Notes & Major Points

The Creative Act: A Way of Being Rick Rubin, Neil Strauss

Practice

Self-Doubt

Patience

Inspiration

Habits

The Art Habit (Sangha)

ISBN: 9780593653425

CSULB Library Permalink: https://csu-lb.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01CALS_ULB/1cv42nv/alma991016388766702910

Rubin, Rick, and Neil Strauss. The Creative Act: A Way of Being. Penguin Press, 2023.

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Practice

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In the wild, animals must narrow their field of vision to sur­

vive. A tight focus prevents distraction from critical needs.

Food,

Shelter,

Predators,

Procreation.

For the artist, this reflexive action can be a hindrance.

Widening one's scope allows for more moments of interest to

be noticed and collected, building a treasury of material to

draw from later.

A practice is the embodiment of an approach to a concept.

This can support us in bringing about a desired state of

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mind. When we repeat the exercise of opening our senses to

what is, we move closer to living in a continually open state.

We build a habit. One where expanded awareness is our de­

fault way of being in the world.

To deepen this practice is to embark on a more profound

relationship with Source. As we reduce the interference of

our filter, we become better able to recognize the rhythms

and movements around us. This allows us to participate with

them in a more harmonious way.

When we take notice of the cycles of the planet, and choose

to live in accordance with its seasons, something remarkable

happens. We become connected.

We begin to see ourselves as part of a greater whole that

is constantly regenerating itself. And we may then tap into

this all-powerful propagating force and ride its creative wave.

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To support our practice, we might set up a daily schedule,

where we engage in particular rituals at specific times every

day or week.

The gestures we perform don't need to be grand. Small

rituals can make a big difference.

We can decide to take three slow, deep breaths upon

awakening each morning. This simple act can set a course to

start each day still, centered, and in the moment.

We might also eat our meals mindfully, slowly savoring

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each bite with appreciation. Take a daily walk in nature,

looking at everything entering our field of vision with grati­

tude and connection. Take a moment to marvel at the feel­

ing of our heartbeat and the movement of blood through our

veins before sleep.

The purpose of such exercises is not necessarily in the

doing, just as the goal of meditation isn't in the meditating.

The purpose is to evolve the way we see the world when

we're not engaged in these acts . We are building the muscu­

lature of our psyche to more acutely tune in. This is so much

of what the work is about.

Awareness needs constant refreshing. If it becomes a

habit, even a good habit, it will need to be reinvented again

and again.

Until one day, you notice that you are always in the prac­

tice of awareness, at all times, in all places, living your life in

a state of constant openness to receiving.

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Self-Doubt

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Self-doubt lives in all of us. And while we may wish it gone,

it is there to serve us.

Flaws are human, and the attraction of art is the human­

ity held in it. If we were machinelike, the art wouldn't reso­

nate. It would be soulless. With life comes pain, insecurity,

and fear.

We're all different and we're all imperfect, and the im­

perfections are what makes each of us and our work interest­

ing. We create pieces reflective of who we are, and if

insecurity is part of who we are, then our work will have a

greater degree of truth in it as a result.

The making of art is not a competitive act. Our work is

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representative of the sel£ You would be amiss to say, "I'm not

up to the challenge." Yes, you may need to deepen your craft

to fully realize your vision. If you're not up to it, no one else

can do it. Only you can. You're the only one with your voice.

The people who choose to do art are, many times, the

most vulnerable. There are singers considered among the

best in the world who can't bring themselves to listen to their

own voice. And these are not rare exceptions. Many artists

in different arenas have similar issues.

The sensitivity that allows them to make the art is the

same vulnerability that makes them more tender to being

judged. Still, many continue to share their work and risk

criticism in spite of this. It's as if they have no other choice.

Being an artist is who they are, and they are made whole

through self-expression.

If a creator is so afraid of judgment that they're unable to

move forward, it might be that the desire to share the work

isn't as strong as the desire to protect themselves. Perhaps art

isn't their role. Their temperament might serve a different

pursuit. This path is not for everyone. Adversity is part of the

process.

We are not obligated to follow this calling because we

have a talent or skill. It's worth remembering that we are

blessed to get to create. It's a privilege. We're choosing it.

