Yesterday I had this urge to start something new. And I didn’t. I went on with the day-daily stuff and felt quite unsatisfied at the end of the day. And it started so well: I was aware of the urge to start something new, and I had already some great things in mind that I could do. So why didn’t I? As always, I had plenty to do. There is always more to do than there are hours in a […]
Last Sunday Prince played two surprise shows at Paradiso in Amsterdam. It started with a fuss about the high ticket prices. Still, the shows were sold out within no time. It was a unique opportunity for fans to see their idol in such an intimate setting. I wasn’t there. On Monday I read in the papers about what I call a clash of expectations. First let’s take Prince. He’s a star, used to be a public figure and having very […]
Many artists still believe that they can only be creative when suffering. Many years ago I saw a film that explored this very topic. The manager was doing his upper best to let the artist suffer. It started with getting him away from his parents at a very early age. The manager also made sure that the first girlfriend disappeared shortly after. The challenge was, that the artists wasn’t allowed to see that it’s the manager that made him suffer. […]
It’s summer and for two weeks we already have great summer weather over here, they don’t expect it to change in the next week. And today my summer holiday starts 🙂 Before summer holiday starts, everyone is looking forward to it. We start to make lots of plans, looking forward to travel and see yourselves in a very different environment enjoying life. Often we create a dream that has little to do with who we really are. Every time I […]
Last week I realized that I shut down when it’s very busy. It feels like making a cardboard box in my mind, just big enough for me to fit in, sitting on my heels. I crawl into it for protection against all the different impressions and problems around me. The first problem with this solution is, probably a pattern since my childhood, that the imagined protection is only very temporary before a feeling of oppression takes over. The second problem […]
I will not start a new church, certainly not! Faith means, that we don’t have control about our creativity and art. And yet, we have to trust our creativity and art, believe that it’s good and necessary to be creative. There are many obstacles on our way towards more creativity. And if you have read all the previous 11 leads to un-block your creativity you are probably aware by now, that we are very good in creating the major blocks […]
What’s your association with autonomy? My thoughts always go back to my first morning after moving to Frankfurt a.M. I was 19, moved there from a small village on the country side and had just registered at the city council. Walking in the morning at Eiserner Steg towards the city center, I felt like the whole world was mine! It was an enormously outburst of freedom, independence and love. Does this sound extravagant and braking-loose-from-social-obligations? Oh yes, that was exactly […]
Self protection is about discovering the toxic patterns that block your creativity, and how to protect yourself against it. In other words: how can you protect yourself against yourself? In order to be kind to ourselves, we have to be hard against the toxic patterns. Imagine that creativity is all around us, like leaves in the fall, available to every one. We just have to bend and pick it up. And often we just don’t want to bend, we want […]
Compassion seems so easy, except if it’s about compassion towards myself. Last week I was invited as panelist to goNORTH, an art conference/festival in Inverness in Scotland. My mind was full with all kind of duties and tasks. And I can go quite harsh on myself when I haven’t finished them all at once! It’s not the duties and tasks themselves that form a block to creativity, it’s how you deal with them. If you feel the need of more […]
Surviving as an artist requires you to be strong. I’m not talking about the cliche of sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll. That might seem cool or strong, but actually it’s not. It doesn’t help you to survive as an artist, it helps you to run away from it. True strength lies in facing the challenges that come your way. “The truth is that our finest moments are most likely to occur when we are feeling deeply uncomfortable, unhappy or […]
With the previous post I forgot to mention that working on abundance is a good opportunity to investigate your own attitude towards money and wealth on one side, and at the other side the concept of ‘enough’ and appreciating what you have. Connection is about connecting to yourself, your inner source. You can start with listening to yourself. This will help you to create a map of where you are, where you are coming from and where you want to […]
Oh, I love this one! I wrote about it before, in October last year. The feeling of abundance is only for a small part related to material wealth. It has everything to do with you, allowing yourself to take good care of you. If you try, you will discover that often it’s the little things that make life luxurious for you! Just take some time and think about it. No, forget for a moment about posh cars, juwelery and golden […]
When I was 19 I moved to Frankfurt and started to study Theology. I thought that the whole world is open to me, and that with age the possibilities will become more and more limited. Well, that’s the best way of getting old even when still young at age 🙂 Our own expectations, and most of all the expectations we think that others have regarding us, are the strongest obstacle in discovering our possibilities. We think that we have to […]
Part of your new identity as artist is integrity. It starts with being honest to yourself. And yes, sometimes that can be scary. When being honest to yourself, you have to admit that you are joining your friends into town for shopping, even if you actually would like to look for a quiet place to sit in the sun. Usually I’d try to hide the urge for a quiet place, hide it even for myself, and go with my friends, […]
Have you ever realized the power that comes with getting angry? I’ve been told to be nice, to suppress any feelings of anger. Even if I know, that in the end it makes me crazy. Anger can be used as a map, as a sign that tells you the direction you have to go or to avoid. It also gives you the energy to pursue. So as recovering artist, getting angry means that you are starting to unblock! So don’t […]