E49 ~ When You Outgrow Your Life

What happens after the exhibition ends, the paintings come down, and you close the storage room door? Within twenty-four hours of closing my solo exhibition, Love Letters to Hermosa, my paintings went from gallery walls to organized storage. And what I felt surprised me: peace. My paintings had a safe place. They were taken care of. In this episode of Decoding the Flow, I reflect on the overlapping stages of a creative life—from exploring and building a practice to sharing our work and reassessing what we need next. I share what seeing years of paintings together helped me recognize about my growth, the often invisible work that continues after an exhibition, and why I'm giving myself time before deciding what comes next. If you're finishing a project, leaving a familiar space, or navigating a creative transition, join me for a moment to acknowledge what you've built—and consider what you want to carry forward. IN THIS EPISODE • Finding unexpected peace after an exhibition closes • Seeing your creative growth through years of work • Why protecting and organizing your art is part of the practice • Moving through the overlapping stages of a creative life • Giving yourself time before making your next big plan A MOMENT TO REFLECT Think about a chapter you're closing or recently closed: What are you proud of? What did you learn while building it? What do you want to carry forward? You don't have to turn your answers into a plan today. WORK WITH ME Navigating a transition or wondering what you want to create next? My two-hour, one-on-one Creative Clarity Sessions offer space to explore your needs, brainstorm ideas, and identify practical next steps for your creative work. Learn more and book: https://www.dricalobo.com/creative-clarity-session Subscribe to Decoding the Flow for more conversations about creativity, self-trust, and living as a creator. Color your life! Drica CHAPTERS 00:00 The day the exhibition paintings went into storage 02:16 Seeing a creative history across years of paintings 04:29 What an exhibition lets an artist see 05:53 The practical, often invisible work after a show 07:13 Creative practice moves through overlapping stages 09:25 What to carry forward from a finished chapter 10:46 Making room before deciding what comes next 11:38 Questions for reflecting on your own transition 12:07 Gratitude for the community behind the exhibition 13:02 Creative Clarity Sessions and closing thoughts

Waiting to feel confident before you press record? Give yourself a small opportunity to practice today. In this solo episode of Decoding the Flow, Drica Lobo continues the conversation about confidence on camera, exploring how small, repeatable actions help you build trust in your own voice. Drawing from her experience reading aloud in front of a mirror, hosting weekly Instagram Lives, and practicing on a personal account for family, Drica shares ways to lower the pressure and give yourself room to learn. You'll explore why your standards might be ahead of your current skills, how to improve one aspect of your communication at a time, and how to return to practice after an interruption without punishing yourself. Plus, try a five-day exercise designed to help you follow through, finish your thoughts, and become more comfortable speaking—with no requirement to publish. In this episode: • How small actions support the person you want to become • Creating a comfortable space to practice, even with no audience • Learning from the gap between your vision and your current abilities • Building consistency without demanding perfection • Communicating clearly while keeping your accent, warmth, and personality • A five-day, one-minute recording practice you can start today Your five-day practice: Record yourself explaining one familiar idea for about a minute each day. Finish the thought, allowing yourself to pause, breathe, or correct a word. Choose one small adjustment for your next attempt. At the end of five days, reflect on what became more familiar and what you'd like to keep practicing. Continue the conversation: Listen to Episode 56 for the first part of this conversation, including the observer technique for watching yourself with curiosity. Chapters: 00:00 Why confidence follows action 02:49 Find a low-pressure place to record 05:14 When your taste is ahead of your skill 06:10 Learn camera communication by doing 07:08 Choose one small action and acknowledge it 08:03 Improve one communication skill at a time 09:19 Return to practice without demanding perfection 10:16 Try the five-day, one-minute recording exercise 11:39 Get clearer without becoming someone else 12:32 Make practice an opportunity to become Decoding the Flow explores creativity, consciousness, and the inner life of becoming—helping you live from creation instead of reaction. Explore Drica's art, book, and creative offerings: https://www.dricalobo.com/ WORK WITH ME: https://www.dricalobo.com/creative-clarity-session Subscribe to Decoding the Flow and share this episode with someone who's waiting to feel ready before letting their voice be heard. Remember, you are the masterpiece.

