29 QUESTIONS WITH TAYLOR ELYSE MORRISON
Open to learn the prolific creator's favorite $5-a-month get-shit-done hack ⏱
Taylor Morrison is a Chicago-based author and founder of Inner Workout and The Lifestyle Business League.
TAYLOR’S DIVERGENT CREATIVE STRATEGIES
You don’t need to muscle through the tough stuff [read: anything you have the urge to procrastinate on] alone. Taylor uses the accountability platform Focusmate to get things done in the morning so she has free, creative afternoons.
Perfectionism is a thief. Don’t let it steal your momentum and enthusiasm by making you second guess whether you’re doing something “right”… just get going.
Not to be meta, but getting a glimpse into the creative lives of others can be inspiration to get your wheels turning. Look for honesty — and beware, you might not find it on social media.
It’s serious, but not really. Sure, you need to be disciplined to get shit done. But, like, we can still have a good time? Do a lil’ dance, take a midday stroll, light a cutie candle. As we like to say around here, it ain’t that deep.
PROCESS (8)
What are your creative rituals?
I try to plan my creative work around my menstrual cycle. I hold plenty of space for writing and creating during ovulation and again during the latter part of my period when I feel really connected to my inner wisdom.
Other things I do often:
Set a timer to come up with as many ideas as I can
Light my Toni Morrison secular saint candle to set the tone for a writing session
Take a dance break
Physical space or mental space?
Porque no los dos?
I have a tiny, less than 100 sq. foot office that has everything I need for creative flourishing. Walls in Inner Workout blue. A sit/stand desk, a floor chair, and a walking pad for whatever position my body wants to be in at that moment. Lots of natural light, so I rarely have to turn on the overhead light. My favorite pens and plenty of sticky notes.
My physical space shapes my mental space, for better or worse.
How do you actually get started?
It sounds simple, but I just decide it’s time to get out of my head and start. I might mark the start by lighting a candle, setting a timer, or doing an embodiment practice.
What are your three favorite creativity tools?
I’m absolutely obsessed with my Remarkable tablet. My brain loves physically writing things down. The Remarkable allows me to write stuff down while still being able to access it in the cloud.
When I’m not writing on my Remarkable, I use U Brands felt-tipped Catalina pen. It’s like an aesthetic Micron.
And Focusmate. I get most of my work done through virtual body doubling sessions on their platform. It’s the best $5 I spend a month.
What’s on your desk right now? Send us a pic.
My desk is always a mess unless I have a friend coming over to co-work. I was doing some dreaming and scheming for Q4 here.
What do you do when you’re feeling deeply, existentially, sand-bags-tied-around-your-ankles stuck?
I’ve started asking myself if I’m actually stuck or just being impatient.
I have brilliant ideas, but I haven’t always given them the time they needed to succeed. Other times, I’ll check in with myself: what’s behind the feeling of stuckness? Fear? Overwhelm? Boredom?
If I can get to the root, I can often move through the stuckness. Or sometimes I just need to get up and do something different.
Do you have a system? Are you Wes Anderson-style organized or are you the live action embodiment of the Tasmanian Devil?
It really depends.
For big projects, I do well with more structure. I get really clear on what needs to be done, like writing mini-courses for the Inner Workout app, and when it needs to get done by. Then I break it up into bite-sized daily, weekly, and monthly chunks.
I’ve been really leaning into slow and steady energy. Having structure in the big things gives me time to follow my curiosity in other projects.
Like yesterday morning I thought of a keyword that Inner Workout might rank for, so I did some keyword research and ended up drafting a post that afternoon. I also spent some time playing with logo concepts for a project I’m working on with my friend and biz partner, Amelia Hruby, just because it felt fun.
Tell us about your process. When? How? Are you strict about it?
Lately, I “eat the frog.” I wake up, make a cup of tea, and work on a project for about an hour.
I use Focusmate to work with a body double for accountability. Once the session’s over, I move on with the rest of my morning—working out, walking the dog, getting dressed, feeding myself. Then I sit back down at my desk a few hours later.
I’ve started asking myself if I’m actually stuck or just being impatient.
MINDSET (6)
What grinds your gears creatively? What gives you the ick?
Anything overly prescriptive. We’re all just out here sharing what works for us and our brains. But folks on the internet like to act as if their way is The Way, and sometimes we feed into that narrative.
Name one thing you’ve created that makes you beam with pride.
The Inner Workout book, for sure. My favorite pieces of feedback are that:
a) the book is beautiful and
b) people didn’t expect to like it because it’s a “self-help” book, but they did.
Tell us about your creative nemesis.