We're not being ordered to do this. If we'd rather not do it,

let's not do it.

Some successful artists are deeply insecure, self-sabotaging,

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struggling with addiction, or facing other obstacles to making

and sharing their work. An unhealthy self-image or a hard­

ship in life can fuel great art, creating a deep well of insight

and emotion for an artist to draw from. They can also get in

the way of the artist being able to make many things over a

long period of time.

People who are particularly challenged in this sense gen­

erally can't produce creative work over and over again. This

isn't because they're not artistically capable, but because

they were only able to break through their own issues one or

two times and share great work.

One of the reasons so many great artists die of overdoses

early in their lives is because they're using drugs to numb a

very painful existence. The reason it's painful is the reason

they became artists in the first place: their incredible sensi­

tivity.

If you see tremendous beauty or tremendous pain where

other people see little or nothing at all, you're confronted

with big feelings all the time. These emotions can be confus­

ing and overwhelming. When those around you don't see

what you see and feel what you feel, this can lead to a sense

of isolation and a general feeling of not belonging, of other­

ness.

These charged emotions, powerful when expressed in the

work, are the same dark clouds that beg to be numbed to

allow sleep or to get out of bed and face the day in the morn­

ing. It's a blessing and a curse.

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Patience

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There are no shortcuts.

The lottery winner isn't ultimately happy after their sud­

den change of fortune. The home built hastily rarely sur­

vives the first storm. The single-sentence summary of a book

or news event is no substitute for the full story.

We often take shortcuts without knowing it. When listen­

ing, we tend to skip forward and generalize the speaker's

overall message. We miss the subtleties of the point, if not the

entire premise. In addition to the assumption that we are

saving time, this shortcut also avoids the discomfort of chal­

lenging our prevailing stories. And our worldview continues

to shrink.

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The artist actively works to experience life slowly, and

then to re-experience the same thing anew. To read slowly,

and to read and read again.

I might read a paragraph that inspires a thought, and

while my eyes continue moving across the page in the phys­

ical act of reading, my mind may still be lost in the previous

idea. I'm not taking in information anymore. When I realize

this, I return to the last paragraph I can recall and start

reading from there again. Sometimes it's three or four pages

back.

Re-reading even a well-understood paragraph or page

can be revelatory. New meanings, deeper understandings,

inspirations, and nuances arise and come into focus.

Reading, in addition to listening, eating, and most phys­

ical activities, can be experienced like driving: we can par­

ticipate either on autopilot or with focused intention. So

often we sleepwalk through our lives. Consider how different

your experience of the world might be if you engaged in ev­

ery activity with the attention you might give to landing a

plane.

There are those who approach the opportunities of each

day like crossing items off a to-do list instead of truly engag­

ing and participating with all of themselves.

Our continual quest for efficiency discourages looking

too deeply. The pressure to deliver doesn't grant us time to

consider all possibilities. Yet it's through deliberate action

and repetition that we gain deeper insight.

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Patience is required for the

nuanced development of your craft.

Patience is required for taking in

information in the most faithful way possible.

Patience is required for crafting a work that

resonates and contains all that we have to offer.

Every phase of an artist's work and life benefits from cul­

tivating this achievable habit.

Patience is developed much like awareness. Through an

acceptance of what is. Impatience is an argument with real­

ity. The desire for something to be different from what we

are experiencing in the here and now. A wish for time to

speed up, tomorrow to come sooner, to relive yesterday, or to

close your eyes then open them and find yourself in another place.

Time is something that we have no control over. So pa­

tience begins with acceptance of natural rhythms. The im­

plied benefit of impatience is to save time by speeding up and

skipping ahead of those rhythms. Paradoxically, this ends up

taking more time and using more energy. It's wasted effort.

When it comes to the creative process, patience is accept­

ing that the majority of the work we do is out of our control.

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Inspiration

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It appears in a moment.

An immaculate conception.

A divine flash of light. An idea that would otherwise

require labor to unfold suddenly blooms in a single inha­

lation.

What defines inspiration is the quality and quantity of

the download. At a speed so instantaneous, it seems impossi­

ble to process. Inspiration is the rocket fuel powering our

work. It is a universal conversation we yearn to be part of.

