Creative Block: Why It Happens

[00:00:00] diane: Hey everybody. Welcome to another episode of, I was about to say design recharge. Anyway, it’s a really, it’s a good day to mess up. Um, it creatives ignite. I’m calling it whatever it is. That’s what it is. It used to be called design recharge for over 10 years, I think for, yeah, about then. A long time. A long time.

[00:00:23] And then I changed it. I think I changed it in 2021, so not quite. Anyway, we’re not math wizards here, [00:00:30] um, but I am joined by my good friend Amy Bryant, who’s also a therapist counselor. She’s in Atlanta. She, um, is gonna tell us exactly who she works with. Um, but I’ve known her since I was in eighth grade.

[00:00:43] And so we have lots of, uh, history, but it’s also, we’ve. We’ve grown up and she does a lot of things that help. And whenever I have issues and I need some help about people or how to deal, like with a student or [00:01:00] trying to figure out something, like what we’re talking about today is creative block. So Amy, give them a little bit of background about who you, who you are, what you do.

[00:01:08] You’re in Atlanta, but what kind of people do you normally work with? Uh, what’s your area of expertise? 

[00:01:15] Amy Bryant: Yeah. So, hi. It’s nice to see you and to be here with everybody. Um, I am in Atlanta. I work primarily with parents, um, and teenagers and women. I would say it’s highly [00:01:30] likely that every single one of my clients is neurodivergent in some way.

[00:01:34] A lot of my clients are also creatives. There’s definitely some, uh, some, some. Crossover that happens there. I can’t find that word today because that’s how my brain is. I was like, oh, and it’s okay. Are you trying to find a nice way to say something bad? No, I have nothing to say about the neuro bad to say.

[00:01:57] I’ve got lots of things to say. Nothing bad to say [00:02:00] about the neurodivergent brain. Uh, I will say it is both a disability because of the world worlds we live in and the expectations on us, and also it’s kind of badass. Yeah. You know? Uh, but it’s also a disability. It’s both, um, which is why things like creative blocks happen.

[00:02:24] Yeah, so, 

[00:02:25] diane: so do you think So I remember when I was in grad school, I was really [00:02:30] blocked creatively. Mm-Hmm. And I think it was because I was so used to being such a, like I was thinking so practically, well we can’t do a bus like that, that won’t sell any bus tickets or we can’t do this or this, you know, we can’t have 18 colors on something that would be so expensive to print or something, you know, like, and they were like, no, don’t think about that.

[00:02:52] You know, think bigger, think you know, do something weird. And I was like, but that’s not practical. So I remember [00:03:00] that being really hard. But I also was. Really challenged in. I just felt like I didn’t know maybe the path or I was interested in so many things. Mm-Hmm. I wasn’t sure what to do and I really wanted creative counseling, which I know seems weird, but it, I think it was Mm-Hmm.

[00:03:19] Really creative block. I was stuck. Yeah. Like I was, I really needed somebody to help me get through this part of being so practical and now thinking sort of, uh, maybe I was [00:03:30] thinking more linearly and I needed to think more diver, uh, divergently or, yeah. Non-linearly. And I keep getting stuck. I’ve gotta take this thing outta my pocket.

[00:03:40] ’cause I, it’s a magnet. Keeps like getting me sucked to my desk. ’cause Anyway, back to, back to normal. Fantastic. Yeah. So it’s just all I can think of is like it, and it’s right here at the bottom of my jacket, so it’s like right in my crotch 

[00:03:56] Amy Bryant: and I keep getting stuck to the, I mean, knowing what you need to [00:04:00] focus and to do things is the work.

[00:04:03] I gotta stop and take this outta my pocket. Thank you for demonstrating that for us so perfectly. Yeah. Right. Well, 

[00:04:10] diane: so, so when, yeah. I remember going to counseling and they were like, well, what’s the problem? And I’m like, you know, explaining this, and they’re like, we’ve never dealt with this. And I’m like, so I’m kind of on my own.

[00:04:27] So it really did feel like this. Yeah. But I wonder [00:04:30] if, and I haven’t done much research on this, but if you’ve d if you’re dealing with people that are creative or are neurodivergent Mm-Hmm. We, some people think, oh, there is no such thing as creative block. Where do you stand on that? 

[00:04:46] Amy Bryant: I mean, if I were to say there’s no creative block, I would basically be gaslighting every one of y’all.

[00:04:52] Right? Right, right. Because your experience is real and valid. And my job as a therapist is to understand your [00:05:00] experience and help you identify what you need to move through that creative block intact as a whole person. Right. And, and then like, you know, like all creative fields, I think of therapy as a creative field.

[00:05:17] But there are therapists who want to do things this way. They’re very linear. They wanna follow the rules, and they wanna know what the rules are, right? I get it. Rules keep us safe, but not all the time. Sometimes rules are [00:05:30] harmful, right? Um, and so finding a therapist who understands neurodivergence, who understands creativity, who un knows how to be on your side, is always gonna be key.

[00:05:43] Because a therapist who says, I don’t know one, I don’t believe your experience, just fire them immediately. Um, there’s nothing therapeutic about a therapist who doesn’t believe you’re experienced. 

[00:05:55] diane: I think when you were, when you were describing that just then, it made me think of [00:06:00] there are some points that, um, you know, you have to put all the ingredients in the bowl.

[00:06:07] You mix them up and then you put it into the oven. Mm-Hmm. You can’t just put the bowl in the oven or without any ingredients in there. Yeah. You’re not gonna make a cake. So there might be some, but it really doesn’t matter what ingredients you put in first or how you stir to the left or to the right, or with a fork or with, you know, it just needs to be stirred up.

[00:06:28] And I think to [00:06:30] some, some of us we need like a direct path, but to be honest, most of life there is not a direct path. There’s not, there’s gonna be different for everybody. 

[00:06:39] Amy Bryant: Yeah. The super complicated part of life is. It’s not black and white. There’s, my teenager will tell me that that is not red. That is some other form of red.

[00:06:49] You know, there’s, there’s gradients of every color and every shade of black and every whatever, right? It’s just not that simple and easy. It takes a lot of nuance. [00:07:00] Some people are gonna be into the nuance and able to do the nuance and other people can’t. That’s just neurology. It’s how their brain works.

[00:07:08] It’s not, doesn’t make anyone less or better, it just is. Right? And so then, you know, like there’s literally creative counseling, right? How do we creatively help you see and understand yourself? See and understand what’s blocking you and why? I have some really clear theories about what I think usually comes up when there’s creative [00:07:30] blocks.

[00:07:31] diane: Okay. Um. Okay, so, so Maura says she works Z to A and her husband works A to Z. So I do think, I think that there are, you have to know what, what works for you, what works for you. Totally distracted. But there’s still sometimes, there are still, um, milestones that in between the milestones, you can kind of do whatever.

[00:07:54] You can put the eggs in, you can stir whatever way. Mm-Hmm. But they, there is a milestone where you have to go in the, um, [00:08:00] there are some things that we can’t avoid doing. We can’t. Yeah. Um, or it’s, or it’s gonna lessen our life. So we have to Mm-Hmm. This some things that you do as you help people get through some of those harder zones.

