“The fool, with all his other faults, has this also—he is always getting ready to live.” -Seneca
“And don’t go expecting Plato’s Republic; be satisfied with even the smallest progress, and treat the outcome of it all as unimportant.” -Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
“Well-being is realized by small steps, but is truly no small thing.” -Zeno
“Think of many things; do one,” -Portuguese Proverb
No doubt if you’re working on a passion project, there are a million ideas, tasks, and roads you can travel down. All of them have merit.
If you’re struggling to prioritize, pick one task–no matter how small or inconsequential you think it is–and complete it. Trust that in doing so, you will gain momentum and clarity to know exactly what to do next.
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” -James Clear, book Atomic Habits
If you seek affirmation about whether you should do the thing in your head…
Instead of just telling someone (ideally a trusted confidant) your idea, show them your plan. Your work plan. Your system for executing the idea. Complete with estimation of project length, action steps, arbitrary deadlines, budget, contingencies, and anticipated obstacles.
While the idea is fun to talk about, the work plan is the true mark of someone who’s serious. Serious enough to be taken seriously.
“Deep down, each one of us is a mystic. When we tap into that energy we become alive again and we give birth. From the creativity that we release is born the prophetic vision and work that we all aspire to realize as our gift to the world. We want to serve in whatever capacity we can. Getting in touch with the mystic inside is the beginning of our deep service.” -Matthew Fox
“Attention is the most basic form of love. By paying attention we let ourselves be touched by life , and our hearts naturally become more open and engaged.” -Tara Brach
“And you know what, maybe I’m crazy. But when I walk through a forest that I saved, when I hear the sound of wind rustling in young trees, trees that I planted myself, I realize that I have my own little bit of control over the climate. And if after thousands of years one person is happier because of it, well then…I can’t tell you the feeling I get when I plant a birch tree and I see it grow up and sprout leaves, I…I mean, I fill up with pride, I…” -Astrov in Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov (Annie Baker adaptation)
The mystic and the artist have this in common: they both notice more and feel things much deeper than the average person.
If you want to get in touch with the mystical, start by paying more attention to the everyday, quotidian moments in your life.
Author Lerita Coleman Brown in her book, What Makes You Come Alive writes this about the theologian and mystic, Howard Thurman (He was also Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s spiritual adviser):
As a seminary student walking home late one night, Thurman noticed the sound of water. He had taken this route many times, and he had never heard even a drip. The next day Thurman discussed his observations with one of his professors, who told him that a canal ran underneath the street. Because the noises of streetcars, automobiles, and passersby were absent late at night, Howard could discern the sound of water.
Noticing and listening is the first step towards presence. In his writings, Thurman constantly instructed us to quiet our minds and “center down.”
I’ll leave with you with this beautiful poem he wrote…
“How Good To Center Down!” by Howard Thurman
How good it is to center down!
To sit quietly and see one’s self pass by!
The streets of our minds seethe with endless traffic;
Our spirits resound with clashings, with noisy silences,
While something deep within hungers and thirsts for the still moment
and the resting lull.
With full intensity we seek, ere the quiet passes, a fresh sense
of order in our living;
A direction, a strong sure purpose that will structure our confusion
and bring meaning in our chaos.
We look at ourselves in this waiting moment –
the kinds of people we are.
The questions persist: what are we doing with our lives? –
what are the motives that order our days?
What is the end of our doings?
Where are we trying to go?
Where do we put the emphasis and where are our values focused?
For what end do we make sacrifices?
Where is my treasure and what do I love most in life?
What do I hate most in life and to what am I true?
Over and over the questions beat in upon the waiting moment.
As we listen, floating up through all the jangling echoes of our turbulence,
there is a sound of another kind –
A deeper note which only the stillness of the heart makes clear.
It moves directly to the core of our being.
