Recently a friend left a comment on a post saying: “You seem to no sooner express a new idea than it arrives fully clothed so to speak!”

That certainly seems to be the  case recently although it’s not so much that I express a particular idea as I’ve stopped blocking ideas in general.

Since I started playing around with living in the unknown I’ve increasingly become aware of where and how much I’ve been stopping myself.

Sometimes I do it by thinking into the future and making assumptions about what will happen there. Sometimes I stop because an idea doesn’t make sense or I can’t see how I could go about it.

Recently I’ve been OK with simply letting my ideas remain a possibility without thinking myself out or into them. I just take the next step that shows up with no added effort to make something happen.

A great example . . .

For a while now I’ve spoken to people about how I wish there was a place locally where artists could get together and share ideas and equipment. I’ve wanted to have a go on a laser cutter for a couple of years but have no desire to buy one since they’re very expensive. Also, I don’t know without trying one whether I’d actually enjoy it. If only there was a place where we could share tools and try things without having to buy stuff that ends up not being used.

Well . . . a couple of weeks ago I received an email about a workshop that was running locally which led me to go and check out the website of BuildBrighton Hackspace. I’ve known about Buildbrighton since it’s inception but had always thought that it was only for techie types who were keen on soldering and electronics etc.

The blurb at the top of the website says “Build Brighton is a Hackspace, a communal workshop where like-minded people can geek out about electronics, technology, crafts, engineering… even food hacking.”  It was the mention of crafts that caught my eye and when I investigated further, low and behold, I saw that they had a laser cutter.

Fast forward a couple of weeks and I’ve been for a taster session, joined up and been trained on the laser cutter.

There were a number of points in the process where, in the past, I would have “walked away” – I couldn’t go to visit on the day I wanted to, the friend I eventually went to the taster session with decided not to join, it’s not actually an artist’s community and that’s what I was looking for and I have no idea what I’m going to do there beyond having a go with the laser.

These days, however, I’m learning to stay open to possibility without having to know in advance where something is going. So I’m excited about where this might lead and I’m also OK if it doesn’t lead anywhere in particular. I’ll just keep taking the next step and see from there.

No need to justify it.

Post 9 of 30 blogs in 30 days

Linking to House of Hepworths, Paint Party Friday, Be Inspired, Simply Create, Mop It Up Monday and A Creative Princess