How Morning Pages SPARK Creativity

In this episode, I spoke with graphic designer Liz Trujillo. 

She loves to help creators bring their vision to life. We talked about The Artist’s Way and how it has impacted us.

• Solitude Fuels Creativity: Time alone isn’t selfish—it’s essential. Creating healthy boundaries allows us to recharge, fueling authenticity and creativity.
• Notice What You Want: Beyond gratitude, it’s okay to authentically name your desires. Writing down even the simplest wishes can help you expand your sense of possibility and start receiving more of what truly matters to you.
• Be Kind to Yourself: Self-love starts with self-awareness and self-compassion.

 As Liz shared, “If someone asks me how to love themselves, I hand them The Artist’s Way.”   This week's small step is to give yourself permission to try, reflect, and grow at your own pace.

Links 

• Join Kelly's Group Coaching Program
• Join Kelly’s Free community on Skool
• Follow Liz

 Let's connect.

I am cheering for you!

Transcript

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morning pages help us recover a sense of possibility. Yeah, yeah, definitely- when you do the morning pages, as soon as you wake up- your real inner voice and thoughts appears and you cannot filter them out. Welcome to the Live A Vibrant Life podcast. I'm life coach Kelly Kibbitz, and each week I'll be here to encourage and equip you with the tools you need to grow in self-awareness and invest your best energy in your dreams and your purpose. I believe self-awareness changes everything. Let's get started. I started my podcast to help women not overgive their energy. And instead find the things that fill you up so you're not resentful and overwhelmed and frustrated. Instead, you're living more of a vibrant life. Your energy is aligned. I think creativity is an important part of that. Yeah definitely. I'm so glad that you're here today. Tell me a little bit about yourself. I'm Liz. I'm a graphic designer. I love to work with women, to create their brands and their website. We talk about alignment and I really find that part enjoyable., I'm a really visual person, so when I talk with somebody they tell me I would like to do this and this, and when they talk about it, I could picture it and I give ideas. The creative process is what I love the most, also seeing them grow. People change and brands change and like the whole world, like you can see the growth. I'm like like a little cheerleader behind the business of my clients. That's what I want to be. I want to be a cheerleader for people to live a vibrant life. How did you find your path to this career? It's funny because since we're talking about the artist way, I was going through my notes, because I did that I think four years ago maybe. And I'm like, oh, now I get why I chose graphic designer as my path of career. Because I was like, the typical comments, like you cannot make money being an artist. And what was the second option? In my case, graphic design. Let's do graphic design because it's something that in the world you can live from that rather than when you're an artist, you are going to starve. Of those general comments that doesn't let you just dream. I find the balance between me creating, like when I do logos, I sketch, I draw and all of that. Coming back to the book I'm like, now I need to have more fun and just draw because I like to draw. And not just okay, I have a client and they are going to pay me, so now I get to draw. I'm trying to be more liberal about that. Like love that. Yeah, let's schedule an artist date. I'm recently like I just start going back to the book like this week. I love this book. I think it is full of good thoughts like that, that we don't notice. If we keep thinking this, it's gonna move us away from our creativity. So have you done any kind of self-awareness work? Do you know your Enneagram, anything that helps you know when you're in aligned energy. I think I'm type nine. The nine is a peacemaker. Yes. Oh, I see why you think that. And I see why you think that, but yes, what you want to be as a peacemaker, where you have your point of view. And I think art is such a good way for people to grow in that. Yes. Yes, definitely. We're gonna look at chapters five through nine, and as you said, when you go through the artist way, if you take the time to write notes. You'll probably come back to it. It's the kind of book that's not meant to be one and done. You're supposed to go slowly through it. I've done it as slow as like going through a year, like one chapter a month, and I've done it multiple times over the last few years. My notes are so interesting to me that yes, I write it down and I'm like, I forgot that, or, wow, look how that worked out. Chapter five begins with recovering a sense of possibility. How many of us, without paying attention. Curtail our own possibilities by putting limits on what we can receive. And I found that to be so true for myself. What did you notice about the idea that you could recover your own sense of possibility? Yeah. I went back to like my book, I have it on Kindle, so I just went back and see what I highlighted. One of them was ask for ownership in day and listening for answers in the morning. I was like, oh, when I did this, I really was really like conscious about making my morning