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Executive Education, Personal and Professional development Programmes
Executive Education, Personal and Professional development Programmes
Do you notice your times of fruition – be they ever so humble?
Bella Enahoro
Do you have periods where it just feels like all you do is work and nothing comes to fruition? Maybe you’ve spent years on something or you’re on your fifth project and yet nothing is coming into form? What to do? Do you abandon and start something else? Do you keep trudging even though nothing is even threatening to appear on the surface? Or maybe you're waiting for the 'big one'? Are you expecting your time of fruition to show up as the jackpot? The big time haul?
It’s so easy to overlook the small, seemingly insignificant crumbs along the way. It’s easy to overlook the growth process. Outside my front room, the borough have been repaving and replanting. And in the course of just a few hours there’s a full grown tree outside my window. When I was young they used to have saplings supported by wire framing, so you could see the growth process. But today, there’s just a full grown tree. It's easy to forget that things grow.
It’s easy to dismiss the small crumbs which serve to let us know we’re on target. Alan Cohen illustrates the point by pointing out that when at sea, the minute you begin to see twigs, then land is nearby. Don’t dismiss the twigs as mere twigs and not the land you’ve set sail for. Learning to value the twigs for what they signify, is an art in itself.
Living in the world of sudden complete fruition, it’s easy to lose awareness of the ways in which growth process works.
When we’re not aware of the process or that there is a process, it’s very easy to become frustrated and ‘take it out’ on ourselves. Why isn’t anything happening? If it was going to happen, surely it would have happened by now? Why did you even start this? What made you think you could make this happen? And so we berate and devalue ourselves as though that’s going to make any valuable difference for us.
It’s so easy to devalue, discourage and discard ourselves without even realising that’s what we’re doing. If anyone outside you spoke to you like that, you’d probably end the relationship in the awareness that they’re actually hindering and sabotaging you with their attitude. It’s certainly no help to you but we do it to ourselves.
"You've got to be willing to be out of control. If you’re out of control then you can ask people to contribute to you. You can let people contribute to you, where if you are trying to be in control you want it to go a certain way; the way you want it to go.
Most people who will contribute to you, will add their little flair. Their little flair may not be what you desire. But, it may be what you require. So you've got to be willing to see that if you ask somebody to contribute to you that you’re actually looking for some additional input. You’re not looking for a follower and somebody who will do what you’re bidding. You’re not looking for a minion
Most people think that when they have somebody who’s a bit capable of contributing to them, they’re looking for a minion. Somebody who’ll do exactly what they want. I never look for somebody who will do exactly what I want, I will look for people who will do what I know they can do. Why? Do I want a mini me? No. I want somebody who’s willing to go further than me and take me on the ride as well." ~ Gary Douglas
I’m grateful to Jennifer Grace to setting out the stages of creativity into fruition. These stages just allow you to take it easy on yourself. Not be so quick to devalue and discard yourself when you enter into frustration or things aren’t happening as quickly as you’d like them to.
Stages of The Creative Process
1. Preparation-initial confidence, vision, seems doable, begin approach, gather info analysis- think your’re going from a to b
2. Frustration-things don't go as planned, unexpected challenge, brick wall, the pit, sets off true creativity- necessary, brings you to a higher level of creativity, tap further into creative reserves, when people give up-learn to recognize as part of the process and appreciate what's on the other side.
3. Incubation-after struggling for a while, do something else; temporarily give up or let go but issue percolating in back of mind allows you to let of judgment and expectations and be open to however it works out, not knowing, needs faith.
4. Strategies-during incubation, back and forth, not all rational, set self up for solution
a. intellectual-pros and cons, analysis, brainstorming
b. physical-exercise, relaxation
c. spiritual-meditation, dreams, inner guide, journaling, visualization
5. Illumination-aha, eureka, breakthrough, excitement, obviousness, many think it comes from nowhere but the preparation and strategy enabled it.
6. Verification-making it real in the word, sharing it, testing it, making contribution
Be easy on yourself. Enjoy the process!
Copyright © Bella Enahoro July 2014
It’s so easy to overlook the small, seemingly insignificant crumbs along the way. It’s easy to overlook the growth process. Outside my front room, the borough have been repaving and replanting. And in the course of just a few hours there’s a full grown tree outside my window. When I was young they used to have saplings supported by wire framing, so you could see the growth process. But today, there’s just a full grown tree. It's easy to forget that things grow.
It’s easy to dismiss the small crumbs which serve to let us know we’re on target. Alan Cohen illustrates the point by pointing out that when at sea, the minute you begin to see twigs, then land is nearby. Don’t dismiss the twigs as mere twigs and not the land you’ve set sail for. Learning to value the twigs for what they signify, is an art in itself.
Living in the world of sudden complete fruition, it’s easy to lose awareness of the ways in which growth process works.
When we’re not aware of the process or that there is a process, it’s very easy to become frustrated and ‘take it out’ on ourselves. Why isn’t anything happening? If it was going to happen, surely it would have happened by now? Why did you even start this? What made you think you could make this happen? And so we berate and devalue ourselves as though that’s going to make any valuable difference for us.
It’s so easy to devalue, discourage and discard ourselves without even realising that’s what we’re doing. If anyone outside you spoke to you like that, you’d probably end the relationship in the awareness that they’re actually hindering and sabotaging you with their attitude. It’s certainly no help to you but we do it to ourselves.
"You've got to be willing to be out of control. If you’re out of control then you can ask people to contribute to you. You can let people contribute to you, where if you are trying to be in control you want it to go a certain way; the way you want it to go.
Most people who will contribute to you, will add their little flair. Their little flair may not be what you desire. But, it may be what you require. So you've got to be willing to see that if you ask somebody to contribute to you that you’re actually looking for some additional input. You’re not looking for a follower and somebody who will do what you’re bidding. You’re not looking for a minion
Most people think that when they have somebody who’s a bit capable of contributing to them, they’re looking for a minion. Somebody who’ll do exactly what they want. I never look for somebody who will do exactly what I want, I will look for people who will do what I know they can do. Why? Do I want a mini me? No. I want somebody who’s willing to go further than me and take me on the ride as well." ~ Gary Douglas
I’m grateful to Jennifer Grace to setting out the stages of creativity into fruition. These stages just allow you to take it easy on yourself. Not be so quick to devalue and discard yourself when you enter into frustration or things aren’t happening as quickly as you’d like them to.
Stages of The Creative Process
1. Preparation-initial confidence, vision, seems doable, begin approach, gather info analysis- think your’re going from a to b
2. Frustration-things don't go as planned, unexpected challenge, brick wall, the pit, sets off true creativity- necessary, brings you to a higher level of creativity, tap further into creative reserves, when people give up-learn to recognize as part of the process and appreciate what's on the other side.
3. Incubation-after struggling for a while, do something else; temporarily give up or let go but issue percolating in back of mind allows you to let of judgment and expectations and be open to however it works out, not knowing, needs faith.
4. Strategies-during incubation, back and forth, not all rational, set self up for solution
a. intellectual-pros and cons, analysis, brainstorming
b. physical-exercise, relaxation
c. spiritual-meditation, dreams, inner guide, journaling, visualization
5. Illumination-aha, eureka, breakthrough, excitement, obviousness, many think it comes from nowhere but the preparation and strategy enabled it.
6. Verification-making it real in the word, sharing it, testing it, making contribution
Be easy on yourself. Enjoy the process!
Copyright © Bella Enahoro July 2014