Do you avoid being on camera because you don't like your voice, worry about how you look, or feel you have nothing valuable to say? I often hear, "You're so lucky, you're so confident." But what people see today comes from practice, uncomfortable moments, and an ongoing commitment to trusting myself. Even my background as a television reporter didn't automatically make me comfortable showing up as myself. Delivering information and letting your personality come through require different kinds of practice. In this solo episode, I share what has helped me question the stories keeping me hidden and become more comfortable sharing my voice. I walk you through a private recording exercise to help you observe yourself with kindness, recognize your strengths, and find small ways to improve. You don't have to wait until you feel fearless. You can begin with curiosity, patience, and one honest conversation with your camera. IN THIS EPISODE • Identifying the fears and stories that keep you from being seen • Understanding the difference between being trained on camera and feeling free to be yourself • Reframing limiting beliefs into encouraging thoughts you can act on • Recording yourself privately, without the pressure to post • Watching yourself without sound and listening without the image • Replacing harsh self-criticism with useful observations • Pairing empowering statements with small, consistent actions • Bringing your attention back to the person you want to reach CHAPTERS 00:00 Why Confidence on Camera Matters 00:27 The Hidden Practice Behind Confidence 01:23 Training vs. Authenticity on Camera 02:41 Improving Your Camera Presence 04:37 Managing Self-Criticism and Judgment 05:32 Identifying and Questioning Your Fears 07:28 A Private Recording Exercise 09:22 Speaking Honestly About Your Fears 11:12 Observing Yourself with Kindness 12:36 Listening to Your Voice 13:04 Celebrating Small Wins 14:49 Patience, Compassion, and Progress 16:10 Building a Daily Practice 19:01 Small Improvements Add Up 20:24 Support for Your Next Steps 21:19 Celebrating Your Progress WORK WITH ME If you'd like support exploring what's keeping you stuck and what you want to create next, I offer two-hour, one-on-one sessions. Together, we'll explore your needs, brainstorm ideas, and identify practical next steps for your creative work. Book Now Two-Hour, One-On-One Session With Drica Lobo ABOUT DECODING THE FLOW On Decoding the Flow, I explore the inner life of a creative person—and how we become capable of creating, holding, and expanding the work and life calling us forward. Through personal reflections and honest conversations, I explore creativity, identity, self-trust, and what it means to live from creation rather than reaction. ABOUT ME I'm Drica Lobo, a Brazilian-born artist, author, and former television reporter. Through my art, writing, and conversations, I encourage people to trust their creative voice and participate more intentionally in shaping their lives. Subscribe to Decoding the Flow for more conversations about creativity, self-awareness, and becoming the person your ideas need you to be. Remember, you are the masterpiece.

What helps you arrive, not just at your desk or canvas, but in the moment? In this episode, I explore how small, intentional rituals can help us interrupt autopilot, reconnect with our senses, and become available to create. I reflect on attention as an artistic material, the body as a source of experience, and discipline as the willingness to return to our practice. This is an invitation to begin where you are, without demanding certainty or perfection. What might become possible if you gave yourself a moment to notice before asking yourself to produce? In this episode The difference between a routine and a ritual How sensory awareness brings us back to the present Why what we notice matters to what we create Returning to practice without pressure or perfection Making room for curiosity and uncertainty A simple ritual to help you begin creating Chapters 00:00 Arriving in the moment 02:18 Small rituals that interrupt autopilot 04:41 Attention as an artistic material 07:14 The body as a source of experience 09:20 Discipline as the ability to return 12:12 A simple ritual to start creating 14:49 Making room for curiosity and uncertainty 15:21 Am I here and willing to begin? 15:59 Meeting the world with presence 16:27 Creativity as a way to meet the world About Decoding the Flow On Decoding the Flow, I explore the inner life of a creative person—and how we become capable of creating, holding, and expanding the work and life calling us forward. Through honest reflections and conversations about creativity, consciousness, identity, and self-trust, I explore what it means to live as a creator instead of a reactor. About me I'm Drica Lobo, a Brazilian-born artist, writer, and host of Decoding the Flow. My creative practice is rooted in color, curiosity, and the belief that creativity shapes how we experience life. Here, I share what I'm learning through making art, navigating change, and building a life around creative expression. Script credit A special thank-you to Aline Nader, who wrote the script for this episode and helped bring this reflection on rituals and presence to life. If this episode resonated with you, follow Decoding the Flow and share it with someone who could use a moment to pause and reconnect with their creativity. Remember, you are the masterpiece.

