Skull on Fire

Tethering a Wandering Mind, no. OO1

Growing up, I had some bad teachers (and a few great ones). Haven’t we all? I’m grateful for this. I learned to be independent early on and to never assume that my teachers held all of the answers. I’m what you would have called a challenging student. Not outwardly impolite, but internally skeptical. You should be, too. Creative thinkers don’t often test well. In art classes, I was labeled “too focused” which was codified for too limited or too stubborn. In elementary school, my math teacher called in my parents with concerns about my “satanic” drawings of dragons, trolls, knights, and skulls on fire. My parents politely thanked him for his concern and privately praised my bad-ass skull-drawing skills. In high school, when I asked my teacher why I received a “C” on an art project, she took a long pause and let me know that I hadn’t signed my work. I was looking for help, but she was teaching a different lesson. I got the message. What my teachers failed to realize was that I drew not out of distraction, but to be present. 

I dream in the future and my mind and body are rarely in the same place.

When your mind switches channels like a radio searching for a signal, you do all that you can to quiet the noise. Between drawing, coffee and basketball, I discovered things that tethered my wandering mind and brought me back to the moment. If you relate to these things, then you’ve likely found your own tools, tricks and vices. What are they? Are they helpful? Healthy? Healing? Or do your vices add complexity and confusion to your life? Somehow, I’ve stumbled my way into a system that keeps me present and allows me to thrive within the limitations and challenges of daily life.

I found my way back into the pages of my sketchbooks. Something interesting happens when I’m actively observing and drawing. It quiets my mind the way that intense physical labor and sport demands attention. Neither sports, nor drawing are automatic. They are a marriage of the mind and the body. You are making one small decision after another that are incremental and unnoticeable by others, but this string of ideas that is laced together through intense observation keeps me on topic. This blending of physical and mental choices keeps the present in front of me and my tendency to dream is delayed for another day.

I challenge you to find your way into a journaling practice; either through words, pictures, or both. I hope it becomes a habit of self-reflection and observation. It’s hard to sit alone with your own thoughts, but developing a consistent habit of taking time to be in and of the moment, is one of the single best things that you could do for yourself, as you set out to find your creative voice, powerful ideas and value in the world.

Tools

---

In a future post, I’ll be discussing different types of sketchbooks, as well as unique ways to approach them, but for now, I’ll share my favorite. I regularly use the Blackwing Slate Notebook, as well as the Blackwing 602 pencil. No, I’m not sponsored, I just love the way the pencil feels and the notebook works. The Blackwing Slate is comparable to the traditional Moleskine notebook in size, price and quality, with the added benefit of that little elastic loop on the outer spine for your pencil- genius.

I sharpen my pencils with a foldable utility knife from Kobalt that I purchased at Lowes. This gives me a nice long lead and I can use it on either the point or the side. Doing so, give me the option to either draw from the wrist (with a limited range of motion) or the shoulder (with a full range of motion). Different types of drawing have different demands.

Remember that your journal is for you and you only. Don’t hold back, pull any punches or take half-measures. The moment we begin censoring out of fear that someone might see our drawings or read our words, we begin to self-edit and place limits on the things we make. You can edit later, but for now, get it all out of you.

If you’re not used to keeping a journal, begin with the most humble of drawings. As my friend Brent Watkinson used to tell us; draw what you drink.

Something Fun

This entire project is about finding the shortest path from idea to reality. I put together a shirt from this little idea that came to the surface during writing. It taps into my inner kid who was reprimanded for drawing such things, but speaks more directly about how I feel most days; like my skull is on fire with ideas and creativity. Maybe you relate? You can get pick up a skull-on-fire shirt here.

Think Louder,

Sterling