What you’re truly seeking is not on Google.

Screen Shot 2015-01-22 at 12.36.59 PMI was feeling a little dried-up this fall. Part of it was seasonal, I’m sure, and part of it was finally downshifting after more than a year of full-on production (book launch, speaking tour, wedding and The Freedom Immersion.)

With the exhale came the feeling that I’d lost touch with my creative essence. My joie de vivre had begun to hit snooze.

I’ve been told by many a psychic and astrologer and such that I have a lot of power in my second chakra. (If you’re unfamiliar with chakras they’re the seven energy centers of the body that are associated with different organ systems and aspects of our lives. The second chakra rules money, sex, and power.)

One actually said to me: “The kind of energy you have in your hips is the kind that builds empires.”

Power? What Power?

Another gave me an entire reading list of books to help me cultivate this energy. The list included titles such as When God Was a Woman, Untie the Strong Woman, and The Great Cosmic Mother. I have to admit that though they all sit on my bedside table waiting for me, I ordered them more than two years ago and haven’t cracked a single one open.

I’ve had moments when I’ve tapped into the kind of power they’re talking about.

Like when I’m at Zumba class shaking my sh*t, sweaty, totally in the flow, not thinking, just moving, and I feel like I can conquer the world. (Yes, sometimes you find your sacred self in Zumba. You just never know where she’ll turn up!)

But mostly I’m bemused by it.

One particular day when I was feeling out of touch with the sacred within me, I sat on the couch with my iPad browsing the interwebs.

Mike came home and could tell I was off, so he asked me what I was doing. I replied, with irritation, that I was just Googling some things.

He wanted to know what kind of things.

Sheepishly, I finally told him that I’d been Googling the Divine Feminine and sacred sensuality.

He looked me straight in the eyes and said:

What you’re looking for is not on Google.

He was so right. I was using my mind to research something that only my body can really know. I was using my intellect to find out about something I needed to go within to seek out.

Where to Find Real Life

The big things we’re seeking are not in a blog post that gives you seven steps to tap into your most sacred power or four modules on awakening the Divine Feminine.

What we’re really seeking -Truth, Freedom, the Sacred, the Divine – is found through living, not through Googling.

When I emailed a group of girlfriends with an SOS call about feeling dried-up and stuck, my dear crazy sexy Kris Carr wrote the following:

“When the creative shizzle fizzles I know it’s time to step away and truly live. Life is creative, too—in fact it’s far more creative than art. Make it as three-dimensional as possible, and you’ll be shocked by the ideas that start to flood in again.”

Reading that made me burst into tears, which is always my barometer of Truth with a capital “T.”

There isn’t an algorithm to teach us the secret to creative expression.

There’s no seven-step system for awakening our feminine essence.

There isn’t an equation that will lead us to the luscious, sacred part of us where we feel most whole.

In the last couple of months since Mike’s poignant reminder that what I was seeking was not, in fact, on Google, I have been doing a lot more living and a lot less Googling.

For example, I’ve been enjoying cooking for the first time ever. I’m reading cookbooks and planning meals – for fun! (I know there are plenty of people who’ve been doing this for years but trust me, this is very new.)

I’ve been going to BUTI Yoga and Qoya dance class. I’ve been napping. I’ve been taking weekends completely off, not just sort of off.

And wouldn’t you know, I don’t feel dried-up anymore.

The Prescription

If you’re feeling stagnation, especially when it comes to your creativity, sensuality, or sexuality, I would give you the same prescription Kris gave me:

Get off the Google (the iPhone, the computer, the digital device of choice) and get on with living, as full-out as possible. The best stuff not only to express, but also to simply enjoy, is birthed from life itself, not researching it.

And remember:

What you’re truly seeking is not on Google. (Tweet it!)

 

Over to you:

Have you ever felt creatively dried up? If so, what do you do? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this or what resonated most with you in this post. Please leave a comment below!

56 comments

  • Maureen

    Timely and relevant! I am in a New England winter funk! First time out of work since 1978! Feeling old out dated! It struck me today that I have live in my moment…stop worrying if the next email is going to be a potential interview….

