Archetypes are a wonderful tool for strengthening creativity.
Each day beginning January 9, I’ll share a short story about an archetype as it relates to your creative process, and add a few questions to engage your thinking and planning self.
I’ll talk about the Child, the Rebel, the Rescuer, and the Mother, plus eight other archetypes, as a way of expanding understanding of what it means to be a fully authentic and creative human being.
Archetypes are a wonderful tool for self-reflection — whether they are a brand new concept or integral to your current work.
They have played a crucial role in my own growth as an artist and teacher and I can't wait to go on this journey together.
I’ll talk about the Child, the Rebel, the Rescuer, and the Mother, plus eight other archetypes, as a way of expanding understanding of what it means to be a fully authentic and creative human being.
Your meditations, musings, writings, and responses can stay private or, if you'd like to share them on Facebook or Instagram, use the tag #twelvedaysofarchetypes and join in the discussion! Also consider joining the Creative Strength Collective group on Facebook—we are nearly 2,000 artists, makers and creatives!
Below is an introductory essay on archetypes as a concept to kick things off!
Sign up to receive the meditations has now closed, but they will be shared below.
Understanding Archetypes
Archetypes are not a religion, and they are not an energy system like the chakras, either.
They are a symbolic language you can learn in order to understand human behavior – yours and also others – better. The field of psychology, founded in 1854, proposed ideas that explained certain human behaviors better than anything that had ever been written before. Psychology is still evolving, just like every other living scientific field. What we thought at the start of psychological theorizing has changed and matured since its inception. Understanding human behavior is profoundly richer because of contributions from psychologists.
Psychologist Carl Jung introduced the modern concept of archetypes. He believed that elemental patterns of behavior lie deep in every human being’s psyche, and that this is a shared knowledge. He coined the phrase the collective unconscious to describe this shared knowledge. Other theorists have added to what Jung initially wrote, including Caroline Myss, who has written extensively on the topic. One of the tenets of my Creative Strength Training online, is that it’s possible to build a solid creative foundation within ourselves, and then discover community with others, by studying and understanding archetypes.
Think of archetypes as a sort of shorthand for talking about yourself with someone else.
Of course, like any language, the conversation is more meaningful when the people you are talking to speak the same language you do. This is true when we talk about archetypes, too! But even if you don’t know anything about archetypes, you probably get a picture in your head, and form an opinion, when someone is referred to as a princess, a victim, a knight in shining armor, or a miser. You are using the shorthand of archetypes to help you identify the actions of another person. Or you could be describing yourself!
In this twelve day meditation, we will focus on archetypes as they relate to our creative lives.
Creativity is a renewable resource and the fuel for joyful experience. It is as real in you as your five senses, and just as accessible. But sometimes you don’t know how to find it, or where to look.
As it turns out, every archetype has a lesson to share with you about your creative self. I hope you will enjoy this exploration with us, and let it lead you to a deeper place of creative wisdom. It is the gift you can give yourself. All you have to do is show up.
Day One: January 9, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
The Child is a universal archetype.
We all have one. You may not have been in touch with your Child for a long time, but s/he is still there. Sometimes the Child is called the guardian of innocence, because it helps us connect to a time when we were able to feel wonder and joy. If those delights are lacking in you right now, the child can help reconnect you to who you really are.
I got to know Mary Beth when she enrolled in a class I was teaching. She didn’t think of herself as creative, and warned me not to expect too much. She was an example of someone who doesn’t think she is creative because no one had ever taken the time to show her what creativity can look like.
Over the course of the week long class, we rolled up leaves and flowers and steamed them, in order to make elegant botanical prints. We used hammers to literally pound flowers – extracting color and printing a picture of the flower on the fabric background. I couldn’t help but notice Mary Beth’s delight at wielding that hammer. I think she loved the pounding as much as she loved the prints she was making.
The class ended and everyone went home. But I heard from Mary Beth a few months later. When she called me, she giggled like a little girl. She described her new pastime – driving into the hills around her house, stopping the car, and pounding whatever she encountered. She laughed and told me that when she was kneeling by the side of the road and pounding leaves into her fabric, she felt free, and joyful. Mary Beth had gotten back in touch with her Child, without even realizing it. The two of them explored and created together. A year later she sent me photos of a quilt she’d made, which had gotten into a show and won an award.
