I’ve always wanted to unleash my creativity. I kept hitting walls and burning myself out on mere ideas and an endless imagination. I never consistently rooted myself in my writing.
Finding Your Passion
It is common knowledge that writers work alone most of the time. It’s solo work. There is just the writer and the blank page, a blinking cursor, and an overwhelmed mind. Instead of fearing the work, I looked for what I love and enjoy about creating.
So, solitude became the cornerstone of my passion. I took the time to listen to my creative self and understand what I enjoyed most. Eventually, solitude led to my creative pursuit and a strong desire to explore and expand my self-expression.
Having not one but many interests, I’ve managed to cultivate a unique embodiment of creative domains. From fashion to writing, interior decor, and vintage inspirations, my creativity developed its own language.
As a multi-creator, I am perpetually hungry for limitless creative exposure in all forms. I maneuvered my way through life with creativity tailing close behind.
Your Creative Potential
When I’m away from the energy of others, I naturally turn towards creative projects. However, what is waiting for me is almost always procrastination.
I procrastinated diving into my creativity so often that my creative projects haunt me. They sit untouched and idle in abandoned rooms in my mind. A time will come when you’ll have to face your passion and answer the question: Why are you afraid to create?
After many anxiety-filled nights, I got my answer. I’m afraid of knowing what my creative potential is—and not because I was afraid of being less than good. I was hesitant to be different from who I had always been.
Have you ever felt too scared of pursuing a project because it feels safe in your head?
You have the keys to unlock your creativity, be brave enough to open the door, step inside, and take a swing at the guard dogs named Anxiety, Fear, and Self-doubt. Show ‘em who’s boss. This is not to be taken literally. Please don’t abuse animals.
The Soul Purpose of Creating
Life isn’t long enough to live with both your creativity and your fears. We may feel like the art within us will be ruined once it comes in contact with the real world. Our minds coddle our creativity so often that we may never feel confident to nurture it into reality.
Whatever you want to do, do it for yourself first. Use your child-like curiosity and play, create, and have fun.
Creativity should always feel like home. It’s a place where you can freely express yourself without fear of judgment or critique. Nobody can tell you it’s wrong or not good enough if you’re creating for the sole (and soul) purpose of creating.
It’s an experimental process and it should be done with your approval.
I’ve been an aspiring writer for as long as I can remember. Writing found me when I was a moon-eyed child with a big imagination. Words made me feel happy and comforted. I loved the way sentences were structured and conjured up images and ideas. It felt like magic.
Now that I’m at an age where I can fund my creative pursuits, I decided to launch this blog in honor of that eager creative itch I’m always drawn to.
If you’re like me, you may enjoy diving into a diverse range of creative activities. I could spend hours on Canva designing social media posts that may never see the light of the social media feed, or I could put together an outfit I’ll never wear. I’ve written hundreds of poems that no one would read and stored many more creative ideas that haven’t been planted into fruition yet.
I haven’t shared my work because I believe creative projects are for your liberty. Creating without the self-inflicted pressure of sharing your work and anticipating reviews can debilitate your process and outcome.
When we assume others will judge our work, we subconsciously shift gears and create something that pleases our audience. Creating for ourselves gives us the freedom to create what we would like, how we would like to, and to pace ourselves to take as long or slow as we see fit.
Deciding on how perfected or how spontaneous the outcome is is the gift of the creative process. The act of creating is rewarding when it’s done for yourself.
Pacing Yourself
Creativity does not have a deadline.
Access to creatives who are traditionally recognized as successful has haunted me over the years. After I graduated from university, I was at my first full-time job. I felt I lacked in my roster of accomplishments. My colleagues weren’t only full-time employees. They were fashion designers, influencers, musicians, bilinguals…
I could only introduce myself as an aspiring writer (without a published book, recognized blog, or award-winning journalistic career). Today, I would describe myself as a creative spirit stuck in a procrastinator’s body.
One thing I had to remind myself of over the years was that being creative didn’t mean you had to have a long list of accomplishments to be wildly recognized for your work or be a famous name in your industry. You don’t even need to follow a specific industry! Creativity (to me) means you can dip your toes wherever you like and explore your passion(s).
Before my first job, I shut down my first blog, I had written scraps of novel rough drafts, and I had experiences with personal styling, writing poetry, and cooking. All these miniature passion projects are valid to classify myself as a creative soul, as are yours. Don’t downplay who you were yesterday because you are not where others are today.
It’s vital to pace yourself on your creative journey. We tend to be hard on ourselves and only see what we haven’t achieved, rather than looking at all the baby steps we’ve taken.
Play By Your Own Rules
While writing this article, it is 9:13 p.m. The Dave Brubeck Quartet plays Take Five. Not a single word was written for my project, not a single painting was painted, and not an ounce of charisma was poured onto any creative project. My bookshelves keep a humble library and with the handful of films and TV shows I watched, I haven’t acquired the biggest amount of creative digestion as others might have.
If you feel you have not created enough, but also haven’t digested enough creative material, you could feel a setback. Pacing yourself to explore your interests doesn’t mean you must be a connoisseur in everything you’re interested in. Whether you’re a multifaceted creator or a devoted master, remember you are always entitled to make your own rules.
You can play by your own rules until you’re ready to jump into the big leagues. There’s too much focus these days on scaling the numbers and becoming an overnight sensation. Let alone, being the awe-inspiring professional in your field.
It’s the game between being the one-hit wonder versus the evergreen creator. The phrase, “jack of all trades, master of none,” can be demeaning, especially to soulfully creative folks like myself. We should allow ourselves to be the jack of all trades for a while, and then discover what we are most inclined to master.
This is Going Somewhere Good…
Another obstacle that hinders our creative path is money. Money is creativity’s kryptonite. Sure, you can become a success and love your work. It’s a shame to only see creative endeavors as a way to earn a buck.
Money is the green monster waiting for us to fall into its deadly trap. Creativity needs a shield and sword to protect itself against gratuity. And that shield and sword could be your passion and desire to see your creativity through.
No matter where you start on your journey, whether for self-expression or pursuit of passion projects, you should only compare the joy of the work today to yesterday. You must look at your work and tell yourself, “I like this. This is going somewhere good.”