    I have books on my bed stand that need reading and four chapters of a novel i am writing that need more chapters… I don’t know why I worry so much, it was never worth it in the past but it’s a guilty reaction because I use to working…. I have to just BE in my present for a while…. Time to take a walk with my dog in the beach. Keep on trucking’!

    Thanks for your post!

  • PattyGBl

    I loved it
    I know what I’m Looking for is not in Google but it was great TO get a reminder.
    I seriously considering about THE time off.
    Thank you!

  • Kate, I so often feel connected with you when I read your posts. It’s like God is giving me just what I need when I need it. Thank you for your courage to be so authentic. I LOVE and appreciate YOU! :)

  • Dorothy Waitoa

    Wow I loved what you shared . All of it made sense to me just taking a break from the norm trying something new . I will remember to do this so I don’t feel stale tbankyou

  • Marina

    Thanks Kate this is just what I needed to hear. After spending 2 soul sucking hours on FB yesterday. Now to get off the computer and go live!

  • Anne Kemlo

    Thanx Kate. Your e-mail came thru a second after I sent out a mental SOS to my angels! Day 9 money love challenge was unexpectedly challenging! Was wondering if I had stuffed up! Doing challenge to find my mojo. Reassured that heaven is always listening as shown by speed of response via your e-mail!! I am thinking I need to trust in the process of life and that all is well. So am now being creative with melted candle wax and making a little model for my kitchen table tonite!! Happy cooking!!

  • Loved your post Kate. For the longest time in my life I held on to the belief that if i wanted something I had to work really really really hard to get it. So, when it came to exams for example by the time I entered those exam halls my brain was so fried with facts I couldn’t think straight! Things are very different now, but it was a long journey getting here. The biggest lesson for me was TRUST! Being able to trust myself and my vision whilst also giving myself permission to enjoy the creative process ALL of it as you say i.e. allowing myself to step back from a deadline, enjoy a latte with a friend, a walk with the dog, cooking a meal with a loved one, knowing always that my vision is still there, it just needs time to percolate like a good cup of coffee! Thanks again, your posts are always so upbeat and inspiring!

  • Kate, my goodness.

    It never fails to amaze me the ways in which the Universe delivers what you need. Albeit a face full of tissues, sanity-questioning doubt and desperate pleas that look like I’m staring a role in a tragic movie, somehow, it shows up.

    The goodness shows up. The light makes it way. The trust I have in what I’m doing and this incredible Universe I live in comes back.

    The serendipitous moments fill me with belief, and joy and laughter. And today, this post delivered those aligned moments to me.

    It’s no surprise that I just signed up for your newsletter. No surprise that I *just* experienced exactly what you described.

    As Marcy, @thedetoxitarian taught me, I feel the Ampersandness of life and seem to almost flourish in it: aligned & completely unraveled.

    Thank you so much for sharing this and at the very moment that you did.

    {{blessings + gratitude, tremendous gratitude}}

    Sheree

    • Kate Northrup

      Wow Sheree – first off – youre an amazing writer! Second – the Ampersandness of life. How brilliant. What a great way to describe the both and. Thank you for that!

    • Sheree, your words combined with Kate’s hit home (right in the heart). I’m just coming off of a couple of days of feeling like this: stuck, unlovable, dried up. Something about my birthday brought up some old stuff. I know by now that when I most want to run from my life with 3 kids, the thing I need to do the most is be in it. So we topped off our evening with a naked family dance party. Seriously healing medicine there. Thank you both for your beautiful sharing!

  • Elisa

    Yes!

    Living the moment
    enjoying the dance of the universe!
    The life!

    Simple live!

    :)

    Thanksssssss!!!!!!!!

    Elisa

  • WooHoo! Am I really the first one too comment? Wow!

    Oh goodness, have I felt this way before. Interesting enough it was around December. I was so thrilled with the Holidays coming up but as soon as Thanksgiving was over I lost my groove and felt stuck. Stuck was all I felt. That and really foggy, like I had lost my direction. I traveled for most of December (and thank God for that) and spent a good amount of time crying until I was empty.

