The Practical Conditions Worksheet

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This checklist maps the practical conditions of your creative life — the skills, space, time, community, and audience that either support your work or don’t. Check what’s true for you.

What you don’t check… perhaps that’s your to-do list?

Creative/Technical Skills

These are the skills you use to make your creative work.

I’m inspired, and ideas come to me easily.
I can execute my ideas technically and am usually happy with the results.
I’m always looking to improve my technical skills.
My work is distinctive and recognizably “mine.”
My ability is recognized by other artists and/or organizations.

Your score

Optional

Business Skills

If selling your work isn’t a concern, then you can skip this section. If you’re thinking of monetizing your creativity, this is a path you might follow.

I have a business bank account.
I keep track of my revenue and expenses.
I send proposals, invoices and other business correspondence.
I consistently sell my work in physical settings—galleries, shows, stores, etc.
I consistently sell my work online.

Your score

Space

Your space is where you do your work—from a dedicated studio to space for a laptop on a table…

I don’t feel constrained or limited by my working space.
My working space is available to me whenever I need it.
My working space inspires me to work.
My space suits my privacy needs.
I have multiple spaces to work in.

Your score

Time

Creative work is still work, and all work uses up time. There’s 168 hours a week!

I have plenty of time to do my work.
My time availability fits the way I like to work and use my time.
I feel I use my time wisely.
I have control of my schedule and time use.
I prioritize my creative time consistently.

Your score

Community

You might make your work by yourself, but a supportive community is life-changing. All great art movements, from the Pre-Raphaelites to Grunge, happened within a community of like-minded creative people.

I have a significant other who supports my work enthusiastically.
I have friends who give me honest, useful feedback on my work.
I’m part of a real-world “scene” or a social circle of similar creative people.
I’m part of an online creative community.
My community connects me to people who can further my goals.

Your score

Audience

Unless you strictly make your work for yourself, your audience is an important consideration, especially if you’re planning on monetization.

My audience can easily find my work.
My audience gives me feedback and pushes me to work harder.
My audience can describe what is unique and interesting about my work.
My audience collects my work.
My audience knows my story.

Your score

Your Takeaways

There’s no “If your score was between 40 to 50, you’re a Sagittarius” kind of thing. This isn’t about you grading yourself and feeling bad or happy. It is about getting some insight into where your efforts are going and how that might be helping you. Some questions you can answer in your head or write down:

Any surprises? A surprise high score? A surprise low score?

Which category is sucking up your energy but still has a low score?

Which category has an effortlessly high score?

A Quick Coaching

Write down a phrase you didn’t check, such as “I feel I use my time wisely.”

Obviously, the opposite is that you’re using your time unwisely. Write down the unwise things you’re doing:

Too much social media.
I waste a lot of time setting up my stuff to work.
I get interrupted a lot.
I start and restart a lot. An hour later I’ve gotten nowhere.

Now you have a list of things to fix. Chances are you already knew some of these things, but there’s something different about it when you see it in writing. It’s harder to escape something right in front of your nose.

So, can you think of positive tactics? Do you have a way of making it harder for you to get on social media? Can you do something to limit your interruptions?

#4 is very interesting because it suggests that there’s an internal block going on in you, some perfectionism, some shame down in your depths.

Some things you can fix with a screwdriver and a pair of pliers. Some things require swimming around in your subconscious looking for the anchor that’s holding you back.

In a coaching session, we would go deeper, of course, but you can get a start. And if you’d like to find out more about working with me, go to highlymaneuverable.com/contact.

Warm regards,
Luke