Returning to the Studio After a Break

Unfinished, untitled painting by Lea K. Tawd

Happy New Year!  At least, it's a new year as I am typing this.  The 7th, actually, but my daughter just returned to school after Winter break yesterday so for my art and my business it feels like the very beginning.  

We don't travel for holidays, but whether my daughter is home for 2+ weeks, we go on a vacation, or I get sick or have some other interruption in my work schedule, coming back to the studio can be tricky.  Add on the social pressure to get it all together, start fresh and kick some ass in the New Year and I can feel severely untethered and overwhelmed.  

There are unfinished projects waiting for me (in this case, the painting above, which I started in October and then got too busy with holiday shows to make any progress), a pile of containers that need to be unpacked from my last show, paintings to be cataloged, financials to be updated, packages to mail out, and a list of goals and intentions for the coming months.  

It feels exciting to get started again, and overwhelming to know where to start.  I was diagnosed with ADHD last year and that has helped me to understand that this feeling is even more intense for me than for neurotypical people.  My brain is not good at prioritizing, so if I'm not careful I can just get massively overwhelmed and do nothing instead, which spirals into a guilt/shame cycle that leaves me feeling even more overwhelmed.

I realized yesterday that a lot of the overwhelm is not only from difficulty prioritizing but from trying to plan too far ahead.  It's something I've never done successfully.  The times when I have forced myself to do it anyway, I did not follow through because I had forgotten that I had even made a plan!  Thanks, brain.  

The good news is, I can work with that!  I decided that I will write down some goals for my year, but that I only have to plan 2-3 months in advance.  I already know that a tight plan will not work for me, but having all of my short term goals laid out lets me know what I'm working towards each day so that I don't drop the ball.  In March I'll re-assess and plan for the next 2-3 months.  And yes, I am putting it in my calendar right now so I don't forget! 

Some other things that help me with a transition back to the studio when I've been away (or any time that I need to regroup and find some focus) are: 

• Spending 30-60 minutes just tidying up a bit.  Listening to music gets me extra motivated to do this!
• Finding someone to co-work with over zoom so that I can get started with whatever I need to do
• Taking some time to make something that isn't for "work."  Just giving myself a bit of the creative free time that I have been missing while away.  
• Doing a brain dump and listing every single task, idea, and project that is rolling around in my head.  This is not necessarily a to-do list, but a way to get my brain to quiet a bit so that I can organize my thoughts and better see what IS important to get done.

These things are in no particular order.  My brain needs dopamine to feel motivated and all of these things can do that for me.  They also give me accountability (co-working), help me feel more organized and less stressed (brain dump and tidying up), and give me some inspiration (creative free time). I have a feeling they could help you, too, if you struggle with transitions and/or motivation.  I hope so!