Two Great Drives
This post is a little philosophical in nature, but it gets to the heart of the MoJo and one reason why we created it.
A foundational idea behind The MoJo is that there are two great drives in existence. These drives are constantly with us, tugging at our minds and emotions and bodies and spirits. They exert their influence on our relationships, our careers, our families, and our passions. They create and destroy the worlds around us.
What are these two drives? The drive to CONSUME and the drive to CREATE.
Some characteristics
Before going into further detail about each drive here are a few general characteristics of these ever-present forces.
They are neutral. They hold no innate goodness or badness on their own. They simply are.
They are constant. They never fully go away. From your first breath to your last you will feel them tugging at you.
They can grow stronger or weaker if you feed them.
THE DRIVE TO CONSUME
The consuming drive pushes us to, well, consume. It is appetite and ambition and hunger and desire. It seeks to extract resources from the world around us and bring them inside of ourselves to use as fuel.
The drive to consume is one of the greatest forces in operation. We see it in the world around us everyday. It has shaped nations, lead to the expansion of the human race (both geographically and our waistlines!), and led to world wars.
Again, it is not innately bad, even though it gets a bad rap. It is part of an eternal system. A few further points about this drive include:
It is essential.
It takes and the more it is fed, the more it wants to take.
It can give, if harnessed.
Almost anything can be consumed: food, alcohol, sex, money, time, relationships, exercise, etc. Every activity or process or resource that humans engage in or create can be consumed.
Consumption can be, and often is, mistaken for creation.
It is a great servant.
It is a horrific master.
THE DRIVE TO CREATE
The drive to create works upon us physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. It is art, and inspiration, and love, and work. It is expansive and seeks to take that which is within and put it out into the worlds around us and expand it. It is expansive. It is inclusive.
The drive to create is one of the greatest forces in operation. We see it in the world around us everyday. It has shaped nations, lead to the expansion of the human race in science, technology, philosophy, equity, and justice, to name just a few. It has ended world wars.
Creation is part of an eternal system. A few further points on this drive include:
It is essential.
It strengthens the creator and those who receive the creation.
It is life-affirming.
Almost anything can be creative: food, alcohol, sex, money, time, relationships, exercise, etc. Every act or process that humans in engage in can be creative.
It needs some consumption, so as to create.
It is a great master.
IMBALANCED SYSTEMS
So, why are we telling you this? Because the MoJo was born out of a desire to help creators (which is really everyone) magnify their creativity by harnessing their consuming drive and channel it into creation.
We believe that all humans were put here to be creators. If we are not creating, then we are depressed, we are unfulfilled, there is something missing. What we create depends on our particular interests, passions, and calling in life.
Sadly, many of us have been lost to the drive to consume. Consumption is a powerful beast and the more it gets, the more it wants. It doesn't want money to create, it wants money so it can consume more things: cars, food, property, influence. The self becomes self-obsessed forgets an important lesson: that to feel joy we must create joy and send it out into the world and into others lives.
When we consume in order to create, we are balanced. When consumption becomes the point of our existence, the system is imbalanced and we are unhappy and unfulfilled.
The consuming drive should always be operating in service to the creative drive.
The drives and writing
So, how do these drives play out in our writing (or any creative endeavour)?
Well, if we are driven mainly by consumption then we may often find ourselves delaying our writing in order to watch something, read something, eat something or abuse some kind of substance (or even people). We may suck on the relationships in our lives in order to fill the hole inside us that can only be filled through creation. Or, we may write but we are filled with fear. We worry what others may think excessively because really we are writing for approval, or acceptance, or money all in an effort to fill the lack.
On the other hand, when we are driven by creation, we take the rejuvenation and rest and food we need, but not to excess, and it inspires and energises us to write more. We write for the enjoyment of crafting, for the worlds we are building. We come away having lost ourselves, for a time, in our writing and this act of creation. We are excited to share it with the world in the hope that others may be inspired and fueled and nourished, and we are fine if not everyone loves it. We come away from writing invigorated and this energy flows with us into our relationships and the world around us.
Often we can detect our motivating drive by the effect it is having on us. Consuming drains when not channelled into creation. Creation energises and inspires and fulfils.
The MoJo
We created the MoJo with a desire to help everyone harness and nourish their creative drive. To focus it, tap into it, and watch it grow, because we believe if everyone truly tapped into their basic human nature of creating, we would all live much happier and peace-filled lives.
The MoJo gently points you towards creation. Every day and week you will have a chance to review how much you operated as a creator vs. a consumer. Were they in balance? It's a place to check you are following that inner voice inside that says you can do great things. It's also a place to quieten the voice that says "you can't".
So, here's to your inner creator.
We can't wait to see what you'll bring into the world.