A night out with Elizabeth Gilbert.
You all know who Elizabeth Gilbert is right?
The best-selling author of Eat Pray Love? It’s been 10 years since that book was published and resonated with women across the globe.
Well I saw she was coming to little old Brisbane and the tickets were only $40. Too good an opportunity to pass up.
Now I am going to preface this article by saying I am not a huge girl fan. I read her book, I watched the movie, I follow her on Facebook, I like her but not in a gushing way, you know? I haven’t read anything else of her work (but after the talk so keen to read her fiction novel!) I don’t subscribe to the theory of finding gurus to direct your life, I like to take snippets of wisdom from a lot of people. I figure I will pick up the bits of info I am meant to learn with any interactions or readings.
Anyway, the event was part of The Brisbane Writer’s Festival and Liz was on stage in a chat situation, interviewed by Mia Freedman. I personally thought this was a really odd pairing and there was a sense of awkwardness throughout the interview, possibly not helped by a crowd member heckling Mia to get back on topic when she started waffling about cosmetic surgery!
In essence, the chat was to be focused on Elizabeth’s new book, Big Magic and all about the creative process. I don’t really think of myself as a creative person or work with the creative process but the information and wisdom shared by Liz was relatable to most aspects of life anyway.
She is a very direct, down to earth person. There is no fluff. There is just telling it like it is. That is pretty refreshing. She also dropped a lot of F-Bombs which made us all laugh.
So I wanted to share with you some gems, some pearls of wisdom, some aha moments that I experienced on the night. I am paraphrasing her here – I didn’t take notes!
♥ If you have time for television and Facebook, you have time to start doing those things that make you happy and that help you reach your goals. Be conscious of where you are spending your time and energy.
♥ You have to learn to be okay with disappointing people. Liz does not do book signings because they are too draining on her energy – she prefers to spend her energy on writing. However she is okay with the fact that people will be upset with her. I think a few of us were a little shaken by this. Women often learn to be people pleasers, don’t we? But in the process we sacrifice ourselves.
♥ When creating something, go for real not perfect. Nobody can replicate something you make, so put your heart and soul into it, without a need for perfection and love it for what it is.
♥ Embrace the fear. Okay, not a new concept but Liz explains it in a cool way. Fear will always be with you, so let it come along for the drive, but it sits in the back seat and doesn’t choose the snacks!
♥ Just do the thing. Negotiating with yourself about whether you are going to exercise or start writing or doing whatever is exhausting. Just do the thing.
♥ The difference between a hobby, a job, a career and a vocation. An interesting way of looking at your life. Read Liz’s Facebook post here.
♥ Inspiration and hard work are a beautiful collaboration. Those little whispers our soul gets – those beautiful moments of brilliance – harness those but don’t forget that you put the work in to make something happen.
If you want to see a video replay of the night, check it out here.
Have you seen Elizabeth Gilbert? Have you read her books? Are you a fan?
