Each week on the blog, I explore one of my 7 Pillars of Creative Living—the framework I've developed over years of artistic practice that keeps me creatively fulfilled and productive. These pillars form the foundation of a sustainable, energizing creative life:

1. Set the Stage - Creating the right environment and conditions

2. Fill the Well - Gathering inspiration and nurturing your creative spirit

3. Build Skill - Developing technical abilities and mastery

4. Create - The actual making process, letting go of learning mode to get into flow

5. Connect - Sharing your work and building community

6. Understand - Exploring the deeper science, theory, and philosophy behind your work

7. Reflect - Learning from feedback, seeing the big picture, and planning next steps

Today, we're focusing on that crucial second pillar: Fill the Well. When deadlines loom and your to-do list stretches endlessly, actively seeking inspiration might feel like an unnecessary luxury. But I've learned—sometimes the hard way—that this step is absolutely essential to maintaining energy and flow in your artistic practice.

Unexpected Inspiration

I wasn't expecting to be inspired that night. I had stopped out for a quick bite to eat with my husband before heading to the grocery store, rounding out what was meant to be a relaxing Friday. Somewhere along the cereal aisle, he got a text about a band playing at a local bar. Some new friends invited us out.

So we went!

Once you reach your mid-40s, you stop caring quite so much about certain things. I put my Loop earplugs in—not to shut out the music, but to filter it. I could still hear great, but without the assault on my ears, I could think a little better too. I began to notice all of the interesting, eclectic artwork adorning the walls of the bar.

In between conversation and enjoying the music, my thoughts wandered, and the title for a painting hit me out of nowhere: "The light is behind you." I even started visualizing the imagery. There was enough inspiration flowing for an entire series! I quickly typed it into the notes app on my phone.

As I kept investigating the walls, I got a great idea for a new shape and style of mug. I also snapped a quick picture of a cool stained glass lamp that would integrate beautifully as a pattern into my current ceramic work.

We could have just as easily said "no thanks" and gone home for a night of couch TV. And that got me thinking...

A bar with walls covered in different types of art, photos, stained glass guitar — Where does your eye travel?

Do any connections come to mind when you think about your own art?

Your Perception Is Your Superpower

Your artistic style doesn't begin when you put brush to canvas or hands to clay. It starts much earlier—with how you uniquely perceive the world around you.

We are all wired differently. The sights, sounds, tastes, and smells that might barely register for someone else might be exactly what catches your attention and ignites your imagination. That unique filtering system—what you notice, what moves you, what connections your brain makes—this is the true beginning of your artistic voice.

Think about it: two artists can stand in front of the exact same scene and create wildly different works. One might be captivated by the play of light and shadow, another by the emotional resonance of the human figures, and yet another by the geometric patterns formed by buildings or trees.

The best art reflects this personal perception. It's not just technical skill (though that matters); it's also your distinctive way of experiencing and interpreting the world. That's why filling your well isn't just about exposing yourself to inspiration—it's about developing a heightened awareness of how you uniquely take in that inspiration.

The Three Essential Elements of Creative Fire

For those sparks of inspiration to take off, they need a foundation. Think of it like building a fire:

1. The Fuel - This is your substance, your "why"—the deeper purpose that drives your creative work. Without this foundation, any spark of inspiration, no matter how brilliant, will quickly fade.

2. The Framework - Your values and life pillars help you decide what to say yes to. Like the structure of sticks in a fire, they provide the architecture that allows your ideas to catch and grow without becoming scattered in too many directions.

3. The Spark - An open heart, an open mind, a willingness to say yes, take risks, and step outside your comfort zone. This is what ignites the potential energy of the other elements.

A fire with logs arranged toward the center — How have you set up the conditions for a spark of inspiration to catch fire?

What is the fuel that keeps your creative fire burning?

Living vs. Creating: The Beautiful Paradox

Here's a truth I've come to embrace: You can't make meaningful art about life if you're not actually living it.

As artists, we sometimes fall into the trap of thinking we need to be in our studios constantly, producing, producing, producing. But that approach leads to creative depletion. You're drawing water from a well that's running dry.

