You may have noticed that I’m a week late with my blog post this month. In response to the 4th of July. American Independence Day, I chose INTERdependence as my theme for the month. Well, I’ve been getting some sharp lessons in the subject, through unexpected events and a whole lot of physical pain. Today I can finally sit at my desk again… and think!
So, in this month’s post, I’d like to share a few thoughts from my recent lessons in the subject and how this all relates to your creativity.
To keep the pain part of the story short, I’ll just say that I did too much in late June and have had an excruciating flare-up of an old injury, which has had literally made me scream just getting out of bed in the morning. In the midst of it, we’ve had two sets of house guests and had to cancel our 4th of July vacation. These are the lessons you don’t forget.
I’m not good at asking for help. I’m a creative thinker with an endless stream of ideas about how to make things better, more functional and more beautiful. Whether it’s my home, creative work, business, or dinner menu, I’m quite content being able to get up and do whatever I can envision. Asking someone to do it for me is unacceptable.
Well…. sometimes Life has a different plan, and very often your body is the messenger. Loud and clear. Stop. Let go. And lean on someone else. These past few weeks I've had to rely on the people around me to help me get through. My life is my classroom and this month’s lesson is in Interdependence.
I come from a long line of women for whom depending on anyone was not a good idea. My maternal grandmother failed to cope with the lonely life of a sharecropper’s wife in the ‘30s and ended up lobotomized in a North Texas psychiatric hospital. My mother, seeing her mother’s demise, determined to never be financially dependent on a man and ended up being depended on instead. And I have tried to navigate the stony roads between their stories from both sides. So today, at the age of 68, I’m still in the classroom, trying to learn balance… how to give and receive in equal portions.
After all my research, my poignant prompts for ChatGPT, and a fair amount of horizontal reflection, here’s what I know today about...
What Interdependence Means:
- It means letting go of control.
- It means prioritizing relationship over perfection.
- It means allowing others to do for me what I’d rather do for myself.
- It means slowing down and making space in my day for people.
- It means doing what I can and letting someone else do what I can’t.
- It means not depriving someone of the good feeling of helping me.
- It means answering the question, “How important is this?” differently.
- It means listening to my body.
- It means the scary act of trusting another to be there when I need them.
- It means recognizing that my greatest contribution at this time in my life is not in what I DO, but in how I AM… in my “loving presence."
So what does all this have to do with your creativity?
There is no more elegant or creative example of interdependence than Nature itself. If we humans could set aside our mechanistic approach to life for awhile, we could learn a lot from her on how to create meaningful lives that stand the test of time.
For the creative person, Interdependence defines your relationship with yourself, your Muse, your Tribe and your Product. It’s an ecosystem of sorts. And for everyone in the system to thrive, this Interdependence needs recognition… and practice.
You and Your Muse
If you want your creativity to be there for you, you have to be there for it. That means setting a time to meet it every day and then being there. It means carving out space that is sacred to you that you don’t give away to anyone else. It means doing the work to get your work out in the world. It requires:
- Setting boundaries
- Honoring your commitments
- Showing up to yourself and your practice every day
- Doing the work
You and Your Tribe
Interdependence means connecting with other people. Allowing others to get involved in your work, your process. It means being present for their process and their work as well as asking/expecting them to be present for yours. If everyone is just producing work, who is there to receive it?
Interdependence means peeling back the curtain to let people in to see your real process. Letting go of being Special in order to boost your weak self-esteem Looking for complimentary reactions to your work in order to let you know you’re on the right track is a certain path to mediocrity and confusion. The beauty Is not in the eye of the beholder but in the existence of the work itself.
Love has no direction. It is the point of connection where energy flows – back and forth, in and out and in again, around and around – and to try to own that energy is to block it. The act of interdependence is the act to choose to be vulnerable, to allow, to open, to let yourself be wounded, and then to paint with the blood that flows out of your heart.
You and Your Product
Last week I was speaking with a client about their creative work, which is contemporary jazz music. They were speaking about the impact of AI and algorithms on their chart rankings and how to not be too distracted by them. It occurred to me that this is just a new art form, a new modality, which must now be incorporated – and allocated. And a choice must be made about when to take the commercially successful path and when to take the road less traveled. There is value in each. For the artist, the keystone is to stay connected with the essence of the piece, the spirit of what it expresses, and the value of its sheer existence in the world.
What is it that you want to say with your one and only life? Will you show up for it day in and day out to give it air to breathe and give it voice and color and texture? Or will you design it by the rules so that it will produce results, make money, score ratings and WIN?
Whatever you choose, there are three steps to keep in mind to keep interdependence alive in your creativity:
- Produce the work. Step 1 is Vision. The listening is then followed by action and making. Then release and promotion. Then beginning again from there.
- Receive the work of others. Step 2 is about generosity, about showing up for others, to listen to their music, to watch their films, read their books, carve out space for their expression as well as your own.
- Share the journey. It is also about accompanying those who travel the creative road alongside you. It’s about allowing yourself to share the journey honestly, to bear witness to their struggles, and in bearing witness, to learn how to overcome your own.
And here are 5 strategies you can use to practice interdependence in your creative circles:
1. Engage in Collaborative Projects.
Working on collaborative projects fosters interdependence by pooling together diverse talents and perspectives. Join or form art collectives or co-working spaces. Collaborate with other artists on joint exhibitions, performances, or publications. Co-create projects with community participation, such as murals, public installations, or interactive performances.
2. Offer and Receive Constructive Feedback.
Interdependence thrives on open, respectful communication and shared growth.
Establish regular feedback sessions to share works-in-progress and receive constructive criticism. Create a culture of mutual support by giving and receiving constructive feedback.
3. Mentor Others and Share your Skills.
Sharing knowledge and skills enhances the collective creative potential. Offer guidance to emerging artists. Organize workshops, and classes in the community. Participate in mentorship programs, both as mentor and mentee, to foster reciprocal learning and growth.
4. Support and Celebrate Others’ Work.
Being present for others’ creative endeavors strengthens community bonds. Attend events organized by fellow artists. Promote and share others’ work on social media, blogs or newsletters. Celebrate the successes and milestones of your peers to create an uplifting environment.
5. Create Inclusive and Accessible Spaces.
Ensuring that creative spaces and opportunities are inclusive and accessible to all promotes interdependence. Advocate for venues, workshops and events that foster diversity. Actively welcome and engage with underrepresented groups in the community. Develop projects and programs that address community needs and interests to ensure that your work resonates.
By implementing these strategies, you can cultivate a thriving, interdependent creative community where mutual support, shared growth, and collective success are prioritized. Not only will your own creative practice thrive but also the well-being and vibrancy of the entire creative ecosystem.
So here’s my question for you.
Who do you say you are in the world, and how can interdependence make you better at it?
That's all my back will take for now, so I"m signing off.
But if you're looking for a creative community to support you, check out and apply for the Big Vision Project Incubator. We'll be starting up again in the Fall.