Believing in an idea is only the beginning. Bringing it to life asks for commitment—and a lot of work that happens before anyone walks through the door. In this episode, I'm taking you behind the scenes of preparing my farewell solo exhibition in Hermosa Beach. Nine different art proposals, meetings with around fourteen people, another fifteen emails, and nearly 170 paintings to organize. Every conversation brings its own possibilities and challenges, and I'm still in the middle of making it happen. Drawing from my previous solo shows, I share why exhibitions give artists space to speak, build a narrative, and help people connect with their visual language. I also talk about knowing your value, choosing collaborators, asking for support, and getting clear about the message that guides your decisions. If you're working toward a creative project that feels bigger than what you've done before, this is an honest look at what it takes to keep showing up for it. In this episode, I share: How solo exhibitions help me tell a story through a body of work. What happens behind the scenes: proposals, presentations, meetings, and follow-ups. Why knowing my value matters when I'm asking for support. How understanding my "why" helps me make practical decisions. What organizing my painting inventory revealed about my work and my journey. How collaboration and community help bring a vision to life. What commitment looks like while the outcome is still unknown. Chapters 00:00 Welcome and what I'm creating 01:07 Believing in an idea is only the beginning 02:10 What my past solo exhibitions taught me 03:05 Storytelling through an art exhibition 04:19 Creating a narrative people can connect with 05:56 Why I encourage artists to create solo shows 07:28 My connection to this Hermosa Beach exhibition 09:16 The preparation people don't see 11:06 Getting clear about my vision and goals 12:56 Proposals and planning 14:55 Conversations, community, and asking for support 16:39 Why knowing my "why" matters 17:18 Letting the message guide my decisions 18:37 Managing ideas and focusing my energy 20:24 Organizing artwork inventory About Decoding the Flow Decoding the Flow explores the inner life of a creative person—and how we become capable of creating, holding, and expanding the work and life calling us forward. Through personal stories, honest conversations, and reflections on creativity, identity, and self-trust, I explore what it means to live from creation rather than reaction. About Me I'm Drica Lobo, a Brazilian-born artist, author, and former TV reporter based in Hermosa Beach, California. Through my paintings, writing, and this podcast, I share what I'm learning about creative confidence, self-expression, and building a life that reflects who we are. Explore my artwork and find exhibition details at https://www.dricalobo.com Connect with me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dricaloboart Subscribe to Decoding the Flow for new episodes every week. Remember, you are the masterpiece.

