7 Ways To Manage Stress Creatively

　　7个创意方法，帮你管理自己的压力

　　Stress is a huge problem for us all. Here’s what I’ve learned and apply to manage stress using my creativity.

　　对于我们所有人来说，压力都是个大问题。我在这分享点我自己学到的东西：如何用自己的创造力来管理压力。

　　1. You don’t have to be a “tortured” artist.

　　并不是只有“苦难”才能出诗人

　　It’s easy to use drugs, alcohol, and other crutches to “enhance” our creativity. We’re too disoriented to be thinking about the future, or the past, and we just focus on what’s directly in front of us. We can express ourselves without these crutches.

　　用药物、酒精或者其他的辅助品通常能很容易地“增强”我们的创造力。因为它们把我们弄迷糊了，让我们看不到未来和过去，只能着眼于当下。(其实只要主动着眼于当下)我们即使不用这些东西也能发挥自己的创造力。

　　2. Take care of your self. Mind AND Body.

　　照顾好你自己，心灵与身体都要。

　　Putting my creativity and my work first, I often neglected to eat, exercise, even stand up from my desk. I spent the whole year in non-stop pain – constant doctors which only caused me to feel depressed, sad and useless. I now realize that how I feel physically (and mentally) is more important than the work I create. Taking care of myself includes all natural remedies such as acupuncture, herbs and vitamins as my only form of medicine. I’m learning how to say no to social pressures, in favor of my own well being.

　　我曾把创造力和工作放在第一，经常忽视吃饭，锻炼，甚至从桌边站起来。我花了整整一年的时间不停地找医生治疗，而这些只会让我感到沮丧、悲伤和无助。我现在意识到，比起我创作的作品，身心健康更为重要。我照顾自己的方法包括所有的自然疗法，如针灸、草药和维生素(唯一可以算药物的东西)。为了有利于我自己的幸福，我在学习如何对社会压力说“不”。

　　3. Don’t worry about what other people think of you.

　　不要担心其他人是怎么看待你的

　　This is easier said than done, but I promise it does come with age. No one cares about what you’re doing unless what you’re doing affects and/or benefits them in some way. A lot of people do offer unsolicited advice, it’s human nature to want to help other people… but if that advice is coming from a place of control or judgement, RUN in the opposite direction.

　　说起来容易，但做起来难。不过我保证随着年龄的增长，这种想法会变得容易接受些。如果你所做的事情对他们没有影响或者益处，没有人会关心你在做什么。很多人会提供主动的建议，这是人类的天性——想帮助其他人……但如果这个建议是一种控制或评判，这就不对了。

　　4. Stop Judging.

　　不要不停地评判(自己正在创造的东西)

　　The judgements, awards and critiques of other people are nothing but words constructed as a way of comparing you to someone else. Art is often made to be critiqued, and I love dissecting a good painting or film. However, as the artist, the joy of creativity SHOULD come from the process of creating.

　　其他人的评价、赞扬和批评只不过是些将你与别人比较而说的文字罢了。艺术往往是需要受到批判的，我喜欢仔细分析一幅好画或是一部好电影。然而，作为艺术家，创造力的喜悦应该来自创造的过程。正反馈可以令人为之振奋。评价通常是一种衡量成功的方法。最令人感到愉悦的方法是对你身在何方和你现在所拥有的一切心存感激。

　　5. Don’t Compare.

　　不要做比较

　　Stress is often caused by comparison to others.Most people are not as happy as they portray themselves to be. The best advice I ever heard was this… Don’t compare your inside to other people’s outside. Be open to new experiences, be kind to yourself and accepting of the journey which is life. Being present means not thinking into the future, or harping on the past. The coolest thing about being present is that CREATIVITY LIVES IN THE MOMENT. Each moment is UNIQUE.

　　与别人的比较往往会引起压力。其实，大多数人并不像他们所描绘的那样快乐。我听过的最好的建议是，不要拿你内在的东西和别人外在的东西进行比较。学会接受新的经验，善待自己，并接受如旅程般的生活。活在当下就是不考虑将来，或唠叨过去。最酷的事情是要创造性生活在当下。每一刻都是独一无二的。

　　6. Your intentions matter.

　　你的初衷很重要

　　It’s important to remember why you started doing something. What was your intention? I remind myself to enjoy the process of my creative fun stuff, it’s for me. If others like it, great, but it’s the enjoyment of my creative intention, in the moment, that I treasure.

　　重要的是你要记住为什么开始做某事。你的初衷是什么?我提醒自己要享受创造乐趣的过程，最终目的是为了我自己的快乐。如果别人喜欢它，这很好，但更为重要的是，它让我享受到了创作的乐趣。我很珍惜那一刻。

　　7. Accept Creativity as Work…because who wants a real job anyway?

　　将创造力视作工作……因为，谁想真地工作呢?

　　The biggest skill is being able to separate yourself from your work. This is helpful in our own creative work. If someone doesn’t like our painting, that shouldn’t send us into a spiral of distress. Newsflash: this happens at any job. We have to work, in order to live. So why not spend your days practicing your craft? Why not spend your days being creative?

　　我认为最大的技能，是能够将你自己和工作分开。在进行创造性的工作时，这是有帮助的。因为虽然这些只是我们的工作和创造力，而非我们自己。如果有人不喜欢我们的画，我们不应该把自己陷入痛苦的恶性循环之中。

（编辑：何莹莹）