Skip to main content

Chasing Creativity ( Some Reasons Why I Started Blogging)

I'm a really curious person, maybe that's the biggest drive for my love of travel and adventure. I've heard this TED talk about "Multipotentialites" which basically are people who have no one true calling. My favorite synonym to this is the Renaissance person, those "whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas, referring to the renaissance time period." And I felt a little relived after somebody told me that it's okay to be wanting so many diverse and sometimes contradicting things in life.

As somebody who values consistency, it's always a constant battle whether or not I should be more consistent in the things that I pursue. Like my love of adventure and how I love my corporate stint. Sometimes when I review my life, I come reach a point where I force myself to make a decision on whether to pursue this and let go of that. Oh what a relief it was to stumble upon this insight, that I can actually chase after many dreams.

Now my dreams of being a gardener, of writing a book, of getting better at surfing, of studying engineering, of getting a corporate job in Latin America, of getting a blue collar job while I backpack the world, of being independent, of having a boyfriend, of having close boy friends, of taking solo trips, of starting my own business, of becoming relevant to my company and many more are all valid even when most of them are not related and do not complement each other.

I am writing about creativity, which is something for the longest time, I believe I don't have any, if we follow the conventional way we look at creativity. Im bad at drawing, acting, singing, and all the other usual things we associate with art. But I've been long obsessed with being creative, and that is why I'm taking a chance at writing, for now blogging.

I want to be a creative because I think that its an actual, physical extension of oneself, suddenly you're bigger than yourself, you've actually outlived your physical self. And I've always admired artists because they have extended themselves through their works. One of my favorite things is to watch my friend paint. It's a magical experience, it calms me, staring at a canvass while the brush follows a certain rhythm I can’t figure out and slowly the meaningless dots of colors start to form image.

I want to do something like that, so I tried and look for something creative that I could get my hands into, and one of those is writing. This was my closest shot at being a creative and I didn't need much, just my laptop, thoughts and the right words. The last part being the hardest to find.

After hearing how Elizabeth Gilbert explained how the creative journey happens, I've always imagined it to be that way. She said that we have our genies who work with us. However, the genie doesn’t show up all the time, but when they decide to show up, this is the day when the right words effortlessly comes alive. And so when that rare day comes, we must be ready. Because even if the genie shows up, and you were lazy to do your part, nothing will be created.

Another interesting thing I learned about creativity is that one of the things scientists have found out about creative people is that the part of the brain where inhibition is becomes less active during the creative process. This means that the most creative in us are those who have no inhibitions, who are willing to take the risk of being rejected and the risk of making mistakes or of imperfection. We’ve all heard this saying that practice makes perfect, but one thing Ive heard recently is that practice makes you less afraid of being imperfect and so the result is zero to minimal inhibitions which brings out the most creative you which results to something ‘perfect.’  

I guess that’s the value of practice, the mere fact that you showed up is already an advantage. And I guess that’s why I’m showing up today for my blog, I have to start somewhere right?

As for you, I hope I disturb your senses for you to show up on the first day of reaching something you’ve always wanted, whether it’s a new hobby, a garden, a chance at love, a travel goal. Im sure there will come a day your genie will be inspired by your persistent and decide to show up as well.

Cheers!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Surf life in New York

NYC was my least preferred city among the four metros I was hoping to move to. I desired to be in Southern California mainly for the surf. I imagined my ideal day to day – get a house in a beach neighborhood, surf in the morning before work. Also, by that point, I had already enjoyed my SoCal life having stayed there for a few months. Spoiler alert, the best school for data analytics didn’t accept me, instead I moved to NYC. It’s almost two years. And although I don’t live by the beach I am living my dreams – morning surf before data analytics. I’m discovering that NY has beautiful waves, less than an hour away from the city. It took me a year before I got my stoke surfing NYC. Sometime in October 2018 I guess my first year of surfing here was one of denial. I didn’t think I would have as much fun as I had surfing the Philippines and I have my reasons and I abode by them. The water is cold, the water is dirty, there are a lot of New Yorkers in the lineup (I had my f...

Remembering Tito Junior (The Man Behind my Nickname among other things)

I have a memory of a feeling I had as a kid, the feeling of anticipation that came with family gatherings, especially during Christmas and summer outings. Tito Junior was always a source of joy for me. His light-hearted jokes and easy-to-digest life philosophies, reminiscent of Winnie the Pooh, always filled my cup. His insights were not only easy to understand, but they were great north stars -- take them to heart and they could guide you in the right direction towards a fulfilling life.  Tito Junior and Tita Edna hihi I remember how he once said something about every person has their own talent, and each one takes their own time to develop and flourish, I wish I remember the verbiage he used because it was funny, but it made sense. In a world where aunts and uncles would praise kids for excelling in school, Tito Junior's wisdom was a refreshing reminder that everyone's journey is unique, and that success is not limited to scholarly achievements or for that matter worldly achi...

Happy Birthday Wishes for my Dad

 I recently went on this gratefulness trip that made me remember the many amazing things I've experienced in my life. It's funny how sometimes we forget about the good stuff when life gets tough and we're overwhelmed with fear and insecurities. That's exactly how it was for me when I was dealing with the pressure of finding a job in NY and trying to excel at work. (Read about it here  Finding Ground ) As I reflect, it's astonishing how I responded to uncertainty with so much fear and resistance. I used to handle ambiguity with curiosity and joy, but somehow I had lost that along the way (happy to share that I’m relearning that power).  But yeah, some of the most vivid experiences I have include chasing a bus that left me in the border of Cambodia and Vietnam.  I took a bathroom break and when I came out, the bus had bailed on me! But the folks at the restaurant were so nice and in a heartbeat, without even thinking, they hooked me up with a motorcycle and we went on...