“To live the creative life, we must first lose our fear of being wrong.” That is what these apparently random letters spell. This is what they looked like when I bought them. I have since spray painted them and will install them on our studio stairs. When I ordered them off Etsy, I carefully spelled out each word to make sure all the letters had arrived. Then I arranged them to make sure they would fit on the stairs. I cleaned off some of the dirt and rust, then set them on this surface to get them painted. They are now painted and drying. All that to add such a thought provoking statement to our studio stairs.
While they are drying I have passed them a couple dozen times. Each time I pass I see a different word or phrase and think about the ideas that come out of chaos. By mixing things up I am able to see something different every time. At first my mind wanted them to be in the correct order to spell out the saying. Once I let go of that controlled thought I mixed them up to better use the space for drying. Several people who have walked by have commented about the randomness and their desire to put them back in order. They wanted to control the ‘mess’ and put them ‘back in place’. It has been a fascinating experiment on how people react to chaos and a lack of control.
As the statement notes, “…we must first lose our fear of being wrong”. We need to give up the urge to control and have things always in order. We need to give up the fear that something will be wrong, go wrong, feel wrong. Not everything has to be done our way or the way we think it should be done. We need to realize that ‘wrong’ allows us to be more creative, more innovative, more spontaneous. Wrong is only wrong because we think it should be a certain way, not because anything is actually wrong. If we are willing to give up control then this definition of wrong no longer applies.
How willing are you to live in chaos? How much of your life is spent keeping things, people, events, places, or schedules under control? Is that REALLY the way you want to spend your precious time on earth, keeping things under control? It can keep you terribly busy, make it seem you are important, and give you a sense of power when YOU keep things all under control. Does it allow others to be themselves, learn and grow? Does your control make you happy and everyone else miserable? Does it mean you will never be satisfied because people will never live up to your standard of control? How willing are you to live a creative life and let things flow in and through chaos? How much more of who you REALLY are would be able to expand if you gave up control and went with the flow?
“To live the creative life we must first lose our fear of being wrong”…Pablo Picasso said that. Wise worlds for a genius who created and lived in chaos. Next time to want to straighten the letters into clearly defined words, ask yourself why is that important to you? And is that the best use of your talents and skills? Befriend chaos and just let go…
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