203: Why downtime is part of the manifestation process

Hello everyone and welcome back to another episode of Cani Crystals, the podcast. I hope that you're all well. My name is Mart Tweedy, I'm your host. And this week it's been a bit of madness, if I'm totally honest with you. Firstly, that TV show that I was talking to you about in the start of last week's episode, that went out on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday night. It's called The Inheritance. It's on Channel 4. Give it a watch if you haven't done so already. But I've been absolutely inundated with messages, so much so that I even came off Instagram a couple of days. I just felt very overwhelmed. Obviously I appreciate everyone's love and support and all the messages that I have been getting, but I was like, there is no way I can respond to every single one of these messages and do my day job at the same time. Oh my God, it's been crazy. And on the Saturday as well, I was also invited to speak at Happy Place Festival in Manchester with Francesca Amber. So between Newcastle, Manchester, and London, all within the space of 48 hours over them 2 days, It just knocked us to pot, if I'm totally honest. And you know what, I'm going to be completely real with you all right now. I pressed record on today's episode without having a clue what I was even going to talk about. And if I'm honest, that felt a bit scary because normally I come to you with me notepad, I've got a topic that I've been mulling over, maybe I've even got a guest to bounce ideas back and forth with. But this week I've just felt really, really flat. And I don't know if it's just me or if there's something in the moon or something like that, but I've been feeling really uninspired, really stuck. And my first thought was, you know, well, that's no good. I can't show up with nothing to say. But then as I pressed record and I was doing my little sound test just to make sure it was all set up right, something kind of clicked as I was setting up to talk. And maybe this is the exact conversation that we therefore need to have. I'm all about intuition at the minute. I'm really tapping into my intuition. So I hope that you enjoy this episode because I know that I'm not the only one who feels like this right now. Been speaking to a few of you online in the community and things like that, and I've spoken to a few friends this week who've also felt the same. And, you know, we live in a world where we are constantly told that we need to be switched on. So we need to be inspired, motivated, high vibes, smashing goals, ticking boxes, and just basically manifesting left, right, and center., and if you have a day where you're not those things, it's almost like there's this little voice that whispers, "You're slipping. You're failing. You should be doing more in life." And that pressure is absolutely exhausting. It's exhausting. It makes those uninspired days feel 10 times heavier because you're not just dealing with the lack of creativity, you're also judging yourself on top of that as well. So, what I'm here to say today is that being uninspired doesn't mean that you failed. It just means that you're human because none of us are to run on 100% inspiration all of the time.

If we think about nature, you know, even the seasons ebb and flow. We don't demand summer to show up in the middle of winter, do we?

We just accept that everything has a cycle. So your energy, your creativity, your motivation, they all work in the same way.

So some days you'll be busting with ideas, some days you'll be scribbling them down faster than you can keep up, and then there's other days that you might just sit staring at a blank page thinking, you know, I've got nothing to say. And that's not failure, that's just rhythm. But this is the bit that really shifted things for us. Instead of seeing these uninspired moments as a problem to fix, I just thought to myself, what if they're actually a message? What if they're a pause button? What if they're a nudge to slow down, reflect, breathe? Because I think when you're constantly running, you're constantly producing, that kind of thing, there's no space for those new ideas to land. Inspiration often needs that stillness and that emptiness to have that room to grow. Think about it, the best ideas usually pop up for us in the shower, on a walk, or maybe when you've stepped away from your desk, not when you're forcing yourself to stare at the bloody cursor on a blank screen of your laptop. So I know for me personally, building my business, organizing big events, I often fall into this trap of thinking that I should always be doing more. And I think that's one of the reasons that I applied for that TV show as well, because at the time I was planning Manifest. I already had Kenny Crystals on the go. I had the podcast, the academy, and I was thinking, what's next for me? What's going to happen when I run Manifest this year? And, you know, what's, what's the goal after that? Basically, I'm always striving to be doing more, whether it be more content, more posts, more ideas, more offers. And when I don't feel inspired to do those things, it kind of feels a bit uncomfortable for me. But the lesson that I keep coming back to is that manifestation isn't about forcing, it's about alignment. And I know alignment sometimes looks like resting.

