Sample cards and readings:
Aha-Phrodite:
I am the one who sees. I am the one whose eyes are open and taking in everything I experience. I am the one who notices and makes connections. I am the one who illuminates. I am the one who gives you a light-bulb moment.
How can paying attention help me?
Paying attention can help you see the things that have always been in front of you but have been invisible until now. It can make you stop to take in the details. Paying attention can renew or deepen your sense of wonder and allow you to enjoy the world around you a lot more–and give you a wider variety of material to draw on in your creative work. It can also help you keep track of what you’ve already done and what you still need to do.
Bea Silly:
I am the one who plays. I am the one who puts a pitcher over my head and grows tulips upside down. I am the one who believes a painting of the sun can warm me in a cold land (and I am right!). I am the one who has fun and lets my inner five-year-old out to play as much as I can.
How can I make this dream or idea more fun?
You can make this project more fun by taking it less seriously. You can make it fun by remembering that if you want others to have fun with it, it helps to loosen up and enjoy it yourself. Put a pitcher over your head–or a bucket, or whatever–and imagine giving the presentation that way. You can’t do it without laughing! Remember that your motto is that if you’re not having fun, you’re doing it wrong!
Lull:
I am the one who rests. I am the one who takes a break to refill and recharge rather than pushing through to burnout. I am the one who understands that this process is not a straight arrow from start to finish. I am resting, but still making forward progress as a result of that rest. My light still shines even if my forward floating motion is almost imperceptible.
How can I refill about this idea without staying in the intensity of the process?
You can refill without intensity by daydreaming. You can deliberately dream up the most ridiculous or outrageous ideas you can think of and then see what’s useful in those ideas. You can notice the web of connections that mask up your project, or that supports you in it, and notice how the pieces fit together–possibly in ways you’ve never seen before. But mostly, you can daydream–and night dream!–and let it percolate in the back of your mind. See what presents itself when you stop running around hunting for it.
Marge:
I am the one who is ready. I am the one who wants to get going. I am the one who flips the switch to get the process moving. I get things in gear. I want to help you take the first/next steps when you are ready to roll but feel uncertain or aren’t sure where to begin.
What first/next steps will I do and when?
You need to pick an idea–or just a fragment of an idea–and start writing. It doesn’t matter if it’s good or bad. It doesn’t matter if you know where it’s going. You only need enough to start and then see where it will take you. Just start, evaluate later, see what ideas/questions occur just as you’re playing around–these will *keep* you going.
Spills the Imp:
I am the one who takes chances. I am the one who makes a mess in the name of trying new things–and I enjoy every minute of it. I am the one who knows that perfection is an illusion. I am the one who knows it’s better to throw the darts and miss than not to throw them at all. And if I fall down and look like an idiot, well, at least I tried, and have a starting point I can build on.
How can I focus on this idea’s process and know my participation and growth is more important than preoccupation with the product?
You can focus on the process by digging in and not worrying about what anyone else thinks. You can stop worrying about how you look. Get messy and make mistakes–they are often the only way to learn (and their lessons stay with you the longest!). Don’t be afraid to find a thousand ways that don’t work–they will lead you to the one that will, if not for this project, for another one you haven’t even thought of yet!
Questions for each Muse:
Audacity: How can I be true to myself for this dream or idea?
Spills: How can I focus on this idea’s process and know my participation and growth is more important than preoccupation with the product?
Muse Song: How can I enlist more support or inspirational company?
Bea Silly: How can I make this dream or idea more fun?
Albert: How can I think differently about this dream or idea?
Aha-Phrodite: How can paying attention help
Lull: How can I refill about this idea without staying in the intensity of the process?
Shadow Muse: What quirky or unlikeable part of me can contribute to this idea?
Marge: What first/next steps will I do and when?
General questions for the cards:
- What do you think about the project I’m working on? What ideas do you have?
- What am I overlooking about this project?
- What makes you angry? What pleases you?
- What nourishes you?
- I’m stuck. What should I do next to get un-stuck?
- How can I tell when I am ignoring your energy in my creative work?
- How do you see me growing and changing?
And anything else that comes to mind!