Resistance & the Trickster

Chattering thoughts, the desire to understand and explain, the belief that explanation and/or understanding leads to solution or is solution itself; it's all part of the trickster's plan. 

Call it ego, call it intellect, call it judgement, call it thoughts, call it brain - I call it the trickster. I know that my own biggest obstacle to working, doing, trying, experimenting, creating, whaterver-ing is getting started. The trickster, tricksy as ever is it's nature, compels me try to figure out why I resist getting started. The trickster would have me believe that if I could just figure out the root of my resistance, I could then overcome it. But here's the thing, trying to understand my resistance, searching for answers, thinking about it, all this intellectual effort is merely a delay tactic. The trickster is creating further obstacles to my getting started.

Because I don't have mastery over my thoughts/trickster - I can't turn them/it off at will - I try to trick the trickster. I don't always recognize when the trickster is throwing up delay tactics. I can't always discern my genuine intellectual curiosity from the trickster's pranks and misdirection. What I can control is my physical space. I remove the physical barriers or obstacles to my getting started. I can create a clear, inviting work space with the necessary materials prepped and near to hand. This little effort can out-trick the trickster.

The trickster would have me believe that needing to search for the size 15 needles and unearth the rug yarn and, once found, wind the hanks into balls before getting started on knitting the rug is an insurmountable, Herculean task. Because I do recognize that locating my tools and materials really isn't that big a deal and shouldn't feel so hard, the trickster wins again. It ties me into knots, berating myself for feeling overwhelmed to the point of inaction by the prospect of undertaking small tasks. The trickster keeps me from searching for the needles and yarn and instead redirects my attention to trying to untangle why I feel bad and overwhelmed and if I could just figure it out then I could get started knitting. Oh yes, tricksy it is.

The best way I can out-trick the trickster, since my personal sticking point is getting started, is to do just that, GET STARTED. Then my thoughts, mind, chatter, et al is occupied with the project at hand. The trickster is shunted aside. It might throw a tantrum at first, but it tires itself out and takes a nap. Then the magic can happen. The creativity can hum. The work moves forward.

We all have our own sticking points, our own worst enemies, our own areas of resistance when it comes to delaying, avoiding, or setting aside creativity. Even though I do try to not get sidetracked by my trickster who stamps it's foot and demands an explanation for my resistance to getting started, I am genuinely interested in the process of and the self-created roadblocks to creativity. When I'm not using it as a delay tactic to getting started, I do enjoy reading about and thinking about creativity and resistance. In my opinion, Ann Wood and Felicia Semple (The Craft Sessions) both have interesting things to say about this process.

ann wood handmade
Remove obstacles
Reduce the scope
all posts on productivity

The Craft Sessions
Resistance to fixing mistakes / going back / starting over
Avoidance, not starting