The word comes from the Latin-inspirare, meaning to

breathe in or blow into.

For the lungs to draw in air, they must first be emptied.

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For the mind to draw inspiration, it wants space to welcome

the new. The universe seeks balance. Through this absence,

you are inviting energy in.

The same principle applies to everything in life. If we are

looking for a relationship when we're already in one, then we

are full. There is no room for the new to enter. And we are

unable to welcome in the relationship we want.

To create space for inspiration, we might consider prac­

tices of quieting the mind: meditation, awareness, silence,

contemplation, prayer, any ritual that helps us fend off dis­

traction and papancha.

Breath itself is a potent vehicle to calm our thoughts, cre­

ate space, and tune in. It cannot guarantee that inspiration

will come, though the vacancy may draw the muse in to play.

Taken more spiritually, inspiration means to breathe life

into. An ancient interpretation defines it as the immediate

influence of the divine. For the artist, inspiration is a breath

of creative force drawn in instantly from outside of our small

selves. We can't be sure where this spark of insight origi­

nates. It's helpful to know it's not us alone.

When inspiration does arrive, it is invariably energizing.

But it is not something to rely on. An artistic life cannot be

built solely around waiting. Inspiration is out of our control

and can prove hard to find. Effort is required and invitations

are to be extended. In its absence, we may work on other

areas of the project independent of this cosmic transmission.

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Epiphanies are hidden in the most ordinary of moments:

the casting of a shadow, the smell of a match igniting, an

unusual phrase overheard or misheard. A dedication to the

practice of showing up on a regular basis is the main re­

quirement.

To vary your inspiration, consider varying your inputs.

Turn the sound off to watch a film, listen to the same song on

repeat, read only the first word of each sentence in a short

story, arrange stones by size or color, learn to lucid dream.

Break habits.

Look for differences.

Notice connections.

One indicator of inspiration is awe. We tend to take so

much for granted. How can we move past disconnection and

desensitization to the incredible wonders of nature and hu­

man engineering all around us?

Most of what we see in the world holds the potential to

inspire astonishment if looked at from a less jaded perspec­

tive. Train yourself to see the awe behind the obvious. Look

at the world from this vantage point as often as possible. Sub­

merge yourself.

The beauty around us enriches our lives in so many ways.

It is an end in itself. And it sets an example for our own work.

We can aim to develop an eye for harmony and balance, as

if our creations have always been here, like mountains or

feathers.

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Ride the wave as long as it can be ridden. If you are fortu­

nate enough to experience the strike of inspiration, take full

advantage of the access. Remain in the energy of this rarefied

moment for as long as it lasts. When flowing, keep going.

If you're a writer and you tap into a stream of ideas be­

fore bed, you may want to stay with it until dawn. If you're a

musician and you've reached your goal of creating one song

or ten songs, yet the music is still coming, capture all you can.

The work yielded may not be used in the current project,

but it may be of use another time. Or it may not. The task of

the artist is simply to recognize the transmission and stay

with it in gratitude, until it truly runs its course.

In terms of priority, inspiration comes first. You come

next. The audience comes last.

These are special moments and are to be treated with the

utmost devotion. Our schedules are set aside when these

fleeting moments of illumination come. Summon your

strength and commit yourself on behalf of this offering, even

when it arises at an inopportune time. This is the serious

artist's obligation.

John Lennon once advised that if you start a song, write

it through to the end in that sitting. The initial inspiration

has a vitality in it that can carry you through the whole

piece. Don't be concerned if some of the parts are not yet all

they can be. Get through a rough draft. A full, imperfect

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version is generally more helpful than a seemingly perfect

fragment.

When an idea forms, or a hook is written, we may feel

that we've cracked the code and the rest will take care of it­

self. If we step away and let that initial spark fade, we may

return to find it's not so easy to rekindle. Think of inspiration

as a force not immune to the laws of entropy.

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Habits

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The first thing I would show players at our initial

day of training was how to take a little extra time

putting on their shoes and socks properly.

The most important part of your equipment is

your shoes and socks. You play on a hard floor. So

you must have shoes that fit right. And you must not

permit your socks to have wrinkles around the little

toe-where you generally get blisters-or around

the heels.

