Creators gotta create
Seriously, it's far more than just a hobby
Me, I’m a creator. That’s who I am (part of who I am, anyway - maybe I’ll write another post about the other major part). What I do is writing, art, editing, crafting, and so on.
But who I am is a creator. And while I’m reasonably good at marketing, administration, and organization, if I don’t balance those with enough creative activity, I become irritable, disgruntled, hard to be around.
Just ask my family.
There’s something about creativity that hits a unique spot in the brain and the psyche. Whether we’re talking about crafts, fine arts, music, storytelling, or even more math-y creative pursuits like architecture or, yes, programming… doing these things creates a kind of satisfaction that other activities simply don’t.
And failing to do them creates a kind of dissatisfaction that can’t be “cured” any other way.
Which can be a real pain-in-the-you-know-where in this material world, where we have bills to pay and groceries to buy.
Because it ain’t easy to make a living with creative pursuits.
So many of us end up in jobs that pay the bills, trying to cram the creative stuff into our (exhausted) off hours. Been there, done that, was too tired to design the t-shirt.
I recognize that I’m quite privileged to now be able to pursue creative activities - writing and art - for a (meager) living. Not everyone has the freedom to do that.
The whole “who we are versus what we do” issue is, I think, a big part of what drives the dissatisfaction so many of us feel in modern western society.
Who are you, really? Do your daily responsibilities reflect that?
If not, do you have the time, energy, and (if necessary) funds to pursue activities that support who you really are?
I don’t have the answers for everyone - heck, half the time, I don’t even have all the answers for myself.
But I’ve learned over the years that formulating the right question will get you most of the way to the answer.
What do you do to scratch that creative itch?
Here’s to finding the right questions and letting them lead us to more fulfilling lives.
I'm impossible when I don't get to create enough... :'-) So I try to make sure I scratch that itch every day, starting with an hour of fiction writing every morning. My other projects are sometimes pushed to evenings or weekends, depending on how many clients I have during the week, but one day, one day...
I definitely get the creative itch a lot! I find, though, that its satisfaction can be obtained in numerous ways. Maybe it's my Gemini Sun and Mercury, but I find that my mental frame of mind determines whether it's painting, writing, poetry, updating my website or creating a social media post on Canva, which is used as my personal scratching stick. And the itch normally needs attention at least once in the day, otherwise I go a little potty!