My dentist has been giving me mouth guard prescriptions for many years. She said I must have the habit of grinding my teeth in my sleep. For many, stress-induced teeth grinding, or more likely, clenching, also happens when they are awake. When you are focused, trying hard to do something, you are likely clenching your teeth.

The mouth guard will help you in your sleep. Only your mind can help you with the issue when you are awake.

When you are creating your work, especially nearing the finish line, you may find yourself getting nervous, overly polishing your work, reluctant to let it finish and eventually let it go. The stakes are high for you. Your work is extremely important because it’s going to be what people think of you. “People are going to judge me for its quality. If they hate it, they will hate me.” Your inner self is panicking, teeth clenching. Even if your body muscles are relaxed, your teeth are not.

Come on now. Breathe in and out, deeply, three times. And stop clenching your teeth.

Now answer me this: do you want to create just this one work, or are you someone with many more works to create and share?

Our creations reflect our current state. Each one is a chapter in our book of life. No one is defined by only one chapter of their life.

Only by letting go of this project will the next one come, either in the same form or in another. You will release it to the world in a state that is good for you at the moment, making space for the next creation. What others think of your work in the outer world is beyond your control.

If you are a marketing professional, the audience comes first; if you are an artist, the audience comes last.