Idea Graveyard

0:00Hey, friend. Welcome to the Art and Soul Show. I'm your host, Lisa DeJaso, a mom, a photographer, and entrepreneur. Tune in here for pep talks, conversations, and advice on photography, creativity, mindset, business, life, and that messy in between. This is the place where you can go when you need a boost of encouragement, a kick in the pants, and inspiration to pick up your camera. This is the Art and Soul Show. Welcome back. Hey, friend. I want to talk to you

0:31about something every creative probably has, even if we don't want to admit it out loud. It's a place we don't post on Instagram. It's a place we don't show in our portfolios, a place we don't mention when clients ask. So what's next? I call it the idea graveyard. It's where all of my half-finished projects, abandoned plans, and messy beginnings go to rest. And I don't know about you, but mine is crowded. So let me tell you of a few residents of my own idea graveyard. There are costumes and backdrops I bought for elaborate self-portraits. I had these grand

1:07visions of photographing myself in these historically inspired cinematic themes. I was going to bring stories to life, embody characters, create art that felt like stepping into a painting. And where are those costumes now? Hanging up in my client closet, sitting in bins, with the tags still on, waiting. And then there's the felting experiment of 2021. Sitting in bins, still with the tags on, waiting. I decided I was going to felt my own little newborn loveys, these tiny little adorable handmade props. I imagined myself holding up my proud masterpiece,

1:44proud that I created something so special. So what actually happened? Broken needles, bleeding fingers, and a lump of wool that looked more like a chewed up slipper than anything you'd hand to a baby. And oh, the shed. Let's not forget the shed. It's filled with marketplace furniture. I dragged home with the intention and big plans to refinish them. Each piece was going to be transformed into a dreamy set prop. Life got busy. Sessence piled up. My energy ran low.

2:17And those tables and chairs are still sitting there, gathering dust, silently mocking me. Now here's the thing. I used to look at that graveyard and feel shame. I'd bump past the costumes, that lumpy felting project, the furniture in the shed, and hear the voice in my head saying, see? You never finish anything. You're flaky. You waste money. You waste time. You're not disciplined enough to follow through. Sound familiar? But here's what I've come to realize. The idea graveyard isn't proof of my failure. It's proof that I am alive and

2:53creative. It's proof that I'm willing to try. Because here's the truth. Not every idea is meant to live forever. Some ideas are just stepping stones to other ideas. Some are experiments. Some are practice. Some are meant to spark something else entirely. That felting project, it taught me maybe my gifts are better used behind the camera than with wool and needles. The costumes, they're still whispering to me, reminding me that self-partraits are something I want to return to when the season is right. The furniture, okay, maybe that one is just a reminder

3:25to stop scrolling marketplace late at night. But even that taught me something where my energy should and shouldn't go. We need to stop looking at our idea graveyards as evidence that we're not good enough. They're not evidence of failure. They're evidence of growth. Think about it. Every single successful person you admire has an idea graveyard of their own. They have books they've never read. Drafts that never saw the light of day. Projects that fizzled. Experiments that bombed. They just don't

3:56show them to you. But those abandoned projects weren't wasted. They cut skills. They sparked new directions. They shaped the work that did make it out to the world. And here's something I want you to think about. Your worth is not measured by how many of your ideas make it across the finish line. Your worth is in the fact that you had the courage to try. And let's talk about the emotional side of this. Because it's one thing to say, oh, not every idea is meant to grow. It's another to deal with the guilt when you walk past the costumes in the closet, the supplies in the craft bin, and the

4:29untouched furniture in the shed. The guilt is heavy. It whispers you're wasting money. And maybe your partner says that too. You're wasting space. You're wasting potential. But I want you to try reframing it. Instead of seeing those things as failures, see them as memorials. They're reminders of a season of curiosity, of bravery. They represent the moment you dare to say, what if? And that's something to be proud of, not ashamed of. I'm not saying you should hoard every failed project forever. Sometimes the kind of thing

5:03you can do is let an idea of rest in peace. Sell the furniture. Donate the costumes. Toss the failed felting project. Clear the space physically and emotionally. But don't erase the fact that you try. Because here's the thing. Ideas are like sparks. Some ideas ignite into roaring fires. Some flicker out quickly. But either way, they were sparks. They were signs of life. And every spark matters. So what do we do with our idea graveyards? We learn from them. We honor them. We let them teach us without letting

5:36them shame us. So maybe your idea graveyard has a half-written blog, or a podcast you launched and stopped, or a photography series you shot once and never revisited. Maybe it's a stack of fabric, or a camera lens you thought would change everything, or a domain name you thought in a moment of inspiration that's still sitting unused. Now instead of beating yourself up, I want you to stand back and just look at it differently. You're not flaky. You're not failing. You're a creator. And creators create

6:08more ideas than they'll ever execute. That's part of the job. Think about musicians. For every song that makes it onto an album, there are dozens that don't. For every novel on the shelf, there are drafts and notebooks filled with dead ends. For every successful photo series, there are experiments that didn't work. That doesn't mean those artists failed. It means they showed up and they tried. It means they were alive in their creativity. So here's my challenge to you. Stop hiding your idea graveyard. Stop being ashamed of it. Instead, honor it. It's part of your process. And if you're ready,

6:42maybe even share it. Imagine how freeing it would be to say, here are all the things I've tried that didn't work out. And here's what I learned. Imagine how many other creatives would feel less alone if they saw this from you. Because trust me, you're not the only one with a graveyard. And I'll close with this. Ideas are meant to move. Some will fizzle. Some will thrive. Some will rest in peace. And that's okay. Your job is not to make every idea live forever. Your job is to keep showing up, to keep creating, to keep

7:16daring to ask, what if? Because even if the graveyard is full, it means you've been alive, you've been trying, and you've been being brave. And that's what makes you an artist. I am sending you so much of my light and love, my friend. Keep making art. Keep showing up. Keep trying. I'll see you next time.