Ever thought about the differences between art and craft, loneliness and being alone?

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Scroll down for detailed episode notes and quick access timings

In this episode you’ll learn:

• The benefits of screaming your heart out at the New York subway
• How our hyper-connected world is affecting us
• How Facebook can make you feel more lonely (or more connected)
• Why loneliness can be a separation from self
• How a simple mindset change can transform your productivity

Sarah Kathleen Peck is a writer, designer, storyteller and speaker. Her parents are rocket scientists. Living in New York, she is the founder of the award-winning journal and website, Landscape Journalism, which explores our cities for future inspiration and design. Sarah has swum from Alcatraz to San Francisco 9 times. Raising tens of thousands of dollars for clean water. And for MTV. And naked.

Sarah has taught workshops at the World Domination Summit and Alive in Berlin*, where Sarah gently guided me, and other Europeans, through her yoga class. At the same event she talked about the upside of loneliness.

In this episode, Sarah and I explore loneliness and being alone as they relate to the craft and the business of creativity. Sarah reveals compelling ideas on how to help keep healthy in a world learning to be hyper-connected. We also explore why screaming at subway trains can be good for the soul.

“Writing is a way to get your brain on to a piece of paper and then move it through time or space, or both…” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

Items mentioned in this episode (quick access):

[0:00:45] Rob introduces Sarah Kathleen Peck.

[0:01:40] Sarah shares what her life was like as a child. Introspective. Playing games in the backyard. Putting on her own productions.

Rocket science

[0:02:40] Parents were rocket scientists. Always material around to make and create.

[0:03:07] Trouble-shooting and testing for satellites and space systems.

[0:03:20] Rob asks what creativity means to Sarah.

[0:03:35] Sarah reveals that we have a habit of limiting our creativity. Why we are dismissive.

We are beings designed to create

[0:03:53] Dismissing talents: “I can’t…” and “I don’t…” draw / sing, for example.

[0:04:05] Talent. Sarah explains that we are intrinsically creative beings.

[0:04:25] “The very act of being created means you are a creative being…”

[0:04:35] Why we are primed to learn.

“We are primed to learn.” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

Mindset and why we get stuck

[0:04:45] Why we get stuck.

[0:04:52] Development of the ego. Why we wrap ourselves up inside of our own worth.

[0:05:05] How we learn that there are outcomes with what we do and we forget that we can learn new things.

[0:05:14] Sarah mentions Carol Dweck’s book Mindset.

[0:05:45] Different mindsets for different skills. Fixed and growth mindset.

[0:06:00] “What I make is who I am or what I created is related to the value of who I am as a human being…we lose sight of the playfulness of creativity.”

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The impact of environment on creativity

[0:06:28] How environment affects us in terms of creativity / productiveness / mode of being.

[0:06:35] The environment you are in can influence you. Sarah talks about how environmental determinism can control your behaviour. Sarah gives the example of behaviour in a drugstore.

[0:07:20] Talking about habits, creativity and learning.

[0:07:53] Rob asks Sarah how she prepares her environment for creative work.

[0:08:00] Sarah describes her writing environment and working from home.

“Writing is the easiest and hardest thing to do.” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

Finding a rhythm

[0:08:16] Sitting down.

[0:08:40] How Sarah remains motivated and how she avoids distraction.

[0:08:50] Sarah mentions Pam Slim’s writing practice.

“Creating habits is the most useful thing I can do.” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

Dealing with distractions, personal pressure and overwhelm

[0:09:35] The more I write, the easier it is to write.

[0:09:47] Procrastination. Sarah spent 6 months not writing…Why Sarah felt like she had let herself down and put more and more pressure on herself.

“The act of sitting at my computer and writing the document became overwhelming…” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

[0:10:50] How her mindset got her back into writing. Working with her coach.

[0:11:49] Rob asks Sarah what her challenges are working at home.

[0:12:03] How Sarah manages her time and space with her husband, a creative strategist.

[0:13:31] Talking about introversion and desires for unfettered space.

“There’s something delightful about changing contexts.” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

Habits, addictions and isolation

[0:14:03] Rob asks Sarah about the upside of loneliness in a hyper-connected world asking if technology is making us more lonely.

[0:14:39] Sarah is a technological optimist.

[0:15:15] Why we’re still learning, as a society, how to deal with hyper-connectedness. Why we might experience extreme fatigue physically, culturally and socially.

“I think we’re in our teenage years of understanding what this hyper-connectedness is…” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

Communication breakdown

[0:16:03] Radio. Television. Telephone. Transmission.

[0:16:52] “We’re saying the same things, just in a different form…”

“Communication technology is essentially a way to get words, or your voice, across time and space…” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

Loneliness vs. being alone

[0:16:56] Sarah defines the difference between loneliness and being alone.

[0:17:20] Sarah suggests that “alone is a quality we’re all comfortable with.”

[0:17:43] Sarah explains that the psychological difference between the amount of social connectedness that we want is relative to the amount that we have.

[0:18:18] Why Sarah checks in with her feelings often.

[0:18:30] Why you can feel more lonely, or more connected, spending time on Facebook.

Ask yourself this…

[0:18:57] Sarah shares a useful question to ask yourself.

[0:19:05] Sarah offers another definition of loneliness.

[0:19:25] Fragmentation.

“Sometimes loneliness is a separation from self.” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

Art vs. craft

[0:19:46] Rob and Sarah discuss creating for yourself and creating for others.

[0:20:59] When you’re making art it’s not in an isolated channel or a purely blissful experience.

[0:21:09] Sarah suggests there is so much craft that goes into art no matter who it is for.

[0:21:20] Stephen King. Steven Pressfield. Martha Beck. Essential self and social self.

[0:22:04] Rob asks Sarah about when inspiration strikes her.

“There’s so much richness inside of your brain and your body and your mind and your soul, sometimes it’s just about sitting down and letting it out.” – Sarah Kathleen Peck

Mind, body, soul, inspiration and gratitude

[0:22:41] Rob asks Sarah in what ways she takes care of her creative self.

[0:22:48] Sarah talks about yoga teacher training in New York City. The experience of yoga and meditation.

[0:23:17] Sarah discusses journal writing and food. She reveals how these are spiritual practices for her. Writing to analyse worries, fears and insecurities.

[0:23:31] Rob asks Sarah what has inspired her recently.

[0:25:20] Sarah shares with Rob what she is most grateful for…

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Links and Resources:

• Sarah’s website: itstartswith.com
• Alive in Berlin*
• World Domination Summit

People mentioned in this episode:

• Pamela Slim
• Carol Dweck’s Mindset*
• Stephen King
• Steven Pressfield
• Martha Beck

If you enjoyed this podcast, you’ll also like:

• Sarah On Reaching Creative Goals By Overcoming Procrastination
• What Jo Moore Can Teach Us About Overcoming Feeling Down
• How To Deal With Social Media Overwhelm and Blogging For Business
• How To Reduce Overwhelm
• Jana Schuberth On Being Alive, Creating Space and Timeless Travel

Thanks for listening

If you enjoyed the show, share your thoughts with me or leave an honest review for others on iTunes by clicking here and rating the show. I’d be delighted. It will help folks to find the show.

Enjoy the show!

*affiliate links