Trust Your Creative Journey and Release! [Writing Yoga® Creativity Matrix Prompt #12]
May 26, 2025Twelve weeks ago, we imagined a journey where every week a new challenge and opportunity presented itself in the form of a single word (Imagine to Release). As I write this, I can't believe we are at the end. You did it!
Of course, creativity is a circle that pauses with publications, presentations, and culminating activities. Your book or art project may be complete to others, but for many poets and artists, revision takes a lifetime.
Releasing your work into the world feels exhilarating, but it can be scary. Without the excuse of incubating, your wonderful, but possibly flawed creation goes public. Yes, it's hard, but here's why you should just let go:
- Releasing your work makes space for new projects. Holding onto a project too long can keep you stuck. Releasing it allows you to move forward and start new projects.
- Sharing your work invites connection. Are you really writing for yourself? Collaboration and insights can only happen if your get your words off your own laptop. Trust that the right readers will find you.
- Perfection is an impossibility and excuse. If you wait for something to be perfect, you may never release it. Don't let your perfectionism stop you.
What's your biggest obstacle to releasing your work? What fears hold you back? I'm not the first person to tell you that there's a reason we create what we create. And timing may or may not be that important at all. The important thing is to trust yourself and proclaim to be complete. Sometimes just saying that something is done is enough to make it so.
Sit, Write, Move [SWiM]: A Practice for Letting Go
Sit
Before releasing your work into the world, take a moment to pause. Set a timer with a nice ring for 5 minutes. Close your eyes. Breathe. Think about how far you have come and all the love and sweat you put into your project. How does it feel to be complete? When the timer goes off, pause, breathe, and slowly open your eyes. Congratulate yourself as if you were congratulating your own best friend.
Write
Before we start a yoga class, it is tradition to set an intention for your practice. When you began your project, you had an intention in mind. Set a timer for 5 to 10 minutes and reconnect with that intention. Write about your journey from "Imagination" to letting go until the timer goes off. What weeks were more challenging than others? What or who got you to the finish line?
Move
Let go of the Outcome. This is a hard one. You have no control over how your work will be received. This is a good time to practice compassion for yourself and your creative baby. Trust that the work will find the people who need it at just the right time. To that end, here is a yoga sequence to help you release tension and control.
1) Take a comfortable seat in a chair or floor. Place your hands at the center of your heart. Take a deep breath in and press your palms together. Exhale. 2) On the next inhalation, keep pressing your palms together and raise them overhead. (See picture) 3) As you exhale, press your palms together again, release. and swing them to your sides. Repeat three times.
2) When you are done, stand up and swing your arms forward and back to release any stuck energy. Add your legs and march in place if it feels good. Feel free to move your arms side to side or in circles. Allow yourself to enjoy sensations of freedom and relaxation in your body.
3) Repeat this sequence in a way that feels right to you any time of day. This is a good one to try on your lunch break at work.
If you'd like to dive deeper into new ways to boost your creativity and reduce stress, I'd love for you to try my new Writing Yoga® course. In the meantime, remember to SWiM. (Sit, Write and Move) a little every day for a calm, creative and more compassionate life!
For more activities and resources, please go to www.WritingYoga.com
