When I first taught a mindful art class I was standing in a room of 25 first graders and gently prompting them to draw a flower with their eyes closed. We’d just had a short discussion about how drawing was a way to slow ourselves down and be still, quiet, and calm. At the time, as a social-emotional based mindfulness educator for Mindfulness First, it may have appeared as though I was teaching a lesson on art. Yet this was really a mindful exercise in the art of letting go and unlocking joy.
How many times have you created something – a meal, a hair style, a special night out – only to overthink the process and judge yourself and the final outcome based on what it “should” have been? Yet, what could happen if we let our judgments and harsh inner critics go and just allowed ourselves to do what came naturally to us? This is the definition of mindfulness in action. How might we surprise ourselves and find joy in that process?
Letting go with mindful drawing
Mindful drawing is a transformative practice because it combines two key elements: the suspension of judgment and the joy of uncertainty. You never know what you’re going to get and you’re intentionally detached from the outcome. Combined with mindful intention, drawing can be a way to release stress and it’s also a form of self-care. The type of self-care that nourishes you by immersing you in an activity that creates the wonder of surprise.
Nowadays I teach a stress management course to college students. Although I haven’t asked them to draw a flower with their eyes closed (yet), many of my college students practice mindful art in various ways. They report back in their mindful training exercise assignments that coloring mandalas, creating zentangles, and sketching helps them be in the present moment and let go of worry and their inner critic (aka the mindless monster).
Unlocking the element of joy
Back in the class of first graders, I asked the group to not look at their drawing while they were creating their flower. They could close their eyes or look away from their paper, that way they could completely draw something from their imagination.
With a crayon in one small hand, and their other hand keeping track of the edges of the blank paper in front of them, the students quietly drew a flower with their eyes tightly shut.
Periodically I would ring my “mindful bell” reminding them to continue taking mindful breaths as they drew and asked them to notice things like:
- any impulse to open their eyes
- the sense of touch with their paper
- how it felt to draw with their eyes closed
When the first grader’s completed their drawing, they opened their eyes and experienced the surprise of their flower. I also observed something else: the joy of suspending judgment; the joy of letting go of a desired outcome; the joy of creating and surrendering to uncertainty.
As a woman in charge of so much in your life, you need a risk-free opportunity to practice the art and joy of letting go. In spaces that are safe, you can experience surrender and conscious breathing so that you know how it can feel and remember this when you are in the real-life moments when the stakes are higher.
That is why I created my workshop Mindful Drawing Exercise: Cultivating the Art of Letting Go. This is an interactive hour to practice a way to let go of doubt, guilt, frustration, and stress. When you let go (of expectations, self-blame, judgment, control, etc.) it allows your energy to be redirected to the only thing you truly have agency of: your decisions, your responses, your choices.
We can infuse lightness around acceptance and letting go of control, frustration, the need to be right, and more with meditation and mindful drawing exercises. It’s highly accessible to all because you don’t have to be an artist or have any fancy supplies – a blank piece of paper and a pencil will do!
Life is meant to be experienced, not perfected, and there is so much simple, everyday joy to be found along the way. Mindful awareness practices, like drawing, reminds us that we don’t have to overthink and examine every little detail. And more importantly, that there is a joy in letting go.
The Mindful Drawing Exercise: Cultivating the Art of Letting Go workshop is offered for free through my Joyful Well-being Group. This group is focused on women’s empowerment and well-being. As a mindfulness and well-being coach, a college stress management and psychology professor for over a decade, I’ve help thousands of people destress and increase their capacity for joy using meditation, mindfulness, and positive psychology.
My workshops are nurturing spaces to explore the power of mindfulness, inner balance and resilience by providing practical tools and insights for women. I offer a blend of practical tools and insightful discussions and activities to help you get out of your own way so you can thrive in both your personal and professional life.
Whether you are looking to enhance your stress management skills, improve your focus and clarity, find more joy, or connect with like-minded individuals, this group is created to support and inspire you.