[00:08:13] Mm-Hmm. So, um, we’re talking about creative block. Um, why does it happen? Mm-Hmm. Like, could you just take us through like what’s happening in the body or in our brain? Our nervous system? Mm-Hmm. When we get blocked. [00:08:30] 

[00:08:30] Amy Bryant: Yeah. So there’s lots of reasons, right? It’s, uh, there’s sometimes there’s things we wanna get done and we can do them easily, and there’s other times there’s things we wanna get done, and for whatever reason, we just can’t get started.

[00:08:45] We can’t make it happen. We can’t like, get off the, well, this doesn’t make practical sense peace in order to let ourselves expand into the creativity space. Um, and there can be a myriad of reasons from [00:09:00] emotional and biological to, to what’s going on in our nervous system. So I think a lot of times if you’ve, you’re full and you’re relatively safe, typically what’s happening is we’re dysregulated, right?

[00:09:15] What does that mean? So it means that. Some part of our nervous system, I tend to think of it as like our brain stem, which is always paying attention to what’s going on. So I’m here and I’m talking to you and there’s no [00:09:30] cell phone that’s distracting me ’cause I turned it off and it’s not in my pocket.

[00:09:34] Um, and so generally speaking, I feel relatively safe, but my brain’s done is still scanning, it’s still hearing what’s outside. It’s hearing people walking by in the hallway. It’s noticing without me looking, it like, is a roach crawling across the floor? Right? My feet are up so a roach can crawl across and I know I’ll be relatively safe from the dangers of the cockroach.

[00:09:55] Um, right. And so, [00:10:00] um, it’s constantly scanning for safety. Now a lot of us neurodivergent folks have more heightened sense of awareness of our surroundings, which can lead to distractibility, but also. They’re on, we’re on higher alert. Right. So, um, I’m gonna use an example you gave, which sort of might make us go outta sequence.

[00:10:25] Hopefully that’s okay with you. We’re good without 

[00:10:27] diane: a sequence. 

[00:10:28] Amy Bryant: Yeah. So, you know, like when you [00:10:30] say that sometimes you get distracted ’cause you wanna clean, um, um, and that you think of it as avoidance. But really that’s about you going, I wanna get regulated. Hmm. Like, I don’t wanna do this. I can’t quite get up to the computer to work on this project, so I’m gonna clean because cleaning for you, unlike me, is super regulating.

[00:10:52] Hmm. I have to regulate to clean.

[00:10:57] diane: So there are some people, so it’s not, this is [00:11:00] what I mean. There’s not, we’re not all the same. We don’t have to put the eggs in before the sugar or whatever. So there was this book that I read this summer and it was called How to Clean House while Drowning. Yes. I love that you read. Oh gosh, it amazing. So good.

[00:11:16] Yes. And what I noticed was there’s this woman, I’ve talked about it before on the show, but um, it was this woman who could not clean. She really has trouble cleaning. She, she’s a therapist. Okay. So she’s a therapist [00:11:30] and she can do work, she can write, she can work on her business. Yeah. Like it is just jello just coming out.

[00:11:36] It’s just so easy. Yeah. I don’t know about jello. It was like water, you know? It just is no effort. Yeah. And then her friend who’s real good cleaner, she’s, she gets to her computer to start working at her business and she’s blocked. She’s stuck and she’s telling her, oh, well just take 10 minutes and you do this and this and whatever.

[00:11:57] And to be honest, the end of the book I hated then [00:12:00] end, maybe it was the end of the book. I don’t remember. I think it was a different book. It was women with a DH, adhd. I didn’t like that. Oh no. I don’t like that book either. Other part was okay. But the end, she was like, oh, it only takes 10 minutes to do this.

[00:12:12] And it was the stuff that I’m really blocked on. Like doing your taxes or your bookkeeping, stuff like that really is hard for me. Um, but anyway, so I loved that. And I think it was free on Audible, so I listened to it. Mm-Hmm. But she talked, so it was very similar. I cleaned Yes. Regular. Granted, I’m not very clean [00:12:30] over there.

[00:12:30] Um, but I was cleaning up. You’re creative, 

[00:12:33] Amy Bryant: but you’re creative over there. 

[00:12:35] diane: Yeah. It’s just messy really. But it’s okay. Um, but I think it’s that I didn’t, wouldn’t have ever thought about that being a regulator for me. Mm-Hmm. So that’s a, yeah. So one lady could not clean that was not a regulation. That’s, and the other lady was a easy Mm-Hmm.

[00:12:54] She just would clean. And her house was always spotless ’cause she just did it all the time. And one lady had to have [00:13:00] like disposable toothbrushes that she can just throw away. Right in a bowl at the going out to the car. Yeah. Because she just couldn’t, couldn’t do that. Yeah. Anyway, 

[00:13:10] Amy Bryant: I was, yeah, I mean it’s, and then what do we do?

[00:13:14] Like what do you keep in your car for those things that you know you’re not gonna do until you’re sitting at the red light? I’m like, oh, I could be flossing my teeth right now ’cause I’m not gonna floss at home. ’cause who wants to do that? Right. Whereas other people are like, [00:13:30] I totally could floss any, anytime.

[00:13:31] Who doesn’t floss? Right. I floss a car. I, I, me too. And I’m a car flossing. I maybe got that from you actually. I think it’s, and then I was like, I could floss also. 

[00:13:42] diane: I know. I, 

[00:13:43] Amy Bryant: I 

[00:13:43] diane: love 

[00:13:44] Amy Bryant: the, 

[00:13:44] diane: anyway, you’re already sitting there. There’s nothing much you can do. Freaking flo. I told my dentist about it. He’s like, your teeth are looking great.

[00:13:52] Your gums are great. I said, I floss every day. How that you do in the car, 

[00:13:57] Amy Bryant: it makes a world of difference. Yeah. [00:14:00] 100%. Anyway. Yeah. My, my daughter does it in front of the tv. Oh, who cares? Yeah. Any, yeah, whatever. 

[00:14:07] diane: Yeah, 

[00:14:08] Amy Bryant: yeah. Okay, so, so then it’s about what is hard, right? What is hard for you and what makes it easier?

[00:14:13] So like, flossing in the car, keeping those floss strips in your door so when you’re parked, you can pull it out, right? So Flos strips, what are floss, you know, those little, those little pieces. Okay. Okay. Oh, you little, little, I have 

[00:14:29] diane: the [00:14:30] glide, uh, little, it’s like a floss. The plastic piece. Yeah, I have the plastic.

[00:14:34] I know what you’re are talking about. I was like floss strips. Okay. Okay. I didn’t know what you’re talking about. 

[00:14:41] Amy Bryant: Say it how I want. No, I’m kidding. Um, no, I’m not really kidding. Yeah, so it’s really about going, okay, I’m having a hard time. So if you’re. I was gonna say, mowing your rug. If you’re vacuuming your rug, say mow.

[00:14:56] I say vacuuming my yard sometimes because it’s, that’s what I feel [00:15:00] like I’m doing. I like to do both. You like both? I do. That’s it. Right? So if you’re vacuuming and you’re saying to yourself, oh, I’m avoiding, I really should do my work, but I’m doing this because I’m trying to avoid my work, and you’ve sort of had this negative slant, like, 

[00:15:15] diane: oh, what I 

[00:15:15] Amy Bryant: should be doing is this, but instead I’m doing this.

[00:15:18] It’s not really helping your nervous system, but if you are doing something that, um, if you are doing something that feels good, that comes [00:15:30] easy that I think Mara had said call, she calls it mindless work, right? Mm-Hmm. You don’t have to think. It just comes and you can do it. I love that way of calling it.

