Chuck Palahniuk, Diary
major funk, party of one please.
this week has been one lackluster, empty, cold basin of inspiration for me.
usually i’m chin high, sky-scraping on my relevéd heels with ideas and plans for my classes.
but this week my abracadabra lacks a certain ingenuity.
typically i spend any free time i have busting out new choreography or searching for new music; 99% of it is mostly ridiculous and never-used, but at least the itch to invent and evolve stirs up my enthusiasm.
but these last few days everything i say and do feels flat, boring, and stale.
my planks, lunges, warrior 3’s, and interval sprints lack the sparkle of months before.
i’m thirsty; parched is more like it, for a deluge of creativity.
where do you look to be inspired?
i’m inspired by my fellow teachers, we’re all so different, and i could never, nor would want to try to replicate their classes; but i always walk away stirred by how they make me feel. there are only so many ways to reinvent the plié; i’d be foolish to try, and the results would be dangerous and silly, but the ability to connect and trigger desire within my students can always be improved.
i typically like to work in a raquel perry, angela leigh, luciana friere, jill grogg, nicolette david, rob glick or carly farmer class at least every two weeks, not just because they inspire me as teachers, but as people too. i love the way i feel leaving their sacred spaces; one i cannot duplicate because each are so unique and authentic; but i finish class inspired to expand my “own thang.”
am i the only one who feels this way?
how do you get unstuck? and i’m not just applying this to fitness? different types of jobs, parenting, relationships-they all run the risk of stagnation. what is your go-to roto rooter for a creativity slump?
my inspiration comes from books with great images all the time. after living in LA i still listen to NPR wherever i go in the world and the music they play is so eclectic that it's really inspiring. and if i was still living in Cali i would still take a drive on PCH, get oof at one of those beautiful beaches and breath the sea air… that to me is very inspiring!
I do something that reminds me of "the Ari of old". When I feel like I'm in a funk or even just a little lost, I'll wear some perfume or a piece of jewelry that I associate with me at my best. For example, when I start feeling a little too much like a corporate drone, I'll paint my nails black and turn up the eyeliner, just as a reminder to myself that I still have a little bit of my old edge.
Silly, but it works 🙂