The blessing of boundaries
Creative briefs are often seen as restraints for artists that crave freedom, but I think it has some benefits that we overlook. We think it’s meant to limit us in our creativity, but what if we look at it as a nursery for ideas to grow?
I’ve always thought that creativity thrived more outside the box of structure and hierarchy. Yet there are processes and systems that have to be in place so that our gifts can shine and be sharpened.
I’m approaching the 5th year mark since I left a full-time job at an ad agency to venture into the world of freelancing and creative entrepeneurship. With that, I also left the comfortable cubicle of working on job orders I received from account managers, campaign briefs from my creative directors.
These days, I make my own creative briefs based on conversations with clients and through a form on my website I usually send as part of my discovery phase. I need to sift through information they share to create these guides so that I design from a place of clarity, rooted in the vision my client has for their business.
Boundaries must also be applied to the way I work. When I first started the self-employed life, I remember working until the wee hours of the morning because I was “in the zone.” Sometimes, I’d even forgo peeing because I wanted to get things done efficiently. I initially didn’t have boundaries as a freelancer. My 9 to 5 became 24/7… and as a consequence, my health suffered—body pains endured and sleep lost. But bit by bit, I learned to shut off my laptop at 10PM…then… 8PM, and eventually made room for breathers and stuff that brought me joy. Like biking and taking art breaks.
Lately, I’m learning that even relationships has to have boundaries. We can’t let our parents or mentors dictate every decision we’ll make. We can’t let what “everybody else is doing” be the moral compass for our values. We can’t let our world revolve around a person, even if it’s someone dear to us.
Here’s a scripture that comes to mind when thinking about boundaries:
The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.Psalm 16:5-6
Even God didn’t turn us into robots who just follow every Word or command He says. We wouldn’t even call that a relationship if that happened. He gave us free will to choose how we live our lives.
Before having the relationship I have with God today, I thought of the bible as a book filled with rules and regulations I need to follow, or else I’ll go to hell and suffer forever. At one point, I even thought that these rules are just killjoy.
While yes, there are certain commandments written on it to guide us… it’s ultimately the way God speaks to us and makes Himself known. The deeper I go into His Word, the more I know His loving character. He is a God who, instead of forcing boundaries on us, invites us to live within the bounds of His pleasing and perfect will. He is a Good Shepherd who lovingly and gently leads His flock. Psalm 23 says, He makes us lie down in green pastures and leads us beside still waters.
Boundaries may mean something that indicates limits, but in light of being at the center of God’s will, I now see it as something truly freeing… That is the blessing of boundaries.