This is the power of embracing your Child. When you engage with the Child, you regain your ability to play. INNOCENCE! And when you play – that is, create for the fun of it, and without an end goal or purpose – you discover joy.
Thoughts from Zenna
How would your art practice change if you were expected to know nothing about art?
No expectations about your own abilities, no expectations of what you might produce? Your first mark, brushstroke, pencil line, would be pure experimentation and play. That mark holds nothing back, made without hesitancy, no second-guessing. Maybe it’s small and questioning, or bold and confident. Either way, it’s the first step to learning more with no fear attached.
I hid from my desire to make for decades. I simply could not get past those first few marks and their inevitable imperfections. Why bother? It won’t be good — were constant thoughts as I began any project. I was embarrassed by the end result before I really even got started.
Remembering and listening to my inner child, and parenting my actual five-year-old daughter helped me check myself and my thoughts.
Here are the current mantras I carry into the studio each day:
I am a beginner and learning more with every drawing, painting or print I create.
Trust the process. Is it ugly or is it unfinished? Keep going.
Failure does not exist. Every experience in the studio (and life) is an learning opportunity.
Every artist I admire has faced these same challenges and carried on. They almost-undoubtedly made some ugly artwork too.
Making art is about the process and what I learn about myself along the way.
Making art should be fun. Stay curious and connected.
As the Zen monk Shunryu Suzuki wrote in his book Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind: ‘In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.’
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite your Child to join you. Ponder.
When you think about being a child, what do you remember about what you loved? How did you spend your time?
Listen closely. You may hear your child telling you what they would like to do with just a few minutes of spare time. Whatever you hear, respect it. Do it!
This is an elemental part of yourself that has the power to bring joyful moments into your life if only you will make the time, and stay open to the possibilities.
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Child and Innocence
Day Two: January 10, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
The dictionary describes a miser as someone who forgoes spending, sometimes to the point of going without necessities, in order to pile up money or possessions.
But from an archetypal perspective, we can be miserly in all kinds of situations. Sometimes the Miser in you comes out when you resist using the really nice fabric you bought, or the new watercolors you received as a gift, because you don’t think you’re ready, and you’re waiting for the “right time” – whatever that means. People can be miserly in their compliments to others, and in their willingness to share knowledge or ideas.
After studying the Miser, Louise had three realizations about how it was impacting her creative life.
First, as described above, she never allowed herself to use her good art supplies, unless she knew exactly what she was going to do with them. So they sat on the shelf while she made do with paints that weren’t as heavily pigmented, and paper that was an inferior quality.
Louise was also miserly when it came to allowing herself to enjoy studio time. Chores came first, no matter how minor they were. Other people’s needs also came first, so by the end of the day, Louise was exhausted and regularly lost interest in getting to the studio as she had planned earlier in the day.
Louise’s third realization was that between her job, which involved a lot of standing, and the tasks she did when she finally made it to the studio, she had developed a chronic stiffness in her back and shoulders. But she never made time for a massage she’d been gifted months earlier.
The shadow is the negative side of any archetype, and the shadow Miser was running Louise’s life. When the shadow (negative side) of an archetype is engaged, the spell can be broken by looking for the light side. It’s always there, and it almost always involves making intentional choices that are the opposite of the ones we’ve been making!
Each of the shadow aspects of Louise’s decision making were related to elements of SELF CARE. Louise was not taking care of herself when she denied herself the pleasure of using her best materials.
She was not taking care of herself when she defaulted to other people’s schedules, or to chores – when she needed time to recharge her creative battery. Creativity is a renewable resource, but we have to show up in order to recharge. That might take practice, but that’s exactly why it’s called a practice.
Recognizing that she needed a massage, or yoga, or another form of stretching, was Louise’s third aha moment where the Miser was concerned. When you don’t make time for self care that would make you more comfortable and happier, you are being the worst sort of Miser because you are neglecting yourself.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Miser to join you. Ponder.
Recognize this: Being miserly toward yourself happens when you have lost track of who you are, and how valuable and distinctive you are. One of a kind, in fact. Take the “l” out of miserly, and what do you get? Misery. No one deserves to feel misery that’s self-inflicted. No one.
