The power of creative decisions

A blank canvas.

So white and clean. So ripe with possibility.

How do you decide what to make? Create? Paint?

There are infinite ways to approach a blank canvas. But the act of making requires the act of decision. The moment you make a mark you have made a whole host of decisions to get to that point, perhaps without even realizing.

Perhaps you've been thinking of a piece that you want to create. You can see it in your head. You want to get it out. Your decisions will follow that train of thought. Or perhaps you're trying to get the creative juices flowing again and you have no idea what you are going to make... you're just going on instinct. Totally valid, no fewer choices.

When to paint, what to paint, what brush, what medium, color, texture. Not to mention did you grab a cup of coffee first, are you wearing a smock or old ripped jeans, music or silence.

Perhaps you made all of these choices unconsciously and just arrived here in this moment, doing this thing. Or perhaps you thought, re-thought, and overthought each and every detail. Perhaps you feel anxiety about making decisions. Or you blow through them without much thought and are surprised by the results they lead to.

Just the first mark on your piece is the culmination of all of those choices. And you will continue deciding all the way through the piece... your color palette, your brushes, marks, composition, and subject matter. Those don't just happen, they exist because you decided on them in some way.

You have the power to create something on a blank canvas. And that's just for starters. You are already creating your life in much the same way. The decisions you make are all leading to what your life looks like. The brushstrokes of the thoughts in your mind, the color of emotions you feel, the composition of your time, the palette of experiences you engage in, they all come from you.

Your choices make up the art that is your life.