Perfectionism is my creative nemesis. I can get so caught up in doing something “right” that I’m hesitant to start at all, let alone share it with the world.
Any notes for your haters? What about your lovers?
To my haters, thanks for reminding me whose opinions matter most in my life.
To my lovers, l love you, too! I hope everything I do points you back to the wisdom you already have within.
Andy Warhol used to change his perfume every three months because we wanted to have scent memories associated with that time period in his life. What scent will you associate with this time in your life?
The rose scent of the Marseilles soap I picked up during a trip to France earlier this year.
What’s your current hyperfixation? [Share an oddly specific thing is giving you the will to live. It can be a specific moment in pop culture, an artist, a piece of media, a tasty treat, an outfit, a cough drop flavor.]
Rigatoni. It’s never been a pasta shape that appealed to me much, but the Chicago restaurant, Daisies, changed my mind. Rigatoni’s been in my grocery cart every week for the past couple of months. Something about the way it holds sauce and is oh so satisfying to bite into.
To my haters, thanks for reminding me whose opinions matter most in my life.
INSPIRATION (7)
Favorite meme (present-tense or ancient)?
I do this motion to my partner, Matt, several times a week.
Where do you seek inspiration most?
In forums like these, honestly. I love interviews, biographies, and autobiographies. I’m v nosy, and I want to get a peek behind people’s creative curtains.
Last piece of media that really stuck with you, and why?
My mom and I went to see the New York City Ballet perform Play Time, which is set to music composed by one of my creative icon’s, Solange. The choreography was so exuberant and celebratory. And the costumes! Vibrant and covered in Swarovski crystals. Literally one of the most dazzling performances I’ve ever seen live.
Who did you look up to as a burgeoning creative person?
When I graduated college, I interned on the side for Forth Chicago, an organization that held salons for creative women entrepreneurs. I remember being in awe of these women who were not only immensely talented but also able to make a living from their talents.
What’s a reliable perfect portal place for you? (a place/experience that you know will transport you to a new way of interacting with the world)
Walking by the lakefront near my house is an instant reset.
What’s a piece of advice someone else gave you that lives in your head rent-free?
Don’t solve for problems you don’t have yet. It reminds me not to get ahead of myself and to just put my head down and do the work in front of me now.
What was a canon event for you that you wouldn’t go back and interfere with even if you could? [a canon event is an inevitable life event that someone goes through that’s pivotal to their character development… like, me wearing a rolly backpack to school from 11-13 was embarrassing, unfortunate, and, yes, a canon event.]
Going to the library over summer breaks. I’d literally check out half a shelf of books on a topic that interested me and go! to! town!
Don’t solve for problems you don’t have yet. It reminds me not to get ahead of myself and to just put my head down and do the work in front of me now.
PERSONAL STYLE (8)
Night owl, morning glory, or a secret third thing?
Morning glory all the way! My body physically cannot sleep in. I wish I could!
If you had to get a tattoo in the next 30 minutes… whatcha getting and where?
I went through a Beatles phase in high school and thought my first tattoo would say “let it be.” I ended up getting a totally different tattoo while studying abroad, so I guess this would be my chance to fulfill high school Taylor’s dreams!
What’s currently gracing your beverage rotation?
Traditional Medicinals’ Throat Coat tea. Recess in any flavor. Ginger turmeric tea.
Give us an example of a design, movie, book, experience from growing up that has shaped the way you work and create now?
My aunt’s house. My aunt is an interior designer, and growing up, I’d spend part of my summers with her and my other family in Ohio. She always let me design the tablescapes for family dinners, and that’s one of my first memories of developing my personal style and taste. It was a lot of trial and error, scavenging around the house to see what was on hand that might make a good centerpiece, and Googling.
What’s your relationship to the moon?
I keep high-level tabs on when there’s a new moon and full moon, but mostly I walk my dog at night, look up, and think, “Damn. She’s gorgeous.”
On the Freak to Fairy Scale, where do you fall?
A chaotic good pixie.
You have to change your name to an emoji, a la the artist formerly known as Prince — what do you choose?
🤗
Congrats! You are a guest lecturer at Spacies University. You are teaching a bunch of wide-eyed freshman about your technique and process. What would you call it? [Bonus: What would the final project be?]
I’d call it “Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained.” You have to take daily action towards that creative project you’ve always said you wanted to do. Then, at the end, you present on what you learned through the process.
I’m less concerned about what you accomplished and more concerned about what it taught you.
Liked this? Want more visual eye candy and divergent strategies for creativity? Refer a friend to SPACIES and get our Creative Inspiration Compendium, a portal to uncloud your process and light your inner fire.
Thanks for having me!