Archives: #postaday

Recently re-reading Robert Rodriguez‘s REBEL WITHOUT A CREW, the story of the making of EL MARIACHI and a filmmaking career, I came across this quote:

Low-budget movies put a wall in front of you and only creativity will allow you to figure out how to get around that wall. The less money and/or resources you have, the more you are forced to be creative.

And what is a movie anyway? A completely creative endeavour. Anything you can do to get away from the things that aren’t important, the better chance you have of being truly creative.

Robert Rodriguez, Rebel Without A Crew

Love him or hate him, we could all learn a little about creativity from Rodriguez.

Creativity isn’t about the money, the resources or the box office draw; it’s about telling the stories you want to tell in any way you can tell them, even if it’s not what you originally envisioned for them.

Exercise your creative muscles and get your project made, however you can. Finding your own way around that wall will harness the true power of your own creativity. And who knows, it may just unlock the doors to the studios.

According to just about everyone ((or everyone in the media at least)) today (17th January) is the most miserable day of the year. Every year.

But why? And since when?

I’m sure the original assertion was based on hard data, but how hard can that data now be if we all know we’re supposed to be at our most miserable today?

If we’re told every year that 17th January is the most miserable day of the year, that makes 17th January make us feel miserable.

Telling people something as fact will make it just that, but we can tell ourselves differently.  Whatever you want to be – happy or sad, jubilant or miserable – just be it, because living it will make it so.

My most productive time of day is very early in the morning. I’m used to being up at 6.30am to take K to the station for her commute to London and I know I work best in those 2-3 hours immediately I get up.

I have another burst of focus around the 5-6pm mark, where I tend to push myself into completing things before calling it a night.

Finding these productivity peaks not only helps you be more productive, but is much less likely to allow you to become distracted by other things. Just remember to close down Twitter and Facebook while you’re trying to make the most of your peaks.

When is your productivity peak?

My increasingly awesome Twitter-buddy Tyler Weaver posted this great article on his website today. I don’t know why, but I love peeking into other people’s work spaces, although Tyler’s minimalism puts my crazy-chaotic office/corner desk bombsite to shame.

I remember an old adage I used to try to placate my parents with at home:

A creative mess is better than a tidy idleness.
Anon

I clearly just need to learn how Tyler manages “creative tidyness”.

For a superstition, the muse certainly needs structure. You’ve got to tell it where and when to show up, or else it’ll become an excuse for you not to do your work.
Tyler Weaver, tylerweaver.com