This may be hard for you to hear, but you are your own worst enemy. You have convinced yourself only a select few have creative genius. We imagine 'true artists' as tortured souls, living frugal lives, slaves to their creative genius.
We don't connect with this image, so over the years, society has colluded to suppress our genius. I speak not of genius in terms of Einstein or Darwin. I speak of our personal, creative genius that our ego has suppressed as 'not good enough'.
"But I have never been creative/ I wasn't born creative" I hear you cry. And that is how I know you have swallowed society's "tortured genius" crap.
EVERYONE, was born creative. Quit eating up the bullshit you have fed yourself over the years. EVERY SINGLE child is creative. Did you draw? Act out stories? Write stories? Build sandcastles or Lego structures? Investigate bugs? This IS creativity. Exploration. Play.
So who told you that you were weird? That your drawings was ‘childish’? That painting was too messy and that mess was ‘bad’? Or were you ‘just looking for attention’ and ignored?
Our emotions are complex and varied. However, we tend to recollect strong emotions ad these are the ones that cause change. Happier emotions encourage us to continue acting in a manner that contributes to those positive feelings. Whereas negative emotions are often rejected, hurtful and we wish to avoid these feelings. We make the decision (consciously or unconsciously) not to repeat activities that we associate with that negative, painful emotion. The stronger the emotion, the stronger the reaction.
“He was making a horse out of the clay that our teacher kept under the sink. And at one point, one of the girls who was sitting at his table, seeing what he was doing, leaned over and said to him, “That’s terrible. That doesn’t look anything like a horse.” And Brian’s shoulders sank. And he wadded up the clay horse and he threw it back in the bin. I never saw Brian do a project like that ever again.” TEDex - David Kelly - How you build your creative confidence
So what? What does any of this have to do with my ego? Why is this even an issue?
I told you before you started reading to leave your ego at the door. If you are reacting with a ‘so what?’ attitude – check your ego and keep reading! If you can relate – KEEP READING!
Creativity needs to be nurtured. At some point, you have rejected creativity. Whatever the catalyst was, creativity was rejected, buried as an association with a negative experience/emotion. Our ego likes to feel good and consequently will weave the ‘I’m not creative’ lie so it can feel better about things and not face the emotions and judgement you place upon yourself.
Thing is, you are your own worst critic. Full of perfectionism and ideals that keep your true creativity suppressed.
And now for the good news. You can change this. You are in control.
So what if your drawing is ‘childish’. So what if your novella was rejected by one publishing house. So what if your obsession with bugs was considered ‘weird’ by others.
At what point is it ‘too late’ to chase your dreams? To enjoy an activity that makes YOUR soul sing?
We never stop growing or changing. You are never truly ‘grown-up’.
Ask yourself who you are trying to impress. Your parents? Your teachers? You probably haven’t seen your teachers for 20+ years… Do their opinions still matter? What about your parents? Is the relationship you had with them when you were 5 still the same? So I’ll ask you again. Who are you REALLY trying to impress?
Here’s the deal… It is an illusion created by your ego. To feel ‘good’. The thing is, this ‘good feeling’ is also an illusion.
I have said throughout that creativity is something you really are born with. Like anything, it needs to be nurtured in order to thrive. When we associate negativity with creativity we cease to nurture it and allow it to wither.
Want some more good news? Unlike a water starved plant, creativity doesn’t die. It lies dormant until we are ready to embrace and nurture it again.
Don’t belittle your creative efforts or worse, dismiss them. Take time to indulge creativity once more. Check your ego at the door, leave your perfectionism at home. Stop swallowing the ‘genius’ bullshit. The creativity is within you – the genius is to nurture it.
