“Sell you cleverness and buy bewilderment”—Rumi
An everyday creative person makes an effort to embrace bewilderment, even though she dislikes the feeling, because she knows that she has no other good choice!
Every creative journey is marked by patches and even long stretches of bewilderment when, disoriented and upset, you realize that you don’t know what to do next. These patches of not knowing just can’t be avoided, unless you refuse to create.
Embrace bewilderment. This may mean that the painting that you thought was about an apple must be about sunrise, as bewildering as that seems. It may mean that your current painting style has run its course and you have a great new darkness to enter. It may mean that you are on the verge of a breakthrough that can only occur if you let out a real shriek: “I have no idea what I’m doing!”
When you feel bewildered, don’t look for ways to rid yourself of the feeling. Just go forward!
Does your creative work bewilder you? Just keep breathing. After a while your stomach will begin to settle and your vision will clear. Then you can proceed again!