I showed my players how I wanted them to do it.

Hold up the sock, work it around the little toe area

and the heel area so that there are no wrinkles.

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Smooth it out good. Then hold the sock up while you

put the shoe on. And the shoe must be spread apart­

not just pulled on the top laces.

You tighten it up snugly by each eyelet. Then you

tie it. And then you double-tie it so it won't come

undone-because I don't want shoes coming untied

during practice, or during the game. I don't want

that to happen.

That's just a little detail that coaches must take

advantage of, because it's the little details that make

the big things come about.

The sentiments above areJohn Wooden's, the most suc­

cessful coach in the history of college basketball. His teams

won more consecutive games and championships than any

others in history.

It must have been frustrating for these elite athletes, who

wanted to get on the court and show what they could do, to

arrive at practice for the first time with this legendary coach

only to hear him say, Today we will learn to tie our shoes.

The point Wooden was making was that creating effec­

tive habits, down to the smallest detail, is what makes the

difference between winning and losing games. Each habit

might seem small, but added together, they have an expo­

nential effect on performance. Just one habit, at the top of

any field, can be enough to give an edge over the competi­

tion.

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Wooden considered every aspect of the game where an

issue might arise, and trained his players for each one. Re­

peatedly. Until they became habits.

The goal was immaculate performance. Wooden often

said the only person you're ever competing against is your­

self The rest is out of your control.

This way of thinking applies to the creative life just as

well. For both the artist and the athlete, the details matter,

whether the players recognize their importance or not.

Good habits create good art. The way we do anything is

the way we do everything. Treat each choice you make, each

action you take, each word you speak with skillful care. The

goal is to live your life in the service of art.

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Consider establishing a consistent framework around your

creative process. It is often the case that the more set in your

personal regimen, the more freedom you have within that

structure to express yourself

Discipline and freedom seem like opposites. In reality,

they are partners. Discipline is not a lack of freedom, it is a

harmonious relationship with time. Managing your sched­

ule and daily habits well is a necessary component to free up

the practical and creative capacity to make great art.

It could even be said that a focused efficiency in life is

more important than one in work. Approaching the practical

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aspects of your day with military precision allows the artistic

windows to be opened in childlike freedom.

Creativity-supporting habits can begin the moment you

arise each day. These might include looking at sunlight be­

fore screenlight, meditating (outdoors if possible), exercising,

and showering in cold water before beginning creative time

in a suitable space.

These habits look different for everyone, and perhaps dif­

ferent for the same artist from day to day. You might sit in

the forest, pay attention to your thoughts, and make notes.

Or drive in a car for an hour, with no destination in mind,

listening to classical music and seeing if any sparks arise.

It's helpful to set scheduled office hours, or uninterrupted

periods of joyful play that allow your imagination to soar.

For one person, that window of time might be three hours,

for another thirty minutes. Some prefer to work from dusk

'til dawn, while others create in twenty-minute sessions, with

five-minute breaks between each.

Find the sustainable rituals that best support your work.

If you set a routine that is oppressive, you'll likely find ex­

cuses not to show up. It's in the interest of your art to create

an easily achievable schedule to start with.

If you commit to working for half an hour a day, some­

thing good can happen that generates momentum. You may

then look at the clock and realize you've been working for

two hours. The option is always open to extend your creative

hours once the habit is formed.

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Feel free to experiment. The goal is to commit to a struc­

ture that can take on a life of its own, instead of creating only

when the mood strikes. Or to start each day with the ques­

tion of how and when you're going to work on your art.

Put the decision making into the work, not into when to

work. The more you reduce your daily life-maintenance

tasks, the greater the bandwidth available for creative deci­

sions. Albert Einstein wore the same thing daily: a gray suit.

Erik Satie had seven identical outfits, one for each day of the

week. Limit your practical choices to free your creative

imagination.

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We all yearn to establish new healthy, productive habits,

such as exercising, eating more local, natural foods, or prac­

ticing our craft more regularly.

But how often do we consider examining and removing

the habits that currently drive our days? How often do we

regard behaviors accepted as "the way people are" or "the

way we are" merely as habits?

