One of the pitfalls of staying in
school for many years is the dependence on deadlines set by others.
What, you might be saying, is
wrong with that? It’s a preparation for work life in general and makes John and
Jill good boys and girls. Right?
But here’s my take. It also
creates a dependence on others to get things done.
I know writers who sign up for
writing challenges and join groups that insist on certain timed output. I know
musicians who need competitions to get them going on learning new repertoire
and practice . I know painters who need a set exhibit date to complete a set
number of new works, etc.
Without this external pacing, many
people just fall apart and lose the map. The trail becomes blurry and a sense
of being lost takes over only to deepen unless they latch on to yet another
organizer who gives them deadlines once again.
I have come to see it differently.
It took reaching my late twenties before I got that monkey off my back. I
learned what pace works for me and why only this way of working sets me free.
Sure, I meet deadlines all the
time. But I don’t need them to create.
You won’t find me anywhere near
NaNoWriMo or the 12 by12 challenge and their ilk. Maybe because I didn’t stay
in school as long as many I know, I don’t need this sort of assigned homework.
Life tells me when I’m needed, and I tell my days what I need from them in
return.
6 comments:
This is so true for me, Mirka. I never made the connection that it might be because I stayed in school so long. But as I grow older, I am more able to do things at my own pace, which tends to be slow.
I do find that a contest or other deadline can motivate me to write and submit. Something else that school does that the outside world doesn't is positive feedback. When I entered the work world, I was surprised to find that you never got praise, only criticism.
Generally, I don't find I create my best work when I'm working towards a self-imposed deadline. Those writing group deadlines also cause me to compare myself with other writers too much. Although I have had deadlines for magazine work, which is a different story.
I think this issue differs for different personalities. Some people are procrastinators and some people aren't. For people like me (who are procrastinators) deadlines can really help, both those set by others and those we set for ourselves. Yes, sometimes I do things spontaneously without a deadline. Those things can be satisfying and of high quality, but that can also be true of things I do with a deadline.
I have worked with lots of deadlines over the decades and found them both stressful and useful, energizing and anxiety-producing. They do serve a purpose. But I also work without deadlines, so either way is fine with me. I never thought about it with reference to school background.
I see I wasn't clear in the post. The issue of a creative life that flows isn't about setting deadlines; it's about deadlines that are set BY OTHERS. I set my own deadlines and meet them. It's between me & me. I drive the engine.
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