Is creativity a curse?

Is creativity a curse? Sometimes it can feel like it. You’re creative and that seems to make everything complicated in your life. There are times when you just want to be normal like everyone else.

But you’re not normal. You need time to be creative or you go crazy. You need a lot of time on your own and this isn’t always convenient to the people around you.

You really struggle fitting in the 9–5 mode because you feel like a square peg in a round hole. There is only so long you can manage with the corners of your soul crunched into that ill-fitting hole.

And sensitivity — you’re so sensitive. Others tell you to toughen up. You’ve tried but it doesn’t really work.

You get so exasperated with yourself and just wish you were like other people. It can be fun to be a creative person but other times it feels like a curse.

We can’t change who we are

I have struggled with this a lot in my life. After years of internal battles, wishing I was someone else and deriding my sensitivity, I have discovered that to accept who I am with all my creative foibles is a much easier way to live.

Yes, I’m creative. That means that I do need to express myself. Despite being married I do need time alone. And I also need regular clear headspace time to process my ideas which means that I can’t be busy 24/7 with other stuff.

Accepting me, as I am, has given me a much smoother, resilient life. I now have a healthy balance of time to be creative and time to attend to other worldly matters like earning money and maintaining relationships.

Gift or curse?

To create is to express one’s truth. Why is this a curse? Surely it is a gift?

There are people out there who would love to interpret the world and their emotions in a creative way. They are either not wired that way or they don’t have the courage to do it. These people are envious of you.

Your sensitivity is a wonderful aptitude. It means you can pick up on an unspoken vibe, often when someone is in emotional pain, and act on it.

Your courage to be creative inspires others, directly and indirectly. Your work, a product of your emotions, allows others to process their emotions. Your courage to be creative might also allow others to start creating.

The grass isn’t greener

It might look appealing to have an uncomplicated life where you don’t have to dig deep within yourself and then find the courage to “put yourself out there.” But everyone has complicated emotions and nobody’s life is as simple as it might appear on the surface.

The joy of creativity is that you get to process your thoughts and emotions through your work. Many people don’t do that and end up “eaten up” by the stuff they refuse to face.

Give yourself permission to be you

Give yourself permission to create and be yourself.

Please insist that your creative needs are met because this is how you can be at your best. Mostly you will need to convince yourself that it is worth carving out creative time in your life. Sometimes you will need to negotiate this with other people.

When you are at your best you are useful to the world and to the people close to you. If you’re crabby and depressed because you have not written or made art or made music then you are not going to be a nice person to be around.

The world needs you

The world needs creativity. We need creative solutions to the problems we face as a society. We need people properly in tune with their emotions. We need people operating from their higher selves. We need people whose work brings comfort and entertainment to others.

As a creative you do this. It’s not a curse — it’s a blessing.

Do you want tips on how to be creative when you have a day job? Sign up at www.gentlewarrior.co.uk

Thanks for reading. My name is Cali Bird and I help people be creative no matter what else they have going on in their life.

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