I am a creative person. I don't say that to brag, it's more of a confession, really.
Hello, my name is Meredith and I'm a...*hangs head*...creative.
What does it mean to be a "creative"? Well, mostly it means that it's hard for me to get anything done, due to the constant barrage of ideas in my brain. Yesterday I put some pasta on to boil, and went down the hall to check my email for a couple of minutes. Some unknown amount of time later I found myself wondering what was that strange noise, coming from the kitchen. It was the sizzling sound of starchy water boiling over onto my stove burners. Apparently I cannot boil water without burning it.
In my defense, my attention had been waylaid by a color palette that I was really loving working on. It was pretty.
Pretty, shiny objects are my downfall. I'm like a hummingbird flitting from one bright red object to another, in search of the perfect nectar.
Most people think creativity sounds like fun, but in reality it can be quite difficult to manage. For example, at any given moment, I may simultaneously want to:
- Organize my closet
- Write a book
- Take a nap.
At the next moment, I may be thinking of:
- Working on that painting
- Rearranging my furniture
- Doing the dishes.
So, as I'm trying to decide what to tackle first, I stare off into space, accomplishing nothing. Not very productive. Then when I finally pick one and start to work on it, I'm always thinking I should be doing one of the other things I was thinking of.
The question that usually plagues my existence these days is, "What should I be doing right now?"
Now I get that this is a first world problem. If I didn't have free time on my hands, I wouldn't struggle so much with these decisions. If I lived in a different part of the world, my biggest challenge may be how to get clean water, or foraging for food. So I'm thankful. But I want to use my time well and wisely, in honor of my husband who goes to work at a very demanding job, and my kids who spend their days at school doing their best. It wouldn't be fair for me to sit at home eating bon-bons and watching soap operas, and have them come home to a messy house with dinner nowhere in sight. Instead I work hard during the day, doing my creative job, so they can come home to the messy house and uncooked dinner. Otherwise, I'd better get busy becoming a better housekeeper and cook. Ick.
So that brings me to the question, "How can I be productive as a creative person, while contributing to the family and doing what I love?" This can alternately be said, "How can I be successful being creative and doing what I love?"
I believe that I'm not the only person out there trying to answer this question, so I'm tackling it in a big way. This is the first of a multi-part series on creativity and productivity that I'm calling "Surviving Creativity."
Your creativity may find its outlet in different ways than mine. Maybe you're an artist like me, or you could be anything from a musician to a mechanical engineer, a preschool teacher to a prosecutor, a stay-at-home-mom to a CEO. Maybe your highest form of creativity comes out in the kitchen where you create beautiful meals for your family. (If that is you, then my hat is off to you, and you are invited to my house anytime you want to try out a new recipe on someone.) No matter your job title, if you find yourself struggling to find structure, meaning, and productivity in your day, then this series is for you!
If you're like me and feel that your gift of creativity can be both a blessing and a...let's say...challenge, then stay tuned. Hopefully, as I work through this for myself I'll be able to offer you some ideas to enhance and use your creativity to your full potential, either for yourself, your job, or your family. I'd love to hear any questions or comments you may have along the way, and I'll try to answer them as we go.
Thanks for going on this journey with me. (Sign up here to get all the future posts.) And be sure to share with your creative friends!
Update: Check out the next posts on Setting Priorities, Managing Your Time, and Finding Fulfillment. You can also read more about how to increase your creativity.
Anita C. Lee says
Wow, you'd think to read this that we share the same DNA! You nailed it. I read it aloud to the other occupant at my house and we laughed out loud until tears ran down my face. I can hardly wait for the next installment.
Meredith says
Me too! 😉
Anita C. Lee says
This topic sounds like a great idea for a seminar. I'd pay to be part of that.
Meredith says
Hmmm, you may be on to something there. Know anyone who'd want to put it together for me? 🙂
LizzieB says
Hi, my name is Liz and I'm craft impaired. Seriously. I can follow a pattern or a recipe but don't go asking me to put my own special spin on it, because that makes me sweat and stutter! BUT...I was a ballerina last night and my soul was beside herself. I always love your posts and can't wait to read them. I'm living my creative life vicariously through you! (And in case you need a vicarious ballerina - I'm your girl!)
Anita C. Lee says
I certainly need a vicarious ballerina. Beautiful, elegant and graceful--my core secondary values...
Meredith says
Yes! As a matter of fact, I DO need a vicarious ballerina! Because you do NOT want to see me attempt those moves. Although it might be kind of entertaining...