    When I got back I got the idea to make a list of all of the things (ideas) I have ever had or that came across my mind at one time or the other (both in business and life). All of the items that I had put off for years to “run my business”. The result was over 300 items.

    Wow! That was eye opening.

    I have given myself the deadline of marking as many off as I possibly can by April 15th. The idea was thrilling. I have already checked a few off. And, you know what? Magically I have started to feel unstuck.

    Thank you to Mike for reminding us all that what we are looking for is not on Google. He is so right. I have been guilty of “searching” too. I guess it was just the wrong place to look.

    Great article Kate :)

  • Maria

    Thank you for this, Kate! It’s something I desperately needed to hear.

    :)

  • Thank you so much for this post, Kate! As an entrepreneur, I have pages and pages of to-do tasks to tackle but every once in a while I get into a freeze, a zero-productivity mode. Your post came at the perfect time! And I’ll definitely try Qoya!

  • Hi Kate,
    Thank you SO much for the timeliness of this post! It’s clearly TRUE fo r me – and I can always tell when I’m focused too much on ‘knowing’ instead of living. But that doesn’t mean I don’t get caught up in it…I have today! I had a whole list of things go ‘do’ – and instead I am nurturing, napping, listening…and spending less and less time online!

    The timing of your post is perfect for me – thank you! Great validation. AM loving your money love! Thank you, thank you, thank you! There is something deliciously creative which wants to come through me and change my life! It’s been nudging me for a while…and it’s getting louder and louder and louder! Thanks you. Sue

  • Its funny, I have been dealing with this for a while now myself. I went inside and was guided to start a women’s business support group. NOT online, but in my community. What a blessing. We are two weeks old and it has gone from 11 people to over 40. We touched a nerve with needing community and face to face living.

    I love the line Mike said though, that says it all. “What you’re looking for is not on google” Amen

    Thanks and I’m out the door to go live life ;)

  • Hi Kate, such a timely post! Thank you :) I’ve been in a funk over it. I did an inventory of all my activities and then resigned from some to spend more time with my family and friends and to enjoy myself more.

  • Thank you Kate! A beautiful post and yes so so true.
    It made me think of my days just before christmas. I was with my family and totally ‘dried up’ ‘burnt out’ too. I am a dancer and teacher in theatre, dance and chi kung. I was crying and said: “I am so tired. I have done all this studies and learned so much, can teach so many things now. But it is word nothing. I am still broke and it is hard to get enough work. I totally did the wrong studies” Then my aunt came in and told me it is so not true, that it are the most valuable things in todays world and that I should just continue teaching and making performances and sharing the good stuff. Reading your post tells me the same. It is important to share what i love. To get people to move, to connect, to dance, act and answer big philosophical questions allthough they are too big to have a real answer. And to see the poetry in that. Thank you Kate, your writing inspired me a lot today! Happy living and dancing :-)

  • Deb

    Dear Kate,

    Thank you for writing your book, Money a Love Story. It is a book with powerful healing properties!
    Thank you for sharing your wisdom. You are an angel. :)

  • Thank you for this post Kate … I’ve read so many things you’ve written and have felt many times that you were describing my exact life. I had the same experience … it seemed like as of December 1st all the life went out of my sails. I travelled to a big conference in Miami that was supposed to be invigorating and motivating … and instead I just felt flat. Christmas was the same and then the worst happened … I had to put my dog down after the New Year. Life seemed to go from bad to worse … and yet, somehow, now I have discovered the same thing. That it’s only in our “living” of everyday….not the googling, not the business stuff, not the searching or the seeking, but the single moments of each day that we’re either living, or going through the motions. Thanks for this post and your honesty … always so inspiring!

  • Carrie

    I am laughing so hard. My 4am creative brain woke me to write today! At 7am I was feeling burnt (now thats no way to start the day!) So I put on that new song we heard in Buti and started shakin my buti! Yup so good to get out of bed that way! Still craving more buti shaking cuzz it does open up all those yummy divine juices.

