Find and keep your creative self

Here is one routine that revolutionised my life in ways I did not imagine. Morning pages by Julia Cameron did that to me.

I am not exaggerating one bit. I have been writing my morning pages for almost two years now and it absolutely changed my life.

It is the most simplest journaling techniques out there.

Hand write three pages in the morning right after you wake up. Capture your stream of consciousness in those pages and that is it.

Try it yourself and don't take my word for it. The only thing you must do is guard it and keep it private. Do not read later. Treat it as your brain dump in the morning.

In just a few days, magic happened inside me. The inner creative in me was woken up. I started writing, sketching, gardening, doodling, podcasting and more. The creative juices were flowing and the drive to create was higher than before.

Here are ten tips to make the most of the technique:

1/ Get up 20 mins earlier than usual. Grab your "me" time with morning pages.

2/ Breathe deeply for five minutes before you start writing. It clears up the head and the flow is better.

3/ Have a little ritual like making your coffee or taking a nice shower before you write. The ritual makes the routine special.

4/ Invest in good stationery. Good pens and Good papers help you write better. It will reduce aches and pains of long hand writing for 20-30 mins. You will enjoy the process with good stationery.

5/ No interruption whatsoever. Lock yourself up in a room. No phones. No internet. No ads. Nothing. Just you and the pages.

6/ Don't worry about handwriting, spelling or grammar. No one should read it including you. So don't worry about comprehension, legibility, good sentence formation and more.

7/ No censorship in your morning pages. If you think twice and hide things, you will beat the purpose. If you are worried about privacy just tear them or burn them down. The magic is in the mental Misogi (Japanese word for purification).

8/ Don't beat yourself if you didn't write a day or two. Formation of new habit takes time. Be kind to yourself. Write as many days as you can. The more the merrier.

9/ Morning pages is your time with you. Your self care matters. Your mental wellness matters. Everything else can wait for that 20-30 mins.

10/ Human consciousness is not neat. It is bumpy and jumpy. So go with the flow. Don't worry about well rounded thoughts and sentences.

As creatives, we deserve this much minimal attention from us everyday. Don't deny it to yourself.  Grant permission to yourself to indulge a little with yourself.

🥂 to inner creative!