tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36001820.post7507934121193183969..comments2023-10-20T08:52:24.875-07:00Comments on this artist's life:: daily ritualsWhitney Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00491079459627713472noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36001820.post-22491739568933754892016-01-28T08:09:49.226-08:002016-01-28T08:09:49.226-08:00Yes, you have a pattern going I am all to familiar...Yes, you have a pattern going I am all to familiar with, the workaholic! If you are having a hard time managing weekends I think it may be because your body is tired and you need a break. I would suggest taking the weekends off, or at least only working for part of one day and taking a day off during the week. One thing you don't want to do to yourself is get so dependent on the studio that doing anything else, like just hanging out, is uncomfortable. Good luck!Whitney Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00491079459627713472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36001820.post-81463770014237633272016-01-27T17:27:31.867-08:002016-01-27T17:27:31.867-08:00I have been doing ceramics while working a day job...I have been doing ceramics while working a day job, which definitely makes for a cramped routine! I usually get home by 6:30, change out of my corporate clothes, have dinner, and I'm in the studio no later than 7:30. I can only manage 3-4 hours, but it's focused time because I spend a bit of my day making to-do lists on post-it notes that covers what I need to do for the next three days. Weekends are more unstructured because I feel like I have loads of time and I end up not managing it well. However! I am quitting my corporate day job and going to do ceramics full time, and part of that decision was acknowledging that I am forming bad work habits. I want to make work for a good long time yet, and I know that I need more time to take care of my health and for downtime to make it happen. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and routines; I'm looking forward to making a better one for myself!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13611990161699860136noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36001820.post-63288569850371470082016-01-27T07:47:35.610-08:002016-01-27T07:47:35.610-08:00If beating yourself up worked, I would run this pl...If beating yourself up worked, I would run this planet. I think a routine also has to bend for those times when things are "off track", like sleeping late, etc. There are days when I have my "skeleton routine"-- I pick out the most important parts and ditch the rest. It gives me a sense of place in my day while also recognizing the reality that I have other things to do that day. I also have larger routines for the rest of my life that cover grocery shopping, house cleaning, etc, so maybe think about those things that interrupt your flow during your work week and try to think of ways to address them systematically. I know that not everyone loves to have systems for everything, but if you are not getting enough downtime for yourself, then your work is suffering whether you recognize it or not.Whitney Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00491079459627713472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36001820.post-1663637125612144902016-01-27T06:04:48.249-08:002016-01-27T06:04:48.249-08:00I have a routine more or less. Well, I feel like ...I have a routine more or less. Well, I feel like it's sort of off the rails right now. I'd like to get back to some normalcy. It's so easy for me to do it on paper, write down the times I'll do this or that. But then I sleep later or have to go to the grocery store b/c we don't have X for dinner. Etc. And it doesn't help that I beat myself up about it when I get off track. Grrrr. I always do end up getting my studio work done. The parts that suffer are my other life, play, relaxation, exercise. Ronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07960400186962033610noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36001820.post-2549885154578375842016-01-26T17:36:55.273-08:002016-01-26T17:36:55.273-08:00Podcasts are definitely catnip for the studio pott...Podcasts are definitely catnip for the studio potter, and can be really distracting. If I'm doing some mindless work that requires podcasts in my ears, I use an app to download a bunch and then put them on a playlist so I don't have to fiddle with my device, which will inevitably lead to checking my email or instagram, posting something, blah blah blah...Whitney Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00491079459627713472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36001820.post-66805292119391850372016-01-26T10:41:42.188-08:002016-01-26T10:41:42.188-08:00I used to set my time in the studio around when my...I used to set my time in the studio around when my favourite radio programs were on CBC because a radio was my only device in my studio. I would hurrry thru lunch to get back to the studio for 1 pm so I didn't miss anything. Then I discovered that wifi from my house would reach the studio and I started listening to podcasts on my phone....not sure if that is helping my productivity or not....Denisehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10768563948361203334noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36001820.post-32255457895813335292016-01-26T09:50:40.135-08:002016-01-26T09:50:40.135-08:00I am also very rigid about my weekday ritual.
Your...I am also very rigid about my weekday ritual.<br />Yours is very similar to mine. I work in two sets of 3-4 hour chunks also. I think 3 hours is ideal, as long as I can work without interruption. I get a little spun out if I work for longer than 4 hours at a time. When I was first starting out, I'd go for as long and as hard as I could. Yes, I got a lot done but I was also often irritated and prone to a lot of anxiety. I think 6 hours in the studio every day is realistic and balanced. People who work 8 hour days are usually goofing off for at least 2 of those hours!Whitney Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00491079459627713472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36001820.post-47929536221958833032016-01-26T09:35:30.303-08:002016-01-26T09:35:30.303-08:00Hi Whitney,
I love your blog and am always excited...Hi Whitney,<br />I love your blog and am always excited when a new post from you shows up in my blog reader.<br />I definitely have a daily (weekday) ritual and am rigid about keeping to it. Wake up with the sun or earlier, go for a four mile run, shower and dress, eat a small balanced breakfast while checking email/reading news sites online, then get into the studio by 9am at the latest. Then I work in my studio for 3 hours, and eat lunch at noon. (If I start early in the studio, I read something related to my art-making until noon.) I read blogs while I eat lunch (which is what I'm doing now), then get back to the studio by 12:30 or 1pm at the latest and work for three more hours. Some day I'd like to figure out how to sneak an extra hour or two of studio time in, but for the time being, this is what I can manage, self-discipline-wise, without exhausting myself on a forced march.redbrickbuildinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03717372999557025648noreply@blogger.com