We all have our priorities. Think of each priority as a coin you hold. 
Top on the list of priorities for most of us (unless you are superhuman, in which case you need read no further), are eating and sleeping. So there are two coins.
For those with small children, top priorities include making sure you meet their daily needs of food, naps, play time and you time. More coins.
Even if the children are grown and gone or children were never part of the picture, there are still priorities like jobs, paying bills, mowing the lawn, etc. Even more coins.
Are your hands full yet?
See the man in that 4 of Coins card from Ciro Marchetti’s Legacy of the Divine Tarot deck? Looks like he has his hands full, doesn’t it? And that he’s determined to keep hold of them, not to let a single one drop.
If this is you, with all your priorities, ahem, well in hand, then my question for you is,
“Where is there room for the coin of your creative work?
You know…that book or script you were supposed to be working on, or that painting, or the recording of those amazing songs you wrote?
Do you have the feeling that if you juggle around what you already are holding to make room for one more coin that another one or several will drop?
Before you break out in a cold sweat at the thought, ask yourself these questions:
- Will the world as I know it come to an end if I drop one or two? Really…will your world end? Or will it just change for a while? Those un-weeded flower beds will be covered with snow in a couple of months and I’ll have another opportunity at them next spring. I may have a little more weeding to do but the flowers will still be there. Will you be deemed the worst wife/mother in the world if your house isn’t immaculate or you didn’t volunteer for five school activities this month? Really?
- Is this coin a priority today? Do you really need to bake cookies today or will it wait? Do you need to clean your studio or will it wait? Sometimes the answer is yes, but sometimes, maybe more times, the answer is no. What you’ve labeled a priority may just be a way to procrastinate on your creative project. Procrastinate on the other priority instead.
- Can somebody else take care of this coin or, at least, help me with it? For instance, chauffeuring kids to activities and events can eat up a lot of time. Sharing it with someone, giving them that coin to hold once in a while, makes room for your creativity coin. Depending on your budget and network, could someone else clean, garden, take care of your social media or marketing? Don’t let a sense of über responsibility, keep you from making room for your creativity coin. Passing one of the other coins to someone may be just what they want or need.
Holding on to a lot of coins can feel very satisfying, conveying a sense of security and stability. But that sense of security and stability may keep you stuck in place. So what value do you assign to that creativity coin?
Isn’t it worth dropping one or two of the coins you are already holding in order to grab hold of that one instead?
Isn’t it?