Breathe in love for yourself. Let Friend Miser speak. This friend will help you find your way to joyful self-care. Choose to embrace it. Breathe a few more deep breaths and realize that you deserve to use all of the supplies you own, put yourself first for studio time, and feel at home in your body. It’s yours to claim.
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Miser and Self Care
Day Three: January 11, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
Sometimes we think the Mother archetype is universal because women are physically “programmed” to have children, but that’s not true. You may never have had children, and you may never have wanted children. And you know what? However it was/is, it’s ok.
And let’s not leave out anyone who feels gender-neutral or male. The Mother archetype isn’t about bearing children. It’s about nurturing. You can nurture another living thing, and even better, nurture yourself, and the Mother archetype assists. Isn’t that terrific?
Recently a friend wrote to me, and included pictures of a piece she did, which has now been accepted into a major exhibition. Elisa’s piece is intricate, heartfelt, and deserves to be seen, but what she wrote was even more important. Her words reflected her reality. The piece was a focus of 2020, when she was pretty much “at home.” She acknowledged the fact that her mother was mean-spirited right up until the end. She indicated that creating the embroidered piece she spent most of the year creating, was a “coming to terms” with that imperfect mother, and laying it down. I admired her so much for sharing her comments.
How can the Mother impact your creative life? No matter what your own mother was like, you can embrace and seek another version. You can welcome the positive Mother into the studio and invite her loving and affirming presence. You can do this because whether you have had children or not, are female or male, you have inside you the ability to nurture yourself. To pull that Child (you) into your lap and hug on her and tell her how fabulous she is (and that you love the child, no matter what.) This is the gift of unconditional LOVE. Our first challenge is to offer it to ourselves. If we can get a handle on that, we can offer it to anybody.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite your intuitive Mother to join you. Ponder.
What could engaging the Mother archetype do for you? For your confidence? For your quieting? (Remember, this is not your birth mother, but the universal Creation Mother to whom we all belong.)
Listen closely. You may hear your Mother telling you what s/he would like to do/or with you, to make creating easier and happier! Whatever you hear, respect it. Do it!
This is an elemental part of yourself, with the power to bring joyful moments into your life, if only you will make the time, and stay open to the possibilities.
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Mother and Love
Day Four: January 12, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
What is it that compels us to take care of other people before we are willing to take care of ourselves? Is it tangled up with the fear of being perceived as selfish? Is it driven by some need to win an award for selflessness – maybe the Rescuer’s Award? I see the stage now. Meryl Streep walks to the microphone and says, “And now the Rescuer’s Award! Given to the person most willing to sacrifice her own time and efforts, in order to save everyone else around her! And the winner is…”
Here’s the thing about rescuing. Most of the time, you can’t. People, even beloved friends and family members? They are on their own track. Anne Lamott wrote about this in her book, Plan B. When Anne worried mightily about another member of the congregation, her pastor, a woman of great grace and wisdom, said, “Sometimes, honey, you just got to leave ‘em where Jesus flung ‘em.”
This is a storyteller’s way of saying you do better when, hard as it is, you choose healthy boundaries for yourself. There is an element of faith attached to this. Something bigger than you are – (thank goodness) can handle everybody else – all you need to worry about is yourself. Because you’re a big enough problem as it is!
If you’re a Rescuer, and are on the move rescuing other people on a regular basis, turn it over. Focus on yourself. BOUNDARIES. It will all be ok. You are off the hook.
As for creativity and the Rescuer? The light side of the Rescuer wants to help you embrace the activities that bring you joy! As a Rescuer in recovery, you can choose to give up trying to make other people’s lives happier or “right.” That opens up space so you can “rescue” your own creative spirit. And guess what? It’s just like putting on your own mask when you’re flying before you help someone else put on theirs. Everybody wins. There’s no selfishness involved here. Rescuing your own creative self gives you the momentum to be a friendly assist to others. And that’s a gift to everyone.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Rescuer to join you. Ponder.
Are you a Rescuer? Maybe not? In any event, sit with the idea and see what thoughts float to the surface.
Listen closely. How could you be kinder and more open to yourself and your creative impulses? You may not require a personal creative “rescue mission” but even if you do, so what? Just get going on it.