Our questions are answered,
Our spirits refreshed, and we move back into the traffic of our daily round
“Resistance is experienced as fear; the degree of fear equates to the strength of Resistance.” -Steven Pressfield, The War Of Art
“Like self-doubt, fear is an indicator. Fear tells us what we have to do.” -Steven Pressfield, The War Of Art
“The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.” -Joseph Campbell
“Named must your Fear be before Banish it you can!” -Yoda
One great takeaway from Steven Pressfield’s The War Of Art is that he names the blocked feeling we often experience when trying to make our art. Pressfield calls it “The Resistance.”
By naming it “The Resistance”, we now have a worthy adversary. Something concrete. Something we can battle.
For any fear, problem or obstacle you’re up against, see if you can give it an actual name. (It might also be helpful to associate an image with it in your mind.)
You can’t fight darkness in darkness. You’ve got to bring it into the light and see what you’re up against. Only then, can you can “go to war” with it.
“The cavalry isn’t coming. You are the cavalry.” -Mark Duplass
Multi-hyphenate artist Mark Duplass says that he relishes when he’s hired to “just be the actor” on a given project. He can focus on only one thing instead of several. He likens it to “being the fun uncle who comes over on a Saturday, plays with the kids and then gets to leave.”
When you’re not just the actor, but also the producer (or writer or director or all) on a project, you’re the parent. It’s a lot more work and a lot more responsibility.
But that’s okay. It’s worth it. Because when you step up to produce, you get to make what you’re passionate about. And if you’re also the actor, you get to play the role you’re dying to play.
Remember, with great responsibility, comes great power.
(2) If you didn’t ask for it, then why not? Do you really want it? Or are you just connected to the IDEA of it? (If you’re not sure, then you can follow Derek Sivers advice which is…If it’s not a “Hell Yeah!”, then it’s a “No.”)
If you didn’t really want it, be grateful you weren’t asked. You didn’t have to disappoint someone by turning them down.
(3) If you really did want it and are a little bit jealous, that’s a good thing. You’re actually excited about something. Follow that jealousy. Get curious with it. A potential passion project lurks.
(4) Feel empowered. Remind yourself that while institutional validation or getting picked is nice, it isn’t necessary. You and a burning desire to make the art you’re passionate about are enough.
(5) Wish the project and participants well. A generous spirit is a beautiful thing.
“You know when you’re walking in the woods on a dark night…and you see a light shining far off in the distance…and you think to yourself: even though I’m tired and it’s dark and the branches are scratching my face…everything is gonna be okay…because I have that light? And I’ll get there eventually? Well, I work–you know this–I work harder than anyone else in this county. I mean, I’m beaten down, Sonya, I suffer unbearably…but I have no light in the distance. I can’t see anything up ahead. I no longer expect anything of myself and I don’t think I’m capable of really loving people.” -Astrov to Sonya in Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov (translated by Annie Baker)
Spock: I find your arguments strewn with gaping defects in logic.
McCoy: Maybe, but you can’t evaluate a man by logic alone. –Star Trek
Belief in yourself and your art is often not logical. Especially at the outset when you have no evidence that the thing you’re passionate about is something that you can actually manifest. You have no light in the distance.
There are a million “logical” reasons to just not do it. To not try.
But is art really about logic? Because so much great art, the kind that stays with you, comes from that messy, irrational, dream-like subconscious.
Welcome ladies and gentlemen To the 8th wonder of the world! The flow of the century, always timeless: Hov! Thanks for coming out tonight You could’ve been anywhere in the world But you’re here with me, I appreciate that -song “Izzo (H.O.V.A) by Jay-Z
For the actor…
You and your character could be anywhere else in the world tonight, but the play calls for you to be right here, right now, under these given circumstances, with these other characters, fighting desperately for what you want.
You know who else could be anywhere else in the world tonight but chose to be here with you? The audience.
So, for yourself, your character, your fellow actors on stage, the play, the playwright, the designers, the stage crew and most especially, the audience…
Fight, man! Raise the stakes! Play your actions to the motherf-ckin hilt! Live dangerously. No turning back.
Cuz that’s what makes it theatre. Live. Special. Magical. Ephemeral.
Here today. Gone tomorrow.
Blood and guts. Leave it all out there on that stage. Play like a champion.
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