{ Book extract from Tonics For Your Creative Spirit }
Do you have a daily practice?
In reality, as creative beings living life, we all have a daily practice – the things we do over and over every day.
And since humans are creatures of habit, many of us will have routines and rituals that we do daily, without thinking or even noticing.
But in the creative sense, a daily practice is an intentional action or routine that we design to support our life goals and dreams.
A daily practice is the intention and habit of devoting time, space, and energy to certain meaningful practices – every day.
And if you have creative goals, designing a daily creative practice can be an effective way of supporting your progress towards those goals.
Daily attention to anything is powerful, as it accumulates steadily and strengthens over time.
When your creative intentions become so automatic that they’re a habit, it actually becomes easier to do them than to not do them.
Imagine your progress when you can’t help but write/paint/design etc., every single day!
But even beyond the progress, and the fun of regular attention to your goals, there are other benefits of a daily practice that can uplift your whole day and enhance your quality of life.
4 benefits of an intentional daily practice
1. TIME
When you spend time – every day – doing something that’s important to you, you naturally let go of any frustration and regret you used to feel about never having enough time for your goals and dreams.
You’ll no longer yearn for that imaginary day when you’ll have time to do what you love, you’ll no longer feel the sadness of postponing your desires until One Day…, because you’ll already be doing it, little by little, every single day.
And when you let go of the belief that you don’t have enough time, and you value your time and your self at a new empowered level, you’ll find that time seems to expand and open up to support you even more.
2. SELF-ESTEEM
A commitment to a daily practice is a commitment to you.
It’s a declaration that what you want to do is important. It’s an affirmation that you matter. This sends a powerful message to your subconscious self-image.
Ensuring a pocket of time – daily – just for whatever it is that matters to you, creates an inevitable boost to your self-esteem.
It can be so easy for our interests and desires to get lost in the daily whirl of busyness and other people’s demands. Women especially tend to be naturally inclined or programmed to serve and help others, often at the expense of our own wants and needs.
So a daily practice of prioritising your own needs, even for just a few minutes a day, can be a welcome boost to your sense of self and a reminder that your needs also matter.
Because they do.
3. SOUL CONNECTION
Whatever is calling for your daily attention is coming from within you. It’s your inner voice yearning to be expressed. It’s a message from your soul.
And when you pay daily attention to your soul and inner world, you strengthen that connection.
Being attuned to your innate inner wisdom and guidance not only creates peace in your heart and mind, it can be a powerful way to create a life of meaning and fulfilment.
Being connected to your soul is also a creative superpower, one that can help you access higher levels of inspiration, giving you a creative edge with many of life’s challenges and demands.
4. JOY
It’s a joy to spend time doing something you love.
Even if there are moments of resistance or struggle – and in any creative process, there are times that aren’t exactly a rapture of bliss – but if you’re doing what you love, what matters, there will be plenty of enjoyable moments.
And these joys have lasting side-effects. They can enrich the quality of your whole day, and beyond.
In Positive Psychology studies, there are two different kinds of happiness; the in-the-moment pleasure, (Hedonic); and the reflective satisfaction of having done something meaningful or worthwhile, (Eudaimonic).
If you design and refine a daily practice that truly aligns with your heart and soul, it can lead to both kinds of happiness – and all their joyful benefits. (For example, we are naturally much nicer people when we regularly feel fulfilled and joyful!)
And remember; these benefits occur daily and the effects build and strengthen over time.
Types of daily practice
If you’re looking to revive or enhance your creative life, there’s obvious value in expressing and connecting with your creativity on a daily basis. And if you also have creative dreams, a creative daily practice will certainly help you to bring those dreams closer to reality.
But there are other daily practices that can also enrich your life, depending on what’s important to you and what’s a priority in your life right now.
And because you are a holistic being, improvements in any of these areas can have positive effects for your creative life, too.
Here are a few more examples of a daily practice that could benefit your health and happiness:
• A spiritual practice. A sacred segment of your day dedicated to your spiritual connection, growth, and devotion.
• A health practice. A daily commitment to your favourite type of self-care, exercise, wellness or nutrition.
• A love-your-home practice. Daily devotions to beautify and tend to your living space.
• A wealth-building practice. Daily attention to your finances and investments in your future.
• A quiet practice. Carving out space for a daily dose of soul-soothing peace and quiet.
• A musical practice. Spending a little time each day expressing your musical interests or talents.
• A travel practice. Maybe you can’t indulge your love of travel every day, but you can spend a few moments each day in researching or planning trips or just fantasising about faraway places.
Whatever you wish you could enjoy more of in your life…
Whatever you wish you had more time for…
Whatever you say you’ll do ‘one day’…
Whatever makes you feel happy, lit up or at peace with the world…
Those are great places to start playing with this idea of a daily practice.
So, what would be a joyful daily practice for you?
• • •
To help you get going, here’s a quick guide to designing a daily practice that empowers you, enhances your creativity and expression, and simply makes you feel good about yourself and your life.
Tips for designing a daily practice you love
• Decide what you’d love to give a little attention to on a daily basis.
• Review your schedule.
• Discover your rhythms. When do you feel energised and excited to create/workout/study?
• Look for easy ways to start.
• Experiment with different times, places and routines.
• Monitor your results and feelings. Use this feedback to tweak as necessary.
• Keep going. If you miss a day, just begin again. You have the rest of your life to master this! There’s no rush. Give yourself some time to discover what will work best for you.
Adjust as you go along and you discover what works well and what matters to you.
But most importantly – just begin!
The details of your daily practice may evolve and shift over time, but that’s natural as your priorities and interests change.
The power and benefits come from the habit of devoting a little of your day to you.
As success coach and lover of life Gina DeVee says:
~ Gina DeVee
A small daily practice is a powerful way to begin taking control of your life and including more of what you love, more of what makes your heart sing.
As an added incentive, you also get to enjoy all the lovely benefits above.
So, what will your new daily practice be?
And will you begin, today?
TOPICS
Hello Flow is based on the 11 simple practices I experimented with in 2020 that completely transformed my creative work and my life in general.
Daily practices are powerful!
There are programme details here if you’d like to know more.
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HOLISTIC TIPS FOR A HAPPIER CREATIVE LIFE
