I was in a session with one of my amazing dancer clients earlier this week. She was struggling a bit with solidifying the solo dance piece she is in the process of choreographing.
To paraphrase her dilemma:
“I don’t know what moves should go where. I don’t know if I should wear shoes or go barefoot. I’m playing around with different song ideas….”
Whether or not you’re a choreographer, maybe you can relate in some area of your life?
Is there a place where you’re just not sure what should go where and so you hang out in wishy-washy land?
It’s easy to stay wishy-washy.
It’s easy to avoid making a decision in hopes that it will just be made for you.
It’s easy to defer your power to something outside of you: an authority figure, your astrological forecast, your partner, etc.
Believe me- this is one of my biggest downfalls and easiest trap to fall into.
But I learned something extremely powerful in the last week -
It’s actually MUCH easier to simply decide.
Repeat after me - these are the 2 simple words that will boost your creative power big-time:
I decide.
When you make a decision and commit to it - whether it’s with a piece of art you’re creating or within a relationship or career decision - you free yourself.
You also free the people in your life.
Contrary to the typical fear that you’ll be cutting off so many other amazing potential choices, by zeroing in one thing, you actually expand your potential.
Suddenly the world opens up.
In the example of my client session, I coached her into the remembrance that this is HER piece and HER choice - no one else’s. There’s no wrong decision. She let herself dance into exactly what she wanted and afterwards felt more powerful and free than she had in awhile.
And isn’t that a mirror for life?
Boldly choose your path and stick to it. Things might change down the road, but if you don’t commit to SOMETHING, you’re stifling a whole lotta energy and creating confusion in the world.
Let’s say the words one more time:
I DECIDE.
It’s your life, it’s your art. Take the reigns and dance with them.
to the power in you,
Jess
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Are YOU ready to take your power back and initiate creative change in your life?
Let me lovingly kick your butt into action this fall.
5 spots are open in my calendar next week for a 30-minute Creative Guidance Session. I’ll help you identify exactly what’s blocking you, what your bigger creative vision is (it might not be what you think!), and how I can guide you step by step through the process of making lasting change.
There comes a point when you have to stop blaming your job, your relationship, your health, your family, your crap-that-only-happens-to-me, and you start taking charge of your own life.
You dance because you want to. You create the life you desire.
I’m not saying the outer circumstances or roadblocks aren’t real - oh boy, are they real!
And I’m not saying that the change will happen overnight - very often transitions are convoluted, challenging, and not black-and-white.
But I am saying that it starts with a moment:
a commitment to oneself to gather all the power you can muster, to bring in support where needed, to take responsibility, and to make the first tiny step.
One of my joys in life is to be the midwife for this kind of creative emergence - helping people take back creative license on their LIVES. It’s not just about making art, it’s about making your life what you want it to be.
The story I’m going to share with you today is of one of my clients Aimee who successfully quit her 9-5 job and made dance her career.
It involved letting go of the fears around disappointing her family (it was a family business) as well as her fear that her new path would be a failure (it’s not).
In Aimee’s words:
“I have accomplished A LOT with Jess.
“I have quit my job (!!!), I have my own dance company that performs, I teach dance workout, I have my own class where I teach my own choreography each week, I am dancing in multiple companies, and have noticed a new respect from peers within the dance community.
“A lot has shifted for me. I feel like I am on my life path and it feels so good and I am not only one who gets to enjoy this shift, everyone around me gets to enjoy being around a happier, more loving, more creative and thoughtful me. It’s awesome!”
Want to know more about how it happened?
Watch her Showcase video below where we talk candidly about:
Aimee’s transition out of her job
what it’s like to make dance your career
AND get a peek at Aimee’s debut dance video that she created as her final project in the Thriving Artist’s Program.
Please comment below with your questions or takeaways that you want to apply to your own life!
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Are YOU ready to take your power back and initiate creative change in your life?
Let me lovingly kick your butt into action this fall.
5 spots are open in my calendar next week for a 30-minute Creative Guidance Session. I’ll help you identify exactly what’s blocking you, what your bigger creative vision is (it might not be what you think!), and how I can guide you step by step through the process of making lasting change.
