You Are What You Create

When you meet a person who seems fully alive and engaged in their existence, the chances are that they are in touch with their creativity. On the other hand, when you interact with people who have no spark or energy, they have become unplugged from their own creative power and consume more than they create.

Last week I encouraged you to take the time to discover the ways in which you are creative, and to think outside the conventional notions of creativity. I encouraged you to do this because I strongly believe it is the path that will lead you to a more fulfilling experience of your life.

And yet it is much more than this.

Who you are is reflected by your creative expression. If you are not in tune with your unique blend of creative energy then you are not wholly yourself. If you are not authentically you then your essence starts to diminish and it becomes more difficult to ignite the spark once more.

In my quest to create a life of my own definition and of my own imaginings, I have been torn between choosing the profitable way forward and the more indulgent-creative path. For example, on the profitable side, I have considered creating information products and courses that draw on my expertise as an educator. I have been playing around with ideas of running and creating seminars for students, parents and teachers. I have spent hours researching how to become a profitable entrepreneur.

The other side of me simply craves the opportunity to indulge my creative side. I want the time and space to write, to conduct my own research projects and to become involved in the theatre again. I am excited to think about spending my days creating projects that fascinate me and fuel me. My very sensible side (which has become well developed over my life time) worries about how this will turn into anything that has profit potential.

There is a lot of advice out there that encourages us to seek an outlet for the intersection between our passions and talents and with what people need and want to pay for. The passions and talents part is really coming together for me, but turning it into something that people want and would pay for is something that turns me off.

But you see, I don’t want to create with the end goal or aim of making a profit from it. I don’t want to spend hours working on something that feels more like work than play. I want to create what speaks most deeply to me and is the most true reflection of who I am and who I am becoming.

My ultimate fantasy would be to find a patron who invests in me as a contribution to society. I know! That’s thinking a bit highly of myself isn’t it? Even the likes of Leonardo Da Vinci had to paint his fair share of merchant portraits and religious scenes to allow him the funds to pursue his real creations. But hey, I can dream

So consider this:

If you are a painter/designer/chef/communicator/gardner/decorator/programmer/writer/actor and yet you never paint/design/cook/speak/garden/decorate/program/write/act, then who are you really?

If you are driven to use your creative energies in the pursuit of money, whether as a traditional employee or in work of your own design, then are your creations an authentic expression of who you are?

If your impulse is to create, but instead you eat, watch television, stalk Facebook or indulge in the creations of others, then when will it be time for you to develop your energies? How long will you wait until the spark of who you are begins to fade away?

You are what you create and you need to create something today.

Related posts:

1. Meaning Experiment of the Week – What would you do if you won the Lottery?
2. Meaning Experiment of the Week – What’s Your Creative Style?
3. Meaning in the Meantime
4. Five Reasons You Should Stop Searching
5. The Intersection of Passion and Talent