[00:15:38] Then you are really being kind to your nervous system, and then you wanna reinforce that by saying, oh, I’m regulating. So that I can move towards my work. I’m being kind to my nervous system. This is just what I knew need in order to move closer towards getting my work done. Well, 

[00:15:55] diane: so when you said that, it made me think, I know why.

[00:15:59] [00:16:00] One reason I like to mow and vacuum and Mm-Hmm. Clean is ’cause there’s a clear end when things are in place. Yes. And there’s a clear end when the yard is mowed. Mm-Hmm. Um, and so I think some of the other things that I do don’t have a clear end. Yes. So I think that people are writing a book when people are, uh, batch process.

[00:16:24] It just feels really big. Endless. It feels endless. Yes. Is that part of [00:16:30] creative block or is that just 100 Any kind of block? 

[00:16:33] Amy Bryant: 100%. And so then there’s a couple of other things. So if I know I have to do a really big project and I haven’t chunked it. I might not ever get started until I’m super close to the deadline.

[00:16:48] Right? So chunking is super important. So if you know you have to do taxes, um, and I know this isn’t part of the creative process, I’m really just leaning into our [00:17:00] conversation, Diane. Okay. So let’s say you have to do taxes. Everybody knows I 

[00:17:03] diane: have problems with taxes. 

[00:17:04] Amy Bryant: Yeah. Then, um, then what you do is when you’re vacuuming and you’re soothing, you’re like, okay, so let’s see.

[00:17:10] When I sit down, I’m only going to collect the receipts that are in my wallet, and, uh, I’m gonna do, and I think there’s only 12, so I’m gonna do those 12 receipts, right? So then you’re looking at like chunking what has to get done. Because what happens is when you sit down to get started and you’re like, I’m just doing these [00:17:30] 12 receipts, once your body and nervous system move into reverie with that experience, it feels less overwhelming.

[00:17:38] And then you can grab the next thing. Because you’re already there and moving in that direction. 

[00:17:45] diane: Yeah. I feel like when I’m doing my bookkeeping, which I’ve been doing Mm-Hmm. Recently it doesn’t feel so overwhelm. It’s like, oh yes, kind fun. Not get things I’m organizing and it feels really good. Yeah. But it also, [00:18:00] in January, if I start in January to do the taxes for the year, it feels too overwhelming.

[00:18:06] Yeah. And is really an avoider. So you’re saying that creative block may not be an avoidance? It, uh, it is a dis it’s a sign of dysregulation. 

[00:18:17] Amy Bryant: Yeah. And so then how do you move back into a state of regulation? What feels good, what’s mindless? And when you’re doing something that feels good, that gets you back into a state of regulation, what [00:18:30] small piece of perhaps a really big creative project do you wanna work on?

[00:18:34] So, um, what are the names of the things you’ve been creating lately? I think you had some watermelon ones. Yeah, watermelons here. Here they, yes. Yes. And 

[00:18:44] diane: cucumbers. Yes. Which, that one just fell out. Yeah. And you wanted to put them on patterns. So I have ’em in on, they’re, I’ve made ’em in patterns and now they’re on bookmarks and Yes.

[00:18:57] A to-do list. 

[00:18:59] Amy Bryant: Yes. [00:19:00] Thank you. So, knowing that you’re wanting to do this big project, then it’s going like, okay, I’m gonna create like three watermelons and I’m not gonna make ’em perfect. Right. And I’m gonna draw ’em and I’m gonna enjoy it, and I’m gonna play with colors and I, I’m gonna try to be curious about what shows up on the paper.

[00:19:20] Right. And then you get started and then all of a sudden you’ve got 12 and then you drew some pickles and you got a hundred some radishes, 

[00:19:26] diane: watermelon now, 

[00:19:28] Amy Bryant: right. [00:19:30] Yeah. Right. And so then it’s just getting, how can you get regulated enough to identify something that’s like top tier to get started on and then you let that top tier thing move you?

[00:19:41] No, I’m not gonna lie. Sometimes you’ll be like, I can’t do that top tier thing when you sit down. So I might come up with two or three things and I might have to be like, I’m gonna sit down and write my to-do list, and then that can help me. Um, or I might say, I’m gonna go [00:20:00] through my billing and see who needs an email reminder to pay their bill.

[00:20:06] I might not send them the emails, but at least I’m gonna go through and see it. Right, right. And then once I see it, it’s really easy to do, but I do have to chunk it. I have to make it feel manageable and doable, and I have to have a couple, two or three options in case when I sit down, my brain goes hell in the no to that one.

[00:20:25] But, oh, I could do this. 

[00:20:27] diane: Yeah. I’ve found, I found that when I was trying to [00:20:30] do, if I just sat down with the red paper and the green paper, I wasn’t very good. But if I had drawn some watermelons on paper drawn, so I got the perspective right. Or whatever. Yeah. But I needed the step of drawing. Some people might not need the step of drawing.

[00:20:47] Yes. But I needed the drawing and then I needed to cut them out and then I could draw on top of those later. Mm-Hmm. So there were certain steps that I might try to skip a step, but I can’t because it didn’t help me. Right. [00:21:00] And it got, made me even more frustrated than I felt more like, I’m a loser. I can’t do this.

[00:21:05] Totally. And then it starts over kind of this 

[00:21:09] Amy Bryant: Well, and then that is the piece too, right? If we’re deriding ourselves, oh, I’m. I’m mowing the carpet, so I can’t, so I’m just avoiding, and I’m a terrible worker and I’m so irresponsible. Right? That’s just gonna make us more dysregulated. But if you say, oh, I’m vacuuming, because it helps make it [00:21:30] regulated.

[00:21:30] And I know that in order to do the next step, I have to draw the watermelons. ’cause that’s my process, because that’s how my brain works, because I’m gonna embrace my neurology instead of all this other trope that the society tells us we have to be. Who are you? How do you embrace who you are? Because who you are matters.

[00:21:51] Your way of being in the world actually matters. Creative people matter regardless of what business people tell us, anybody else is, right? Yeah. [00:22:00] 

[00:22:00] diane: Okay. So if, so, I feel like some people have this and then I wanna get to ideation. Yeah. Which I know wasn’t on our list, but. I’m gonna write it down so I don’t forget.

[00:22:09] So Matt Woods here. John Ingles is here. Both are, hi everybody. Illustrators. Matt is somebody who like, oh, I wanna be Matt. I wanna be Matt. He made my Littley guy nice. But he, his, it looks like it’s so easy for him to just come up with these really cr like ideation wise. He [00:22:30] just comes up with things like crazy weird.

[00:22:32] At the end. I just love, and he’s drawing simply, but like with just black and it is so clever. It is. So I just drool. But that is not me. So I feel like, okay, well Matt has got that down. I don’t need to try to be Matt Wood. So if we get into that habit of I just comparing myself, I’m never gonna be Matt Wood.

[00:22:55] Mm-Hmm. That doesn’t help me. So in that stage, people talk about [00:23:00] this or say, well, what do I do? I see that I’m not like everybody else on social media. I’m never gonna be that good, but how many people are you following that aren’t as good as you? You’re not looking to be like, Ugh, you’re never gonna be like me.

[00:23:14] You know? Like that’s, you don’t, you usually follow people that you’re aspiring or there’s something that you really Mm-Hmm. I’m amazed at collage. Like, I just love collage. Yeah. And I just, oh my gosh, these people are so clever. You know? Yes. [00:23:30] But there’s, I think some of it is, for me, I have avoided, um, and making a mess and so, or Mm-Hmm.