It might be sometimes that you just don't know right now. It sometimes looks like just showing up honestly, like I am today. So instead of pretending that everything's fine, or maybe waiting until I feel perfectly inspired again, I just wanted to hit record and just share this with you anyway, because if you've ever felt stuck, flat, or uninspired, I just want you to know that you're not alone. Because actually, you might not need to push through it. You might just need to allow it to be there, to trust that this lull isn't permanent. It's just a season of your little life that you're in right now, because inspiration will return, just like spring always follows winter, you know. The more that you can lean into that, the less pressure that you then put on yourself and the more space you give for creativity to naturally flow back in. And if nothing else, I think this is proof that you don't need to wait until you feel perfect to show up as well. You don't need the polished plan or the bullet points or the perfect mood. You can start from exactly where you are, whether it be a little messy, a little uncertain, but you're still willing. Sometimes that willingness alone is the spark that we need. And something that I don't think people always see, and I'll be honest, I don't always share it enough either, is just how much actually goes into running a business like this. Because this last week I have felt quite low and quite— I can't think of any other word than stuck. This is how crap my mind is at the minute. I do feel stuck at the minute in business. And this is the side of business that I never share because I often feel like I've kind of created a bit of a monster, to be honest. Like, from the outside, it can look really shiny. People see the podcast episodes every Friday, they see the Instagram posts every day, they see the crystals packaged up beautifully on people's stories, they see the event lineups, and it all looks smooth, like it's just flowing naturally. But behind the scenes, I am grafting. It's a constant juggling act. What is that saying, you know, about a duck, a duck's legs in water? When they are swimming on top of the water, you just see them like merrily, like bobbing along. But underneath the water their legs are flapping. I am those legs right now. Sometimes that juggle is exactly what drains the inspiration from us. So take Manifest, for example. Like, when I announced it, people were so excited, and rightly so. It's a huge, amazing event. But what they don't always see are the endless spreadsheets, the phone calls with the speakers, the budget meetings that I'm having with my accountant, the late nights wondering if ticket sales will match the vision. The amount of hours that I put into building the website. They don't see me sat with a calculator stressing over whether to book one speaker over another, or having to negotiate with venues and suppliers, because that's the reality.

I mean, yeah, don't get us wrong, it's magical, but it's also exhausting.

And when your brain is constantly ticking over with logistics and numbers, it doesn't always leave much room for creativity. And the same goes for running an online business as well. There's this pressure to just always be on, to be replying to messages, to checking orders, planning new launches, keeping up with algorithms that change their mind more than the bloody British weather.

I'll admit, sometimes I do get caught in that cycle of just output, output, output until my creative energy is just completely zapped.

And that's when I sit down to record an episode and I think, what on earth do I even have to say today? Because my mind is just elsewhere.

So I think it's really important to talk about this because there's such a myth in the spiritual and manifestation world that once you're #aligned, it's all just going to flow to you effortlessly.

That you're always just going to be buzzing with ideas and money and inspiration and opportunities are just going to pour in constantly. But the truth is that even when you're living your purpose, even when you are fully aligned with what you love, it still takes work. There's still going to be ups and downs. There are still moments of doubt, fear, exhaustion, and that's not a sign that you're doing it wrong. That is just the reality of building anything worthwhile. And one of the things I've learned by doing this is that it's not about avoiding the hard work or pretending that behind the scenes chaos doesn't exist.

It's just about how you hold yourself through it. Like, do you let it completely knock you off course? Or do you breathe, ground yourself, and just remind yourself of the bigger picture? Now I'll be honest, some days I absolutely nail that, other days, like this week, I don't. Some days I'm journaling with me crystals, other days I'm eating biscuits in bed scrolling on Instagram wondering why I ever thought I could pull all this off. That's exactly what I've been like this last week. Today I dropped me son off at nursery, I went down the office, did the absolute bare minimum so I got people's orders out. Because obviously that is priority. Once I'd done that, I came back, I got into bed with crisps and biscuits, and I just lay in bed eating. That's all I've done today.

