It’s often take 1 (it’s not take 4 that’s for sure)
When editing my daily films, I notice that on the first take, it’s usually the one I use. The performance seems to be most connected to the initial impulse and truth of the moment I’m playing.
I’m not sure if this is an across the board rule- I actually think because I’m the one writing it, the first take is the closest to my initial idea so ends up being the one I use…
It’s interesting to watch my performance get busier and less nuanced as the takes go on.
How can we trust our first instincts more?
How can we allow the succeeding takes to give us depth and nuance, not reduce it?
Whakamana
Tonight I attended a shared dinner to finish off an acting class I’m part of. Our teacher Jon invited us to go around the circle one at a time and reflect back to people what we see and appreciate in them and their work.
There was laughter, tears and the most beautiful circle of generosity from the givers and gratitude for the receivers.
I mean, those are two pretty powerful forces.
How can we invite those into our lives more?
Generous.
Grateful.
Yes please.
The final thing
Before I started making daily videos to share online I ummed and aah’d about what I should make and what the ‘final thing’ would be. I didn’t want to start without a big master plan of exactly what the videos would be, and how they would culminate to create this idea of a perfect body of work.
It’s quite funny to me, nearly 200 videos in, and I still don’t know what I’m making.
This is the inevitable journey of creativity; we follow hunches but its not our business what is ends up as. And it’s certainly not our business to try and mould some sort of premeditated trajectory.
Bodies of work and careers come together in retrospect- it’s not for us to curate. Make something now that you’re interested in and use influences that inspire you. Do your best, ship it and then move on.
I’m a little closer to knowing what I’m making, but only a little closer. And that’s only after 193 videos made and shared. So my advice is to start as soon as possible.
Then enjoy the not knowing.
Over night
I was creating some automated email responders for my business and I thought I had some pretty good subject lines.
Like many things, I felt the strong desire to just be done with it. There! I worked on this for a few hours, that’s it I can move on.
Unsure of whether I was hitting the right tone with the subject lines, I decided to leave it. I came back the next day and it was clear to me what they needed to be (less playful and more clear about what the email had in it).
If there isn’t a great rush for micro decisions like this, I think giving it a night will make it clear.
47 Minutes
When you’re learning something it can seem so incredibly impossible.
But.
If you stick with it for 47 minutes, or 4 hours or a couple of years, there WILL come a time when you get it.
You just have to sit through that difficulty till then.
I promise.
Being light makes you light.
There’s a lot to be said about moving through the world with levity.
It’s greeting things with a smile; a light feathery touch of gentle kindness about us.
It’s funny, when you are light in this way, there is a light that shines from within you onto all the people who you interact with.
Lightness begets lightness.
Reading helps productivity
There’s a nasty rumour going around. (And you have to be careful of rumours; if you believe them they might become true)
It says that reading steals your time. It says “there’s not enough time for reading”
This rumour tells everyone that there isn’t enough time in the day to read, that being swept up in a fictional world is a waste of time and when there’s something else to be done – anything – then you should do that.
Maybe (just maybe) when you finish all your work (that never happens) THEN you’ll have time to read.
It’s a nasty rumour. Luckily someone warned me about it (a bit like how I’m warning you right now).
The truth is, reading makes you more productive. It tells your brain that there’s more than enough time. Don’t leave reading for when you have time, read to MAKE more time.
Don’t read in spite of having a lot to do, read because of that.
Don’t believe the lies. Open a book.
Mood trumps prep
I filmed a loom video lesson today and I had the slides ready but I didn’t think I’d perfected the content quite yet.
I decided to push ahead anyway and film the lesson, I was in a playful and light mood after all.
The lessons turned out great- far from perfect but they convey what they needed to.
This teaches me that being in a good mood beats being perfectly prepared.
The Episode 1 Theory
The other day I made a video and I decided to put the words ‘episode 1’ in the title.
This suggests there’ll be an episode 2… and maybe even an episode 3.
Do I have either planned?
No…
But I’ve posted it now so I guess I have to follow up.
In what ways can you use the ‘episode 1’ theory to your creative advantage?
One or the other
People who are hyper conscious of their time often get a bad wrap for accounting for every minute.
I don’t think it’s bad to be active in your use of your time. It’s not that you need to be productive every hour of every day, but I do think we should all be purposeful.
I will spend the next hour cooking and hearing how my son’s day was.
I will spend the next three hours watching tv with my friend and getting swept up in the story.
Rest or work? Presence with a loved one or being on your phone? No option is bad or good, just choose one and do it.
Just don’t pretend you’re doing one, when you’re actually lazily slipping into something else.
Our demise should never be because of our lack of decision.