I’ve been working on a new series lately. My studio is strewn with sawdust trails and brass shrapnel. Artistic puzzle pieces had begun to connect in small clumps, but until last week, not much was done. After all that time of wandering and experimenting, I still hadn’t finished anything yet.
But this past week, progress quietly erupted. Slowly, methodically – a handful finished one day, a half dozen the next. Ten, then twenty. The tipping point.
In mathematics, it’s assumed that two halves make a whole. But in the creative world, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. The whole inherently contains something the halves never will: a sense of completion. That feeling of accomplishment you get when something is finished. That moment when the circle is complete. That satisfaction you feel when you see a new creation for the first time and it feels strangely foreign yet fully familiar.
You made that.
That feeling of completion is an important one. It’s the emotional fuel that keeps you going when the creative process gets messy and hard. It keeps you moving forward when the flush of inspiration wears off and you’re left mired in the process of it all. The slog in the middle can be a long one, so when you get there, for god’s sake, just finish something.
Finish a small piece. Something inconsequential. Something imperfect. It doesn’t even matter. You’ll learn from its flaws and improve. The important thing is that it’s done. Feel the sense of accomplishment flushing through your creative veins. Soak in the sustenance of completion. Refill the creative well. And then, get back to work.
Leave a Reply