Whether you’re a dad, trying to get your kids’ clothes on in time for nursery, a CEO writing her speech to shareholders, an accountant juggling her spreadsheets, a coach organising a Saturday football team, or a mechanic swapping out an engine, we create and bring things into being every single day.
We don’t think of it as creation, or as artistry. Often we see it just as “what we do” – occasionally exhilarating, mostly the same-old, same-old drudgery – and that is the source of much of our stress and dissatisfaction with our lives.
Creation is an act of doing, achievement takes activity. Don’t do? Nothing gets done. This we all know.
But what only a few of us know – those of us who know we are artists – is that the Quality of our creations and the amount of satisfaction and joy we receive in bringing them forth, is down to something quite insubstantial – yet it is Real-er than anything else on this planet.
I call it our sense of Being, the experience of our presence and sense of existence. Being does not Do, it just Is. But it is the source of all inspiration and joy, passion and creation. It is the source of Quality. Quality, in turn, is that sense of rightness, of Good, of beauty and integrity and truth. It brings us joy to work with it, it brings us satisfaction.
Author Stephen King calls Being, the “Muse”, while Elizabeth Gilbert names it, “Genius”. Another author, Steven Pressfield, takes Carl Jung’s idea of a “superconscious” and runs with it:
“The superconscious is the part of our psyche that enabled Einstein to conceive of the Special Theory of Relativity and Steph Curry to hit nineteen three-pointers in a row with an opponent’s hand in his face on every shot. Tolstoy didn’t write War and Peace. His superconscious did. Picasso didn’t paint Guernica. His superconscious did. Trey Parker and Matt Stone didn’t create South Park, their superconscious did. I’ve got a superconscious, and so do you.”
It is only our alignment with the Muse, or our superconscious, with our Genius – with Being – that brings forth Quality and artistry. Artistry gives fulfilment, it brings meaning and purpose, it means your life is Enough; more than Enough in fact. Your cup over-flows.
And again, I’m talking about every aspect of all of our lives. I’m talking about you. It does not matter what you’re doing, but how you are doing.
When we forget or neglect Being, all our Doings are empty, we strive and struggle, we stress and get reactive, frustrated, angry, depressed. There’s zero satisfaction or contentment to be gained in life. There’s no Quality, no enjoyment, no fulfilment – until we remember Being again. Doing without a foundation in Being is empty. It is lacking. Neither the work, or the creator is Enough.
Being is powerful – but rare are those that actually trust Being and puts it first, that makes their connection with it a priority.
Regardless of what everyone else is Doing, why don’t you make Being a priority?
Go well!
Arjuna