[00:23:38] Avoided. Trying to figure out. And I just am like, well, I’m just not as good as Mount Wood. Yeah. But what I’ve done recently is now saying, well, I have my own process. This isn’t what other people are doing. 

[00:23:50] Amy Bryant: Yeah. 

[00:23:51] diane: Who’s making cucumbers? You know, like, I’m making cucumbers. It doesn’t, I, it really is fun to make [00:24:00] slices, you know, I mean, you know, like in art and then I have this at home and I open it and my dog’s like, is there a treat in there?

[00:24:08] And then I pull these out and he’s like, that sniffs, he sniffs them. Not for me anyway. But so, so there’s something about looking and then turning it off and saying, you know what? I’m not gonna be Matt Wood. Mm-Hmm mm-Hmm. I am, I’m gonna be me. Mm-Hmm. And I’m [00:24:30] gonna admire Matt Wood, but if I’m saying bad things to myself, maybe I need to not look at Matt Wood’s work.

[00:24:35] Mm-Hmm. And 

[00:24:37] Amy Bryant: also, and here’s one thing to remember. Matt Wood. Hi. Matt is doing the things that he loves and doing the things you love supports your creative process. 

[00:24:49] diane: Hmm. 

[00:24:49] Amy Bryant: It’s trying to emulate Matt Wood that gets in your way of your creative process. 

[00:24:54] diane: Matt Wood better put his, um, Instagram or something in the chat there, buddy.

[00:24:59] I know, right? 

[00:24:59] Amy Bryant: [00:25:00] We’ll say it out loud. So, right. So like, that’s why when you’re like, I’m gonna draw pickles or cucumbers and this is so much fun, and then you can draw ’em forever. And you, like you said, I have like a hundreds of watermelons now. Right. You’re in that reverie, you’re creating, you’re allowing, and then you’re having these creative ideas and then you’re letting yourself go to practicality.

[00:25:24] Oh, I can turn them into bookmarks and wallpaper and place mats [00:25:30] and napkins. Right, right. So 

[00:25:34] diane: it, when I start wanting to be someone else, mm-Hmm. Then that’s a dysregulation and I need to come back to a regulation. 

[00:25:43] Amy Bryant: Well, wanting to, there’s something about what Matt’s doing. Well, Matt, I think that’s part of his regulation.

[00:25:53] 100%. He gets regulated doing what he is doing. You also were regulated doing what you were doing, but [00:26:00] thinking you have to be, Matt might pull you further away from understanding and valuing yourself. 

[00:26:06] diane: Okay. 

[00:26:07] Amy Bryant: Okay. So, and that’s where that agitation or that, you know, lower, lower regulation comes in. 

[00:26:13] diane: Okay.

[00:26:14] There’s a link for everybody and I’ll put it in the, the. The chat of the page stuff. So since we’re talking about Matt Wood all the time, and I do love Matt’s work. Absolutely. 

[00:26:25] Amy Bryant: And Matt says, and I’ll never be Diane. I can only hope to be, 

[00:26:29] diane: at first [00:26:30] I read, I never wanna be Diane. That’s, anyway, that’s just my weirdness.

[00:26:37] Okay. So how about if you’re stuck and Mm-Hmm. Amy has written, she does courses as well. So these are, um, not just, uh, visual. Mm-Hmm. Exercises. Mm-Hmm. So with ideation, I feel like this happens a lot. Like in, say it’s a writer, a writer’s coming, [00:27:00] and, um, it’s just the same old story that we’ve already read a hundred times.

[00:27:05] Mm-Hmm. Yeah. How do you, um. How do you go through that if you, if you’re feeling stuck? So for us in ideation, we’re gonna be like, Hey, we’re gonna sell toilet paper, we’re gonna sell toilet paper different than anybody. Uh, and at some point it was different to have a bear, a cartoon bear selling toilet paper.

[00:27:25] Hey, let’s sell a cartoon bear sell toilet paper. Yeah, yeah. Right. Eat more chicken to [00:27:30] sell Chick-fil-A right? Yeah. Or yeah, eat more chicken and their cows selling. Yeah. Yeah. Chicken. Um, so a lot of times it’s out, you know, weird things. Mm-Hmm. Um, but ideation might be a little different than the blank page.

[00:27:47] Amy Bryant: Yeah. Okay. I think I know what you’re talking about. So I’ll ask you some questions and, and then you can steer me back on the path as needed. Um, so let’s say you were [00:28:00] trying to create a course, right? I would say to you like. If you were to create a course, not like, forget about practicality right now.

[00:28:11] Forget about what sells, what lives in you around this subject matter that makes you excited. What do you love to talk about and to show visually and like what brings, um, [00:28:30] like for me, I’m like a body sensation person. So like, what brings lightness into my body? What makes me feel nostalgic? What makes me, um, like be like, yes, I’m so excited.

[00:28:44] Do you know? Like that feeling like I can feel it in my arms and in my stomach and chest. Like, oh yeah, I totally wanna do that. That’s where you start. Like, don’t start with practicality. Don’t start with How am I gonna sell this? Start with what do I love [00:29:00] about this topic? You already know what people need, what brings you.

[00:29:06] It doesn’t have to be joy. What brings you Yes. And excitement and start there. So like, I wanna do this women’s mom’s retreat and I’m done with, um, mindfulness and how to be a better person and how to be a better mom. I want done with that 

[00:29:25] diane: stuff. 

[00:29:26] Amy Bryant: I’m done with it. I’m done. We have enough of it. We’re saturated.

[00:29:29] We need a [00:29:30] break from it, from how to be the best mom. And what we need is how can we let go of some responsibility and have fun, right? And so this is where I’m starting knowing that from this core place, all these other pieces are gonna be there. Are we gonna learn how to mindfully understand ourselves and how to let go of some things we think we have to do?

[00:29:55] Of course. But the core of it is I would normally throw in some [00:30:00] expletives blank, all this. Let’s figure out the core of fun and what we need. And it’s the same for the creative process. What is that core for you? So if you were to come up with a topic, Diane, for a course, what lights you up and do you love to talk about and start there.

[00:30:19] diane: Okay. All right. So I always teach, this is something you can tell me. I may be doing it not great, but when somebody is stuck [00:30:30] or they aren’t getting to the place that they want to be. Yeah. Visually. Mm-Hmm. I ask them to change tools, so work with something thicker, bigger so that they less control upside down.

[00:30:42] Turn it upside down. I tell ’em to start drawing with scissors. Mm-Hmm. I tell ’em, Hey, go outside. Mm-Hmm. Um, analyze something else. Um, mm-Hmm. What I realized, yeah, totally. A couple, a couple weeks ago was I was trying to draw my pear tree. Yeah. And I, it was hot outside and so I [00:31:00] wanted to sit in the shade.

[00:31:01] But I wasn’t far enough away, so the pear tree kept, I couldn’t get it inside my sketchbook. It just kept getting, it was, I wasn’t far enough away. Yeah. I think I could have drawn it from away in the back of the yard. Yeah. But it was really hot and in the sunshine. I didn’t wanna sit there. So no. Okay. Well this is the best I could do.