Selling something you created can feel deeply personal. How do you name your price without apologizing, follow up without feeling pushy, and hear "no" without questioning your work? In this episode, I'm sharing practical lessons from my life as a working artist. I talk about the conversations behind a sale, why listening matters, and how someone's connection to a painting can be completely different from my own. We also get into the mindset of selling: staying grounded before a conversation, giving people space to decide, and separating the outcome of a sale from how we see ourselves. Whether you sell paintings or another kind of creative work, I hope this helps you feel more comfortable sharing what you offer. In this episode, I explore: Helping people connect with your work through their own stories. Saying your price confidently and consistently. Understanding what someone actually needs before offering a solution. Following up with care, without pressure. Learning from rejection without making it your identity. Approaching sales with more neutrality and less attachment to the outcome. Recognizing the value of your work beyond its price. Chapters 00:00 Selling art and the mindset behind it 02:26 Helping people connect with your work 12:50 Saying your price without apologizing 20:52 Understanding client needs and personal stories 27:43 Following up without making it personal 32:02 Learning from rejection and hearing "no" About Decoding the Flow On Decoding the Flow, I explore the inner life of a creative person—and how we become capable of creating, holding, and expanding the work and life calling us forward. Through honest conversations and experiences from my own life, I explore creative confidence, self-awareness, and what it means to live from creation rather than reaction. About Me I'm Drica Lobo, a Brazilian-born artist, author, and creative mentor based in Southern California. My work brings together vibrant color, personal expression, and the belief that creativity reaches far beyond the canvas. Here, I share what I'm learning through painting, building an art business, and navigating life as a creative person. Which part of selling feels hardest for you: saying your price, following up, or hearing "no"? I'd love to hear from you. Subscribe to Decoding the Flow and share this episode with a creative friend. Remember, you are the masterpiece. DRICALOBO.com Instagram: @dricaloboart @decodingtheflow  

SUMMARY What happens when you ask for more, and life starts revealing the parts of you that you may be avoiding, but are ready to expand? We're celebrating one year of Decoding the Flow! In this solo episode, I'm sharing how dreaming bigger has brought me into a deeper relationship with creative confidence, self-trust, and the person I'm becoming. As I prepare to leave my home and studio in Hermosa Beach, CA, after almost twenty years, I'm living through many of the questions we've explored together. I'm organizing a farewell exhibition, imagining new possibilities, and learning to take aligned action while clarity arrives in parts. I talk about welcoming fear with compassion, observing my reactions, and allowing myself to receive support. I also share the spiritual perspective helping me navigate this transition: trusting that an unexpected turn can reveal something meaningful about my next chapter. If you've been dreaming bigger and wondering how to move forward before you have the whole picture, this conversation is for you.   IN THIS EPISODE, I EXPLORE • How dreaming bigger reveals new possibilities and places within us that are ready to expand. • The connection between creative confidence, identity, and self-awareness. • Welcoming fear and listening to what it brings up. • Practicing neutrality and observing my experience before choosing a response. • What trusting the universe, shifting timelines, and surrendering mean to me. • Taking aligned action with the clarity available today. • Allowing connection, collaboration, and support to be part of growth.   A QUESTION TO TAKE WITH YOU What part is clear enough for you to act on today? CHAPTERS 00:00 Celebrating One Year of the Podcast 02:14 Preparing to Leave a 20-Year Chapter in Hermosa Beach 03:28 The Deeper Layers of Creative Confidence 04:04 Dreaming Bigger and Expanding Possibilities 06:08 The Unlimited Nature of Growth and Possibility 08:00 How Asking for More Reveals Hidden Parts of Yourself 09:22 Facing and Integrating Fear 11:02 Inner Clarity and Self-Transformation 13:43 Maintaining Neutrality and Trust 15:40 Using Fear as Feedback 17:16 The Power of Meaning and Interpretation 18:20 Trusting the Universe and Surrendering to the Flow 20:11 Welcoming Fear and Emotions 22:09 Giving All Your Feelings Space 24:06 Participating Fully in Your Life's Co-Creation   ABOUT ME I'm Drica Lobo, a Brazilian-born artist, writer, and creative mentor based in Hermosa Beach, California. Through my paintings, writing, and this podcast, I explore how creativity shapes our relationship with ourselves and the possibilities we allow into our lives. I share what I'm learning as I live it, inviting you to discover and trust your own creative power. Thank you for being part of this first year. Remember, you are the masterpiece. DRICALOBO.COM Instagram: @dricaloboart ~ @decodingtheflow  