And you know, that's okay.

That's part of the human experience. I wanna normalize that. But I think the reason that I wanted to open up about this is because you're listening to me right now, then you too might be building something of your own, whether it be, you know, a business, a creative project, or even just a new routine. And you might too be feeling the pressure of it. I want you to know that that's normal. The behind the scenes stuff, it isn't always glamorous, but it doesn't mean that you're not on the right path. It just means that you're doing the work, and the work sometimes does feel heavy. And the more I've paid attention to me own patterns and journaled about them and reflected on them, the more I've realized that energy and creativity, they come in waves. They are not meant to be constant. And yet I think we live in a culture that acts like they should be because you're expected to show up in the same way every single day with the same output, the same drive, and the same enthusiasm. But that's just not how humans work. Think about your own life right now. I bet you've had weeks where ideas are absolutely pouring through you, where you feel on fire, like everything that you touch just flows. And then there are weeks where it feels like you're wading through mud. When nothing lands, everything feels like hard work, and you just start questioning yourself. That cycle is so normal, but because no one talks about it, we end up just thinking that we're the only ones going through it. So what I've come to realize is that those high energy bursts and those low quiet dips, they are both part of the process. One fuels the other. We can't have them highs without them lows. Yeah, if you were constantly on a creative high, it would actually burn you out. You'd be exhausted and the ideas wouldn't feel fresh anymore. But the quieter phases, the ones that feel uninspired like what I'm going through right now, they are the times that your mind and your body are actually recharging, or they might even be reorganizing or preparing you for the next surge of creativity. It's like if we refer back to nature again, there are seasons for planting, seasons for growing, and seasons for resting. A tree doesn't suddenly panic in autumn when its leaves start to fail off. It knows it's part of the cycle. It knows the growth will return in spring. But when we hit our own autumn, we tend to panic. We start to think, "Oh my God, I've lost it. I'm not good enough. It's gone forever." When in reality, we're just moving through a natural rhythm. And this is why I think that self-awareness is so powerful to look at when we are going through stuff like this, because when you understand your own patterns, you stop fighting them. You stop forcing yourself to be at 100% all of the time. So for me, I've noticed that after I've had a big creative push, maybe after recording loads of content or doing a big launch or pulling off something like Manifest, for example, earlier in the year, I always have a dip every single time. And instead of seeing that dip as a problem, I've learned to see it as recovery. It's my system resetting itself. And that shift in perspective changes everything because instead of fighting it, I start working with it. So instead of beating myself up for not being inspired, I start to trust that inspiration is on its way back, even if I can't feel it yet. And when you do that, you remove so much unnecessary pressure from yourself.