[00:31:21] And I even wrote in my sketchbook, Ugg. Ugg, I just was like, well, I’m visualizing. And then what I did was, I know the tree is [00:31:30] green, but I just started drawing the leaves peach. And that was what it was. It was like, I need to do, I know for sure this isn’t what it looks like, so I’m already messing it up, I guess, you know?

[00:31:43] Yes. Because it’s the wrong color. 

[00:31:45] Amy Bryant: Yeah. But that one is the one I liked the most, sometimes purposely messing it up is the way through. Right. One, because perfectionism gets in the way so much. [00:32:00] That’s a huge, it’s a block in and of itself. Right. 

[00:32:03] diane: Okay. So you were telling us about the brainstem. Yeah. And this is what’s happening.

[00:32:08] So the brainstem is checking to make sure we’re safe all the time. It’s your 

[00:32:12] Amy Bryant: autonomic nervous system. It’s your fight flight free. It controls your heart rate and your breathing and your digestion. And you know, if a bear’s chasing you, it kicks in and you take off down the woods. Or if you think you can’t get a escape from the bear, it makes you pass [00:32:30] out and collapse.

[00:32:31] Right. Um, or if you’re really thinks it can win, you might turn around and punch the bear. I don’t know. Try not to do that. We’re adults. You probably can prevent from doing that. Um, yeah. So that’s your, that is sort of your regulatory core because we’re adults pretty much between the ages of 25 and 30. Um.

[00:32:53] We can override that some ways. So find out, you know, what is sort of those mindless [00:33:00] things that feel good, that regulate you. Uh, if you really can’t do it and you’re like, I have to get this done, I have to get regulated. There’s some really lovely things you can do downward dog, okay? If you do yoga, one of the ways to get back into regulation, if you like it, if you don’t like it, it will just spiral you further.

[00:33:19] So the whole key is to do what feels good to you. The, um, butterfly tap. So you’re sort of tapping along your clavicle and you do it like, you know, six or eight times firm, but you’re [00:33:30] not like, you know, bruising yourself. These are like nervous system hacks. You can look over your shoulder, you’re literally telling your nervous system.

[00:33:38] We’re cool. There’s not a bear behind me, right? You just slowly look over your shoulder. Oh, okay. Right. You’re just trying to move back into a state of regulation. This work. I don’t have to get it perfect. ’cause this isn’t the end result. I’m just trying to get started. Right. Just gonna try to type some words.

[00:33:57] I’m gonna try to create this character. I’m gonna try to [00:34:00] draw these watermelons. I’m gonna try to crunch these tax numbers. So one 

[00:34:04] diane: thing is somebody, I don’t know if you were just pausing, but I interrupt all the time. You’re good. Okay. So we’re good. So there was this woman in Australia, and I can’t remember her name right now, but she was like, she had a, a daughter that was on the spectrum and she said her grounding thing, her getting back regulated was to take her daughter outside and stand in the grass without her shooting.

[00:34:29] Yeah. [00:34:30] Yeah. Why does that work so much? So this would, if you’re really stuck, but you still need to get stuff done five minutes outside or two minutes a minute, 30 seconds outside with your. 

[00:34:42] Amy Bryant: Well, it depends, right? Because if you’re in the sun and you’re too hot, you’re not gonna be more regulated. If the grass makes your feet itch and you don’t like the feeling of grass, it’s not gonna make you more regulated.

[00:34:54] The key really is what regulates you. For me, walking in the woods [00:35:00] is absolutely it for me, as long as it’s under 80 degrees outside. 

[00:35:05] diane: Okay? 

[00:35:06] Amy Bryant: Right. Um, going paddle boarding, absolutely. It for me, I know those things will help me get back into a state of regulation, but if I don’t have that kind of time, then it’s something else.

[00:35:17] So then you have to go into those hacks and then you do sort of those hacks, right? You’re just really sending signals of safety to your nervous system. Make sure you’ve had something to drink, make sure you’ve had something to [00:35:30] eat right. You don’t want it to be blood sugar or dehydration. Those things happen.

[00:35:34] If you’re in our diversion, you are probably getting hungry and dehydrated more often. Then you realize, because we get. So in touch with our work, we forget about everything in the same ways that sometimes we can’t even get in touch with our work. Right. It’s equal measure. Both. 

[00:35:50] diane: Okay. 

[00:35:51] Amy Bryant: Okay. A DH, adhd. It’s not attention deficit, it is regulation of attention.

[00:35:56] Right. That’s all 

[00:35:58] diane: right. It, I [00:36:00] literally avoid and I, yeah. It feels like avoidance. Of course you’re dysregulated. Yeah. Right. And I think that I, I just think that that was a, nobody knew to teach me to be regulated. Yeah. I just felt, again, then it was like this cyclical thing where we’re just saying, I can’t do this.

[00:36:22] I’m not good enough. I’m. Something’s wrong with me. Like something’s wrong with me. Even when Maura said she does it from Z to A and her [00:36:30] husband does it from A to Z. Mm-Hmm. Well, if she’s been told she does a Z to A and Z to is correct, then it doesn’t matter. Then that’s fine. Right. But when you’ve been told you do it backwards, you’re, you know, it 

[00:36:40] Amy Bryant: makes you, this is wrong.

[00:36:41] Feel like. Right. Totally. So when you’re noticing that you’re avoiding, you just go, oh, I, this is, I’m trying to climb the wall. So, uh, how do a DHD calls it climbing the wall of awful. I, I’m just climbing the wall of awful to do this. This is just my process, right? Mm-Hmm. This is my, how my brain works. [00:37:00] This is my nervous system going, this feels like too much.

[00:37:04] diane: Right. So having some things that are longer things like paddle boarding or walking in the woods, that may take hours. Yeah. Um, if we. We don’t have hours, but we have more than five minutes. Mm-Hmm. Or more than a minute. Mm-Hmm. Um, maybe there are some things that we can do again when we are thinking about walk outside.

[00:37:25] Yeah. Things that give us, um, [00:37:30] feel mindless, like more said. Mm-Hmm mm-Hmm. Um, what are some other things that are, they will be just different, but Mm-Hmm. Are there any other triggers that can be like, oh yeah, I really like cooking, or, I 

[00:37:40] Amy Bryant: like. Uh, could literally be anything. I will sometimes, if I know I have to do something, I have this spades game on my phone that I play, and it will get me back into a space of regulation.

[00:37:52] Right. In the same way that it can dysregulate people. It can also, yes. So Mara said, putting ice on the back of her neck, that is one of the best [00:38:00] hacks. It will immediately put you back into a state of regulation. Um, the vasalva or the divers reflex where you splash cold water on your face also gets you back into a state of re regulation, eating something, crunchy, ice carrots.

[00:38:15] All of that is very regulating to the nervous system. Chewing gum. Chewing gum is a great way to be regulated. A DHD kids should always be able to chew gum in school. You just have to teach ’em what to do with it when they’re done. Yeah. [00:38:30] 

[00:38:30] diane: Right. Not put it behind their ear. That didn’t work for me. 

[00:38:34] Amy Bryant: Cut up.

[00:38:34] Try not to swallow it all the time. Don’t stick it under the desk. 

[00:38:38] diane: Oh yeah. That’s gross. Mm-Hmm. Okay. So it’s good for us to know what that is. What works for you, what does, what does stop us? Mm-Hmm. Um, maybe it’s just that let’s get these 12 receipts or these 12 sketches or whatever the small amount. Yeah.