    Thanks for the reminder! Second chakra soul food movement!

  • Cora

    I’ve felt very stuck and frustrated about my career and finances. Start of the new year I committed to freelance writing. I cannot get a paying gig to save myself, but I’m scoring awesome interviews with awesome people and attending incredible events.

    When I feel creatively dried up, I do anything. Like working out, I know I’ll feel better for doing something instead of nothing. Sometimes I’ll just free write and things will get going. Other times I’ll put on music and choreograph in my mind. Doing something unrelated can sometimes get me going. Lastly, I’ll read something or watch something by one of my influences. What they’ve created can spark something in me.

  • Oh this is a great post – and I thought I was the only one feeling like this a the end of last year. My problem is a little different, in that I’m stuck together with my million ideas (for books that want writing – literally 5 different ones, a card deck, a retreat program, a new website, and thanks to your #MoneyLoveChallenge an idea for a line of wallets/purses). But it’s been crippling me because it all comes in waves so fast, and it all needs resources put behind it that I don’t have, contacts I haven’t made yet and basically a team behind me already when it’s just me by myself right now.

    Nothing kills creativity inside me faster than realising that I don’t have every detail planned out – and still don’t know HOW I all get from A to Z once I’m done with my visualising, dreaming and meditating. Creative thinking is exactly what will get me to make those connections, find ways to make it all happen, but it’s like I’ve just been drawing blanks when it comes to the next steps. Getting off the internet is SO important, and I think I will do that after today – all weekend will be good old fashioned pen to paper and OUTSIDE time. I’m smiling more already, so thank you x

    • Hi Kalianna. I had a thought when reading your post. Anthony Robbins once taught in a seminar I attended. To ask the essence of person living or not, (Who would know the answer) the question that you need answered. And wait for the answer. “how do I get from A – Z? Wait for it!!!

    • Dushka

      Dear Kate,

      Love your post. Thank you for opening up and writing about what we all go through and do not like to admit. I appreciate both your transparency and joie de vivre – a winning combination.
      I have been studying and practising astrology for the last 30 years. I have begun my studies with Liz Greene who is a Jungian therapist and later on moved to evolutionary astrology…and the reason I am writing this is to share what I have learned both from my clients and astrology. I am sharing this because of your own interest in the whispers ( and sometimes shouts ) from the planets. The great value of astrology is in understanding the cycles that we are going through. How many times I have heard ” So, I am not crazy, after all! ” and it is a priceless moment when a client understands the energy that is present and asks to be honoreud and that it is temporary and also yes, I can live with that! The length of time varies, depending which particular planet is involved. And the answer is really once you understand what is going on to accept it gracefully. Not push, not get frantic because all this is really running away from valuable lessons. but above all, when we hit the wall ( or dry up :-)))my advice is stay with it. Greet the silence and make friends with it. The answer will eventually come. Or not. Maybe you are to live with a mystery for a while. That is good too. All is good that comes from within or a helping hand that you recognize as Truth. I hope this may be helpful to some of you. Just my two cents…

  • Diane

    A lot of insight and wisdom in Mike’s comment, “What you’re looking for is not on Google.” Great blog, Kate!

  • I just had a very similar conversation with my therapist – part of which was related to the Money Love Challenge – about how part of our brain actually shuts down within a minute of looking at a backlit device like our phones and laptops and tablets. I’ve spent just the last two mornings moving my body and fueling it with a delicious smoothie and doing some reading (on paper, not a screen!) before opening my laptop, and it has brought such a shift in my energy. Thank you for being part of moving my energy in 2015 – may it be a year of abundance in all things you value, as well!

  • Simply brilliant! Need this. I just wrote about this to my list. Since December, I have felt off and not inspired. Realized my drive and focus got the best of me. I fogot to enjoy my life and the things that really matter. I’m feeling better. I really appreciate your vulnerability and I love that you are inviting us to go within to find ourselves and our answers. You’re the best Kate. Thank you!