Each of us has automatic habits. We have habits in move­

ment. Habits in speech, thought, and perception. Habits in

being ourselves. Some of them have been practiced every

day since we were children. A pathway gets carved into the

brain and becomes difficult to change. Most of these habits

control us, beyond our decisions, to the point they function

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autonomously and automatically, like the regulation of our

body temperature.

I recently learned a different way of swimming. It felt

awkward and counterintuitive, because I learned to swim

when I was very young. My previous method was so in­

grained, I didn't ever have to think about it. I effortlessly

knew how to do it. It had worked well enough to get me from

one side of the pool to the other, even though there were

other ways that could take me farther and faster with more

ease.

In our artistic pursuits, we also rely on habits to get from

one point to another. Some of them don't serve the work or

they undermine its progress. When we stay open and pay

close attention, it is possible to recognize these less helpful

habits and soften their spell. And begin to explore new prac­

tices. Ones that come in and out of our creative lives like

temporary collaborators, remaining as long as they serve the

work and departing when they are no longer beneficial.

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Thoughts and habits not conducive to the work:

• Believing you're not good enough.

• Feeling you don't have the energy it takes.

• Mistaking adopted rules for absolute truths.

• Not wanting to do the work (laziness).

• Not taking the work to its highest expression (settling).

• Having goals so ambitious that you can't begin.

• Thinking you can only do your best work in certain conditions.

• Requiring specific tools or equipment to do the work.

• Abandoning a project as soon as it gets difficult.

• Feeling like you need permission to start or move forward.

• Letting a perceived need for funding, equipment, or support get

in the way.

• Having too many ideas and not knowing where to start.

• Never finishing projects.

• Blaming circumstances or other people for interfering with your

process.

• Romanticizing negative behaviors or addictions.

• Believing a certain mood or state is necessary to do your best

work.

• Prioritizing other activities and responsibilities over your com-

mitment to making art.

• Distractibility and procrastination.

• Impatience.

• Thinking anything that's out of your control is in your way.

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The Art Habit (Sangha)

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If you're looking for the work to support you, you may be

asking too much of it. We create in service to art, not for what

we can get from art.

You may yearn for success as a way to leave an unfulfill­

ing job and support yourself through your passion. This is a

reasonable goal. However if the choice is between making

great art and supporting yourself, the art comes first. Con­

sider another way to make a living. Success is harder to come

by when your life depends on it.

Art is an unstable career path for most. Financial reward

often comes in waves, if at all. Some artists might have a vi­

sion for what they want to create, but may feel restrained

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because they don't believe it will pay the bills. It's okay to

have a job that supports your art habit. Doing both is a bet­

ter way of keeping the work pure.

There are jobs that demand your time but little else. You

can protect the art you make by choosing an occupation that

gives you mental space to formulate and develop your cre­

ative vision of the world.

Content can come from jobs that have nothing to do with

your passion. Great ideas often originate from unexpected

places. Many memorable songs have been written by people

in occupations they didn't like.

Another choice is to seek a living in the field you're pas­

sionate about. It may be a gallery, a bookstore, a music stu­

dio, or a film set. If no jobs are available close to the action,

ask if you can moonlight as an intern.

By choosing to be near what you love, you're offered a

glimpse behind the scenes of the craft. You can observe the

daily life of professional creators and understand the indus­

try and its infrastructure from the inside. After experiencing •

how it operates, you will come to know whether this path is

worthy of your devotion.

Even if it means taking a pay cut initially, choosing this

type of work could lead to unexpected opportunities later.

You can also pursue an unrelated career that provides

security while keeping art as a hobby, a hobby that's the most

important thing in your life. All paths are of equal merit.

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Whatever you choose, it's helpful to have fellow travelers

around you. They don't have to be like you, just like-minded

in some way. Creativity is contagious. When we spend time

with other artistic people, we absorb and exchange a way of

thinking, a way of looking at the world. This group can be

called a Sangha. Each person in this relationship begins see­

ing with a different imaginative eye.

It doesn't matter if their art form is the same as or differ­

ent from yours. It's nourishing to be in a community of

people who are enthusiastic about art, who you can have

long discussions with, and with whom you can trade feed­

back on the work.

Being part of an artistic community can be one of the

great joys oflife.

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