There’s a creative world in you waiting to dance it’s way through you.
Don’t stop the flow.
Let it go.
It’s time to grow.
I told you so.
;)
supporting the most expressed, fulfilled version of you,
Jess
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Here's Aimee's awesome dance video that she choreographed and produced:
"The project I am presenting for the showcase is called Vampire Teeth and is an original choreography created by me and filmed by my good friend Mallika Prakash.
"Vampire Teeth, by the reggae/dancehall artist Busy Signal, was a song created for revenge against another dancehall artist Movado (I think) who was talking shit. The song it’s self is all over the place lyrically but the beat is strong, dark, and menacing so I tried to create a work that had those qualities plus more literally gangster and warrior like. This piece incorporates movements from dancehall, Afro-Haitian, and Afro-Cuban dance to tell a story of anger, death, and remorse. This is not a happy dance but more darkly expressive. For me it was a healthy way to express my anger for whatever reason."
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What will YOU create?
Let's talk and find out.
5 spots are open in my calendar next week for a 30-minute Creative Guidance Session. I’ll help you identify exactly what’s blocking you, what your bigger creative vision is (it might not be what you think!), and how I can guide you step by step through the process of making lasting change.
As the seasons around us begin to transition out of summer and into fall, many of us are also going through various kinds of life transitions. Maybe you, too?
In our You Can Dance Again class last Wednesday, I guided everyone to explore transitions with their dancing -- what does it feel like move quickly or slowly from one movement to the next? what happens when you physically resist transitioning your body? what happens when you joyfully leap into the next part?
Based on the collective feedback of the group and my own insights here’s what we gathered:
It feels more easeful, free, and fun when you stop thinking so much about transitioning and just let yourself dance. Because after awhile everything starts to feel like a transition and it can get exhausting to examine each and every movement, versus just letting it all flow naturally.
The more resistance you put into it, the more tension is created, and therefore you’ll experience a more powerful of an opening when you finally let yourself break through.
Isn’t dance a metaphor for life?
As you enter into the weekend, think about the following:
Are you over-thinking anything? Where can you surrender to the flow of life?
Are you resisting anything? What would happen if you finally just let go?
Then share more in the comments below if you want a sounding-board or just want to bring things to the surface.
I’ll leave you with a short poem I wrote the other day:
Somewhere between gung-ho and hold-up,
Somewhere between dancing forward and wiggling fitfully through the kinks and cobwebs,
Somewhere between what is to come and what has been lost,
Somewhere in there, she lands.
I’m sending so much love to you, no matter what kind of transitions or in-between moments you might be navigating. Remember to keep dancing through it all. You're not alone.
In the past week, there were multiple social media posts in which I shared previously hidden parts of myself - including words and skin:
I was feeling compelled to share more of my dance story in hopes that it would help and inspire others out there who were holding themselves back from dancing - whether it was because of body image or other reasons.
I poured days of time and energy into preparing and sharing my “dance-inar” that went live Wednesday night.
And after all of that…. the curtains closed (meaning, the video session ended) and there I was - alone at my desk.
[crickets]
I didn’t hear from many people during or after the class. I didn’t get any immediate sign ups for the dance program I shared at the end of it.
I felt exposed and even embarrassed and worried that I didn’t really make a difference at all. Maybe I offended someone or just bored them.
After processing some of these feelings, I picked up one of my latest favorite books - What We Ache For by Oriah Mountain Dreamer - and read this excerpt from the chapter on “Being Received.”
“When we put our creative work into the world we sometimes feel as if a piece of ourselves is exposed to potential rejection or acceptance, praise or ridicule. But we are wrong. As important as our work is, we are not the work we create. If we can keep and cultivate this perspective, we will be less likely to become attached to achieving material success, to having our work acknowledged or received in a particular way.
“I take it as a necessary part of the process that I feel a deep sense of attachment to the work I am currently doing. [...] The work I have created often feels like a beloved child. But when the time comes to let the work be received, I need to let it go and let it make its own way in the world.”
