Finding Your Medium
A couple of weeks ago, I attended a concert with my brother in Durham, featuring a South African guitarist, Derek Gripper. Derek has an incredible gift for music and storytelling. He was able to seamlessly transition into each song, offering comedic comments while sharing the meaning behind the piece. His body language was drastic, depicting a blissful joy and passion for his art. Just a man and his guitar captivated an entire room of people.
Throughout the concert, different songs were accompanied by black-and-white pictures on a screen behind him. To me, they were merely aesthetic archives. To Derek, they were much more. He told us about his resistance to wanting a smartphone but his eventual acquisition of a 1958 film camera so that he could share moments of his travels on tour with friends and family. Derek explained his journey with photography in a way I’ve been reflecting on since. He said that through his time learning photography, he wanted to fall in love with it through the same medium that he fell in love with learning the guitar, leaving out all the mistakes he made along the way. I think what Derek meant by his medium was his own creative process and drive to acquire a new skill.
This summer, I read a book called Don’t Believe Everything You Think by Joseph Nguyen. To make a short book shorter, Nguyen prefaces that the root causes of anxiety and suffering we experience as humans come internally, not externally. He explains that once we acknowledge this and commit ourselves to a state of “non-thinking,” we let go of how our own perceptions are skewing reality and creating roadblocks to the fulfillment we desire. When we reject this impulse, we enter into a state of flow where the possibilities are endless and our creative impulses triumph over any fears and preconceived notions we may have.
Derek and Joseph both speak to something relatable for us all. They speak to that inherent drive we all have to find fulfillment and engage with our creative desires and the challenges we may face along the way. How can we create space to engage with our medium? Here are some ways we think can help you do so.
Let Go of ‘I Can’t’: Replace self-doubt with self-belief. Trust in your ability to learn and grow through the process.
Focus on Who You Want to Be: Define your goals based on your own aspirations, not what others expect of you. This will keep you motivated and true to yourself.
Surround Yourself with Positive Influences: Engage with people who lift you up and inspire you.
Create a Beautiful Space: Keep your environment inspiring and conducive to creativity. A beautiful, organized space can help you recharge and stay focused.
Just Start: Sometimes I think we spend far too much time talking about our goals and how we want to achieve them, that we forget about taking the first step. Whatever you really want to do, you can make it work. It’s just about making the choice of what things you’re going to sacrifice for that goal.
By embracing your own creative process and letting go of anxieties and preconceived notions, you open up a world of possibilities. Your medium is your unique way of expressing yourself and achieving your goals. Start today, and watch as your creative journey unfolds.