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Rescuer and Boundaries
Day Five: January 13, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
The Saboteur is another universal archetype, meaning everybody has one. We’re all familiar with the feeling of sabotaging ourselves, or of feeling sabotaged by somebody else. The shadow side is what we think about as soon as we hear the word saboteur. But as with all archetypes, there is a positive lesson, and it’s from the light side of the Saboteur.
Remember that positive lessons of archetypes usually come from observing what the opposite of the shadow side would be. With the Saboteur, that means making choices that will prevent someone else from sabotaging you, or even better – prevent you from sabotaging yourself.
This is an important life lesson, but also an incredibly rich creative lesson.
Here are five ways you sabotage yourself creatively:
Procrastination. Putting off going into the studio, cleaning it up, or working on a piece in progress are all examples of procrastination that sabotages creative juice.
Perfectionism. Ouch. This is a rough one. I don’t even think I need to explain it. But if you shut down because something might not be perfect the first time (or the tenth time) you are in for a very long wait. Let go of perfectionism.
Control Freak. If you feel as though the world isn’t right unless you are controlling it – as laughable as that may seem – your shadow Saboteur is holding the reins. If you don’t KNOW what certain materials are going to do before you try them, and all you do is THINK about it and try to figure it out because you don’t want to be WRONG, then you’re probably not going to accomplish much in the way of creating, are you?
Needing to Logic it Out. Do you resist beginning something new until you understand completely how it works? I’ve got bad news/good news. You can never completely figure out anything you’re going to do with your hands by thinking about it. Fact is, you’ve got to do it to understand it. Let your hands lead. Let go of logic. Trust that you will figure it out. Because you will.
Impatience. Yeah, I know. You got a late start in life. Or today is your only studio day this week/month. Impatience can make you rush through whatever you’re doing, to an unsatisfying conclusion. It can even shut you down completely – why bother if this is the best you can do? Take your time and stay in the moment. Don’t let that shadow Saboteur steal the joy of being in present time with your creation. Let go of impatience.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Saboteur to join you. Ponder.
Think about befriending your Saboteur. Think about where you have sabotaged yourself in the past from a creative perspective. How could you choose to do things differently? Forgive yourself. And then consider the Saboteur’s Meditation. Write it down or say it as needed, out loud:
I let got of control.
I let go of perfectionism.
I let go of logic.I let go of impatience.
I let go of procrastination.
I make choices that are good for me.
Amen.
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Saboteur and Choice
Day Six: January 14, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
I would like to share my Rebel story with you.
I had a huge Rebel archetype as a young adult. Disillusioned with small town politics (this was the late 70’s) and high school in general, I applied to a small college and was accepted early. So I left and never looked back. Eager to see the world, I moved thousands of miles from family, endured an early divorce and bounced from one waitressing job to another. My mantra was “Let’s see what happens…” A series of bad decisions left me bruised emotionally and I finally retreated back to my family home in Minnesota, unsure of what to do next.
I’ve come to the conclusion that my questioning and lust for life experience wasn’t a bad thing, but it is an example of a Rebel operating from the shadow side. The name of a classic movie – Rebel Without a Cause – sums up the problems of shadow Rebel energy. Rebelling randomly, even when it’s based on a sense of principle, can backfire, and sometimes badly. And yet it’s good to tap Rebel energy, because it’s the energy that guides us into adulthood – leaving the safety of family and “tribe” in order to craft a life for ourselves. That positive Rebel energy is too easily tamped down by life experiences, including other people’s opinions and social mores. VIGILANCE is the watchword of the Rebel. The definition – devoted attention and carefully watching – describes what the positive Rebel does. It stands vigil for you, guiding your choices and noting any challenge that might be disempowering.
Choosing to embrace the positive qualities of the Rebel can do wonders for your creative life. Are you bruised by what other’s have said or thought about what you make? Is there a Committee of naysayers around you who are impacting your belief in your creative abilities? Do you have an inner Critic you can’t silence? Friend Rebel can help you determine your creative cause, stay true to it, and learn not to care what other people think. Positive Rebel energy also attracts you to other like-minded Rebels and before you know it, you’ve got yourself a community of the best sort. Honest, compassionate and open-minded. A community of Rebels with the best cause ever – a shared commitment to seeking creative joy.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Rebel to join you. Ponder.
Whether the Rebel is familiar to you or not, how could connecting to this powerful ally balance and sustain your creative actions? What would becoming vigilant about your art practice look like to you?