I’m learning this lesson with every dance video, dance-inar, or blog post I put out in the world.
And it’s a good reminder before starting a new creative process next week in the You Can Dance Again program. (And by the way, there now are people signing up for it - and today is the last day for registration if you’ve been thinking about it!)
And that’s the message I wanted to pass onto you this week:
Love your work deeply, put your heart and soul into it, and then release it.
Allow it to be received.
You can’t control how it’s received, and you might not immediately - or ever - know how it’s landing for people, but that’s ok.
Don’t let it stop you from creating again.
Your job is to follow that creative impulse inside of you and trust that if something is wanting to be expressed, there’s a reason for it.
Tell me -
Have you ever put something out into the world and felt like hiding afterwards?
Share in the comments below so that we can all help each other feel a little less alone in the vulnerability of it.
And then, keep creating.
with you on the front line and behind the scenes,
Jess
p.s. If you missed the whole “dance-inar” experience on Wednesday, I encourage you to watch it here, and pass it on to another dancer in your life who might be letting her negative body image interfere with her true passion for dancing.
Just write (dance/sing/paint/create/insert-your-passion-here)!
Stop getting distracted. You’re thinking way too much and you need to come back down to Earth. You need to.
One thing at a time.
Start by celebrating what you’ve already created, accomplished, overcame.
Celebrate it. Take it in. It’s great. Stop thinking.
Stop thinking.
Breathe.
Dance.
The world needs you to dance. Ok?
Spread the love and joy. It’s time.
It’s time.
You hold the key to unlocking dreams. Yours and others. You are ready.
You are so ready.
For abundance and love and wholeness and fulfillment.
Fulfillment with just enough yearning.
You can learn from your mistakes. You grow. You thrive.
This will all come together.
You are grand.
Take your space.
It’s time to make space.
Go ahead.
Put yourself out there.
It’s time.
Don’t hold back. The world truly needs you.
Shine your light. Be you.
Trust your own power.
It is there and waiting to be accessed if you let it.
Create something, already.
We’re waiting.
p.s. need a nudge in the direction of your creativity? click here to send me a note and set up a time to talk. I'm known for seeing things in you that you didn't even know you were possible. plus, I have a few openings in my upcoming programs waiting to be filled by passionate creatures who are so ready to stop settling for an unfulfilled existence.
If you’re an artist or creative person, you’re probably familiar with the phase of “UGH.”
“Ugh! I just can’t seem to focus.”
“Ugh! I’m stuck in this job/relationship/situation, and don’t have any time to work towards my real dreams and goals.”
“Ugh! I’m so overwhelmed and tired that I just want to curl up and go to sleep for 3 days.”
If you’ve been there or are there now, you are not alone.
No matter how rough the “UGH” phase can get, it’s nothing that can’t be worked through.
Today I want to give you some practical tools to get through it and get your creative energy back in action.
I’m also excited to share my client Mary Massie’s Showcase video (below). Her story of getting out of a very stuck place and back into her creative flow was the inspiration for today’s article. In fact, the 3 tools I’m going to share here are exactly the 3 pieces that Mary said were most helpful to her throughout our work together in the Thriving Artist’s Program.
Get the tips and watch Mary share even more inspiration in her Showcase video!
3 ways to get out of a creative rut
1. Make space.
One of the simplest things you can do when you’re stuck in a rut is to literally, physically, make space in your environment and inside of you. Start by getting rid of clutter in your physical environment. Then make space in your schedule for some personal quiet time. Especially if you’re someone who gets addicted to being busy, this is key. Even if it’s only 20 minutes once a week, do it! Then you can start making space in your mind and body. You don’t have to “do” anything or force anything to happen. Just be still. Try the next 2 steps.
2. Dance.
Whether or not you’re a “dancer,” you can find movement in your body that feels great AND do it on your own terms in your own time. (In other words, you don’t need a formal dance class to get your body moving.) A regular movement practice will help you find joy, relieve stress, and feel free. It will get you out of your head and into your body, which is HUGE for getting creativity flowing. Try dancing for 5 minutes before you have to do any kind of mental work, and notice what a difference it makes for you! More focus, more energy, more creativity = YES!