Mary-In the boondocks says
Meredith. Talk about a timely post. I never had this problem till I stared a blog. Now because my horizons have been broadened I see potential and repurposing in everything. So much so that my brain in overflowing. I have also boiled water too many times lately..lol. My problem is lack of structure.
I used to be a highly organized person in my former life. But now, I feel that I'm all over the place. Any wisdom you can give us would be greatly appreciated.
Meredith says
Mary, I'm so glad to hear you say that because I was the same way! I used to be organized too, but then I became a mom and a blogger and it's like my head exploded! Maybe we'll all learn something from each other on this journey...
jacquiegum says
It's a dilemma. I'm so very fortunate that I have no obligations when it comes to making dinner, etc. as I live alone. BUT...don't kid yourself that being along relives one of any responsibilities! My friends are my family...I try and nurture those relationships and that takes effort; I have obligations to myself as a writer if I really want to succeed, and I'm a neat-nik. Point is, that a lot of these are self-induced but that's how it should be, yes? I try the one thing at a time rule. MOST often that works, but hey...no of us is perfect, right???
Meredith says
Jacquie, it's so true that each of us has serious responsibilities and obligations, no matter our place in life. I think the hardest to take seriously are the self-imposed ones, but those are the ones we really want to follow up on and succeed in, right? It's easy to let everyone else's obligations become more important than our own. I'll be talking about that in one of these posts, so I may be quoting you!
Natalie says
Ooh! Excited for this series! Needed I can totally relate to being a hummingbird attracted to shiny, pretty things! 😉
Meredith says
So glad I'm not alone, Natalie! 🙂
Pamela@haartfelt says
I'm looking forward to this series. I'm ADHD, (Major), like many people in the arts. People tend to think "attention deficit " means some one "can't attend" but actually it's just the opposite, we "over-attend" making it difficult to transition between activities. It makes scheduling difficult, what I think should take one hour to complete turns into 3 or 4 hours, and there goes the afternoon.
Meredith says
Pamela, I can't wait to hear your thoughts throughout this series! I think there are a lot of us on the ADHD spectrum, and I kind of wonder if it's a chicken/egg thing. I agree about the over-attending. It's easy to get lost in all the details when it's a project that we really care about!
rachel621 says
This series is going to be awesome! I can't imagine life without creativity but sometimes bringing a specific vision to life can be so stressful and, yes, scatterbrained. I have had paint for my dresser for 3 months now, but get pulled in so many directions. And I think blogging exacerbates it because I am surrounded by inspiration all the time.
Meredith says
It's so true Rachel! I think I used to be a lot less creative until I started blogging, and then it was like drinking from a firehose. So much inspiration, and I want to try everything!
Shanice says
Awesome post! I would love to invite you to my new link party The Beautifully Creative Inspired. The party launched on Friday and will continue every Fridays at 9AM eastern time on 5 BLOGS! It runs until Wednesday night 😀 Hope you can party with us!
Meredith says
Thank you Shanice! The party sounds great and I will definitely be there!
Michelle Diane says
SO excited about this!!! Hoping you are going to give me some excellent strategies to manage the creative mess in my very active brain. 🙂 🙂 To write, or sing, or draw, or play guitar, or sew or...............on and on and on. So beautifully and powerfully written, I shared with all the creative messes over on Facebook too. <3
Meredith says
Oh thank you Michelle! We can all be a bunch of messes together!
Susan Cooper/findingourwaynow.com says
Wow, I can certainly relate to this one. My creative juices are always flowing, bouncing from one great project to the next, so many things I want to make, create, draw, cook, but so little time. It is a blessing and a curse at times. 🙂
Meredith says
Bouncing is a great word for it Susan! I wouldn't change it for the world, but sometimes it does get a little exhausting. If only there were a few more hours in the day...
Beth Niebuhr says
What a great idea for a series. I am eager to read the rest of them. (Unless I get too distracted by the next shiny object - haha.)
Meredith says
Ha! I love it Beth!
Lisa says
I can relate to this as well! My husband laughs at me because I get an idea for a project in my head and often work on it until it's completed, regardless of dinner or chores!
Meredith says
I'm so glad to know I'm not the only one who does that!
lenie5860 says
Meredith, I am the least creative person I know but I put my energies into learning and that can be just as overwhelming. Right now I am enrolled in 3 online courses, still slogging my way through the work associated with the 31 day blogging challenge, redesigning my Etsy shop, learning how Pinterest really works....................you get the picture. Overwhelmed, yes so I NEED this series. Bring it on!!!!!!