[00:38:54] Amy Bryant: Mm-Hmm. Chunking chunk. It chunking isn’t a 

[00:38:56] diane: huge one. 

[00:38:57] Amy Bryant: Yeah. Okay. Um, all [00:39:00] right. So watch the way, like, watch your thoughts. Are you deriding yourself? Can you say, wait, this is not a character flaw. This is just how my brain works. What are you saying? Deri? Like RID dri deri. Deri don’t be mean to yourself. Oh, okay.

[00:39:17] I don’t know. Deri. D-E-R-I-D-E. I don’t know. We could cut that part. 

[00:39:23] diane: That’s okay. Uh, um. It’s good. It’s all good. Um, yeah. So when I’m [00:39:30] blocked. I think of us sometimes being blocked in, I just can’t think of any more ideas. And I think sometimes with students, um, we have that a good bit. Totally. Mm-Hmm. But our thing we push is keep going.

[00:39:45] I don’t want the stuff you’ve already seen. I want you to think about the weird stuff that’s in your brain that you have to unlock. You’re like, 

[00:39:52] Amy Bryant: yeah. 

[00:39:52] diane: So when we were talking about create a block, I was like, I looked on how do we unlock it? Yeah. Well I looked on Voto for Creative Block and it was [00:40:00] all these super cheesy Yeah.

[00:40:02] Visuals. So I was like, yeah, forget it. I’m gonna make some blocks out of color and I’m gonna make a collage block. And that’s what I did. And I shot it with my phone. And that was, and to me it was like it didn’t really need to be, um, something I di wasn’t making it make anything. Mm-Hmm. It was just more about spaces or colors or, you know, and I think sometimes that’s for me, doing something tactile, getting off the computer.

[00:40:29] Mm-Hmm. [00:40:30] Yes. And going, um, I think that that really makes a, a big difference for me. But I know that I’m more of a tactile kind of way. Well, 

[00:40:40] Amy Bryant: but, and sensory input helps lots of people. So like the, the daughter who goes outside and puts her feet on the ground, that’s sensory input. You know, it could be, that’s why downward dog is sensory input also.

[00:40:55] Um, so sensory input, changing it up like, you know what, I’m gonna stop [00:41:00] trying to force myself to think differently and I’m gonna move my body differently. Um, moving our body changes our, our thoughts and experiences with what we’re trying to do. Um, you had said something and I lost it. Um, but yeah, I think, and then also asking yourself, okay, I’m stuck.

[00:41:26] Am I trying to get this perfect? Hmm. [00:41:30] You know, am I, what, what am what’s coming up? What am I afraid is gonna happen if I don’t figure this out? Right. Sure. Like, getting really curious about, 

[00:41:41] diane: so in that, ’cause sometimes those are things I avoid too. So that’s like the reflection part. Like why is this happening?

[00:41:48] So maybe is it, um, putting that down in writing or Yeah. It could be, um, verbalizing it, even if you’re just talking out loud to yourself. Mm-Hmm mm-Hmm. Um, I think sometimes those [00:42:00] are, for me, they’re better than just, um, quickly thinking about it because I just move on. Yeah. And I, it’s kind of like dismissing the reflection, so I’d need to put it in longer term.

[00:42:13] Yeah. Makes sense. So if sense if I write it, um, then there’s more of like, I’m taking a note even if I just Mm-Hmm. Throw the note away. Mm-Hmm. But I think, yeah, we talk, we talk about things that we’re, so if you’re trying to get a kid. To push past the first 30 sketches and we’re trying [00:42:30] to do, or the first 30 ideas.

[00:42:32] Mm-Hmm. Um, because we need something new and Mm-Hmm. Different. And that isn’t just the, you know, Mm-Hmm. That’s how we get cows to sell chicken sandwiches. Right? Mm-Hmm. Yeah. Um, ’cause that’s in that ideation stage. But what would that, what would that, how, how could we Um, I mean, we need it because we need something [00:43:00] to be memorable and unexpected, and I think the best design is unexpected.

[00:43:04] The, usually something that’s memorable is something that wasn’t expected. Mm-Hmm. If you’re expecting a beer commercial during, um, the Super Bowl. Mm-Hmm. You’re not, you. The beer commercials have to tell us a different story during the. Yeah. Super Bowl, right? Mm-Hmm. Um, so that it is memorable. Mm-Hmm. Um, how would you, how would I tell either myself [00:43:30] or, Hey, I, I need, keep pushing.

[00:43:31] These are all just typical and maybe that’s more of like, specifically designed, so 

[00:43:36] Amy Bryant: I would Yeah, no, I think it’s a Greg question. I think pushing is the wrong tactic, right? Pushing makes us stay in our box. And so then it’s about what can, what can I do to get my brain less intensely focused about this so that in a more [00:44:00] holistic way, I can approach this, right?

[00:44:02] How can I get my mind and body all together? So it’s 

[00:44:06] diane: about regulation then. ’cause maybe it’s about regulation. You’re so deregulated because you’re pushing, it’s not fun. You can’t get 

[00:44:13] Amy Bryant: connected to your creative side. 

[00:44:15] diane: Okay. Okay. That’s a, that’s really. That’s interesting and that’s gonna be different for everybody, but maybe that’s something that we need.

[00:44:21] I’m gonna read this question ’cause I can tell you’re reading it too, from this, from Matt, um, overthinking about the result in quotes of something I’m [00:44:30] working on, will this thing I want to do or to put out into the world result in a positive result or more work coming back in leads to a massive creative block for him.

[00:44:40] Yeah. So that’s that practical, right? Mm-Hmm. So I know I can’t control how people respond, but I do want to make something that’s interesting to people. It is massive struggle for me to get past. I don’t wanna waste. Oh man, I hear you buddy. Yeah. Waste my time and effort, but I know I have to put [00:45:00] something out.

[00:45:01] No, yeah, it’s a great question. It’s a great question. Yeah. 

[00:45:04] Amy Bryant: It’s um, you know, this is a part of that also regulation of energy where we can expend so much and then if it’s met. Without a, a well responded to thing, it can be totally deflating. Right? And then we’re exhausted and we’re like, why the blank would I wanna do that again?

[00:45:25] Right? Yes. And so then it’s like what Mara said, like how do we, [00:45:30] how do we move back into that state of what do I love about this project? And say, I will make it practical again. I will do the practical piece once I create the core, right? So I was gonna read his like, this is, I wanna put this into the world and if you wanna put it into the world, there’s something of value in it because you know it’s valuable to you.

[00:45:53] And none of us are that unique, right? We all have some general human [00:46:00] experience. Now, do we have unique ways that we pull in regulation and that we relate to each other and all those things? Yes. But there’s core experiences that’s gonna resonate with someone else. So if you’re thinking about like, gosh, I have this thing I wanna do.

[00:46:14] I know that, like, I’m worried that about the sellability or about whether or not it will resonate, but I wanna see what flushes out the easy parts, right? Those like vacuuming the rug. That’s easy. Can you start with the easy [00:46:30] part and then let your mind wander about the other things, like, Ooh, they might like this, or they might like that, or, this could be a cool selling point, right?

[00:46:40] You know, like when you’re in the shower and you have your, your greatest, I’ve, I’ve been writing songs lately, so when I’m in the shower, I come up with the greatest lyrics, or if I’m just waking up from sleep or about to fall asleep, you know, there’s times when you don’t have a pen and paper, so can you let your mind wander during those times [00:47:00] for those more difficult pieces?

