How to Find Your Courage to Create
What an interesting thought.
The courage to create.
As humans, we have the desire to create, to build, to imagine. Many of us dream about pursuing creative endeavors, creating a better life for ourselves or carving out a new path to follow.
Unfortunately, many of us never progress past the dreaming phase.
We’re told that we need to follow a certain path, one that has been mapped out and traveled down for generations. And we oblige.
The fear of rejection and disappointment drives us more than the possibility of success.
We worry about what others will think. So we refrain from doing.
I’m guilty.
I’ve dreamt and talked about writing for years. I would journal, write down story ideas and read books on writing while convincing myself these were actionable steps toward my goal.
Rather they were just empty actions that held the illusion of progress.
The truth was that fear was holding me back.
Fear that my work wasn’t good enough. Fear that I wasn’t good enough.
Are there areas in your life where you are letting fear determine your fate?
Decide to create in spite of it.
Tapping Into Your Desire to Create
As children, we are natural creators, learners and doers without fear of judgment. Along the way, we are told what is expected of us and we start to alter what we do to align with those expectations.
In doing so many of us lose that magic that allowed us to think differently, bigger and bolder.
As we get older, we settle into routines, settle into our comfort zones and settle into settling.
Everyone now and again the spark is reignited and we talk about the novel we always wanted to write, the business idea we’ve had since high school or creating a more fulfilling life for ourselves.
The ability to create something new and wonderful is in every one of us. It’s up to you to access it and bring it to the surface again.
For those of us who have children, or are around children frequently, it’s amazing to see how they view every day as an opportunity to create.
My son loves games and we have bought him a number of the classics. He’ll start off playing them the way they are intended to be played and then begin to invent new games. Taking pieces from other boxes, and even items around the house, he will create new rules and objectives.
He doesn’t care about existing rules or the opinions of others. He believes he is free to create so he does.
As adults, we limit ourselves.
We limit ourselves by thinking we must stay within parameters set by friends, family, and society.
We limit ourselves by thinking it’s too hard.
We limit ourselves by wondering what other people will say or think.
The beauty of the limits we impose on ourselves is that we can cast those limits aside.
Let’s allow ourselves to think uninhibitedly and create on our terms.
Being Comfortable with Rejection
No.
There it is, that word we have such a fear of. Two little letters that prevent us from trying.
When I started submitting my work, I received a lot of rejections. I still do.
Whether the rejection was short and succinct or a thoughtful opinion of my work, it stung.
Each of my works, fiction or nonfiction, represented a piece of me. I took it personally.
But it was never personal.
Their job was to find the best pieces for their needs.
After they hit send on the email, I wasn’t given another thought.
Yet I gave their “no” power. Power to make me doubt myself.
Then I read Stephen King’s “On Writing” which changed my outlook completely. Early in his career, he would nail his rejections to his wall. And when there were too many for the nail to hold, he replaced it with a bigger nail.
Stephen King was rejected. Stephen frickin’ King.
There is not one creative person who hasn’t experienced rejection. If Stephen King, Walt Disney and Nia Vardalos had let the rejections stop them we wouldn’t have Carrie, Mickey Mouse or My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
If there’s constructive feedback from the rejections, use it. If not, move on or even make it a goal onto itself.
I have a goal of receiving 100 rejections this year.
I have to submit at least 100 times. I have to keep writing, I have to keep trying.
The beauty is that the more I write, the better I get and the more likely I am to get a yes.
Get comfortable with rejections and remember that no one has the power to determine when you stop creating but you.
Embracing Failure
Failure is a gift.
Within failure is the opportunity to see what didn’t work but also what did.
Often people stop trying if they are not successful the first time which is perplexing.
If anything, you should feel more confident trying again given the knowledge and experience you now have.
We are all aware of the myriad of well-known entrepreneurs who repeatedly experienced failure before they succeeded from Thomas Edison to Henry Ford.
It’s preposterous to think you and I would be exempt from failure.
So let’s reframe the way we think about failure.
Failure is not defeat.
Failure is a lesson.
Failure is growth.
Failure is the courage to try.
Failure is fearlessness.
Failure is another step along your path to success.
And let’s be honest, people who have tried and failed, make for much more interesting people.
I know someone who has talked about “doing” for so long that I dread talking to them. They are permanently in the dreaming stage.
It’s much more riveting to listen to those who have attempted. The best stories, wisdom and insights come from trying rather than dreaming.
Be interesting.
Ditch the Vision Boards
I’m not a fan of vision boards.
Manifest your dreams. Visualize your future. Imagine achieving your goals.
It’s easy to get stuck in this stage of the process. The fun part, where you cut out pictures, write down goals and fantasize about your future self.
Manifesting isn’t going to create for you. Visualizing isn’t going to achieve goals for you. Imagining isn’t going to accomplish projects for you.
It’s work. The unglamorous, boring and messy work that is going to progress you towards your goals.
You can’t visualize your way to a sculpted body.
You can’t manifest more zeros in your bank account.
You can’t imagine a book deal into reality.
Be honest with yourself. Are you willing to put in the sweat, the time and the work that it will take you to achieve what you desire?
If boards are your thing, create a reality board. You can even use pictures if you’d like.
Find pictures showing the effort part of the process, the time part of the process and the frustration part of the process.
Know that the process will not always be easy but it will be worth it.
The only way to create something new, something better, something amazing is to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.
Stop imagining and start doing.
Find Your Courage
It doesn’t matter how old you are, what stage of life you are in or what your past looks like.
You have within you the courage, the ability and the gift to create.
Whether that’s a painting, a business, a healthier or wealthier you.
Stop dreaming, face your fears and take action.
I can’t wait to see what you create!