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Rebel and Vigilance
Day Seven: January 15, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
The traditional definition of the Servant is someone who serves others, usually for money. That’s a fairly calculated and impersonal description. Anyone who serves in the military expects to be paid, but we would diminish military service rudely if we didn’t acknowledge that many of those who serve do it for far more than the paycheck they receive. They are fueled by a moral dedication.
Household “servants” are paid employees, but often become skilled and trusted advisors and even friends – dedicated to another person who becomes far more than an “employer.”
Then there are those who relinquish a personal life as part of the commitment to serve. Priests and nuns, whether of the Catholic or Buddhist variety, live lives of devotion and dedication.
Do you recognize the Servant in yourself?
Ann is an example someone who didn’t think of herself as a servant at all, and yet made the active choice to steward a friend through a peaceful end of life transition. Margaret served by caring for a child who was abandoned. Sharon served as program chair for her quilt guild for years, without compensation. It takes a big dose of creative thinking to successfully navigate territory like this, because the shadow side of the Servant is resentment. Self-care is required. If you don’t remember to serve yourself first – (which we were all admonished NOT to do as children because it was selfish) the whole effort can go miserably wrong.
Which is an indication of what’s always true with archetypes. The positive side represents a lesson that can serve you. So you don’t get in over your head with serving and forget the cardinal rule. You’ve got to dedicate some time to yourself. The light side of the Servant is here to remind you of that.
Your creative studio choices help with this aspect of self-care. Ask: How is your creative life serving you? What purpose is it serving? When you keep creating but you feel small or bored, then what you are doing isn’t serving you. The things you make are meant to be a part of joyful, enthusiastic self-care. Even when they are imperfectly crafted and for your enjoyment only. Especially when they are imperfectly crafted and for your enjoyment only. That’s what sacred creativity is. No commercial strings attached. Making something for the joy of the process. Engage the Servant and seek to create whatever makes you happy, as often as you can.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Servant to join you. Ponder.
When I am creating what makes me happiest?
How could I better serve my own creative endeavors?
It’s especially important to forgive yourself for not making time in the past. Be gentle in deciding how to serve yourself better. Dedicate yourself to fun – with no strings attached!
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Servant and Dedication
Day Eight: January 16, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
The Victim is one of the four archetypes everybody shares. Over the course of your life there have been times when someone took advantage of you, behaved dismissively toward you, or otherwise abused your personal boundaries. It’s inevitable that you will encounter shadow interactions with people – it’s the reality of relating to other human beings. Relationships are about a balance of power. In an ideal world, we interact with other people fairly and kindly, so that no one feels victimized or “less than.” Interactions with others are win-win exchanges, and victories for all concerned.
Julia’s creative life was being greatly impacted because her Committee – all those people she wanted to impress or who had criticized her in the past – chattered away inside her head, and wouldn’t shut up. Rejections, negative comments about her work, and even the garden variety dumb comments people make when they aren’t mindful, whittled away at her self-esteem and paralyzed her. The joy and enthusiasm she felt for what she made dwindled. She had become resentful and felt sorry for herself. The shadow Victim was in the room.
It was time to recalculate, which started by acknowledging that the one sure thing in Julia's control were her personal choices. Other people could say and do all kinds of things that felt dismissive or belittling. Whether Julia accepted that treatment, confronted it, or dodged it silently when she saw it coming was up to her. As was the choice to cut ties with people who are consistently thoughtless or mean-spirited.
The same thing is true for you. It takes AWARENESS – the courage and the ability to be self-possessed in order to hold your center. Cultivating self-respect means not letting other people treat you in ways that you find unacceptable.
Showing up for yourself is one of the greatest strengths you can cultivate. From a creative perspective, showing up means being aligned – feeling good about your tools, your materials and your process. The grounding you cultivate by actively reminding yourself what you do well, and what you still have to learn – and that it’s all OK – acts as a tether to your center, warding off situations that might otherwise have left you feeling victimized. You’ve developed strategies. You can deal with this.
So give yourself credit when credit is due. Make a list of your strengths and post it where you can see it. Hold anyone who threatens to engage in victimizing behavior at arm’s length. Love your own work despite the imperfections. Have some fun. This is how we become creatively and personally victorious.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Victim to join you. Ponder.
What do you love about what you make?
