Stepping Off Now: Support for Neurodivergent Creatives

You've heard of the circadian rhythm, I'm sure, but did you know there are others that govern our daily functioning? One is the ultradian rhythm, which occurs in ~90 minute itervals through the day and night. The ultradian rhythm influences everything from our REM sleep to how long we can effectively focus on tasks.

For years I felt something was wrong with me that I have a very clear 60-90 minute window for doing concentration-heavy tasks like creative writing. I'd hear self-proclaimed "serious" writers talk about how they write for 4 hours a day and feel like I must be inherently lazy. Nope. I'm just strongly in touch with my body. This episode is also about trusting our intuitive knowledge of ourselves and what works for us.

Plus, stick around at the end of the episode for a holiday surprise! (Here is the link I mention!)

If you'd like to learn more about the science of the ultradian rhythm, this episode of the Huberman Lab podcast has some info. 

This special holiday season episode is part of the bonus content from my Patreon. In it I talk about the challenges I face doing business as an introverted HSP. You'll also hear my thoughts on the forced and often aggressive positivity you see in the public sphere of the creator economy, why I not only accept but embrace the darker/heavier emotions of the human experience, and my gratitude that I've finally committed to a life of creative fulfillment. Thank you to all my listeners for supporting my podcast and a special thank you to my Patreon supporters! I'll be back next week with regular programming.

In this episode I mention Tad Hargrave, who runs Marketing For Hippies.

Today I have a happy holiday surprise for you! It is the one-year anniversary of my podcast, and I wanted to do something special for all my wonderfully supportive listeners. So for the next two weeks, I will be releasing episodes that are part of my Patreon bonus content.

In this episode I discuss why and how procrastination can be used as a creativity tool through an in-depth analysis of a recently published (2020) article by Jihae Shin and Adam M. Grant in the Academy of Management Journal. You can access a pre-publication version of the article here.

By the time you're in burnout, it's too late to manage it. You're in recovery mode. And it's a lot harder to recover from burnout than to manage it before it gets bad. In this episode I talk about the two kinds of burnout (why one you may actually want to experience, but the other kind you definitely don't), how to recognize when burnout is imminent, and what to do about it.

Also, an update on my path to publication with my novel!

Here is Mark Steadman's podcast resource community Podcode Plus.

The episode I mention about why burnout may be inevitable and ultimately positive for HSPs and creative types is E21.

Have you ever thought you wanted something, but it didn't turn out as great as you expected? Or thought something would make you happy but it doesn't? It's confusing when we get what we think we want but don't feel as good about it as we'd expected. We can begin to doubt that we know ourselves, or that we have the capability to make good decisions for ourselves.

The problem isn't that we don't know how to make good decisions. It's that we're basing decisions on the wrong information. In this episode I talk about how we can begin to figure out what we really want in life through paying attention to the quality of our day-to-day rather than the big goals we have for ourselves.

SPECIAL NOTE: I will be taking next week (Thanksgiving) off from podcasting, so there will be no new episode. See you in two weeks!

Jas Hothi is a writer following his dream. He started blogging in 2015 when he left his corporate job, and he is passionate about ‘writing freely’ and making an income from doing so. He recently published his debut book, The Indie Author, sharing the raw and honest stories of writers all over the world who have self-published books. Jas is an INFP, cares a lot about ‘freedom’, and enjoys coffee shops, mini-adventures, and sunny days.

In this interview we discuss the self-publication process, why he's an advocate for self-publication, being an empath, justifying our downtime needs (we both need significant downtime as empaths/HSPs), and the tension we feel between our desire to "make good" in our lives out of respect for our parents' sacrifices and our desire to follow our dreams. 

You can find Jas Hothi at the following links.

Main: https://jasraj.me/

Blog: www.indiewriter.net

Book: www.theindieauthor.net

Here are the links to my live event with Matthew Bellringer on November 16:

Linkedin

YouTube

In part 2 of my miniseries on creative rejection I tell you all about my coping techniques, the ones that worked and didn't work (but were still useful!) during my recent experience with creative rejection, and what I learned from it all. Whether or not you are an HSP, this episode will be useful to you! Here are some of the things I cover:

• Why it's so important that you actually enjoy your creative practice.
• How to accept the truth that the creative life will always include rejection no matter how successful you are.
• The 100% / 0% rule.
• My favorite of the Four Agreements and how to use it when encountering rejection.

CORRECTION: The live event I'll be doing on neurodiversity with Matthew Bellringer will be on the 16th of November, not the 11th! Sign up for my newsletter (link below) to get the details when I make the official announcement.

Here is the blog post I mention about developing a creative practice without forcing it.

In this first episode of a two-part series, I talk about why HSPs struggle so much with creative rejection through the lens of my recent experience of entering the PitchWars competition (see E41 about my writing journey for more on that). If you are an HSP and feel it has held you back from pursuing your creative dreams, rest assured you are not alone! I'm right there with you. I don't sugarcoat things in this episode. I talk about how and why HSPs have difficulty managing the stress of putting their work out there into the world. It's not just about the possibility of rejection. HSPs have fewer emotional "spoons" and when an added stress like putting their work out there enters their life, everything can become less manageable. This episode will help you better understand the HSP experience, whether you yourself are an HSP or know someone who is. Stay tuned for Part 2 next week, where I'll go into detail about coping techniques that help me deal with creative rejection as an HSP! 

Most of us see creativity as something we do when we have the time for it. After all the things we have to do are done, then we'll have the space to really focus on our creative practice. But this perspective of how creativity fits into our lives is one of the major reasons we suffer from blocks. What if instead we saw creativity as integral to a healthy, happy life, something sacred that we always find time for? In this episode I talk about how elevating creative practice to something that is sacred (or at minimum, is a regular part of self-care much like a shower or a jog is) can help you find the space, and energy for it. The world will always have reasons why you shouldn't be putting the time into your creativity that you want to. If you see your creativity as a nonnegotiable in your own life, you'll find the confidence to prioritize it despite all the messaging from the world that your creative work has no value.

Carlos Saba is a co-founder (along with Laurence McCahill) of the Happy Startup School, an online community for people looking to do heart-centered business in creative ways. Like myself, he is a PhD holder who has taken an unconventional route in life. In this episode he talks about his own journey to getting the PhD and beyond, the importance of centering fun in our lives, and the possibilities for doing business if you are a creative or artist that do not sacrifice your creative space and vision. If Carlos has one message for people, it is that it is enough to just be who you are, that we can lean into being ourselves and live happy, fulfilling lives by focusing on what energizes us and brings us joy. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did!

The Happy Startup School website, blog, and videos.

Note: Haven offer no longer active.