DESIGN|MARKETING|TECHNOLOGY by Sarmistha Tarafder

The Art of Effortless Creation

10/13/2013

As I was toying with the title of this article, fear creeped in me: "am I asking you to go out on a limb here?" But, the inner critic was quickly shot down by the ambiguous creator within. "Let's see where is goes. Let's see how it manifests. Let's see what the ancient seers had to say about it".
And, so I start my journey… Let's see if I can pull if off… (funny, how the critic always have to have the last say)

We designers are immersed in this cycle of continuous creation, radical rejections and ebullient exaltation. It is a part of our daily life. A life of ceaseless seeking that we lead. We do not know what that is. All we know, this is not good enough and there is more to it. Martha Graham puts it very eloquently, "[There is] no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others."

In this search for something that is transformational and transcendental, the brain often puts up an instant resistance…."oh no, that cannot be done." But, if you trick the brain into believing that you are just tinkering with the idea; the brain not only relaxes, it gets stimulated by “what ifs”, “what then”, and “why not”.

The intimidating big picture of creation, completion and acceptance gets buried somewhere in the cortex and eventually make it’s journey into your sub-conscious. Once, the sub-conscious takes over, the process of effortless creation ignites into motion and unleashes the creative force that is within you.

Modern science is just now figuring out the profound power of sub-conscious in our daily lives. This non-verbal space of highly productive action and associative connection is very much conscious in our current stream of consciousness. This is the space that gives birth to Effortless Creation.

There’s a concept in Taoism, “wei wu wei”, which is often translated as “action without action” or “effortless doing”. "Do less and accomplish more." is the cardinal principle of the vedic science. Inspired, by this high science Dr. Deepak Chopra in his book The 7 Laws of Spiritual Success mentions that "when your internal reference point is the ego, when you seek power and control over other people or seek approval from others, you spend energy in a wasteful way... When your internal reference point is your spirit, when you are immune to criticism and unfearful of any challenge, you can harness the power of love, and use energy creatively for the experience of affluence and evolution."

I believe, when Mexican Yaqui Indian sorcerer, don Juan Matus told Carlos Castaneda, "…most of our energy goes into upholding our importance.... If we were capable of losing some of that importance, two extraordinary things would happen to us. One, we would free our energy from trying to maintain the illusory idea of our grandeur; and two, we would provide ourselves with enough energy to ... catch a glimpse of the actual grandeur of the universe." he had the vision of the coming future. Seeking approval of others is so rampant in our age of tweets and likes and subscribes that we have forgotten the uniqueness of our own creativity.

The goal is to master the law of least effort and nail it down so that it becomes part of your daily living. It is not a step by step guide but a set of precepts that you might want to incorporate as a part of your life style. (This is not me talking. This is the high knowledge that has been handed down by the ancient seers and has successfully been put into action by the leaders of our times.)

Undertake Action that is Prescribed by Passion. Do, because you are excited about it, not because you should or some one else wants you to.
Question yourself. When you are dreading to do something. The very act of questioning will lead you to certain answers. For example, I absolutely despise recycling designs. But sometimes I am asked to do exactly that. Now, the onus is on me to furnish a design that speaks to specific brand attributes. The end goal should always be for the greater good… does not matter if the design gets acknowledged by the clients or not.
All You Control Is Yourself. When we try to control others, failure, frustration, and conflict follows. Be like the water that flows around the obstacles with a minimum of effort.
Stay in the Moment. "This moment — the one you're experiencing right now — is the culmination of all the moments you have experienced in the past. This moment is as it is because the entire universe is as it is." Radical acceptance of this moment makes you aware of the seeds of opportunity that is contained in this moment.
Explore Possibilities. When we have our minds set, and our vision set, on one destination, we are often blind to other possibilities. Cultivate an explorers' mindset.
Find Sweet Spots: If you find the right spot, achieving something takes very little effort. For example, planting a rose bush in a pre-conditioned soil takes minimum effort. "Finding these spots of maximum effectiveness and minimum effort takes mindful effort, which is why effortless action isn’t mindless action.”
Defend Defenselessness: A tall oak tree cracks and collapses in the storm. A reed bends and flows with the storm and survives. Resist the urge to defend your point of view. Resist from defending your point of view. Commit to follow the path of non-resistance. "This is the path through which nature's intelligence unfolds spontaneously, without friction or effort." This was the path taken by Mahatma Gandhi to bring down the British empire to its knees, paving the way for India's independence some 60 years ago.

When you have the exquisite combination of the above factors, you will experience life flowing with effortless ease. “Effortless action is a way to not only achieve focus in a world of chaos, but to be effective without stress, to respond to any situation with economy of effort and action, and to pursue our passions while beating procrastination”.
Leo Babautam, Focus: A simplicity manifesto in the Age of Distraction