Exercise “Watercolor painting on water”

Purpose: to indicate the possibility of one’s own presence in the “here and now” state, to pay attention to the possibility of being aware of the process without worrying about the result, to give permission to receive a resource from the process. The effect of the practice is especially beneficial for women during pregnancy.
You will learn:
– listen and hear the inner “I”;
– get away from the expectation of internal and external evaluation of performance;
– remove anxiety for the result;
– take the right to be in the process of creativity and enjoy
activities.
Inventory: watercolor (it is important to choose high-quality watercolor and not use white – it makes the water cloudy more than other colors), water in a deep bowl (white or transparent plastic bowl), a white sheet of A4 paper for dishes.
Working time: 30-45 min.
You are invited to pay attention to the watercolor in the box, consider the colors; choose the thickness of the brush, examine the water (water is poured into the dishes almost to the edge, the dishes are on a sheet of paper – a light background around the water).
Instructions for action:
1. Listen to yourself and feel your state, emotions.
2. Position your body comfortably on a chair.
3. Pay attention to the color of the watercolor: what color “calls” to that color we touch with a brush.
4. Slowly start making dots on the water and watch what happens to the paint. Watch yourself. Be in the process.
5. When the brush starts to draw on the water – let it do it, and watch the process.
6. If you want, change the color of the paint.
7. Take the brush in your “non-dominant” hand and paint further. Watch yourself. Be in the process.
8. You can take a second brush and paint with both hands. Watch yourself. Be in the process.
9. Think – what happens to the result – your drawings on the water, where are they, what happens to them and how do you like this process?
10. If you really want to, you can start drawing on the dishes themselves and on a piece of paper. Anxiety is reduced, a hard result of the action appears: the drawing does not disappear
11. In order for the water to become transparent – you need to wait until the paint settles
Questions to accompany:
“Watch yourself. How has your condition changed?
How often do you manage to stay focused on the process?
What prevents you from being in the “here and now” state in the usual state?
What is your condition?
How does this creativity resonate with your usual actions?
What does your condition say?
How does your body feel about it? And. etc.
Conclusions: being brought up in the “assessment + criticism” system, a person forgets about the process in action, and focuses all his experiences on the result. This technique allows you to safely move away from the result and focus on the process.
This method is good in working with anxiety, insecurity, burnout. The resource that the client receives in the process of work remains in memory for a long time – permission to be in action, to be in the process, not to rush things and give yourself time.