How could you be victorious in the creating of it?
Are you letting someone else treat you like a Victim? How could that change?
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Victim and Awareness
Day Nine: January 17, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
Lydia easily identified her Hermit archetype, and was relieved when she was able to name its presence in her life. She loved to spend long hours in the studio alone, often in silence. Her painted stitcheries required hours of handwork, and the time always flew by when she had the luxury of being alone, silently painting or embroidering.
Other people didn’t understand how she could spend so much time solo, and some friends were even threatened by what they interpreted as uncaring, distant behavior. Her mother thought it was unhealthy to spend so much time alone, and frequently reminded Lydia that this was no way to find a husband. As the sensitive person she was, Lydia was aware that others didn’t understand her, and she felt defensive, and a little worried that maybe there was something “wrong” with her.
When Lydia began reading about archetypes, the Hermit description jumped off the page. The Hermit in her made it natural to enjoy and even crave solitude. It wasn’t a rejection of others at all. She saw that the shadow side of the Hermit could become isolated, judgmental and withdrawn, but when she considered what the opposite of that description was – she realized she wasn’t living the shadow version at all. She enjoyed friends and family. It was just her natural inclination to enjoy long stretches of quiet time. Having the language of the Hermit made it easier for her to explain herself when she felt she wanted to, and helped friends see that her preferred alone time was not a reflection on her friendship with any one of them.
Choosing to embrace the Hermit from a creative perspective presents opportunities you might not encounter if your usual mode of operation is to stay busy most of the time. Quiet periods of introspection and solitude give you the opportunity to discover what you care about – including creative ways of working, as well as identifying subject matter that resonates. Inner knowing is the foundation of INTEGRITY, which is defined as working from a place of honesty and core principles. A secondary definition of INTEGRITY is “that which is structurally whole.” When you have time to think about what you make and why, and you don’t waver from that inner knowing, you are developing integrity and are becoming whole. This is the gift the Hermit offers you in the pursuit of creative joy.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Hermit to join you. Ponder.
Do you make enough alone time for yourself to cultivate inner knowing? Even a few minutes a day counts. And if you feel starved for alone time, take notice. This aspect of your creative life is once again, related to self-care. Do the best you can to find quiet time for yourself.
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Hermit and Integrity
Day Ten: January 18, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
The Judge archetype has probably summoned an image into your head, and you’ve only read the first sentence of this meditation. That’s how familiar we all are with judgement.
Unfortunately, this is an easy one to understand from a creative perspective, too. Robin came to a class with a boatload of firsthand experience. She’d been judged all her life and all those judgments accompanied her. She worked tentatively, and frequently looked around to see what other people were doing. I could see the judgment of comparison running in a loop through her brain. She looked miserable.
This is what we do to ourselves when we allow the shadow Judge to hold court in our lives. Sometimes the opinions of others weigh heavily in judgement, but many of us are perfectly capable of judging ourselves harshly without any help from anyone else. The litany of negative self-talk begins, and we don’t even recognize the loop is running.
If the shadow Judge is all about passing judgement, what’s the opposite of that? Non-judgement. But I think there’s another aspect of the Judge that’s apropos. The Judge is also about FAIRNESS.
A good judge is impartial and fair. A shadow judge has a vested interest in an outcome, and an opinion that may not have considered all the sides of an argument fairly.
If you’re going to engage the Judge creatively, think about this: You are often your own worst critic. And that’s not fair. It’s important to consider all the aspects of why you work, and what you make when the heart of the Friend Judge is in charge. Considering impartially why you don’t get more done, or why something you made isn’t perfect. Most of us would be fair in our commentary if we were looking at a friend’s work. We would resist being judgmental then. It’s just as important to resist being judgmental when you consider your own work.
Be fair. Evaluate what’s working. Step back. Resist passing judgement. Adopt the attitude expressed in the words of Buddhist monk, Suzuki Roshi: “You are perfect, and you need a little improvement.”
Enjoy the improvement and focus on that.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Judge to join you. Ponder.
Am I judgmental when it comes to looking at my own work?
Is it serving me to be judgmental? (Archetypes can work together, you know! Maybe the Servant can help out here. And pay attention to the Saboteur. Is she friend or shadow?
How can I settle into a clear sense of fairness with myself in order to seek joy?
