The Creative Act: A Way of Being: The Sunday Times bestseller

When flowing, keep going.

There’s great wisdom in transitional realms between wakefulness and sleep. Right before you fall asleep, what thoughts and ideas come to you? How do you feel when you wake from a dream? In the wisdom tradition of Tibetan dream yoga, among others, lamas say the dream state is just as real—or unreal—as the waking state. Keeping a dream journal might

The Energy (In the Work)

Distraction is not procrastination. Procrastination consistently undermines our ability to make things. Distraction is a strategy in service of the work.

Creativity is something you are, not only something you do. It’s a way of moving through the world, every minute, every day.

The mission is to complete the project so you can move on to the next.

It requires patience and diligence to get past the story of what you think you’re hearing and get close to understanding what’s actually being said.

Living life as an artist is a practice. You are either engaging in the practice or you’re not. It makes no sense to say you’re not good at it. It’s like saying, “I’m not good at being a monk.” You are either living as a monk or you’re not. We tend to think of the artist’s work as the output. The real work of the artist is a way of being in the worl

When treated like the earlier phases, with no boundaries or time constraints, the Craft phase may extend longer than necessary. Once enough data is collected, and the vision is clear, it can be helpful to set deadlines for completion.

When we’re making things we love, our mission is accomplished.