[00:47:03] And can you get regulated in that moment? Like Mara said, drop the, drop the expectation and get into that state of reverie. Like, this is what I love. Um, and then there’s something to say worth exploring about what does happen if I do all this work and it doesn’t result in a positive thing or it doesn’t bring more leads in.[00:47:30] 

[00:47:30] So 

[00:47:31] diane: sometimes I think you just haven’t asked the right person. I do think Matt is totally up for collaboration. ’cause sometimes people, I, if I’m showing you all these baggies of, it looks like I’m a watermelon dealer. I mean, it’s, it’s a, it’s, there’s another baggie too. I mean, it’s like a hun. Hundreds of watermelons.

[00:47:52] Amy Bryant: Yeah. 

[00:47:53] diane: Um, you know, sometimes we don’t know. I was like, do you see any use for these? Do [00:48:00] you, like you have to ask some people. Mm-Hmm. And then some people are gonna be like, nah, I don’t know. What some, some people are gonna be like, oh my gosh, you could, and you need to ask lots of people because, and there was somebody I was talking to, um, that does pattern design and they were, uh, doing licensing and they were getting something licensed and somebody looked in their sketchbook and they saw something that they would’ve never, uh, thought that [00:48:30] would’ve been, um, something that anybody could use.

[00:48:33] They, it was really, I think this was Amarillo and I can’t remember if Amarillo’s was last week. I think she was, but she was talking about, um, you know, I didn’t think these playground things would’ve been, I wouldn’t have thought anybody would’ve been able to, would’ve seen, Hey, I wanna use this, but I’m sure she showed it to lot her sketchbook to lots of people, lots of people had flipped over those pages.

[00:48:56] But then some people, I think you just have to show it [00:49:00] to the right people and you have to. If you’re showing it in a big, like on stage, that’s probably not it. You need, I think for me it’s about getting somebody, a small group, maybe four or five people saying, Hey, how, how do you think I could use this?

[00:49:15] Mm-Hmm. And being willing if they, nobody’s like, I can’t see you using those cucumbers anywhere. Give it, give it up. Be like, okay, well that doesn’t feel right to me. I really like the cucumbers and watermelon. Mm-Hmm. I’m gonna keep going. I’m [00:49:30] gonna keep asking until I get, um, a direction. I feel like it’s like, do you know where Chick-fil-A is?

[00:49:37] Do you know? Like some people might not know. You gotta ask. Somebody’s gonna know where the place you’re trying to go is. Mm-Hmm. And they’re gonna see potential. So one being open for collaboration, um, and often on left side. Yeah. And the other one is just. Continuing to ask more people. ’cause I feel like you’re like, well I put it on the internet.

[00:49:57] That’s when you said that. You’re like, maybe [00:50:00] nobody, whatever. And I’m like, oh my gosh. You know? I feel really bad for people when they’re like, well I just, nobody liked it. Well, maybe you did it at the wrong time. How? You know, you can’t tell if everybody’s on the internet at that time. Yeah. Or, and social 

[00:50:17] Amy Bryant: media is fickle.

[00:50:19] Absolutely. You just never know. They all the algorithms. Yeah, for sure. I think reaching out to other people and saying, I’m, I like this, but I got no idea what it’s for. But I [00:50:30] also think we can’t always drop our expectations. Sometimes you have to expect for Ava overthinking to show up. Mm, I’m gonna do this, I wanna do this.

[00:50:43] And I just know how my brain works and I’m gonna get stuck because I’m worried about the final result and whether or not. Anything’s gonna happen. And so I’m gonna be kind to myself. 

[00:50:55] diane: So like for this women’s retreat that you’re Mm-Hmm. The mom’s retreat. Mm-Hmm. So how [00:51:00] would that come in to play? And then how would you work through it to get back to planning the retreat?

[00:51:09] You are like, don’t ask me that question.

[00:51:14] Amy Bryant: Let’s reverse it. You give me a one and let me talk you through it. Okay. I was like, how would I talk? I’ve already worked through it, so 

[00:51:20] diane: I, I don’t know. Okay. Okay. Um, all right. I’m gonna say I have, okay. Can we do the watermelons? [00:51:30] Of course, just pretend like I haven’t done a bookmark and a to do. Okay. I don’t think that’s the end of the watermelons, to be honest.

[00:51:35] Yeah, yeah. Okay. Like I think there’s some gut things, but does it, some more things take work from Yeah, there’s some more things I can do with these watermelons. Okay. 

[00:51:43] Amy Bryant: Okay. So let’s say you’re, let’s go. We’ll, we’ll lean into what Matt was saying. So let’s say you’re stuck and you’re overthinking it and you just, you’re just holding these watermelons and you know, don’t know what to do.

[00:51:53] So I would say to you, okay, so overthinking is something that you do. And I actually know this is something you do. [00:52:00] Right? Right. So like every time you move into a project, when overthinking shows up, you go, oh, overthinking is here. I’m worried. I’m dysregulated. Right. What’s the worst that can happen? The worst that can happen is you spend some time drawing some watermelons and you really love it.

[00:52:18] diane: Right. I had fun, 

[00:52:19] Amy Bryant: but 

[00:52:19] diane: you had fun. The worst thing would be that I wasted my time. ’cause I’m gonna bring that into, ’cause Matt talked about that. Mm-Hmm. I wasted my time and I wasted [00:52:30] some resources. Mm-Hmm. The ink or the paint. Mm-Hmm. Or the crayons or whatever. Mm-Hmm. 

[00:52:37] Amy Bryant: Yeah. 

[00:52:38] diane: Time scanning, whatever. 

[00:52:39] Amy Bryant: Yeah.

[00:52:40] Okay. And then wasting time and resources leads to what?

[00:52:47] diane: Then I need to go on Dick Blick and buy more resources. Yeah. Right. And so, so then it’s wasting money on something that’s not making me money. So it’s like a spiral in my head. 

[00:52:59] Amy Bryant: And then you waste [00:53:00] money and then what? And then I’m a failure. You run outta money. I’m a failure. I run outta money. I don’t have a place to live.

[00:53:08] Right, right. Yes. Yeah, yeah. Right. Okay. And so then it’s just going, okay, this is all overthinking. None of this is true, right? So far I think Matt, probably based on what Diane has said, and Diane, based on what I know of you, y’all have not gone there. Your work has produced results and brought in more things, right?

[00:53:29] [00:53:30] So reminding your nervous system, Hey, you know what, buddy, right now we’re safe. Overthinking is here ’cause I’m worried and worry is here. And that’s okay. These are normal human emotions and responses to big ideas and big feelings we have. And it’s okay to be here. Hi overthinking. Welcome to the table.

[00:53:51] We’re gonna get to you, but right now I. I’m dreaming into this thing that I want. I’m dreaming into this joy I am getting from drawing the [00:54:00] watermelons and the cucumbers and let’s see what else is here. I. 

[00:54:07] diane: Because they’re just so loud at the table. I can’t even focus on, you have to acknowledge ’em. Right.

[00:54:12] But are you trying to push ’em away? I’m trying to ha I’m trying to put ’em in the closet and shut them up. Right? No, but instead saying, Hey, I see you’re here. That could be, I’m overthinking inviting them, going, uh, what’s the worst that could happen? I have to live with Amy in her basement. You know, like, you’re welcome.