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Judge and Fairness
Day Eleven: January 19, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
The Seeker archetype looks for opportunities to learn and grow as a touchstone in life.
Susan’s life resonated with this archetype. She’d explored a dozen art forms, and immersed herself in women’s studies, Wiccan practices, and religions of the world. Her background was rich and she could talk about anything with anyone, and always discover something new to ponder. But she found herself wondering if there was a point to all of it. She didn’t feel that she knew where she was headed.
This is the shadow side of the Seeker playing out. Susan valued all of her experiences, but she didn’t see how they fit together, and she worried that rather than creating something whole, she’d randomly strung a bunch of disparate parts together, bouncing from one thing to another. She wanted to get clearer about her purpose, and to figure out exactly what it was that she was seeking.
Susan’s experience isn’t unusual. Few of us start life with a plan and never waver from it. Even when we have a basic idea of what we want to do, it’s easy to be carried along by whatever comes up next. It doesn’t feel as though the parts are connected.
If this feels familiar to you, it’s time to take a look at your life, because there IS a thread running through it. You just haven’t identified it yet. Making time to look at what you loved to do as a child, jobs you’ve had, activities you’ve pursued, what matters most to you – will reward you with a clearer sense of how one thing led to another, how interests grew and expanded, and how you evolved into who you are. Because at the core of your Seeker’s quest is the desire to know who you are, as deeply and authentically as you can. And to embrace it fully and be ok.
From a creative perspective, the Seeker offers OPPORTUNITY. Some of those opportunities are experiential – techniques, and processes that are easy to find online or in books. Things you can learn to do. We call that filling the toolbox. But at a deeper level, engaging the Seeker is your opportunity to know yourself creatively. You have preferences. Materials and techniques you love to use. You have core beliefs. What matters to you. These preferences and beliefs blend together into the distinctive and singular creative being you have become as a result of everything you have sought to do up until now. If you never make time to see how it all ties together, you’ll never be able to celebrate it.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Seeker to join you. Ponder.
Do you know what you are seeking in your creative life? List five goals you can achieve.
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Seeker and Opportunity
Day Eleven: January 19, 2023
Thoughts from Jane
The Artist archetype isn’t just about making art.
Making is at the heart of creating. Making is an expansive and inclusive word. The word “make” is from the Old English word macian – "to give being, form or character, to bring into existence.”
You are hard-wired to create. The energy is pulsing through you, alongside the five senses that allow you to relish the world. And just as you can be so distracted by living that you forget to actually SEE the world around you, your creativity can lie dormant because it hasn’t been encouraged to flourish.
The Artist archetype can help. Because creating is at the heart of what the Artist represents. And creating isn’t limited to a single medium, or a monochromatic palette. Creating is in everything and comes in a mind boggling array of colors, shapes and sizes.
Susan makes quilts and Elizabeth makes music. Roberta makes clothing and Sandra makes magic. Each of these is an artist in her own right and in her own way – “giving form, and bringing something new into existence.”
Making, creating, “arting” – always starts with an idea. That idea is your VISION. Before you make anything, you have to envision it first. You don’t have to have it all figured out. You just have to start somewhere. Engaging the Artist to figure out the moving parts – the who, what, why and how of the creation – is the natural next step. The Child is the favorite companion of friend Artist, so it’s always a good idea to invite her to come along, in case the shadow side of the Artist – the critical, unsure, “I’m not good enough” part – begins to take the joy out of making. The Child is a reminder to lighten up, and tap into innocence, and that’s never a bad thing!
In the end, what the Artist offers you is the opportunity to tap into sacred creativity – acts of making that aren’t tied to commercial success or otherness. The things you make for your own satisfaction – giving up caring what other people think – are often the very things that bring you the greatest joy. Perhaps this is because by bringing an object into existence, you’ve witnessed sacred creativity in yourself.
Meditation
Sit quietly and invite the Artist to join you. Ponder.
Would you be less afraid of making something if you never planned to show it to anyone else?
When you think about creating, what do you envision for yourself?
What keeps you from pursuing your vision? If you are pursuing it now, where are you on your path? Maybe a celebration is in order!
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We hope you find meaning and connection in each meditation in this series. Your response to each is personal and can provide great opportunity for reflection. There is also power in shared thought and experience.
The Artist and Vision