state is essential for living an amazing, passionate life. It helps every single area.

[Michelle]

Originally Posted by NicB

So the conclusion i come to with writer's block is this: Write with your soul and not with your ego.

This is exactly the benefit I received from my block as well. Thank you for sharing your experience. It is very validating to hear from another artist/writer who made it through and came to the same conclusion.

[ReneeDIY]

Thank you Michelle and everybody.

I am getting out of corporate and diving into my creative side so this is very helpful!