For the Hungry Artist
For years I didn’t know why I was creative.
Why I wanted to act, sing or dance. Why I wanted to put thoughts and emotions into something tangible. Why I struggled with my artist friends to give shape and form to make the unseen seen.
I just knew that I had to create.
Then I read this quote…
1. Do something that scares you…like making pasta from scratch.
2. Visit The Creativity Post. I love this blog.
3. Give away something you made…that you normally don’t give away.
4. Charge for something you normally give away.
5. Read an inspiring book. Here’s a list of my favorites. Continue reading “17 Ways to Inspire Creativity”
We are the risk-takers.
We are the tightrope-walking plate-spinners.
We are the stake-raisers.
But what if we’re not?
The biggest creative risk we can make is to not create. (Tweet this)
Why?
Because when we don’t create our artist dies. Like a once-growing vibrant houseplant stashed in the corner of a dark, dank basement, we wither under the poor conditions of apathy, blame and denial of responsibility.
The remedy? Continue reading “Your Biggest Creative Risk”
Until I die, I must live an inspired life.
I love to be inspired. I love to be inspiring.
That’s why I write this blog.
That’s why I read, write, speak, act, sing, dance…it’s all because there’s more to life than going to work, eating, sleeping and then repeating it all forever.
To be inspiring, we must be inspired.
Some wonderful, inspiring people who’ve given me fuel for my creative projects are my friends Susanne and Jason Mundok. Continue reading “Inspiring People”
We act out of duty or out of passion.
Sometimes we act out of duty and passion.
But passion always wins.
Always.
For creatives, we have to feed ourselves some daily goodness to replenish our levels of passion and creativity. I have a list of go-to things that always fills me up with passion, inspire me to action and ignite me to create. Continue reading “What Gives You Goosebumps?”
If you want to make an omelette, you’ve got to break some eggs.
And I broke a few eggs this weekend. Come to think of it, I’ve broken a lot of eggs. As I look at my blog over the past year I realize I’ve had some great successes and some pretty awesome failures.
But that’s the thing about failures: without them, we never have successes.
We have to fall down to learn.
I count it a success that I finally finished sent out my first once-or-twice-a-month newsletter. Learning MailChimp for a non-designer like myself was akin to speaking a foreign language. After stumbling around and finding my way in the dark, I finally sent it out.
But I made a few mistakes… Continue reading “Not My Proudest Creative Moments”
Confession: I haven’t felt creative this week.
+Perhaps it’s because I was on an awesome vacation last week and am back at my (very good, but not always inspiring) day job this week.
+Perhaps it’s because I’ve got a cold.
+Perhaps it’s because I haven’t exercised enough.
+Perhaps it’s because fill in the blank with your reason here .
I don’t know why I haven’t felt creative this week, but in many ways it doesn’t even matter. I know that if I focus on not feeling creative, I’ll do nothing. I won’t create.
I still pumped out two commercial scripts, finished editing a video and put the finishing touches on my soon-to-be released e-book 10 Commandments for Creatives (get more info on it HERE). Continue reading “When You Don’t Feel Creative”
The sleazy car salesman. He just wants your money. He doesn’t really care if you get the car you need or want.
The way-too-eager date. He (or she) only wants your body. He/she isn’t interested in who you are.
The ‘can I ask you a question’ person at the mall kiosk. They just want to sell you hair extensions, skin creams, or helicopter gadgets. They’re not really interested you. (Aside: My stock response to their ‘can I ask you a question’ ice-breaker is always “you just did.” Then keep walking. Write me. Let me know if it works for you too.)
This one-dimensional approach wreaks of disingenuousness. It blasts insincerity up the nostrils of true passion leaving it feeling numb and jaded rather than infused with life and fire.
The same is true of your creative work; it must be authentic to be truly beautiful. If your work is not genuine, it’s perceived like a cheaply executed facelift: it looks okay, but everyone who sees it knows that it’s not quite real. Continue reading “Create from Your Core”
[box options] You’re reading creative passion love (or hate) letters from yourself, to yourself. You wrote what you are about to read. You wrote it with your life.
If this is your first visit, start here with Day 1.[/box]
Dear Me,
Before we jump into today’s letter of your creativity rehab bootcamp, here’s what you’ve written about thus far…
Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3 were all about getting yourself to feel again. You might’ve felt angry or frustrated at first. But mostly you felt empowered after you wrote this. You realized you’ve abandoned your creativity.
Passion begets passion.
In Day 4 you identified the four surrogates that make you think you’re living, feeling and creating. But they’re masqueraders.
Day 5 shined a spotlight on the cockroach of apathy, the first surrogate to creative passion, and it scurried away.
Ahhhh… and here we are at Day 6. How do you feel tackling these demons?
Empowered? Furious? Frustrated?
On this path you’re on, it’s just good to be feeling. For so long you felt nothing but confusion and ambiguity.
At least you’re feeling again.
At least you’re angry or inspired or fill in the blank .
At the very least, feel something. Continue reading “Lust and Your Creative Passion”
Taking Mr. Sinek’s advice, here are some of the creative projects I’m working on…
(affiliate link) and loving it!