So if you're listening to this right now and you've been in one of those low energy, uninspired phases, I just want you to know that it's not permanent. It's not a sign that you're off track. It's just part of your cycle. And actually the next wave of inspiration often comes quicker when you stop resisting and you start allowing yourself to be exactly where you are. And you know what makes those natural dips so much harder? It's comparison. This is something that I've done all week this week. Honestly, comparison is one of the biggest traps that I see, not just for myself but for pretty much everyone that I work with. It's kind of like the moment that your energy dips, your mind just goes, right, let's just go and scroll on Instagram and see how everyone else is absolutely smashing it. And then suddenly, you're not just dealing with your own lack of inspiration, you're also layering on this story that you're falling behind from what everyone else is doing. Now, I'll hold me hands up, I do this all the time. I'll be sat there feeling flat and I'll see someone posting 5 reels a day or announcing that they've sold out an event or sharing this new idea. And I'll think, why can't I be doing that right now? Why don't I have that level of energy? And it starts to spiral me so quickly into this doubt. But the truth is that we forget that we are comparing our behind the scenes with someone else's highlight reel. So, I might be sat there with me messy desk, me half-eaten biscuits, brain fog, while they've scheduled a perfectly polished post from weeks ago, and they're probably in bed in their pajamas right now as well. We never know the full story, and yet we hold ourselves up against this illusion of constant inspiration and productivity. Now, the other thing here is that people rarely show their dips online. Like for me right now, I'm, I know this, I'm not doing this on me Instagram or anything like that, but I am showing you my vulnerable side. So with other people, you will see their launches, their successes, their best ideas, their most confident moments, But what we don't see is them sat staring at a blank page, doubting themselves, crying because something didn't go to plan. And because people don't show it, we assume that they don't experience it. But they do. Every single person on this planet does. And this is where it links back to manifestation, because when you're in that comparison trap, you're basically affirming to yourself that you are not enough. So you're putting yourself into lack. Whether it be lack of inspiration, lack of ideas, lack of success. And what happens when you sit in lack? Obviously, if you believe in the Law of Attraction, you attract more of it. Not because the universe is punishing you, but because you're tuning your energy into the story of not enoughness. Now, the way out of comparison that I've found is to come back to your own lane. To just remind yourself that your rhythm, your cycle, your timing is completely different to anyone else's. And just because someone else is in a season of output right now in their lives, that doesn't mean that you're behind for being in a season of rest. It's like comparing summer in Australia to winter in the UK. They both happen in December, they're both happening at the same time, but they're not supposed to look the same. And maybe that most powerful reminder is that people aren't actually connecting with you because you're always polished and perfect. You know, for example, at Happy Place at the weekend, I had 2 or 3 people approach me and say, "I absolutely love how raw and real you are." And I was like, "What do you mean?" And they were like, "Well, basically you share the wins and the wobbles." And I mean, even me sitting here today right now telling you that I had no idea about what to talk about, that probably resonates with more people than if I'd come in here right now with a pre-written pep talk. Because it's real, it's human. So next time you find yourself scrolling and comparing with other people, just pause and ask yourself, "Am I looking at their highlight reel and judging my behind the scenes?" Because if the answer is yes, just bring it back. Your journey isn't supposed to look like theirs. Everyone has a unique journey. It's supposed to look like yours. So when those uninspired days hit, I think the question to ask yourself really is, what are you actually going to do about it? Because would you force yourself to push through, or are you going to let yourself sink into the duvet and just hope it passes? Now, I'll be honest, this week I've done both. Sometimes the duvet wins, and that's fine. But over time, I've noticed a few things that really help me soften into those uninspired phases rather than fight against them. And I think the first is stepping away. And that's why this morning when I came back from the office, I was supposed to get on a train and go to Francesca Amber's book launch in London.

And you know what? I had to step away.

I just had to come back to my house, get into bed, put my comfies on, and just lie here for the day. I feel bad that I've done that to Fran, but I know that her more than anyone else understands what I'm going through because she's just as busy as well. And I used to think that the answer was to maybe just sit longer in the office at me desk, or to push harder, or to force an idea to appear. But that just never worked. It just made me more frustrated. So now, feeling stuck, I literally change my environment. I will go for a walk, I'll get some fresh air, I'll even just make myself a cup of tea and just move into another room.

There's something about breaking that physical pattern that shifts the energy, and 9 times out of 10, that's when a tiny spark of inspiration sneaks back in.

Now, another thing that's helped is, um, is giving permission to myself as well. To do the bare minimum. Now, on days when I can't bring meself to record a podcast or to plan out any content, I'll just pick one really small action, whether that be replying to a couple of emails, tidying up me workspace, writing down a single sentence in me journal, whatever it is. That doesn't sound like much, but it shifts the energy. It proves to your brain that you've still moved forward, even if it's only by an inch. And sometimes that inch is all you need to build momentum again. So, I also lean heavily into rituals as well. So, whether it be with crystals, journaling, meditation, because they're not just for when you're feeling good, they're for when you're feeling like crappy as well. So, lighting a candle, holding a crystal, writing out any thoughts that are clogging up your brain, because those little practices, they create space, and space is exactly what inspiration needs.