  • Recently lost my best friend and companion of 9 years because he decided to walk away from our relationship. Been feeling a little stuck in many areas but realize that what I am truly seeking wasn’t what he offered me. Basically crumbs. So, with your encouragement, I am not going to Google my life! I am putting a ventless fireplace together tonight and learning more about Buti yoga! Giving it my all!!

  • So I asked the My angels for a sign and wouldn’t you know it, it was YOU! I was looking through my email trying to find my mojo and I found your article.
    Thank you for the reminder. Now, time to go within and live life!

    Love and light
    Arlene

  • susan

    Makes me feel a little better to see I’m not the only one! The NE weather,post holiday crash, family stuff, one chat group said we have almost 7000 health coaches on the site…7000!! Who would ever need me!!!! I decided to step away from the computer but it feels just like the coffee addiction…gotta have it. I decided to clear my head and read a novel,not another wellness manual or blog. I hopped into bed early a few nights and read, To kill a Mockingbird. Wow, I felt rested and entertained. Thanks for making me feel it’s ok to step back for a moment!

  • Oh my Kate, I went through the same thing the end off 2014 and even took the last 2 months off from my online wellness business! And I just wrote a blog post about the experience!! One of the things I have embraced from the experience is the importance of being present wuth my family and not just sitting in the same room buried in my laptop working. Reading your post is confirmation I was and am on the right track. Happy 2015 Kate!

  • Belen

    Love, love the post Kate! I was awake at 2am this morning and unable to sleep so I tried listening to some relaxing music, but it didn’t work so when the alarm went off at 6 am instead of getting up I decided to listen to Louise Hay’s morning meditation and it touched something that I have been ignoring. I know that I’ve been stuck for some time now so today I decided to acknowledge it, accept it and go out and live life. 2014 was a very intense and stressful year in all areas of my life and I have put myself on hold while trying to control it all. The key word is control and though controlling is not always negative I know that what I have really tried to control is really connecting with what I have been through and giving myself permission to just feel. This morning was a wake up call and so was reading your post Kate. Thank you for you!

  • Marcie

    I spent a lot of this afternoon looking for the next shiny thing. What was crazy was I found myself checking and rechecking email and looking for people to call . . . and I’m exhausted. I’ve upgraded a ton — newly painted walls, a new carpet (installed today!), I am redecorating my apartment. I just crushed a deadline. I’d reached out to a potential new client. I had a business meeting for more work that I needed to prep for. I have two business trips back to back. Yesterday, I was so overwhelmed that I couldn’t get tractiion and today I was bouncing around eagerly looking for the next new thing.

    Good to hear that I’m not alone. Thanks for the post.

  • Kate (and Mike AND Kris)

    What a luscious combination of mantras you share!

    The minute I get sunkinstuck, I head out to a place, any old place, that houses people who have much less; food, resource, Source, winter clothing, physical capability, any of the basic needs I so forget I have, with any slight turn of the head.

    A few days ago, I was with a client who suffers from ALS. His wife is so much more sunkinstuck than I could ever imagine. I drove away, not only selfishly considering I AM DAMN LUCKY to not have THAT life, I was inundated with creative flow that paralleled my gratitude.

    Thanks for the reminder that we can all get sunkinstuck and yet, surely have the capacity to eek our way out of it in good time.

    Much love and light, Paula

  • Andrea

    Thank you for this blogpost!
    Last year (specially the last 4 monthst) was a total creative halt for me. I was super excited working on my new online business but I felt like a lot of things required a great amount of effort, of hustle, of “get things done” mentality. I had a complete breakdown… My life was changing dramatically and I was pushing myself to keep up with it. Finally (after a lot of tears & pain) I decided to give myself what I was craving the most: time. Time to enjoy, time to look inside, time to approve of myself, time for deep emotional healing, time to come back to me, time to enjoy my new relationship, time to eat delicious… My higher self was urging me to take time off. I am now slowly returning, slowly feeling the flow coming back, slowly feeling eager to get myself put there.

