What moves you?

I visited Oslo last weekend and one of my favourite parts was the Viking Ship Museum.

They have wonderfully preserved ships recovered from burial mounds, along with many of the grave goods that were put there for the deceased. There were goods from all over the Viking trade routes, like buckets made in Ireland, and even a peacock from the Middle East.

The favourite fact I learned is that a sail would cost as much as the rest of a ship. They were incredibly valuable because they took just as much work to make as the wooden hull, and for a long sea journey you needed to harness the power of the wind reliably. A good sail is the difference between being able to visit faraway lands or being limited to your local area.

This made me think about the analogy of motivation. Sometimes creative work is easy, like the wind is carrying you along. Other times its exhausting work and it seems that you are the only person on board rowing. Even worse is when your solo rowing is making the ship go round in circles.

If you want to catch that wind you need to keep your sail in good condition. I wondered what my sail is? What are the habits I can cultivate that will keep me riding that wind of motivation?

The Oseberg ship.

What moves me?

Here are moments that recently lifted my spirits and kept me moving forward.

• Rehearsing a sketch for a show, and being surrounded by other performers rehearsing their bits.
• Sharing work in progress with others, and seeing their work in progress.
• Going to a friend’s music gig in a cosy out-of-the-way cafe I would otherwise never have visited.
• Talking about our processes with a creative friend.
• Seeing the art of the Oslo Town Hall, huge friezes depicting the history and hopes for the future of the city.

There are common themes in those moments, ones that often turn up if I think back to other inspiring moments. For me they are:

1. Being around people making things.
2. Enjoying art from different fields than mine.
3. Talking about the process of making things.

So to keep my sail in good condition I need to make opportunities to be around people who are making things, go to random galleries and performances that I know nothing about and stay in contact with people that I respect and can talk to about my work.

What moves you?

If you are feeling dead in the water right now, write out a short list of moments that inspired you recently. See if there are any common themes in these moments and older ones that spoke to you.

Then write a short list of specific actions you can take to capture more of those moments. Now you have a checklist of things to do to tune up your sails and get back to riding the winds.

Current Workshops

I will be using my passion for sharing your creative process in a series of workshops in London. Tuesdays from 12th March to 21st May. Check out this link for more details. Come down and let’s quest together.