A new creative drive from a sense of okayness

Refueling is a tool in personal creativity management that didn’t come until later in my life.

The definition of this term is setting an intention for how you want to experience life and doing your best to thread that through creative endeavors.

Doing so helps you tap into ambition from a place of security within yourself, building a new set of contexts and motivations from which to approach your work.

Here’s a case study, with examples from my own career.

Comparing my twenties to my thirties.

Instead of trying to escape or conquer life, I’m now trying to embrace and enjoy it.

Instead of feeling obsessed by compulsions that lead me to abuse myself, I’m now feeling compelled by compassion that leads me to love myself.

Instead of proving myself to earn attention, applause, approval, I’m now expressing myself to create, connect and contribute.

Instead of feeling pulled by social expectation, I’m now feeling pushed by inner necessity.

Instead of draining myself by operating from a place of fear, I’m now energizing myself by coming from a place of abundance.

Clearly, the main difference here is joy. My motivation is the emotional expression of the courageous yes to my own true being. This new drive comes from a place of okayness within myself.

How did it get there? It’s hard to tell. Maybe through the simple passage of time. Maybe through doing lots of work on myself.

Maybe it was there all along, but buried underneath thousands of layers of naiveté, hubris and chocolate.

It doesn’t matter.

Lesson learned, if you want to evolve into the next version of yourself and find new arenas of fulfillment through life projects, find a new intention.

When was the last time you refueled?