    Thanks for sharing your story! It means a lot to see how the women I admire the most also struggle with the same things I do. ❤️❤️

  • Love the post! Here’s what I do when I get stuck:
    -Unplug for a few days (no TV, movies, time-sucking Facebook!)
    -Go somewhere new, even if it’s simply a new coffeeshop or store
    -Visit a friend in another state or city for a few days. Immerse myself in her life.
    -Go to a spa! (If I can afford it) I love Miraval in Arizona. They encourage you to try new things outside your comfort zone.
    -Go to a good psychic. (Kate or anyone: can you recommend one?)

    Just like plants, we need downtime to regroup. We need to pamper ourselves as we would a dear friend or loved one.

  • Great post, Kate. Very real. Very inspiring! Looking forward to following your advice!

  • beverly sam

    i needed this. thx! and you ALWAYS appear extra sparkly in the best of ways btw. :)

  • Kevin

    Google is still good, even if to find those recipes. This are the things I do that matter to maximise feel good time.
    I join new classes at the Gym, e.g. Modern Dance and even Zumba (plus Yoga and Pump)
    I lead a meditation session with a local group weekly and meditate at least 15 minutes every other day.
    Walk, Cycle, more gym, less car
    Make wine, bread, cook, Make or repair as much as possible,
    Take time to connect to others.
    Look up and read about mindfulness, read philosophy, be mindful
    Have computer/smartphone free days (it is possible)

  • Catalina Odile Sommer

    Hey all you lovely women.
    Thank you so much for being here. I so needed this today. I’ve had this almost premenstrual feeling of being stuck, disgusted and unworthy of anything whatsoever. But now I can relax a bit, realizing that I’m not the only one in the whole world who is feeling this way. Thanks for sharing. XXXX

  • Kate
    I am cheering – both arms up in the air – I agree with all my heart. Life, vitality, passion, freedom, truth, the sacred – are all around us in the world. In each other, in our sharings and in the smallest things….
    I’m inspired by your openness and honesty and gave myself the morning off to go sit by the beach with a friend – feet in the sand – sun on our faces – chatting about life and I have returned with a fresh perspective :)
    Wishing us all sacred blessings at every turn :)

  • Kate, I 100% agree with you. The problem with obsessive google / social media usage is it heightens this illusion of the world being ‘out there’ and having to search for the answers outside of ourselves. I always say that there is no right or wrong way or ‘guru’ out there for us, we are our best own best experts (I write about this here: http://bethreacher.com/blog/confession-make/ ) – when we truly grasp this, we free up so much space- emotionally, spiritually, mentally – and physically! We don’t have to waste away hours scrolling though google, we can just get our ass’ to zumba because that’s what feels good. It always boils back down to the fact that life and fulfilment is so much easier than we ‘think’ it is ! Plus, when you’re truly living in the moment, that’s when you get the true insights and ah ha moments you’re trying to desperately find on google. Marie Forleo put it like this: “clarity comes with action, not thought” it always stuck with me because as always, she hit the nail on the head!

  • Claudia

    Thank you Kate for your always inspiring comments! The subjects you adress are always so accurate! And so true, living life brings us back to centeredness and our interior well :-)

    Last week I went to see a jazz concert by my drummer friend & co. and that felt like a shower of good vibes clearing my inner draught – the wonderful effect of good music and the happiness of those who were playing and those who were listening.

    Sometimes I have the best ideas whilst hoovering my flat ;-)
    and I also like to go for a walk in nature in silence with my two dogs when I feel dried up
    and paying attention to my daydreaming in the car whilst driving (no music) can be helpful, too.

    Hugs from Portugal,
    Claudia

  • The hips have it! When I need to get my creative juices flowing, I turn up some music and DANCE – my sure fire way to feel better STAT! And when people told me I couldn’t be taken seriously as a dancer AND a professional counselor and coach, I wrote The Belly Dance Prescription: Shake Your Hips AND Depression just to prove them wrong ;-) http://tinyurl.com/qehh2km

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