Discovering Your Creative Passion & Getting Into the Flow

What do you do that sets your soul on fire? Do you love something so much that time disappears and you sometimes can't remember where these creations even came from or how they almost magically appeared complete before you? If this is something you've experienced at any point in your life, look back on it. What were you doing that was so magical? How were you expressing yourself? These are some questions that can help you to determine what you're really passionate and excited about, although exploring different activities and interests can also help with that. If you already know what inspires you, what you're passionate about, then it's important to do that thing (or those things) on a regular basis to keep your system in the flow as much as possible. This is a practice of inspiration; of "following your bliss" to ultimately live a healthier, happier, and more fulfilling life. It doesn't matter whether anyone else likes what you're doing or not... this is all about you, only you, tapping into your inspired state of being and getting better and better at doing so. This allows you to become more focused and productive, and there are a few ideas I'd like to share with you about this topic. Read on for more... and to hear an original song by yours truly =).

Please feel free to play this as you keep reading (headphones recommended; it doesn't sound nearly as good without the bass)... or not. Either way, there were some interesting lessons to be learned during the creation of this piece of music, which clearly still needs a proper edit and mastering by a professional, but the point is for me to eventually learn all of that so I can do it on my own and express myself 100%. Sometimes this doesn't happen when working with someone else who knows what they're doing, as they are in charge of the creative expression and have control over it to some degree. By learning these skills on my own, I will be able to overcome fears, learn new software, and put my natural talents to use. Of course that's not to say I don't love collaboration; I absolutely do and can't wait to learn more so that I have more refined skills to bring to the table, but you get the gist ;).

It is my firm belief that everyone (that means you, too, dear reader) has been given natural gifts, talents to explore, interests to learn about and get really good at that will ultimately benefit not only you, but the people around you and the collective as well.

Did you know that art and creativity are actually cleansing and healthy for your soul? You can feel the benefits of your expression as you're creating and when that flow of energy is actually focused and directed into something amazing. This type of energy is the energy of your spirit, your soul, your divine inner being.

The activity in and of itself is irrelevant except for to you and those with that same shared interest, so make it about yourself. Do it for you. If further benefits arise from it naturally, then that's great, but sometimes you literally just need to sit down and do something for yourself. That being said, let's cover a few ideas about nudges from your inner being and hopefully give you a better understanding of some of the behind-the-scenes aspects of inspiration and inspired action.

Five Ways to Recognize Inspiration from Within

That little nudge that quietly makes you feel a small but powerful desire to do a specific thing in a specific moment... all too often, we end up denying ourselves the time or energy to do these things because we are convinced on a subconscious level that life isn't supposed to be fun. It's supposed to be all work and no play, right? As a serious adult, you're supposed to work first and not play until all the work is done.

Right?

Unfortunately for all of us, there is typically always more work to do, so if we continuously deny ourselves the time or ability to create while inspired, that energy has to do something else; go somewhere else, be released in some way, or it may get trapped and stuck somewhere and manifest as other issues after years of sticking with that subconscious and guilt-conditioned habit of denial of self.

Technically speaking, each time you say no to your inspiration, you are denying your own divine essence and what it knows is best for you and your life, as unlikely as that may seem at first when your ego mind is still in charge. Any and all of the programming we've been exposed to during our formative years can have us in this loop of insanity, desperately wishing for change yet feeling trapped and unable to move forward. If you're feeling lost, inspiration and inspired action will help you to find your way, especially once you've begun practicing it and can more easily communicate with your own soul or inner being for inner guidance.

So, how do you begin to recognize that little nudge from within? Here are a few ideas to help you get started.

1. It may not even be about anything "big," but when you make one decision and then later wish you'd made a different choice, and it feels like kind of a quiet nagging. This is your inner being sending you the message that you should pay closer attention in advance next time and make a more inspired decision the next time.

2. When you have an undeniable urge to go and do something even if it seems weird, such as washing your car, walking a mile to the store, or another chore or not-always-enjoyable activity, this is your inner being trying to lead you somewhere so that you can experience something significant to only you. This will mean whatever you believe it means, and if you aren't paying attention, you may miss it.