When I look at artists whose work has depth and longevity, I notice they tend to be people who engage fully with varied aspects of life. They travel, they have hobbies outside their primary art form, they maintain rich relationships, they stay curious about fields beyond their expertise.

Georgia O'Keeffe didn't just paint the desert—she lived in it, hiked through it, felt the heat on her skin, and let the sparse landscape reshape her understanding of space and form. Her art sprang from lived experience, not just technical expertise.

Strengthening Your Perceptual Awareness

Developing a conscious habit of strengthening your unique way of seeing can transform how you experience the world and, consequently, your art:

- Nature walks without agenda - Simply observe what catches your attention. Is it textures? Colors? The movement of water or animals? The interplay of elements?

- Sketching in public places - Even quick, rough sketches force you to really see what's in front of you, not just glance at it.

- Notes and journaling - Capture not just what you observed, but how it made you feel, what memories it triggered, what questions it raised.

- Cross-pollination - If you're a visual artist, attend musical performances. If you're a musician, visit art galleries. Let different sensory experiences inform each other.

- Taste testing - Try new foods mindfully, noting the complex flavors, textures, and emotions they evoke.

- "Wrong" tool experiments - Try drawing with your non-dominant hand, or using tools not designed for art. Notice how this changes your perception.

The Uphill Climb Revisited

In last week's blog about making things harder than necessary, I talked about my habit of starting every run uphill. But I forgot to mention something important: if you climb uphill, there's always a downhill that flows naturally afterward!

This applies perfectly to the creative process too. Filling your well—actively seeking diverse experiences and staying open to inspiration—might feel like an uphill climb when you're busy. But this effort creates the conditions for the downhill flow of ideas later.

If I go at the right level of challenge—pushing myself to try new things and stay curious—the rest of the creative journey becomes so much easier. The ideas flow, the connections spark, and the work has a vitality that can't be manufactured through technique alone.

Three figures in the distance, running downhill — Instead of worrying about the hills ahead of you…

What hill have you already climbed? It’s time to enjoy

Your Values as Guideposts

Of course, we can't say yes to everything. That's where your values and life pillars become crucial—they help you decide which experiences are worth investing in.

My core values include education, creativity, and autonomy—these guide my decisions about which opportunities align with my authentic self. When it comes to life areas, I consider factors like Health, Family, Community, and Art Practice. When an opportunity arises, I can quickly check how it aligns with these values and life areas. This prevents me from becoming scattered and ensures that the experiences I choose genuinely enrich my life and, by extension, my art.

Finding your own values doesn't have to be complicated. Tools like values card decks (where you sort through words like "adventure," "connection," "mastery," etc., to identify what resonates most) can help you clarify what truly matters to you. Or simply notice where you consistently spend your time and energy when no one's watching—that often reveals what you authentically value.

If you're clear on what matters most to you, you can be selective about filling your well with experiences that truly resonate, rather than exhausting yourself by trying to do everything.

The Ultimate Goal

What's the result of all this living, perceiving, and creating?

Making something that didn't exist before—something with your unique stamp, your distinctive voice. Something that could only have come from your particular way of experiencing the world. And then sharing it, maybe with many people, maybe with just a few, but in a way that might light the spark for them to do the same.

That's how creative energy perpetuates itself—not in isolation, but through the beautiful cycle of living, perceiving, creating, and sharing.

Your Turn

This week, I challenge you to consciously fill your well. Say yes to something unexpected. Go somewhere you haven't been before. Use a different route home. Try a food you've been curious about. And as you do, pay attention to what specifically catches YOUR interest—not what you think should be interesting, but what genuinely lights up your particular neural pathways.

Notice the details others might miss. Jot them down. Sketch them if you're inclined. Let them percolate.

And remember—this isn't procrastination or avoidance of your "real work." This IS your work. This is how you develop the rich inner landscape from which your most authentic art will emerge.

I'd love to hear about an unexpected source of inspiration you discover this week! Share in the comments below, or tag me on Instagram with your discoveries. Thank you so much for reading!

With Enthusiasm for Life & Art,