Inspiration: Our Unique Contribution to this World
On those days when it feels as though everyone else is somehow clued in, and I'm not; or I'm working on a design that I can see in my mind's eye, but just can't seem to get down on paper; or I have a very strong opinion that flies in the face of those around me, I like to look to this quote by Martha Graham.
“There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique, and if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium; and be lost.
The world will not have it.
It is not your business to determine how good it is, not how it compares with other expression. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.
You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open.
No artist is pleased. There is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is on a queer, divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others.”
Double Stereographic Projection II
What this says to me is to keep on striving to find my unique expression of my talents, to keep on refining my ideas and the tangible way that I get them out into the world, out into my clients' hands. That dissatisfaction pushes me to learn more, to reach for goals that feel currently unreachable.
I believe it's how we grow. It's uncomfortable to outgrow what has been our norm. There's an itchiness, a sense of things no longer fitting, a hunger for something more. And although that feeling starts out as a blurry image, an incomplete thought, it can pull me to where I need to go next - if - and only if - I let it.
If these uncertain times have anything positive to offer, it's this: it forces us out of our comfort zones, and drives us to seek new methods, new communities, new ways to look at old problems.
And we all benefit from the results of that drive into new thinking.
What have you been thinking lately? How have you solved new problems popping up? How do you move forward in the face of fear and uncertainty?
We're all in this together. Let's share the ride - and our unique gifts.
Inspiration: Our Unique Contribution to this World
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