pages and all of that. But when I stopped- I forgot about it. I really disconnected. I think that's why I'm coming back to it like, yes, I need to kind of reclaim like the artistic part of myself that I've just forgotten in the past. And the morning pages help us recover a sense of possibility. Yeah, yeah, definitely. I'm coming back to it, but when I did them, it's really impressive how you have the inner critic and when you do the morning pages, as soon as you wake up- your real inner voice and thoughts appears in the morning and you cannot filter them out. And I'm like, oh, funny that I think this about it. Yes. But not judging it, just noticing it. Yeah. Yeah. Yes. Exactly. Exactly. Yep. I love that she talks a little bit about creativity is a spiritual issue and for me that was really eye-opening. Yeah, definitely. That creativity and spirituality were connected. She talked about, God, universe, however you describe it as this source, as this river and so the morning pages is one way to come back to it. Yes, definitely I love quotes that there are throughout the books. One was God is the creative. You need to be a vessel. You are receiving the creativity. We are creative. All humans are creative people. That's it. You need to remind yourself about that. And then when you accept that- receive. Exactly. Instead of having to do the work and just receiving. One of the quotes that was on page 94 said that it was Leo Tolstoy who said, it's within my power either to serve God or not serve him. When I serve him, I'm adding to my own good and the good of the world. Creativity puts you into that river, puts you into that ability to receive. Yes, definitely. One of my ahas from chapter five was that I require both creativity and solitude. And I had lived most of my life with an idea. I'm not creative 'cause I wasn't an artist, I wasn't a sculptor, or I wasn't a painter. And I had no solitude. I was constantly overgiving and overdoing. When I discovered this. It was again, eye-opening for me that everything about my energy could change if I gave myself solitude alone time, and there was nothing wrong with that. Yeah. Because that's when I received. Do you think creativity and solitude are something that's important to you too as an artist? Yes, definitely. I think. When you're in solitude, I think that's the only moment when you can hear your thoughts be connected and be true to yourself. I don't, yeah, like I relate to that as well. Before I did the artist way, I was like, oh yeah, I will do that. I will do this and that. But like it was just me making myself busy. To just not be with myself and my own desires and all of that. So yeah. Yeah, definitely. Yeah. For me, yes, I need solitude I hope that every woman that listens to us knows that she's worthy. Yes, definitely. Oh yeah. Of solitude. Yeah. You deserve it. Yes. And yeah. You know what? It's funny because at first, I don't know, I did tend to feel so guilty about it, to put your own limits, like no. This is my time. I will do my thing. I'm going to the artist date. All of my friends and my family were like, I don't understand you. But I'm like, no. Yes, I'm doing this. It was hard at first because like, okay, you're making them feel bad and then, they're going to get worried and maybe you could be with your family and all of those thoughts. But it's really changed when I did finally put that limit. I know as someone who's decades older than you, when you constantly put yourself last, you end up showing up at the family event, but you're resentful. Or you're frustrated. Yeah. And you're in the worst energy instead of, I'm gonna stay home tonight. Yes. And you are not like, you're not enjoying that moment. You're like, just, okay I need to do this and that. Yeah. No. Yes. It allows me to be really present in the moment and, more grateful rather than, the other feelings. Yep. And so she says in chapter five, page nine seven on my book, the artist requires like upkeep of creative solitude. The artist requires healing time alone, and without recharging, the artist becomes depleted. Whether you're an artist, one of my friends said this and I love it. She's a mom of small children and her artist shows up by opening the refrigerator and there's three ingredients and she makes dinner. Yeah. Yes, yes. That's, yeah, that's definitely creative. Yes. If you are painting a bookmark or you're making sculpture or whatever art you have, if you can recharge, you don't end up depleted. Yes, definitely. And is there any times that you look back and you're thinking, oh, if I had just stayed home or been alone or gone to my artist state, I wouldn't feel so depleted now? Yeah. Yes, yes. And so why do we end up getting depleted? I love that. She explains it. We get depleted. 