Meredith says
I would beg to differ, Lenie! You've created a blog and an Etsy shop, and your description of your time sounds just like me! We'll get through this together...
Phoenicia says
On reading your blog title, I thought this would not apply to me. Generally I am not an arts and crafts/painter/drawer type person. However when you mentioned your pasta boiling over due to being engrossed in something elsewhere I thought "yes, that is me!".
I am an extremly organised person at home and in the workplace - no clutter at all. In my mind I fritter from one thing to another. I feel I should be doing everything and this was the case even when I was a child. At nursery I left it until the last minute to go to the WC as I just could not leave the toy I was playing with lol!
I will definitely be signing up to read more of your posts.
Meredith says
Phoenicia, I can totally relate to you. I was very organized at school and in the workplace, but being at home and running my own business has proven to be very challenging to me. I never thought I was scattered before, but now apparently I am!
Ntina says
"...it’s hard for me to get anything done, due to the constant barrage of ideas in my brain" It totally sounds like me saying that! I'm definitely coming back to read the next posts!
Meredith says
I'm so glad I'm not the only one Ntina! Thanks for stopping by!
DeDe@DesignedDecor says
Oh, you hit the nail on the head! I always wondered if I was attention deficiet and now I know I am just a creative! I so hear you about the "where do I start now" because my mind wnats to tackle the 5 projects I thought up just a few minutes ago.
Meredith says
I can't tell you how good it is to know that other people struggle with the same thing! I always wonder if ADHD and creativity are really two sides to the same coin...
Catarina Alexon says
That's why I have never had children. Never time for that when you are creating on a global scale. Suddenly you have moved to the other side of the world and new challenges occupy your mind. Personally love creativity and, maybe even more, innovation. Doing what others have already done is not as fun as coming up with new ideas.
Meredith says
Catarina, I do think innovation and creativity are part of the same process, and that most inventors and world-changers are quite creative people. Creativity doesn't always come out as art or music. Sometimes it looks more like problem solving.
Ken Dowell says
It does sound like a lot more fun than being totally focused, industriously doing one thing at as time and having every moment of your day, if not your week, planned out. And I'm sure a nice color scheme can offset a little messiness in the house.
Meredith says
Yes, it sure is a lot more fun, but I'm not sure it's quite as productive! And I agree totally with your last statement! 🙂
heraldmarty says
Sounds all too familiar Meredith. I'm a creative person but I'm also a classic workaholic driven to get things done so I'm constantly at war with myself. What makes things far easier for me is that I'm single-by-choice so the only other being that I have to be concerned with is my dog Lucy and as long as she's fed, get's her walk and plenty of belly rubs she's a happy camper. Look forward to reading more ...
Meredith says
I know what you mean, being at war with yourself! And dogs are great at letting you know when they need some attention. (much like kids!)
Erica says
This is totally my husband. He is a writer, and is in the final stages of putting together his first issue of a comic book series. He also has a very full-time job. He is great at the creative part, but when he sits down to work on his website or his social media, I always find him staring into space, taking a nap or surfing Facebook. I will definitely refer him to your series.
Meredith says
Thanks Erica! I can definitely relate to your husband. (It's interesting to hear from the spouse's point of view what that looks like.) 🙂
Jeri Walker (@JeriWB) says
Love this idea for a series of posts. That pull of what should I do that often ends up in not getting much done is all too familiar.
Meredith says
Thanks Jeri! I think it will be fun (and hopefully helpful) to explore it together.
klagowski says
This is a great idea! For us creative types, getting organized and channelling our creativity in a productive (aka billable hours) way is imperative. It's one thing to have all this talent and imagination, but another to apply it and make it work for you. I'm looking forward to your tips!
Meredith says
So well said Krystyna! Balancing the need for billable hours with the need for space to come up with new ideas is a constant challenge.
Andy says
Let me help you get the ball rolling with my own little contribution:
In the limit, a creative type is someone who holds that all efforts are works in progress.
I trust you can take it from there. 😉
Meredith says
I love it Andy. You may see that thought show up in a future post!
Avant-garde Coach says
For me, it is both a blessing and a challenge. Creativity was a lifesaver because it pushed me to reach out and be open-minded. Thanks for creating this topic!
Meredith says
I totally agree that it's both! I wouldn't change it for the world, but sometimes don't quite know how to manage it. That's the challenge in life, I guess!