Over the past few months, I have been on a journey to create. I’ve been doing lots of writing and I’m excited to say that my first eBook was released earlier this month . My journey started by reading The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. This book not only got me writing, it changed the way I thought about myself. Prior to reading this book, I would have never considered myself creative but not there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t write something. I now understand that everyone is creative in some way. Here are some realizations I’ve had during this journey.

Isn’t Being Creative Just Doing Art?

There are millions of ways to be creative but for some reason, most people view art (painting, sculpting, writing, etc.) to be the only way. According to the dictionary, art is the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power. If you notice right in the middle of the definition is the word “typically” which would lead us to believe that most of the time art is paintings or sculptures but most of the time isn’t all of the time. So let’s hold onto the definition as the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination.

But I’m Not Creative

Would you consider yourself creative? You might feel exactly the way I did not long ago, that you don’t have a creative bone in your body. That’s exactly where my journey started. I was suffering from low self-esteem and even less confidence and I was willing to try anything to help me get out of that funk. I knew I wanted to do something new and different but didn’t know what. I started by searching for a book to read that might give me some sort of direction. My wife gave me The Artist’s Way to read and so I decided to put away my skepticism and give it a shot.

Where To Start

Journaling was the key to getting started. I followed the books instructions on “Morning Pages” and began writing 3 pages right when I woke up. I quickly filled an entire notebook. Through that writing, I realized that even though I had a long career in Information Technology, I was being creating. Every day there were problems to solve. Many of those required looking at them from different angles and using creativity for the solutions. Once I had that epiphany, it helped me put away the old thinking that I wasn’t creative. Shedding that mindset has allowed me to write more and more. I finished my first eBook and have plans for another and a longer book in the next few months.

Yes You Are

I believe in you. You are creative. It’s in you. Take some time to think about your life. Look for ways that you have used creativity in different ways in the past. I’m sure there are problems you have solved at work that required a bit of creativity. It doesn’t have to be what some would consider “art”. Get rid of that thinking. Creativity shows up in many forms so be open to the idea that you are creative. Move forward without limiting yourself. Learn something new and put your creativity to the test.