Summary I'm leaving the place I live after almost twenty years, and it's happening sooner than I expected. This is where I became an artist, built my studio, and found my community. This week, I sat at the beach and cried with gratitude, and realized how much my relationship with myself has changed. I spent years looking outside myself for approval and reassurance. In this episode, I share how learning to stop judging my past helped me build the foundation I'm leaning on today. We talk about recognizing old patterns, asking for help, and creating opportunities while we're still figuring things out. I'm also bringing you into the beginnings of my farewell solo show and Finding Creative Sanctuaries, an exploration of how I want to live and create in different environments. If you're facing a change yourself, I hope this conversation helps you recognize what you already have to lean on and choose a next step that feels possible. Key Topics How I began building self-trust after years of seeking validation. What changed when I stopped using my past against myself. Why I see awareness as part of the creative process. How I'm asking my friends and community for support. Taking manageable steps without needing the whole future planned. My farewell show and the creative journey I'm working toward. Exploring how I want to live before deciding where I'll live next. About Decoding the Flow On Decoding the Flow, I explore the inner life of a creative person—and how we become capable of creating, holding, and expanding the work and life calling us forward. Through personal stories and honest conversations, I invite you to explore creativity, identity, self-trust, and the relationship you build with yourself. Together, we look at what it means to live from creation rather than reaction. About Me I'm Drica Lobo, a Brazilian-born artist, writer, mentor, and former television reporter. I've spent nearly twenty years building my life and creative practice in Hermosa Beach, California. Painting has taught me so much about how I approach life, and this podcast is where I share those discoveries with you, including the questions I'm still living through. You can explore my paintings, join my email list, and follow updates about the farewell show and what comes next at dricalobo.com. Instagram: @dricaloboart @decodingtheflow

What happens when you worked incredibly hard to become someone, and then life starts asking you to become more? In this deeply personal episode, Drica Lobo reflects on her identity as an artist after two unexpected comments from fellow creatives forced her to look at her own career differently. While Drica had quietly been wondering whether she had done enough with her paintings, other artists were looking at her as someone who had already "made it." That contradiction opened up a much bigger realization. After more than a decade of building a life around art, Drica begins to recognize how difficult it can be to expand beyond an identity you fought hard to earn. She looks back at her recent ten-year birthday retrospective, the strange sense that she was leaving something behind, and the grief that can accompany growth even when nothing is actually wrong. This isn't about walking away from art. It's about realizing that being an artist doesn't have to be the boundary around everything else you're allowed to become. In this episode, Drica explores: Why other people's perception of our success can reveal what we refuse to recognize in ourselves The difference between wanting more and dismissing everything you've already accomplished Why her ten-year birthday retrospective unexpectedly felt like the end of something The push and pull between her identity as an artist and the other parts of herself asking for more room Why expanding beyond an identity doesn't mean you failed at it The unexpected grief that can come from growing beyond something you deeply love How an identity can become a limitation when we believe we must remain only who we fought to become Key Takeaways You can want more without making what you've already accomplished insignificant. Growth doesn't always come from leaving something broken behind. Sometimes you're expanding from something you love, something you're proud of, and something you worked incredibly hard to build. Acknowledging your achievements isn't the same as deciding you've arrived. Sometimes you need to recognize how far you've come before you can understand why moving forward feels so emotional. An identity can be deeply meaningful without becoming the boundary around everything else you're allowed to become. "I fought hard to become an artist. And I don't have to fight to remain only one." Chapters 00:00 — The Grief of Becoming More 01:07 — Two Artists Reflect Something Back to Me 02:22 — Have I Done Enough With My Art? 04:09 — The Voice That Keeps Moving the Finish Line 08:20 — Finally Acknowledging What I've Built 11:16 — Why My Birthday Retrospective Felt Like an Ending 12:59 — Realizing This Feeling Is Grief 13:47 — The Other Parts of Me Getting Louder 15:30 — This Isn't Really About Painting—It's About Identity 16:24 — I Didn't Fail at Becoming an Artist 17:41 — The Grief Inside Expansion 18:00 — When the Identity You Built Becomes the Limit About Decoding the Flow Decoding the Flow