Yes, You Are Creative

I can’t tell you how many times in my advertising and writing classes I teach at the university that I hear students tell me that they are not creative, or that they just don’t have a lot of creativity in their bones. As someone who has been teaching for over 25 years, I think I can safely say at this point that people underestimate their power to be creative, and that more often than not, they are quite capable of creating something that is better than they expected.

All they need is a push and someone to convincingly tell them that they’ve got creativity brewing inside them.

I’m currently reading Elizabeth Gilbert’s book on creativity called Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear. I’ve wanted to write a book about creativity for years, and in fact, have presented ideas on creativity at conferences for several years. Truthfully, it has become a big fascination of mine. Gilbert’s book is so spot on and insightful; within the text, grants us permission to be creative and put our talents to work, just in case no one else ever gave us room to do so. She carefully, humorously, and convincingly builds the argument that we, as humans, have always made things. So, if we wants to be writers, painters, or any other type of artists or inventors, why do we feel the need not to put that dream at the forefront of our endeavors? As she states on page 85, “If you’re supporting yourself financially and you’re not bothering anyone else, then you’re free to do whatever you want with your life.” She further states on page 89 that “creativity is the hallmark of our species.”

So why do so many people believe they are not creative? We must believe we are.

A writer myself, especially when I am writing fiction, I must go to that deep place of creativity often, and I have to rely on empathy to be able to feel or understand what a certain character might be going through. This kind of writing requires you to be inspired—by place, person, or thing. But we cannot even get to this place if we don’t believe we are creative. Believing we are creative is half the battle.

Bloggers understand this, too. If you are to be a consistent blogger, it requires consistent creativity to come up with article ideas and then implement them for readers. Even sitting here now, I feel as if I’m in my creative zone drafting this piece for you to read.

I highly recommend Big Magic to anyone who works in a creative field, for students who have to make things or write things in classes, for moms who have an idea to make something that will simplify life at home or with kids, and for any other folks who have a strong yearning to break out of the everyday drudgery of what they do and tackle that creative thing that will make your heart sing.

You ARE creative. We all are.

xx |

Stephanie Verni is the author of Baseball Girl, Beneath the Mimosa Tree, and the upcoming novel Inn Significant. She is also a co-author of Event Planning: Communicating Theory and Practice, published by Kendall-Hunt.
Stephanie Verni is the author of Baseball Girl, Beneath the Mimosa Tree, and the upcoming novel Inn Significant. She is also a co-author of Event Planning: Communicating Theory and Practice, published by Kendall-Hunt.