Note: If you need guidance here, check out this quick video movement prompt from me and my Find Your Rhythm 6-week program, which is full of dance and movement prompts. The current round is already in session, but there are still a couple of late-comer spots open!
Writing can be done in many ways. What I’m suggesting here, for the purposes of getting out of a rut, is to use writing as a way to learn more about the inner workings of your Self. Personal inquiry, if you will. You can write to the part of you that is stressed out or stuck, and then respond to see what comes through. You can write to your future or past self, and then respond from that persona. If you don’t think about it too much and just let the words flow, you’ll be amazed and touched by the wisdom that can come through you.
Sometimes witnessing real-life stories and inspiration can be the best help for getting out of a rut.
So I’m really happy to share with you Mary Massie’s Showcase Video - check it out below!
Watch and read more about her story, and please comment below and let us know what you found most valuable about the experience.
To letting it flow,
Jess
In Mary's words....
Some of the fears I worked through involved using my voice more, both metaphorically and literally and finding cohesion for my varied interests. I felt stuck in so many areas of my life and now I really feel like I'm finally moving.
I think there are three specific things that I will take with me beyond our sessions. One is the importance of physical movement facilitating movement in other areas of my life. I'm not a dancer per se, but I found a real joy in dancing in my room and knowing that I have so many options for moving my body. I see the power of getting out of my head and into my body whether that's through a walk, a yoga class, or taking a dance break. And I love that I have so many wonderful options when I listen to my body. I used to get hung up on say, doing yoga. If I didn't go to class, then I didn't think about having other ways to move. And I also reconnected to the little girl in me who would joyfully dance and sing along with the radio. Priceless.
I also found the power of writing in a new way. I've journaled a lot over the years, but Jess helped me hone in on asking the right questions and listening for my intuitive response through writing. I learned that I have the answers inside when I'm willing to ask and listen to a response. The act of writing keeps me in motion too and gets me out of my head. The prompts Jess suggested really helped me find clarity through the act of writing.
I also found the importance and power of creating space in my life through my sessions. Realizing how I physically take up in space in this world was so insightful! I became more aware of my need for space in my life in order to allow rejuvenation and creativity in.
I thought when I started working with Jess, that I needed to get back to painting as that used to be my main art medium. What I found though is that I kept taking photos and found the reasons why that's what I'm really loving at this point in my life. Sharing my point of view and focus is another way of using my voice. I'm also feeling freed up by having camera and my digital images.
The world is my studio and I don't feel weighed down by canvases and paints right now. I showed a photograph in a show in May. It was the first time in five years I've had a piece of art in a show and the first time I've shown a photograph. I created a tumblr blog online for my photos as a space to share my work.
I also made a piece of jewelry on commission and sold it last month. I used to make jewelry and sell it on Etsy, but hadn't done it in over five years. I used to love making this jewelry that incorporated drawing and found it so gratifying to reconnect to that part of myself. Connecting back to the visual artist in me has been so gratifying.
I'm putting myself out in the world far more than I used to. I feel like I'm on the other side of a huge block.
I feel like I'm finally getting comfortable and more confidant with owning my varied interests. I used to feel like a bit of a flake and apologetic that I couldn't just focus on art or on music. I'm now seeing how each informs the other, making me uniquely me and being appreciative of what each of my passions bring to my life.
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Feeling stuck in your life and need a boost?
Applications are re-opened for the Thriving Artist's Program.
5 spots are open in my calendar next week for a 30-minute Creative Guidance Session. I’ll help you identify exactly what’s blocking you, what your bigger creative vision is (it might not be what you think!), and how I can guide you step by step through the process of making lasting change.
I’m sending so much love to you, no matter what kind of transitions or in-between moments you might be navigating. Remember to keep dancing through it all. You're not alone.
Some of the fears I worked through involved using my voice more, both metaphorically and literally and finding cohesion for my varied interests. I felt stuck in so many areas of my life and now I really feel like I'm finally moving.
