“I wish I were creative like you!”

Have you ever said that? I wonder what makes someone think they’re not creative?  What is creativity anyway? I know, I’m full of questions today, aren’t I? But if you ever said that, I just want you to know I’ve been thinking about you.

There’s a who lot of self-doubt piled into that statement. I know, because I’ve been there. This statement often hangs out with it’s good friend, “I could never be that good.” So, what does it mean to be good enough? When we say these statements, it generally means we crave to have those desired talents. Or maybe, we’re disappointed we don’t.

We are all so very unique. We have different skills and different life experiences. I think about these statements and wonder when a person decides that these are truths. Somewhere in their life, someone shut them down. The aftermath was an internal belief that they should give up trying.

“Why bother? I’ll never be as talented as you.”

Stop for a minute. Is this really true? Offer a little kid a creative project and they’ll usually dive in. Well, sometimes they might rather play their video game, but they never say, “nah…it’s OK I’m not good enough!” Hmmm? Once upon a time, we were that free-spirited child. When did we lose that spirit and willingness to try? No one is born with self-doubt.

Sure, maybe we might be better at some tasks than others. But, as the saying goes, “don’t throw the baby out with the bath water.” If it doesn’t feel right, try something different. There are so many creative things in this world; music, literature, performing arts, visual arts, culinary arts, etc. I say, if you wish to be creative, then be it. How? It’s simply, just follow your heart.