[00:54:28] Amy Bryant: There’s a 

[00:54:29] diane: bathroom [00:54:30] down 

[00:54:30] Amy Bryant: there. 

[00:54:31] diane: Yeah. Because you tiny. We’re about to get them all taken care of. Yes. Tiny bladder, but, but there nothing is getting me on the street. Right, right. It’s got your tiny bladder thing. Yes. Yeah. Well, you, you mentioned I had my own bathroom down there, so, but like those things are, I, I don’t really think those are happen happening, but because I’m not giving overthinking at the table, it’s just shouting and so I can’t hear anybody [00:55:00] else.

[00:55:00] And so Yeah, because I’m trying to attention avoid it and say, yeah. Do you really think, Diane, you’re gonna have to end up living in Amy’s basement with her mold, right? No. No, we’re not gonna, she’s gonna get the mold fixed and you can live down. I’ll get it. It’s almost done. Yeah. But instead that gives, um, that’s a dereg key.

[00:55:23] Uh, overthinking is a deregulator for me. 

[00:55:26] Amy Bryant: That’s all it is. Yeah. It just means you’re worried. [00:55:30] Right. It just means you’re worried. And how will I ever make this happen? And this, this project feels huge and there’s 5 million things to think about. 

[00:55:39] diane: Right. But maybe I just need to do one at a time. If a bookmarks really easy, let’s get the bookmark done.

[00:55:45] Do the one easy thing, 

[00:55:46] Amy Bryant: right? Yeah. 

[00:55:47] diane: And then go to the next easy thing. And then you have this whole slot of watermelon things that now I am a watermelon dealer. Yes. 

[00:55:54] Amy Bryant: Yeah. Do you think we answered Matt’s question? I. 

[00:55:59] diane: Matt, oh. I’m [00:56:00] a prolific self editor when it comes to self-promotion. I’ve learned to turn that off when making art and allow myself just to enjoy it.

[00:56:07] Yeah, I think that’s, that comes out in those pages. Mm-Hmm. Matt, that totally comes out. Mm-Hmm. Um, so what if we try to dis not dysregulate? No. No. We don’t want it. We got, we got that one down. We don’t even have to try. Yeah. What if we try, um, try one thing, looking over the [00:56:30] shoulder, we try the tapping.

[00:56:31] Nothing’s working. 

[00:56:32] Amy Bryant: Mm-Hmm. Yeah. You might be trying too hard. Right? You might have to invite those pieces of you to the table. I’m dysregulated, what am I worried about? Right. And you write down all the things and you say, okay, well. What’s one thing I could do? What doesn’t feel like the worst thing ever?

[00:56:49] Well, I guess I could turn my tv, I mean my computer on, like, if I have to do something I really don’t wanna do, like I can’t do Instagram promotions right now. I just can’t create one more [00:57:00] thing. I’m a therapist, I just stop doing it. It’s fine. Yeah. It’s not my livelihood really. 

[00:57:06] diane: It’s not your livelihood.

[00:57:08] It’s not. 

[00:57:09] Amy Bryant: Yeah. So, um, so, but if I were to like, recommend that and putting out content for people that I think people find helpful and then they wanna contact me sometimes and work with me, um, then I will be like, you know what? I’m gonna sit in front of the TV and watch my favorite show and [00:57:30] turn on my computer.

[00:57:32] And then I might like be like, oh, I had that one idea about, um, about helping kids say no to adults. And so I might create a creative piece around that and I might get in touch with my inner rebel and like say all the worst things that I would never tell kids to say, but that help me get in touch with that, right?

[00:57:57] And then I bring in my adult owl [00:58:00] wise brain and go, let’s make this more, you know, more helpful for kids. You know? And so, and so, I’ve gone from watching TV to turning on my computer, to opening, um, Canva, to like seeing this really cool Canva template to having an idea pop into my head to being like, I love this topic.

[00:58:23] Let’s raise rebels right to the most rebellious thing I can put on the [00:58:30] screen to like, and then the next thing I know, I’ve stopped watching, you know, whatever zombie show I might be watching. And I’ve created like 12 Instagram posts, right? To watch zombies. They scare me. Oh, I can’t stop. It’s ridiculous.

[00:58:44] I know. So if there’s a zombie apocalypse, Diane, just come to my house. Okay. Alright. Okay, 

[00:58:51] diane: Amy. Thank you. Mm-Hmm. I hope this was helpful. It’ll be like blue and purple watermelon. Um, [00:59:00] I, we are doing these pretty regular, uh, we’re trying to do ’em every other month. So if you guys have something that you want to ask Amy or a topic that you want us to cover, you can email me at diane@creativesignite.com.

[00:59:13] diane@creativesignite.com. It’ll be down below. But now let me tell you how you can get in touch with Amy. Um, you can go to wild child counseling.com and on Instagram, which she’s maybe not creating content for right this moment, is at [00:59:30] Wild Child atl ’cause she’s in Atlanta. Um, and then on Facebook, it’s facebook.com/wild Child Counseling.

[00:59:38] Everything’s spelled normal. Um mm-hmm. Anyway, thank you, Amy, for doing this. Yeah, I, creative block is, is big and it has lots of things. It’s big, but what I’ve learned is that I need to, when I’m stuck, maybe I’m dysregulated and then I need to go through to find how to regulate. And if it’s a [01:00:00] 32nd regulation, a five minute regulation, mm-hmm.

[01:00:03] Or maybe a two hour regulation. I need to do those things. So, 

[01:00:06] Amy Bryant: yeah. Yeah. Thank you, Diane. Thank you everybody for being here and for your comments and questions. 

[01:00:13] diane: That was awesome. Thank you, Amy. Oh, and next week. So that I, I didn’t bring the new book, but um, uh, Nikki Villa Gomez, she is also, she’s in South Carolina, or No, she used to be in South Carolina when she did this.

[01:00:26] She was in South Carolina, but now she’s in North Carolina, she’s in [01:00:30] Charlotte. Um, and this was book one and now, and this was, uh, with how books, and now she has a self-published. Her second book is also really cool and good. And so we’re gonna talk a little bit about self-publishing. It’s the same, um, kind of topic.

[01:00:45] It’s culture and typography. This one was how culture affects Typography. This one is about font pairings, who doesn’t have trouble font pairing, right? I mean, seriously, you might even have trouble in Canva font pairing. 100%. It’s hard. It’s, and it’s hard to [01:01:00] know what, but the, her books are so full of ideas and insights and.

[01:01:07] A whole bunch of old stuff that she’s taken pictures of that she’s like, does this work? I think this works because, or I don’t know why people are doing the apostrophes this way, or it’s all, it’s gonna be really cool. So, um, the font pairings are, um, yes, she did, she did used to teach with you, Stephanie, um, um, because she was at, uh, university of South Carolina in [01:01:30] Columbia.

[01:01:30] Um, but then she moved to North Carolina. So, but she is on next week and I hope you guys join me. I’ll give you the link for her book next week too. It is. Both of them are good. I have this one here and the other one is at home, but I’ll have ’em both here next week. And it’s just full. I mean, both of them are just full of awesome signs for all of us who like, you know, type out in the world.

[01:01:55] It is amazing and it’s just, uh, really good juicy things to [01:02:00] look at. So I hope you guys will join me next week with Nikki Villagomez and Amy. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. 

[01:02:06] Amy Bryant: Thank you. Y’all have everybody. Have a good day.