Trust the Process

by McNiff, Shaun

• ISBN13: 9781570623578
• ISBN10: 1570623570
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 1998-03-31
• Publisher: Shambhala

Summary

Whether in painting, poetry, performance, music, dance, or life, there is an intelligence working in every situation. This force is the primary carrier of creation. If we trust it and follow its natural movement, it will astound us with its ability to find a way through problems-and even make creative use of our mistakes and failures. There is a magic to this process that cannot be controlled by the ego. Somehow it always finds the way to the place where you need to be, and a destination you never could have known in advance. When everything seems as if it is hopeless and going nowhere . . .trust the process.

Author Biography

Shaun McNiff is internationally recognized as a founder and leading figure in the arts and healing field. University Professor at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he is past president of the American Art Therapy Association and the author of several other books including Art As Medicine , Trust the Process , and Creating with Others .

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
License to Create	1	(8)
1. Unpredictable Magic	9	(38)
The Wellspring of Movement	11	(11)
Stepping into the Unknown	22	(11)
Emanation	33	(8)
Mistakes and Distortions	41	(6)
2. In the Beginning Is the Attitude	47	(44)
The Many Ways of Creating	49	(11)
The Blank Page	60	(9)
Reframing	69	(6)
Blocks	75	(6)
Moving between Worlds	81	(10)
3. Every Experience Has Something to Offer	91	(48)
Karma of Simple Acts	93	(7)
Distilling	100	(9)
Gathering and Arranging Things	109	(6)
Play and Ornamentation	115	(9)
At Work	124	(8)
Vision	132	(7)
4. Create with What You Already Have	139	(32)
Beginning Close to Home	141	(8)
Creating with the Environment	149	(10)
Childhood Memories and Gifts	159	(12)
5. Practice	171
Acting and Not Acting	173	(2)
Becoming a Stranger	175	(6)
Repetition	181	(9)
Going On to the Next One	190	(3)
Criticism	193	(11)
Wonder before the Object	204