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Got two messages this week from new friends asking about how to stay motivated with their art during these times. I& #39;m no expert and I& #39;m also dealing with India family anxieties. That said, here& #39;s what has always worked, pandemic or otherwise. 1/n
It& #39;s never about external validation. I wrote without sending stuff to publications/publishers for over a decade. It& #39;s about the all-consuming topics/themes that I must explore, wrestle with, and understand through writing; about writing as a way of moving through the world. 2/n
The only kind of emotional energy that& #39;s sustainable is the kind that comes from within. Energy that comes from external validation can& #39;t last because such validation is fickle, trend-focused, and doesn& #39;t always appreciate the aspects of your work that mean the most to you. 3/n
This is not to say that external validation is unnecessary. It helps to shore up self-confidence, esp in the early years. It helps pay bills. But I& #39;ve never counted on it or made it a reason/expectation w.r.t. my work. Easier said than done. Here are 3 ways I stay the course. 4/n
1) Develop a set of personal heuristics (mental shortcuts that reduce the cognitive load of making decisions.) Call them rules of thumb, values, or principles. These are the life credos you& #39;ll commit to 100%; boundaries you& #39;ll never cross; moral lines you& #39;ll always uphold. 5/n
2) Appreciate the experience of learning from experiences—the meta-experience, if you will. This means sitting with yourself and having some uncomfortable, difficult, private conversations. Also, this means ignoring the instant gratification of sharing it all on social media. 6/n
3) Have a plan A, plan B, and a plan Z for your chosen work path. I& #39;ve written about this earlier. https://twitter.com/jennybhatt/status/1379613228418801665?s=20">https://twitter.com/jennybhat... 7/n