And then sometimes the most radical thing that you can do is to just rest. Like I have today. We don't give ourselves enough permission to rest, but I've noticed that if I ignore the signs and I keep pushing on, the uninspired phase lasts longer. Whereas if I actually slow down and listen to my body, you know, I take an afternoon off, I watch a film, I have a bath, I have a nap, I do something fun, the energy shifts so much quicker.

It's almost like my body is saying, "Thank you for listening.

Here's your creativity back.

You've earned it.".

And one last thing that I found powerful is talking about it as well. So mentioning it out loud. Last night I sat with Johnny, my partner, and I said, you know, I feel so flat at the minute. I feel really uninspired today because that took away the shame of it. I named that emotion. So whether it be to a friend, a partner, in a voice note to someone, or even like I'm doing right here, right now on the podcast, it stops that feeling from festering in the dark. And more often than not, when you admit it to yourself, someone else will say, "Oh my God, I've been feeling like this as well," and suddenly you don't feel so alone in it. So no, I don't always cope perfectly. There are definitely days when I eat biscuits in bed and I do nothing at all, but I've learned to stop labeling that as failure because coping with uninspired days isn't about being productive. It's just about being kind to yourself. And when you are kind to yourself, the energy always shifts so much quicker than when you beat yourself up. And what I've come to realize over the years is that these so-called uninspired days, they often carry the biggest lessons because they're not a punishment and they're not wasted time. They're actually invitations to pause, listen, and to recalibrate with ourselves as well. So when everything's going well, when you're on a roll and you're buzzing with ideas, you actually don't stop to reflect, you just carry on going. But when the inspiration dries up, you're forced to slow down. And in that slowness, you uncover truths that you maybe might not have realized otherwise. Maybe it's that you've been stretching yourself too thin, or maybe it's that you've been saying yes to too many things that aren't actually truly aligned to you. Now, for me, downtime has often revealed kind of blind spots that I didn't want to see, like the times when I've been working nonstop and I've told myself that I was fine, only to then hit a wall a few days later and realize that me body has been screaming at us to actually rest. Or the times that I've been pushing out content just to keep up with the algorithm when deep down I knew that it wasn't aligned with the message that I actually wanted to share and I was just pushing out content for the sake of it. So those quieter moments, they force you to get honest with yourself. They basically shine a light on what is working and what isn't.. And from a manifestation perspective as well, I think that downtime is crucial because manifestation and the Law of Attraction, it's not just about action. It is about alignment. You can take all the action in the world, but if it's from a place of burnout or lack, it's not going to feel good, and therefore it's not going to land. Downtime gives you space to come back to that alignment. It's like pressing reset on your energy field. And when your energy resets, your ability to attract what you want actually multiplies. It's like planting seeds, you know. If you keep on throwing seeds on that hard, dry soil without ever stopping to water or to nurture it, nothing is going to grow. The pause, the downtime, that is watering. That's the tending to those plants. That's what makes the growth possible. So even though it might feel uncomfortable when you're actually in it right now, it's actually doing the behind-the-scenes work for you. And I think the key lesson throughout all of this is that downtime isn't the absence of progress. It's just a different form of progress. And what I mean by that is that it's quieter, it's more subtle, but it's just as powerful because the work happening beneath the surface is often what allows that next wave of inspiration to land with even more clarity and strength. So, you know, when I catch myself in those uninspired moments from this moment on, I'm going to flip the script and instead of thinking, "I'm stuck," or, "I'm failing," "I should be doing more," I'm going to ask myself, "What is this season teaching me? What do I need to hear right now that I've been too busy to notice?" And 9 times out of 10, that shift is going to turn that downtime into something valuable instead of something to fight against.. And I used to think that I had to show up polished all the time as well. You know, perfect graphics, perfect captions, perfect podcast episodes with a perfect polished message. Don't get us wrong, I still love creating things that feel intentional and professional because, you know, I worked in the NHS for 15 years. I was trained to always put out a professional image of myself because it reflects back on the business. But what I've noticed is that time and time again, is that the posts or the episodes where I've been the most vulnerable, like I have today, the most honest or the most imperfect things, those are the ones that people respond to the most. Think about it. How often do you scroll past the perfectly curated content without a second thought, but then you'll stop on something raw and relatable because it feels human to you? We crave authenticity in our lives. We crave reminders that we're not alone in our struggles. So that's why I've decided to turn up today and just record this episode without any notes, even though I didn't feel inspired to. Because quite honestly, I nearly just put out an old episode, like an old episode from yonks ago, and just said, 'Here you go guys, haven't had time to record a new podcast this week, but here's an old episode.' I was going to do that, but as I hit record, I just thought, 'What if someone needs to hear this message today?

