Fine tune your dial

We eat first with our eyes.

Who do you listen to when it comes to your creative life? Do you have mentors or other Creatives you turn to for inspiration, advice and ideas?

Or do you scroll Insta or TikTok until you stumble upon a gem of wisdom from any old source?

Today’s Creative Urge is about content consumption and how the old adage of ‘you are what you eat’ has never been more true.

Fine tune your dial

Take a quick scroll on your social media platform of choice and almost every second post will be someone telling you what you should be doing in 2024. Most of them will be pressing upon you how important it is to show up, be consistent and ‘make content’ every single day.

Then, every other post will be spruiking the opposite: slow down, get off screens and rest.

Heck, I’ve even seen some of my fave people shaming other creators in order to boost their own agenda – needless to say it’s a communication minefield out there.

If you’re not standing guard at the doors of your mind (as I’ve heard many meditation teachers say), you’re going to get overwhelmed with all the information being blasted at your eyeballs.

Now it’s possible for all of the above messages to be true at the same time, which is why it’s never been more important to cultivate the self-awareness to know what you need to hear right now.

Consciously fine tune your dial towards the content that makes you feel energised, empowered, expansive and excited – anything less will likely drain you.

As a Creative, you’re incredibly vulnerable to any kind of messaging – especially when you’re seeking inspiration

It’s easy to catch a glimpse of an Insta post in the morning that triggers an insecurity bubbling up from just below the surface. Then, before you know it, your morning has evaporated, lost to a waterfall of thoughts, kind of like you’ve been hypnotised by your own mind. So when you finally ‘come to’, you’re left wondering wtf happened and why you can’t focus.

I’ve been thinking really deeply about what content triggers me with me lately and in my experience, it’s often the posts that find a mainline to my trauma. These posts act like a motion sensor light on a porch at night, illuminating a visitor. I don’t know initially if it’s a friend or foe, but the light helps to show what’s there.

There are times I’m feeling brave and can confidently step out onto the porch to confront who’s there… yet there are other times when fear is all-present and I can’t even make it to the front door.

Be mindful – like, OBSESSIVELY mindful – about what messages you’re letting in. From social media, from the news, from people and from the world at large. It’s what shapes you and affects your precious creative energy.

“But Dr Maz, what’s the right ‘content diet’ for me?”

Let’s get practical, shall we? Here’s 5 questions I ask myself when I’m curating what content I want to see and accounts I’d like to follow:

1. Does this directly apply to the creative work I want to make? If it’s a no, ditch it.

2. Would I spend time with this person IRL? If it’s a no, unfollow.

3. Is this a generous message? If it’s no, ditch it. How can you tell? Generous messages don’t leave you hanging or feeling like you need to buy your way in.

4. Am I being invited to explore or directed down ONE path? If it’s the latter, ditch it. There’s more than one way to do anything and if someone’s only sharing their way, chances are you’ll pay for it later.

5. How do I feel after seeing this content? If it’s anything other than fucking lit up, ditch it.

You don’t need to follow anyone else’s message other than your own

Even mine. While I’m so grateful you’re here, what’s most important to me is that you find the messages that either spark or unblock your creativity. I hope that I help you do both!

Be discerning, be selective and act with conviction about what your creative practice needs. Future You will thank you for it.

Creatively yours,

Dr Maz xoxo

PS: Energising messages can come from anywhere, so keep your eyes and ears peeled.