Has somebody popped your bubble?
There is a greater likelihood that it was you, than anyone else.
As a creative being, bubbles spawn out of consciousness. They form at the strangest moments, and when they do, it is imperative to write them, record them, whatever your flavor, but commit them to something other than your memory, because they can disappear in a millisecond if one is not diligent in capturing their essence when they are in full view.
Bubbles (creative thoughts) are magical. They come from anywhere, at any time. Many times they occur when our brains go into theta waves. When you are driving on auto pilot or in the shower, you are in a series of tasks that you are mostly disengaged from and that is where ideation can take place in a free flow without censorship or guilt. Theta waves are the origin of our bubbles.
So deep in theta waves, we start blowing bubbles. They are shiny. Magical. Inspirational. Life-changing. So we embrace them as the magic pathways that they truly are and we enshroud them with our delight and enthusiasm. This is (for me) one of life’s most rewarding moments. The act of creation and ideation is where I find some of my most fulfilling joy.
And then…. The bubble(s) require nourishment. Some stay written and go nowhere for years. (I still have a collection of them going back to before I started The Illusion Factory.) Others, require an instantaneous effort because they warrant the expenditure of energy for a host of prioritized reasons.
To Svitak’s position, the effort to keep a bubble from popping is nowhere near as exhilarating as the moment of inception. The effort can still be incredibly engaging, joyous, and rewarding… but it is now in the manifestation stage and that requires work. And let’s face it, the work is just what it says it is. Work.
The purpose of this aphorism and my musing is that a bubble is like a child. You give birth to it. (Far less painful than giving birth to a child, to be certain!!!) But after the birthing, the pain of maintaining a bubble can be more work than raising a child and considerably more expensive. It does not have to be, of course, as some bubbles are small in scope and may just require an artistic or scholarly effort to take the bubble from concept to fruition. But a bubble of Sizzle’s scope and magnitude is an entirely different beast.
When you commit to taking a bubble and giving it all you’ve got, the enthusiasm that originated that bubble while you were in theta waves, is a distant blip in your rearview mirror. The energy and enthusiasm that gave birth to it have long waned, and the reality of the commitment to making it come to fruition has become overwhelming and is taking its toll on every aspect of your being. This is where many bubbles pop. The reality of execution is just too much, and it is easier to allow that bubble to pop, than it is to keep fostering the bubble and nurturing it to final execution. I know, because I have let many bubbles either pop, or just remain dormant over the course of my life. I have a half-baked bubble collection that calls to me daily, asking for permission to come back to my front focus. (Hopefully, the creation of Sizzle, will give platform for many of those bubbles to find the proper home for their next stage of development.)
Bubbles are also vulnerable at the outset from the opinion of third parties. Have you ever shared an idea that you thought was brilliant and received a tepid response at best? When this happens, you have two options. You may choose to believe that person, because you value their opinion and perhaps their comments are valid, and perhaps their constructive criticism will give you an alternate path of creation that will improve that bubble. Alternatively, perhaps their perspective is not accurate because you may have misrepresented your bubble when explaining it, or their mind was not in the right space to understand and appreciate it, or any of one hundred reasons why they just popped your bubble…. Including envy, jealousy, spite or a sadistic nature.
That is where you need to be a great parent of the bubble. You must filter the response you have received, contemplate the potential for their feedback to be valid, and then continue to protect your idea, allow it room to expand, grow and take form, regardless of criticism of others. This requires a spine. We are all born with one, but I am surprised sometimes by how few people actually use theirs. In this case, a spine is rigid support with flexible movement. It allows you space to take that constructive criticism and leverage it (flexibility) or to ignore it (rigid support) and not take the criticism personally.
Leonardo’s notebooks are full of bubbles. Everywhere. In all categories of thought, art, science, engineering, etc. Most of his best ideas were never realized (by him) and were later realized by others, like Orville and Wilbur Wright.
If you are a bubble blower…. Keep at it. Daily. Grow your collection. Cherish them like children. Nurture them as you see fit. Allow others to peruse the ones you want to share. Contemplate the feedback you receive. But in the end… you are the guardian. You are the one who will have to decide if you have what it takes to bring that bubble to fruition. You will be the one to determine if you have the grit, fortitude, determination and voracity to ensure a positive conclusion for that bubble, lest you pop it yourself out of a lack of enthusiasm or passion.
Happy Sunday!
