I have great sympathy for you! I'll be returning to full-time work soon and will have to relearn some of this, myself. Personally, I don't have a large reservoir of boundless energy and find I need chunks of whole hours of "daydreaming" to function creatively and intellectually, which is really tough when burning the candle at both ends. So, my skills at self-monitoring and self-care have had to improve.
I have figured out that I really need two days off from "regular jobbing" - right next to each other - every seven days to be at optimum in both of my "worlds." My husband (an Eveready bunny!) has learned that at least one day out of every seven for me must be what I call a "pajama day" - I spend the whole day in jammies hanging around the house, maybe puttering, maybe surfing, maybe creating, but very few "demands" - and it helps with the recharging.
I think it's very individual as to need and what works, so my advice to others is always to focus on learning about yourself, your energy patterns, your needs, your symptoms that things aren't working right, and what works to "fix" it.
~ hb33 ~
Kim Werker
· 2 months ago
That's such good advice! I've been monitoring my me-time, too, and trying to make sure I get an evening or two a week that I can spend in pajamas not doing much of anything, including answering the phone (I hate the phone most days). I fought hard for it over the last fifteen years, and my self-awareness is something I value almost any other thing. It's certainly making this massive transition less painful than it could be. That and talking lots with my partner about it, since it's a big change for him, too.
Venera Hitova
· 2 months ago
I've been a loyal reader of the Creative Life from the very beginning, but this is my first comment. So, here goes:
Well, the full-time job VS the creative freelance job is a really old issue with creative people.. On one hand, I love making jewelry and making jewelry is the kind of job that makes me happy and fulfilled. However, making jewelry doesn't pay the bills...YET. So meanwhile we all have to take on day jobs to sustain ourselves.
I had this period early on this year where I worked, went to university AND tried to make jewelry meanwhile. I felt like a wreck. Completely exhausted, and completely uninspired. To feel inspired and creative one has to be relaxed first. The more stressed you are, the less creative you become (personal experience speaking). So, my advice would be:yes, make the most of your weekends. Don't answer the phone, don't answer to friends' invites, don't go out, don't watch tv....take a long bath, read a book you love, concentrate, imagine, daydream, draw (doesn't matter if you're skillful or not, the activity is relaxing and unleashes a myriad of new ideas!), drink coffee (not too much!)... One thing I like doing is riffling through some old odds and ends around the house, figuring out what stays in and what goes to the garbage bin, and trying to imagine how to re-purpose the rest...
The best advice there is on how to balance between your you-time and the need to go to work 5 days a week is : when your work day is over, it IS over. Don't take work home with you, don't talk about work at home, don't even THINK about work at home! Just relax. Also, don't force yourself to come up with something new to write/craft. Inspiration comes and goes on its own, we all know that. Don't stress yourself if you feel uninspired. That, personally, gets me down SO MUCH. Over time I've learned that inspiration is not something that is fully within our control, and it shouldn't be. Well, enough rambling, I hope you're feeling fine on your day job. :-) Let us know what's up. I wish all of you folks here mountains of Inspiration!
Kim Werker
· 2 months ago
A treasure trove of amazing advice! Thank you!
Venera Hitova
· 2 months ago
(blushes) thank you so much, Kim! :)
NatalieServant
· 2 months ago
Balance? I don't think I've got balance down yet, but compartmentalization is something that tends to make sure I get most of the important stuff done. Sometimes when I'm in different roles, though, I forget about commitments the "other" roles have made. When I get a crunch time I do what has to be done. If I resent a take or a role taking up too much time, I know it's time to drop or scale back that role.
Natalie (mother, worker bee, adoptee rights activist, knitter, designer, political something-or-other ...)
All Comments
I have figured out that I really need two days off from "regular jobbing" - right next to each other - every seven days to be at optimum in both of my "worlds." My husband (an Eveready bunny!) has learned that at least one day out of every seven for me must be what I call a "pajama day" - I spend the whole day in jammies hanging around the house, maybe puttering, maybe surfing, maybe creating, but very few "demands" - and it helps with the recharging.
I think it's very individual as to need and what works, so my advice to others is always to focus on learning about yourself, your energy patterns, your needs, your symptoms that things aren't working right, and what works to "fix" it.
~ hb33 ~
make sure I get an evening or two a week that I can spend in pajamas not
doing much of anything, including answering the phone (I hate the phone most
days). I fought hard for it over the last fifteen years, and my
self-awareness is something I value almost any other thing. It's certainly
making this massive transition less painful than it could be. That and
talking lots with my partner about it, since it's a big change for him, too.
Well, the full-time job VS the creative freelance job is a really old issue with creative people.. On one hand, I love making jewelry and making jewelry is the kind of job that makes me happy and fulfilled. However, making jewelry doesn't pay the bills...YET. So meanwhile we all have to take on day jobs to sustain ourselves.
I had this period early on this year where I worked, went to university AND tried to make jewelry meanwhile. I felt like a wreck. Completely exhausted, and completely uninspired. To feel inspired and creative one has to be relaxed first. The more stressed you are, the less creative you become (personal experience speaking).
So, my advice would be:yes, make the most of your weekends. Don't answer the phone, don't answer to friends' invites, don't go out, don't watch tv....take a long bath, read a book you love, concentrate, imagine, daydream, draw (doesn't matter if you're skillful or not, the activity is relaxing and unleashes a myriad of new ideas!), drink coffee (not too much!)... One thing I like doing is riffling through some old odds and ends around the house, figuring out what stays in and what goes to the garbage bin, and trying to imagine how to re-purpose the rest...
The best advice there is on how to balance between your you-time and the need to go to work 5 days a week is : when your work day is over, it IS over. Don't take work home with you, don't talk about work at home, don't even THINK about work at home! Just relax.
Also, don't force yourself to come up with something new to write/craft. Inspiration comes and goes on its own, we all know that. Don't stress yourself if you feel uninspired. That, personally, gets me down SO MUCH. Over time I've learned that inspiration is not something that is fully within our control, and it shouldn't be.
Well, enough rambling, I hope you're feeling fine on your day job. :-) Let us know what's up.
I wish all of you folks here mountains of Inspiration!
Natalie
(mother, worker bee, adoptee rights activist, knitter, designer, political something-or-other ...)