explores the inner life of a creative person, and how we become capable of creating the work and life calling us forward. Through honest solo conversations and interviews with artists, thinkers, and creative people, Drica Lobo explores creativity, identity, confidence, flow, and the inner shifts that shape what we create and how we live. At its heart, Decoding the Flow is about creative consciousness: learning to create our lives instead of simply reacting to them, and becoming more capable of creating, holding, and expanding the life calling us forward. About Drica Lobo Drica Lobo is an artist, writer, author, podcaster, and creative mentor whose work explores creativity as both an artistic practice and a way of living. After more than a decade building a career as a professional artist, Drica's work has expanded beyond the canvas into writing, teaching, mentoring, and conversations about the inner life behind creative work. She is the author of Decoding the Flow: Optimize Your Creative Power with Unshakeable Confidence and the host of the Decoding the Flow Podcast, where she brings together lived experience, curiosity, and conversations about what it takes to create from the inside out. Her work is rooted in one central idea: we can become active creators of our lives, rather than simply reacting to them. Remember, you are the masterpiece! DRICALOBO.com Instagram: @dricaloboart ~ @decodingtheflow    

What happens when nothing is wrong with your life… but something no longer fits? After my birthday, I found myself looking backward and forward at the same time. But instead of focusing on everything I want to accomplish next, I started paying attention to the life I have already created. And I had a quiet realization: I may have outgrown parts of my own life. In this episode, I reflect on what it means to recognize that something can feel complete without being broken. I talk about honoring the dreams, choices, and previous versions of ourselves that brought us here—without feeling obligated to keep recreating them. But the biggest question isn't necessarily, "What's next?" Maybe we don't need to know yet. I explore what happens when we resist the urge to immediately replace what we've outgrown and instead leave space for curiosity, discovery, and the unknown. Because not every ending needs an immediate beginning, not every curiosity needs to become a goal, and sometimes the most creative thing we can do is leave part of the canvas untouched. Maybe the unknown isn't emptiness at all. Instead it's possibility. In This Episode Why birthdays can become powerful moments of reflection What it feels like to outgrow parts of a life you once deeply wanted Recognizing when something feels complete rather than wrong Why gratitude and the desire for change can coexist Honoring your past without feeling obligated to recreate it Why knowing something no longer fits doesn't mean you need to know what comes next Resisting the urge to immediately fill the unknown with another plan Choosing possibilities over probabilities Allowing curiosity to exist without turning it into a goal or project Why leaving space can be part of the creative process The difference between being lost and leaving room for discovery Why an empty canvas can represent possibility rather than emptiness Key Takeaways Outgrowing something doesn't mean it was a mistake. Something can be complete without being broken. Gratitude doesn't require permanence. You don't need to immediately replace what you've outgrown. Not knowing what comes next can create room for possibilities you couldn't have planned. Curiosity doesn't always need to become productive. There is a difference between being lost and allowing yourself to discover. Sometimes the most creative next step is to leave space. Notable Quotes "Something feels complete. Not wrong, complete." "Curiosity to me is the secret to a fulfilling life." "An empty canvas isn't empty at all. It is just full of possibilities." Chapters 00:00 — Opening Reflection 00:14 — A Birthday and a Different Kind of Reflection 00:32 — Looking Backward and Forward 02:04 — Looking at What I've Already Created 02:39 — The Realization: I've Outgrown Parts of My Life 03:46 — The Life My Past Self Once Wanted 04:49 — Complete, Not Wrong 05:13 — Something Missing Doesn't Mean Something Is Broken 06:34 — Outgrowing Your Life vs. Escaping It 07:27 — You Don't Have to Outgrow Everything 08:08 — When the Right Path Stops Being the Right Path 09:27 — Gratitude, Curiosity, and Change 11:03 — Honoring the Past Without Recreating It 12:57 — Why I'm Not Rushing Into What's Next 13:53 — Making Space for the Unknown 14:24 — Releasing the Need to Control the Outcome 15:21 — The Unknown as Creative Space 16:21 — Possibilities Over Probabilities 17:00 — An Empty Canvas Is Full of Possibility About the Host Drica Lobo is an artist, author, mentor, and host of Decoding the Flow. Through conversations about creativity, identity, self-awareness, and the creative process, she explores what it means to live from creation rather than reaction. Drawing from her own life and artistic practice, Drica approaches personal growth as an ongoing experiment—one rooted in curiosity, observation, and the courage to keep becoming. DRICALOBO.com Instagram: @dricaloboart ~ @decodingtheflow