simple tip that ends studio distractions

Time for the December 5th, 2014, TMS Newsletter excerpt...

This week I have a great tip on how to deal with distractions while you are in your studio (or wherever you create).

I am not talking about the obvious stuff, like how you should turn off your phones or how you should not have your email open on your laptop (waiting for that lovely ding that tells you that a new email has popped in) or how you shouldn’t be checking your Facebook account.

I am talking about managing your distracting brain chatter.

This happens to all of us: You are all settled in, music is playing, you are in a zone happily painting or drawing and suddenly an idea pops into your head. You remember that you didn’t call that woman back about watching your cats while you are away or you remember the name of that plumber your friend was asking about, or you get an idea for another art project. You know the stuff I am talking about.

This happens all of the time doesn’t it? Sheesh. Maybe it is because we are relaxed and in a creative mode. An awful lot of ‘important’ stuff takes this opportunity to come bouncing through our brain. Our tendency is to drop what we are doing and we rush to make that phone call or we go to our computer to start Googling something we wanted to check on – like what was that actor’s name in that movie we were trying to remember at dinner last night? Ha. It’s a slippery slope...

Cause we all know what happens next don’t we? We lose precious art making time. AND, we return to our work only to find that we can’t get back into our groovy flow. Arrrgh!

Here is the solution...

Go buy yourself some brightly coloured index cards.

mine are 3 inches by 5 inches in size

Keep them right beside you while you work.

When that out of no-where thought pops up, to call the cat sitter or you remember the name of the plumber pause for a brief moment and write a quick note to yourself. Get it on the card. Then go back to work!

This little life management trick works like a charm. The benefit of these sturdy, brightly coloured cards is that you won’t lose track of them. I used to write myself notes on scrap pieces of paper, whatever I could grab, and then I would lose these bits of paper amidst the stuff on my work tables. Of course these silly scraps of paper didn’t stand out at all when I tried to find them.

Using my bright index card system has made a huge difference in how I work. I don’t lose my ideas, (I don’t have to try to remember them either) and they are there waiting for me to follow up on at a much more appropriate time.

I encourage you to give this a try.

I know it will work to keep you distraction free and super focused as you create your masterpieces.