'cause we're trying to be good. We're trying to be nice, we're trying to be helpful, we're trying to be unselfish, but we're not actually being generous or authentic. I love that. So one of my favorite things that I learned on my path to self-awareness is the difference between guilt and shame. Guilt is when we do something that really is wrong. Like you're driving and you're texting and you hit someone's mailbox and then you feel bad 'cause you shouldn't be texting and driving. But shame is, I'm not a good enough daughter. I'm not a good enough friend. I'm not a good enough artist. Yeah. And that's not true. Like we are all a hundred percent valuable. What she does at the end of each of these chapters is just give us exercises. And so in chapter five, it was the, I wish what was different. What I thought was interesting is before this, I had never sat down and thought of 20 things that were running around in my brain anyway, but I had never noticed them. And I think there's a lot of teachers in the self-development world that say start with gratitude. But I like that she said one of the best things you can do is just notice what you want. Yeah. Yes. Yeah. How do you notice what you want? Do you have a specific friend that you talk to or what, how, what helps you? Honestly the only people that I can talk about this is with people that I did the at this way because I did it in a group four years ago. Yeah, coming with 20 things it's difficult. Like for me it was difficult. I was like, oh, but you don't really need it, you know? Oh, great. When you put something, I don't know, maybe I wish like a bigger, I don't know, a bigger paid patio, like a bigger back yard or something like that. But you don't need it then I would just kind of delete one and then I was, no, but you really like nature, so that makes sense. And you get recharged by nature, so that's why you really wish it. What I thought was amazing is the first year I did it, it took me a really long time. And then the third year I came back and looked, and many of the things that I had said, I wish I actually got. Oh, that's great. That's awesome. It's because it's okay to ask. It's okay to want. I was just curious if you can share with me one thing that you wish and know that you had. I wish I had a beach vacation with my husband. I was getting like really brave in my asks. I wish I had a two week vacation and we did. We went to North Carolina. I got to see the Dolphins swim by in the morning as the sun rose. Like more than I could ask or think, but I think part of it was I actually asked, I. Yeah, of course. Okay. I would like something. That's great. Yeah, and I didn't even get through all the exercises. For instance, she says in chapter five, what are 10 things I'd like to own that I don't. And my natural state is to be grateful for what I do have. And I just like that part of what she offers us is a chance to just be reflective and say it's okay to want something and put it out there and see what happens energetically. So I really did love that. Yes, it's true. Like I think in all of the self, you know, self-help books or you know, like Growth yourself and all of that. I think she is the only one that I've heard say something that, okay, tell me about what you're wishing. Rather than just experience gratitude, because that's the commonly thing, but you know, let me know what you want. I'm like, okay, because then I think you expand in your ability to receive as well. That's true. Yeah. Yeah. Right. And I haven thought about it. Yeah. And I think the more that women are resourced, the better the world is. I think it's been proven statistically that what men do with money is not always good for the universe and humanity. Over and over again, you see money go into women's hands and how they use it to care and make the world a better place. So you're listening to us. That's true. We're both saying it's okay to grow in your creativity by noticing what you want. Love that. You can increase your sense of possibility and grow in your ability to receive. Now looking back at my notes and wanting to do it again, I think that if you're looking for that. Ease and that flow and all of that. It's a relationship with yourself. You need to maintain that relationship with yourself. I have a partner, I have friends, I have family, but like you need to nourish- be in a relationship with yourself. That's why I'm looking back to do this the artist way again, to reconnect with myself. I love that so much. I was a kindergarten teacher as my first career out of college, and I wish we learned that in kindergarten. Yeah that your first most important relationship is to nourish yourself and out of that, it's like throwing a rock in the lake and there's ripples. When a person at the center is nourishing themself, what comes out? Goodness and kindness, and creativity and joy. And when that person overgive out comes resentful energy and frustration and anger. You and I are both here to say, great book worth doing over and over again. Go buy it. Yes. Yes. Definitely. Like, yeah. Do as slow as you need to. Yeah. Get as many times as you need to yes and be kind. Be kind to yourself. I think that it's like part of loving yourself. I would recommend, somebody comes to me and ask me like, how do I love myself? I will hand them the book. Go do this. Read this. I'm sure it's gonna help you in some way. That was amazing. Thank you so much for being here today, Liz. You're welcome. Happy to be here. Thank you for joining the Live A Vibrant Life podcast. I hope our time together encourage you and will equip you with the tools you need to move into the vibrant life you desire. I'm here to help you live a brave, creative, purpose-filled life. And if you'd like to learn more. You can follow me on Instagram or Facebook, Kelly tibbits life coach, or visit my website kelly tibbits.com. I look forward to connecting again soon.