Energy Management for a Creative Introvert
The holidays are over, and I’ve had an enforced feet-up rest after hurting my back in the garden. Our quiet beach holiday has reminded me (again) how important recovery time is if I want to stay creatively active.
I’ve been thinking of my friend’s mantra: delay/delegate/dump; to which I’ve added ‘do’. I have since gone through all my ideas folders and organised them. It was overdue, fun and satisfying. Now they have a big label on each one, ready for action and I know exactly where they are.
A planning day (hour) with my daughter and business partner is required. We both have an interesting range of health issues between us, plus limited energy. Although we know that to be successful in business, it’s important to always be on top of things or one step ahead: how are we going to do that, in reality?
So, with do/delay/delegate/dump in mind, we’ve decided to only do the most pressing things now and look ahead only one or two months for design occasions. This includes framing some A5 botanical art images for the local florist, Molly Blooms at Greenwoods Corner, as she has offered to hang them on her walls. (thank you, Kirsten). I’m working on a series of felt designs for Valentine’s Day, requested by the Morrinsville Gallery (thank you, Liz). They feature my beautiful pōhutukawa heart design in a variety of gorgeous colours, plus some new colourful brooches. I’ll think about Easter after that, for which I have Easter egg designs for the more traditional amongst us, and fun designs involving chicks and shells for others.
Selling, in person or online, asks a huge amount of an introvert’s inner resources. It requires putting yourself out there, with some sort of social presence, perhaps talking about yourself and your work with others. This kind of interaction can often lead to communication, creative and emotional fatigue. I notice this when my words start jumbling up and I get hot and nauseous very quickly. It means that I need to take a break, now. Thankfully my friends understand me, but other times, I’ve got to make a quick, polite excuse and scoot away.
“For creative introverts, energy management is as important as time management.”
Following this, any personal interaction for an introvert like me leads to a need for recovery. I will withdraw for one or two quiet days with plenty of time to rest and be creative in any way I wish. Thankfully my batteries will start recharging. I’ll write more about this in another post. I also have a nap every day, which is absolutely essential for me to keep going later.
Right now, I’m super excited that my sister is here to visit. A great example of restorative joyful creation is our reorganisation of my extensive range of DMC cotton threads. Seeing so much colour together is thrilling, and especially fun doing it alongside my sweet sister.
Happy New Year, thank you for your support and for liking and purchasing my creative goodies. I’m looking forward to sharing exciting designs and more stories with you in 2026.
Best wishes, Sara xx
p.s. forward my website to a friend, with your favourite product recommendation!
Images L to R: wearing Happy Christmas colours alongside my dearest; a colourful rainbow of ‘starbursts’ in the making; a specially designed decoration for a long time friend, using colours from the community lesbian flag; an extended colour wheel for my embroidery threads; and reorganising work in progress (and we finished the job!).
