Ya know...for years, I told myself the lie that I'm not creative.

"It doesn't line up with me being analytical."

"I can't come up with ideas; I can only analyze or evaluate them."

"I'm a data person. I can't do creative things."

1/

And part of that lie came out of believing very strongly in what I, and others, perceived as truth: that I am good with data and patterns, and numbers (when I want to be).

It took a lot of inner work to break down the why, then find the source.

2/

Part of it was messages I took in or observed growing up.

Part of it was how our education system was set up.

Part of it was fixating so strongly on what others had told me about myself.

And part of it was simply not examining all of that. Pure laziness.

3/

Getting to the root of it wasn't enough, though. There was more work to do.

What did creativity mean to me, beyond visual art?

What creative talents could I develop?

How could I create the environment I needed to be creative?

4/

And perhaps hardest of all for me, how could I begin to peel off the corporate identity I had built around myself, to the exclusion of everything else?

What did I need in order to be okay with the idea that my day job was a thing to pay the bills - not my self or my calling?

5/

Slowly, all the little things I enjoyed as a child - and had rejected to "be an adult" - started coming back.

And so did my feeling that actually, yes, I am creative. I am a creative. And it is possible to be more than just one thing for one space in my life.

6/

Then there was more work. Creative ideas don't just fall beautifully on a page.

For maybe the first time in my life, I actually had to put in work to learn a craft. I had to practice, regularly, not just learn once and iterate for efficiency.

(Gifted Kids ftw)

7/

All of that work and learning and introspection doesn't just get to stop, either. Growth and becoming a fuller (more creative!) version of myself will require constant effort.

Constant reclaiming of my space, time, and power.

Constant review, examination, and adjustment.

8/

So much more work than I was honestly ever willing to do to advance in a corporate career

And yet, creating fills my cup and feeds my soul.

That's the point of this thread. Are you stuck? Doubting yourself? Scared? Jealous?

Step back. Find the root. Do the work.

9/

I truly believe that we all have it in us to create and be creative.

It won't look like someone else's version, process, or outcome.

It doesn't have to make money. But it's also fine if it does.

What's important is that you do you. Find what's in you and express.

10/10

Oh and hey, if you liked all that, here's my pinned tweet to work with me, offer a ko-fi, buy one of my books, or find me somewhere else on the internet https://twitter.com/write_wherever/status/1256958840169521153