I. The Balancing Act
CJ finished filling out her Balance Sheet and was surprised at what she saw. She was moving along with her initial art goals in her second month of coaching with me*, but had begun to realize that major distractions from important sectors of her life were confusing her. The simple rating sheet I’d given her showed how dissatisfied she was with how she was doing in relation to her family and friends. She had a life balance problem.

When you think about your role as an artist, along with the other roles you have, there are two different styles of balancing them. Some folks like clear sectors of their life where their roles are cleanly cut, have sharp edges, you always know what hat you’re wearing; let’s call it compartmentalized.  Others have a life where art activities are integrated and woven through all the other things you do in life, more of an integrated style. Here you may wear the same hat all the time but with a varied collections pins, buttons, or trims.

I suspect that those caretaking others, especially women,  have a more integrated style and have difficulty setting boundaries, saying no, setting up some compartments so they can clear a space for their own creative work. And I’ll bet men, in general, compartmentalize well but have more difficulty connecting and allowing their boundaries to be flexible and permeable when it would be useful. When you think about it, a boundary is nothing more than the point at which two worlds touch. It’s a boundary AND it’s a connection.

Consider how each style applies to you: Which is better for your creative breakthroughs?
Almost all creativity research says that creative breakthroughs come after shifting gears or taking a break. So if your balance style is an integrated one, you would be constantly juggling and shifting gears, with your art coming up against all the other areas of your life throughout most days. If your style is more compartmentalized, it may be a little more likely that you’ll have a breakthrough on a piece you’re working on while you’re at a soccer game, than at an art gallery.

Well, maybe. The thing is that the kind of creative breakthroughs shown in research require that you get enough distance from what you’ve been working on to let the unconscious make the connections for you. The art gallery may be just the right distance for you.

There is no easy formula here but just food for thought. One client who had clearly compartmentalized her art work to set studio times was finding it difficult to actually go to the studio in the morning. Schedules on paper did not help. What did the trick was changing her habit of morning journal writing with a last cup of tea from the breakfast table to the studio, so that when she finished writing, she was already there and ready. She continues to prefer a compartmentalized style of balance, but changing this one small boundary into a connection was helpful.

Another place your balance style shows up is in whether you are telling the IRS that your art is a business or a hobby. This decision can go with either style.  One of my marketing teachers, Ned Wert, tells of how he had a hard time convincing the IRS that his life and art work were totally integrated. IRS auditors apparently expects people to have compartmentalized lives, and it was only after documenting many examples that he finally convinced the auditors that pretty much everything he did was tied up with art and artists.

Oh, by the way, CJ’s successful rebalancing included talking to her family and friends more frankly than she ever had, clarifying how she needed them to support her art “compartments”, time when she could not be available to them. Although boundaries and connections are not intellectually difficult, it’s not so easy to change them. With support and some trial and error, she made some shifts that dissolved the painful feeling that she was constantly choosing between her art and her loved ones, freeing up more energy for creating.
* CJ is a composite of several clients
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II. Energy Management: Translations from the Psych Research Lab, the Board Room and the Shrink’s Couch

Role Models: the Real vs. the Ideal
When you are thinking about whether you want an integrated or compartmentalized life as an artist, it helps to have role models of both to compare. Notice whether you’re drawn to role models that are real or ideal. Each has its problems. Think of choosing Woody Allen as a role model for a male romantic lead. All too real and not a high standard to achieve; who could not do better than his self-agonizing approach to women. If, however, you choose an “ideal” model, say Brad Pitt, it may be too intimidating, feel too far away from where you are now to even be a helpful model.

Consider the artists you have as role models. You may want to choose some new ones, from your teachers and friends, both real and fictional. You may want a mix of some real and some ideal. Notice, too, which ones led lives as artists that were more integrated and which ones were more compartmentalized.
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III. Friends in Print: When you feel like reading
Click on amazon link for book details and to support breakTHROUGHArts.

Domar, Alice & Dreher, Henry. Self-Nurture: Learning to care for yourself as effectively as you care for everyone else. 2001.
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0140298460/breakthroug00-20 
Now in paperback and audio tape versions, this guide is a supportive collection of ideas and examples to encourage self-care in all of us. Written with more examples for women than men, it’s a good guide for any caretaker, with practical ways to support your creative, emotional and spiritual life while staying connected to others.

Murphy, Bernadette. Zen and the Art of Knitting. 2002. 
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1580626548/breakthroug00-20 Knitting is an art form that integrates into people’s lives wherever and whenever. Murphy gives many examples of how it’s become the focus of social gatherings of widely different types of people, wearing all kinds of hats. She does a good job of exploring many levels of knitting including up-to-date information on its meditative benefits.

Gordon, Mary. Spending. 1997.
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0684852047/breakthroug00-20 
A fictional account of a woman painter who gets to shift from a compartmentalized life which has her stressed out to an integrated one. Lovely depictions of the creative process and how studies of other painters affect her work.
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IV. Creative Links.
www.selfcareforwomen.net  A site from coach Jennifer Synder with free articles on self care for both men and women.

www.artstaxinfo.com  Good introductory site on tax codes for artists by Riley and Associates. Well-written summaries of basic issues and FAQ’s (frequently asked questions) e.g. distinctions between hobby and business, deductions for home offices and studios, when to incorporate, etc.

home.ptd.net/~netwert/Ned.html The site for Ned Wert’s abstract paintings. Notice how strongly his use of color comes through.

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V. Newsletter Info 
E-mail changes. To change your e-mail address, subscribe, or unsubscribe please e-mail connect@dianereardon.com. If you use a spam filter, please add this e-mail address to your list of approved senders. This material is included on the breakTHROUGH Creativity Coaching website (www.dianereardon.com). All material is copyrighted ©, 29 February 2004, Diane Reardon. All rights reserved. Visit the website for back issues and details on scheduling a complimentary one-hour coaching session.
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