3. When you're inspired or have an idea but can't do anything about it or deny yourself due to other obligations, that's your inner being telling you that you need time for creativity and expressing yourself. If at all possible (safely, of course), document your ideas when you have them because losing track of an idea in your mind is never fun, and sometimes these ideas are irretrievable. Lost forever in the sheer number of useless thoughts the typical human being has in a day. Buried beneath drivel. To avoid this, have some way to document your inspired ideas with you at all times. It helps a lot! And you wind up with one of two different reminders: an obnoxious and frustrating one in which you forget a great idea, or a triumphant and relieved one where you are prepared and at the very least have the option to use that idea should you want to.

​4. Opposition from those around you can be commonplace, especially if you're passionate and determined about something that you've never done before or that has you taking any kind of risk. People typically fear change, so when you affect change on purpose and independently, they may not know what to do with it and can react in harsh, critical, unsupportive, and unloving ways.

As an aside: this reveals to you which relationships are worth your focus and attention, and which ones are one-sided or toxic. Before the life of your dreams (or even the next level) can manifest, the old must be shed and the new embraced and nurtured. This also means you will need people around you who will be honest but loving with you, and this cannot happen if all of your time and attention is being given to those who drain you. People either radiate or drain, so be discerning about who plays what role within your life. It often happens that when you make the decision to change your life for the better, the things that might hold you back from that will be purged from your life and fall away. This is simply creating space for something better to manifest within your reality; a step up, so to speak.

5. You feel like you could do whatever you're doing forever, but it isn't necessarily an exuberant excitement, more like a simmering type of excitement. This is a great place to be because you will be productive, but be careful of taking on too much at once because that may lead you to experience burnout. The key is to maintain your balance between how much you can realistically get accomplished and how often you can purposely focus and tap into inspiration. The thing that allows you to tap in effortlessly is the thing that you should be doing anytime you're inspired and have the energy to do it, but you should also create a practice around this activity for best results.

As an aside: the recipe for any journey is to always take another step, and the more steps you can take quickly, the more momentum you will pick up. However, in order to pick up momentum, you have to continuously take steps, so you can probably begin to understand how consistent action can really propel you forward. Like anything else, failure is likely to happen multiple times and each incident will help to expand your consciousness, knowledge, and understanding. Knowing this in advance allows you to have more patience with the process, which in turn allows you to more effortlessly manifest what you are envisioning for yourself and your life.

Are You Listening to Yourself?

I hope that this article has given you a better idea of how to recognize those little nudges from within. Your inner being is always calling you in the direction of your dreams manifest, so pay attention to those quiet inspirations. They won't be insistent or loud like your ego's bright ideas tend to be. No, this idea feels like fun, like you're a little kid and you almost feel dumb for being so excited by this ordinary, everyday thing or activity or whatever it might be. Sometimes it's the urge to wrap your arms around the trunk of an old tree to feel the warmth of its history and the infinite depths of its patience.

When you deny yourself the pleasure of following this type of inspiration, your inner being won't make a bunch of noise or protest against you like your ego mind might. Instead, you may notice that you feel a little disappointed but resigned to not going along with this inspiration. While your ego or false self will throw a tantrum like a toddler, your inner being or soul will back off and quietly remind you of the situation later, probably several times, before you are led to another similar opportunity to make a different decision.

I'd like to invite you to humor me and make an agreement with yourself that you will listen to those inspired or intuitive nudges from within to explore where they might lead you and what you might find that holds significance for you. At least give it a chance two or three times and see if you uncover anything interesting. Pay attention as you conduct this experiment within your life, as you may find things that lead you to a realization or breakthrough of some sort, and it will almost feel like it was placed there just for you to see or experience, and how in the world is that even possible? But it is possible, and to hear about one of my manifestation experiences that really seemed magical, please check out my vlog episode about how nature always wins below. I hope that it helps to inspire you!

Thank you so much for being here and allowing me to share my interpretation of certain aspects of this journey with you! I hope that some of this has helped you in some way, and that you begin to understand that learning to follow your own inner guidance will help you along your journey, and can especially help you with manifesting your ideal experiences in physical reality.

How do you express your inspiration? Has following your intuitive nudges ever led you to something unexpected or important? Share your story in the comments if you're so inclined!

Love & Light to you, my friend!

—Jen