What if someone needs to hear that they're not the only one who feels flat sometimes?' So I want to leave you with this: when you share the cracks in your life authentically, people see themselves in you, and that's where true connection happens. And isn't that what we're all really looking for? Like, not to look flawless, but to feel connected. And from a manifestation point of view, that connection is magnetic. When you drop the need to be perfect and instead just show up as you are, your energy shifts. It becomes more open, more inviting, and people feel that. The universe feels that, and it creates space for opportunities and ideas to flow in because you're not blocking yourself with the pressure of keeping up appearances. So if you've ever caught yourself holding back because you're worried that you're not ready or it's not perfect or you're not feeling inspired enough, just let this be your reminder: your realness is what people want. Not that polished version of you, not the highlight reel. But the human being who is figuring it out as they go. And honestly, that's why I love recording this podcast week after week, because it's not about me sitting here as some guru with all the answers for you. It's just about me sharing my journey, the ups, which is, to be fair, there's a lot of ups, but the downs as well, but also the in-betweens, so that we can walk this path together. You listening and me holding your hand, basically. So Feeling uninspired doesn't mean that you're failing. It doesn't mean that you've lost your spark or that you're off track or that you're not good enough. It just means that you're moving through a natural rhythm in life. It's a rhythm that every single person experiences, even if they don't talk about it. And if you're in one of those uninspired phases right now, I just want you to know that you are not alone because I'm right here with you. And instead of beating yourself up, just see if you can soften into it. Let yourself rest. Let yourself breathe. Let yourself trust that inspiration will come back when it's ready to, because it always does and it always will. And when it does return, it'll probably come back stronger than before because you've then given yourself the space to receive it. So that is the gift of downtime. That is the gift of honesty. Okay, so instead of trying to force yourself into action today, Just take one small step. Write down a single thought in your journal. Go for a short walk. Hold a crystal that makes you feel grounded. Or maybe just give yourself permission to rest in bed like I have done today. You know, just know that rest is not wasted time. It is part of the process. So thank you for listening to me rambling on, honestly, about what it feels like to be uninspired. I hope it's reminded you that you're not alone and that even in the quiet seasons, you you are still growing. And I'd love to hear from you on this as well. So if you are going through a dip, if you've got your own ways of dealing with uninspired days, drop us a message. Let's make this a conversation, because the truth is we're all navigating these waves together. So trust your rhythm, be kind to yourself, and just remember that the inspiration comes back always. Okay, so I hope that this episode hasn't felt like one big ramble and that you've actually been able to take something from it. If you have, please do me a quick favor, leave a review on the pod, or even just follow or subscribe to it. I'd really appreciate that. Another way that you can spread the message of this podcast is to take a screenshot of yourself listening to the podcast and pop it on your Instagram stories. If you tag me, I am @cannycrystals on Instagram and TikTok. I'll reshare as many as I possibly can. And don't forget, you can get 10% off at cannycrystals.co.uk and cannycrystalsacademy.co.uk with your exclusive discount code, which is the word 'podcast'. At checkout. So have a lovely weekend recharging your batteries, and I will see you all next Friday for another episode. Speak soon, guys.

Bye!