Excuses, excuses

I woke up this morning not feeling very creative. I did however wake up with tons of excuses. I woke up late because it is Fall and the sun rises later. I didn't do my complete workout at the gym because it was getting late and I was a bit tired. Allergies you know. I didn't paint very long this morning because I just wasn't in the mood. On and on. All excuses. I didn't realize to this afternoon how many seemingly little things I rationalize away, all those things I don't do but should do to get the results I want and all those things I do do but should because they have results I don't want. What a trap I have created for myself.

I've been an artist long enough that there are days when I don't feel especially creative or in the mood. But not long after I begin my creative process, my mood changes and the creativity comes to me. It happens whether I want it to happen or not, as long as I do it. Creating almost always puts me into a good mood. So why do I allow myself to wiggly out of it? All those small reasons aren't reasons at all. Just excuses.

Here is another curious thing I notice today related to all of this. Three times a week I blog. I have it in my to do list. It happens even when I don't know what I am going to write about, which is often. Yet, there have been only a few days where I didn't blog. I determined that blog was important for me to do so I do it. But when it comes to my art, I haven't set aside time when creating is my priority. So it makes it easy to make excuses and not follow through. Yet this is what I want to do and I know that what I produce gets better and better each day. My best work is the work I start tomorrow. But, I don't give my work the priority and the energy that is needed to succeed. Paintings don't paint themselves. I paint them. So why do I allow myself to make excuses not to paint?

Many of my person and professional goals are dependent on me painting, producing paintings, producing good art and then selling it. Since this is at the core from which everything else is dependent, it is imperative that I give my art the respect, time and priority is deserves. Simply by creating an additional hour a day would have a order of magnitude difference in everything else that I do. I guess, no, I know that my challenge is to focus more, makes excuses less, and do those things that will have the greatest impact. In my case, that is painting. No more excuses.