The Struggle Button
How contrafreeloading keeps creative people
in the “Artist’s Struggle” Cycle
There have been many studies done with animals, buttons, and rewards.
Push the button, get the kibble.
We all get that. It’s how life works, right?
What is interesting to me is that in most studies, once a captive animal (except CATS, of course!) has learned to push a button to get a treat, and then a free bowl full of food is placed in the cage, the animal will go on pushing the button to get the treat - rather than just go to the free bowl!
This is called “contrafreeloading,” or “against freeloading.”
Why do we keep pushing the Struggle Button?
Pushing the button (to get the treat of a dopamine rush):
Reduces uncertainty (we know we will get the reward if we push the button - we’ve done it habitually)
Gives us information - more than the free bowl - we feel that the button tells us something new
Validates selfhood and agency (If we push the button, we feel as if we have some choice in the matter, like we “earned it”)
Reduces boredom and offers stimulation (being in a cage has to be terribly boring, yes? Just like in William Blake’s poem, The Tyger: “Tyger, Tyger, burning bright!, “ Blake pictured the tiger pacing his cage - back and forth - the fire of creativity wanting to get out).
And that’s not the most interesting part.
The most interesting part is that so-called “smarter” animals (pigs, rats, humans?) spend more time pushing the button!
We “smarter” animals need MORE stimulation, agency, certainty and information.
And we know deep down, that that button will give it to us - or so we think!
First off, hitting the button feels like actually doing the work, like we are earning the reward. But what we actually get from the button - is STRUGGLE. We push, we get. We have to push again. We reinforce habits with action and little hits of dopamine, whether it is work, or food, scrolling, shopping, alcohol - we get small bits of relief from our daily human emotions. And we WANT that - more than anything. Relief from being human. So we push the button, get a little relief. More of the same.
Here’s an example of The Self-Coaching Model that shows what I mean. This is an “Unintentional Model” - a thought and action pattern that happens without thinking, that may be ingrained from cultural patterning, or, might I suggest, from hitting the Struggle Button over and over!
Which do you choose?
The Struggle Button
(Unintentional Model)
Circumstance: “I am an artist”
Thought: “Artists struggle, therefore to be an artist, I must struggle”
Feeling: Anxiety, Difficulty, Frustration
Action: Spinning in your head, Inaction, Overthinking, Worry about other people’s perception, etc.
Result: Creating the atmosphere of “the Struggling Artist” in your head, your studio, your business - and your life
SO, here is where it gets interesting.
What if we could get the same rewardy feelings of Agency, Stimulation, Safety/Certainty, and Information - from the Free Bowl? What feelings would we have to be feeling? What thoughts would we have to be thinking?
We would have to create these feelings and thoughts consciously, with our prefrontal cortex - our executive function, rather than our lizard (or rat, or bunny) brain. Bunny Brain! Mine is definitely a Bunny Brain!
So, this Intentional Thought Creation (one of my mentors, Stacey Boehman calls it this - ITC) would look like this:
The Free Bowl
(Intentional Model)
Circumstance: I am an artist, writer, whatever (notice, same Circumstance?)
Thought: Art is easy and creativity is Abundant, Free, and Endless! - I can’t believe I get to just make up things out of my brain! I can innovate, solve problems to create art and a business that I love! I can feel that I worked hard and “earned it” without anxiety.
Feeling: Self-confidence, Excitement, Satisfaction
Action: I paint more often, I put myself out there, engage in a community of artists and art lovers, I innovate to solve problems and learn how to do businessy things without the feeling of “struggle.”
Result: I create an atmostphere (in my brain, my studio, my business) where “Art is easy and creativity is abundant, free and endless!
Can you imagine a cat
doing this?
Me neither.
If you Struggle with the Struggle …
I get it. It has taken me a long time to realize that managing my thoughts around my creative process is the thing that will really change my reality. So much so, that I studied to become a certified life coach (It has been an amazing journey!).
I now help people (artists and other people) work through the thoughts that are holding them back - and sometimes we don’t even know what those thoughts are until we start looking at it.
If you would like to explore this process - I invite you to set up a free consultation, where I’ll walk you through what I do, how this works, and see if coaching is right for you.
These are the ways coaching can help:
Build self-confidence in your work, your life, your art, your business
Get past money mindset issues so you can live in abundance no matter what your financial situation is
Innovate to solve problems so you can life the future you envision - seriously!
The Free Bowl
… is just waiting for you to stop the Struggle - and come on over!
Set up a free consultation to explore how coaching might help you.
Thank you!
Email me at hello@shannonborg if you have inquiries or questions!
