Sometime after the Christmas tree has come down and the champagne flutes are washed put away for next year, we set out to conquer January with a zealousness that reminds us of being young. We’re full of hope and energy, maybe enlivened a little from downtime around the holidays. But soon, very very soon sometimes, we putter out. We lose sight of what excited us about a fresh start to begin with.
For me, I’m all about beginnings. I’m not so in love with the middles or the ends. It’s easy for me to have a spark of creativity, but much harder to let it smolder into something great and enduring.
But, maybe you’re the opposite. Maybe you thrive on a sustained practiced, but struggle to get that jump needed to coax your brain and heart into new ways of thinking.
Because we’re all so different, I asked some of my favorite and most creative friends for their best advice, encouragement, and thoughts about creativity and the act of creating. These women are talented writers and crazy successful business owners, gifted artists and innovative chefs. They are women I respect and admire, and I’m grateful for their words on creativity.
Myquillyn Smith
“Nothing kills creativity like having zero margin in your life. When I don’t protect fiercely time where I can create, it disappears and I start feeling like a robot. In order to not feel like a robot I have no choice but to say NO boldly.” writer at The Nesting Place, author of The Nesting Place book
Shannan Martin
“The thing is, we all have art to offer the world. The world needs our art. The universe and our communities and all our people depend on it. Can we really believe that? I wish we’d try. I don’t want to over-think everything, or bend the will of my art into something it’s not. I don’t want to believe art has to be fancy, that it has to be my most unique offering. Because sometimes, art is sauteed cabbage, offered with love. Sometimes it’s the simplicity of a moment where the chips are warm and I feel completely a part of. Sometimes it’s the bend of late daylight across the leaf of a houseplant or a little boy’s hands covered in the kind of dirt that can only mean Spring finally came for us.” writer at Flower Patch Farmgirl
Rebecca Smith
“I spend a very small, tiny, FEW moments scanning Pinterest and Instagram for latest styles and trends and then I keep my head down and create with what comes from inside. It’s like keeping one hand on the temperature of the consumer and creative world while making sure the rest of my body is fully immersed in making that inspiration cohesive with our brand and authentic to me. The true danger comes when I spend too much time looking around at other creative projects and not enough time working on my own. That’s a creative death trap.” owner of Better Life Bags
Ruth Simons
“If you want to write like C.S. Lewis, don’t imitate his writing; but rather, read everything that influenced and inspired him. In other words…the best way to be inspired creatively is not to compare and mimic another’s creative work. But be fed and fueled by what drives you to create in the first place. You can’t go wrong when you create out of overflow and abundance.” writer at Grace Laced and amazing artist
Erin Loechner
“I think of creativity as a daily practice – a habit, a commitment – and inspiration as something entirely different; something that cannot be willed, conjured or timed. So our job as creatives is simply to be available for the inspiration; to be aware when it’s ringing the doorbell and to answer it, welcome it, take its coat and beg it to stay.” writer at Design for Mankind
Gaby Dalkins
“I always remember this quote from Diane Von Furstenberg when I’m feeling a bit stuck. ‘I didn’t know what I wanted to do, but I knew the woman I wanted to be.’ It reminds me that as long as I have the bigger picture in my mind, I can zig zag creatively in my daily job and everything I’m working on somehow feeds into the bigger picture of where I want to go!” chef and writer at What Gaby’s Cooking
Amanda Williams
“First, your butt in the chair, that’s a paraphrase from the amazing Anne Lamott. And don’t wait to feel inspired before you work. Those two things almost always happen the other way around.” editorial director of She Reads Truth
Lara Casey
“My best creativity — times I’ve seen the most positive ripple effects — stems from a place of surrender. It’s scary and exhilarating, but always worth the risk. Meaningful creativity to me is a sandwich of big giving (creating not for me, but for others to glorify Him), pulling from pivotal life experiences that are unique to the path God has paved for me, feeling total abandon, and taking a risky leap of faith to step out and add something potentially good to the world. It’s an act of surrender. If you feel fear about being creative, dig in. Lean into that fear. The good stuff is hiding in there!” editor in chief and publisher of Southern Weddings Magazine and author of Make It Happen
Shannon Whitehead
“Funny how when you’re asked to comment on creativity, your creative juju shuts down… I think that’s the lesson in itself, though. Creativity is adverse to force. If you ‘think’ about being creative, then that’s when resistance shows up. My most creative ideas come from moments that instill clarity. While I’m on a walk. Right after I shut down my laptop. At night while I’m sleeping. In the middle of yoga class. If you want creativity to strike, simply stop looking for it.” sustainable fashion expert and owner of Factory 45
Jessie Simonson
“When I start comparing myself to other people, my creativity is instantly drained from me. I start looking side to side, getting distracted from what’s ahead of me. When I stay focused on the goal, then the things around me inspire me to be better instead of making me realize what I don’t have. I stay inspired by three things. Spending time with Jesus, spending time outside in nature, and spending time in a community of creative people. Jesus keeps me going, nature makes me see endless possibilities, and my community keeps me sane and pushes me to be better!” brand director of 31 Bits
Raechel Myers
“When I need words to flow, I try to do something rote like driving or raking leaves or going for a run—something that doesn’t take brain power, but keeps me moving. Some of my favorite things I’ve written were born in the shower!” director of She Reads Truth
Hayley E. Morgan
“Creativity comes to me through the synthesis of disparate concepts, viewpoints, or media. I try to stay clear of media that’s “in my lane”, so I only read books in the Christian Living realm if they’re authored by my friends. ;) I love to go to the mall and observe retail trends, noticing colors and textures and silhouettes that are big. I absolutely love to read long-form lifestyle journalism. I just try to keep engaged with society, but outside of the kind of work I’m trying to create.”
