Kent Sanders

Reflections on Writing & Creativity

Podcast 075: Don’t Forget to Feed Your Creative Soul (with Alice Perrey, Pianist & Professor)

February 21, 2019 by Kent Sanders | Leave a Comment

As artists and entrepreneurs, we face the constant struggle of how to best use our time. We not only want to produce great creative work, we also have jobs, families, customers or clients, church and community responsibilities … and sleep! It’s far too easy to forget that we need to feed our souls with great art. Our guest today shares her story of becoming an amazing artist, and why we need to continue feeding our souls throughout our lives.

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I’m excited to bring you this fun conversation with my good friend Alice Perrey. She is the Professor of Developmental Studies and Chair of the General Education Division at St. Louis Christian College, where I’m also a professor. I have always respected Alice’s great talent as a fantastic pianist, but even more, I’ve admired her generosity and good humor as an amazing human being. Alice also released her first instrumental piano album, called “Streams for the Soul,” last year.

On this episode, you’ll learn why Alice was drawn to piano as a child, insights for dealing with criticism as an artist, and practical tips for making time for your creative work no matter what your stage of life. Alice also offers some great insights into why you must take action and work through the challenges of a new project.

As an added bonus, at the very end of the episode, I’ve included the track “When We All Get to Heaven” from Alice’s instrumental album.

Episode Highlights

In this episode, you’ll discover:

  • The role of good music in Alice’s musical development.
  • Why Alice was drawn to learning the piano.
  • Alice’s advice for finding the area you need to focus on.
  • Insights on dealing with criticism.
  • How Alice has made time to practice in various stages of life.
  • What she learned from recording an releasing her instrumental piano album “Streams for the Soul.”
  • Alice’s next project.

Key Takeaways

1. Make the time to do what you love.

This is easier said than done, of course. We all lead busy lives with multiple commitments. However, there is always a way to find time for what truly matters most. Alice mentioned that when she was raising kids, Saturdays were a key time to practice piano. If you have kids at home, you can relate to this struggle! Even if you can’t spend as much time as you like, you can still surely find at least a little bit of time to devote to pursuits that feed your creative soul or move your business forward.

I think there is also something to be said for paying attention to your stage of life. A single adult, a parent with small kids, a parent of a teenager, and an empty nester are all in different stages of life. It’s important that our habits, routines, and goals are in alignment with how much time we can devote to those things. We must flow *with* the life we have, and whatever stage we are in, instead of *against* it.

2. Do the hard work of making a product.

Alice talked at length about her first album, which she released last year. This presented a real learning curve for her, as it does for anyone who is learning a new process or creating something for the first time. But she worked through the challenges, had some help, and stuck with it.

Any creative project is going to have a set of unique challenges. This includes setting up a blog, creating a podcast, writing a book, making an album, starting a business, or any number of things. You have to be willing to stick it out and work through the “grind.” It’s not a matter of talent, but rather of persistence and good old-fashioned stubbornness. So you must commit to doing the hard work.

There is also the matter of starting something before you feel ready. Alice didn’t feel ready to make her first album. Chances are pretty good that you don’t feel ready to dive into whatever thing you want to create, either. That’s OK. Just dive in, and you will figure it out as you go along.

3. Ask yourself: Do I take pleasure in serving others?

Alice said something really profound: I take great pleasure in making others sound good. This is a really key point for any artist who wants to make an impact on others, and not just make “cool stuff.”

The creative process, ultimately, is all about serving others. The best artists, the ones who have the most impact, are those who view their art as a way to serve their audience. You can serve people in a variety of ways: entertaining, inspiring, teaching, challenging, coaching, speaking, and many other ways. But it all must come down to the fact that you are creating something to somehow improve someone’s life.

Our creativity should be fun! Our creativity should make our lives better! Our creativity can definitely help us make money! I couldn’t agree more with those things. But at the end of the day, our overarching goal must be to serve others.

Resources

Download my free ebook: 21 Time Hacks for Writers.

I want to thank Alice for taking the time out of her busy schedule to share this amazing conversation!