Five Traits That Separate an Apprentice from a Creative Master
It may take a while to learn to embrace these traits but they’re worth it.
There’s an old saying that if you see the Buddha on the road, you should kill him. What does that mean?
Teachers are important, but there comes a time in every creative’s life when they must fade into the background.
In other words, instead of seeking answers and insight from outsiders, creatives need to look inward. This signifies the change from apprentice to master.
I’ve been a published novelist for over sixteen years now, and it’s only recently that I’ve begun to feel remotely in control of my craft. While I don’t claim to be a master, I’ve identified a few traits I’ve observed in seasoned artists. All of these traits involve looking within for answers.
Masters Go With the Flow
Most artists have experienced the glorious feeling of effortless creation. Masters regularly experience this state, which is sometimes called wu-wei and is literally translated as “not-trying.”
Edward Slingerland, the author of Trying Not to Try: The Art and Science of Spontaneity, describes it as ,“the dynamic, effortless, and unselfconscious state of mind of a person who is optimally active and effective.
People in wu-wei feel as if they are doing nothing, while at the same time they might be creating a brilliant work of art…
Masters Court Wu-Wei
Masters don’t wait for the whims of Wu-Wei to pay a visit, they actively cultivate it. The first step is to leave all expectations for a piece of work (fame, fortune, cozy friendship with Oprah) outside the studio.
Instead, sit down at your desk, thinking not of what the creative work will do for you, but how it may serve others, e.g., to entertain, inspire or empower.
This concept is called karma yoga. To remind yourself, it might even pay to keep a picture of your average patron near your computer.
Approaching creative work with a spirit of generosity allows you to get out of your head. Good work is incompatible with an endless inner dialogue of self-criticism.
Instead a master approaches his manuscript with a calm, playful spirit.
As Brenda Ureland, author of If You Want To Write, says, “I learned that you should feel… not like Lord Byron on a mountain top, but like a child stringing beads in kindergarten, — happy, absorbed and quietly putting one bead on after another.”
Masters Never Sweat Creative Blocks
Most master artists actually welcome a block because it’s a signal that they’ve gone off course and need to make an adjustment.
It’s helpful to think of a block as the voice of a GPS saying, “Recalculating.”
Master creatives have produced so much work they understand that each creation has an intelligence of its own, and when the artist misinterprets that intelligence, the flow of the piece comes to a halt.
A brief distance from the piece often solves the problem.
Occasionally if you’re truly stuck, then it’s helpful to simply write, “I have no idea” and work on another part of the piece. An admission of “not knowing” clears a space in your mind for the right answer to come about.
It’s a brief return to shoshin, more commonly known as beginner’s mind.
Instead of panicking or attempting to force a false solution with a flurry of thoughts, you’re willing to put aside all of your expertise and be an apprentice again.
Masters Prepare Their Mind for Creative Work
Professional athletes scrupulously prepare their bodies for competition, and likewise master creatives train their minds. How can you get your mind into buff, creative-shape?
A regular meditation practice helps to quiet an endlessly chattering mind, which drowns out creative ideas.
Or you might consider taking a long, solo walk. According to a recent Stanford study, creative thinking improves while a person is walking and shortly thereafter.
As Ueland says, “the imagination needs moodling — long, inefficient happy idling, dawdling and puttering.”
Master artists also know the value of giving their subconscious mind suggestions, which are especially effective when the mind and body are relaxed.
Before retiring you might say, “Please work on that troubling bit of painting while I’m sleeping.” Your first thought upon waking might be, “That creative problem will be solved today. ”
Research has repeatedly shown that deliberate suggestions can influence how people perform on future tasks and are attributable to something called response expectancies.
The way we anticipate our response to a situation influences how we will actually respond.
In other words, if you start work on your project with certain expectations, you will likely meet them.
Masters Only Compete With Themselves
Have you ever turned a deep shape of green after seeing someone surpass you creatively? Once you become a master, envy of other artists lessens substantially. As actress Marlo Thomas said, “Thoroughbreds run their own races.”
Master writers tend to view success among their peers as strong evidence that their recognition will also come.
They’re aware that their gifts are wholly unique, thus making it difficult to imagine that another person’s success will take away anything from their own eventual wins.
They have also developed the patience to wait until their gifts find recognition.
When successes come to them, they’re more capable of enjoying them, instead of become unnerved
. You can enjoy your triumphs more if you develop what psychologist Carolyn Dwek calls a “growth mind-set,” where you attribute your successes to your efforts instead of how much talent you think you have or the vagaries of fate.
When you develop a growth mind-set, you see success as a challenge to best yourself.
When you meet with failure, instead of beating yourself up, you say, “not yet,” meaning you’re anticipating the success that will eventually arrive.
Do any of these practices resonate with you? If not, don’t worry. As you grow into a master creative, you’ll develop your own deeply held beliefs about the creative process. When that happens, if you see me on the road, feel free to aim your car in my direction.
