Welcome to Creative Mentality
A intro newsletter and a hello to 2024.
For those I haven’t met, I’m Madison. One of the many people in Los Angeles who can’t eloquently state their career at a cocktail party. I am first and foremost an actor — far from my sole income, I feel a bit of imposter syndrome calling it my “job” — so by default, there is always another career in tandem. I am simultaneously a freelance creative consultant. I can honestly say I love both. Plate-spinning has been something I have gotten accustomed to, for I have found having two creative careers (or more!) is not duplicitous but instead exhilarating and essential.
In the Venn diagram of all the jobs I’ve held, there are very few things you will find in the center. Creativity is one, grit is another, and the ability to pivot quickly (when things go I Love Lucy level wrong). I call it a Creative Mentality. It has made me a bit of a fanatic about this ever-elusive “right-brain” thinking and how to harness it intentionally.
What can affect creativity? Is it neuroscience, spirituality, genetics, nutrition, inspiration, courage, delusion, or something else entirely? Can we, with proper care of ourselves, nourish and encourage it like we do any other aspect of our health?
I have always had an intimate relationship with creativity. It has felt inexplicable, a little magic, elusive occasionally. As a child, I gravitated toward art classes and crafts at home, anything with my hands. That evolved into performing —singing and acting — endlessly creating until I decided to go to school for it and attempt to make it my profession. I had creativity in such a surplus I began to take it for granted.
The relationship was not all smooth sailing. As a perfectionist, sometimes allowing for creativity was a bit of a challenge. A necessary white-knuckling to let go of expectation and just allow myself to be. I learned that when you are too preoccupied with how you want the result to look, you have choked all potential out of creativity, and you will end with a stale, inauthentic product. Turns out creativity has no room for perfectionism. Inside you must embrace a childlike apathy of failure, make a bit of a mess, and allow yourself to be surprised.
Unfortunately, I continued to view perfectionism as a virtue, I fell into the comparison trap of social media, and the (internal and external) expectations of adulthood. I became so fixated on how I was perceived that somewhere along the way I developed such a deep phobia of failure, that my creativity seemed to wither and almost altogether disappear. I felt it. It was almost like a depression, but different somehow. It was then I realized that creativity and mental health may be more intrinsically linked than I had ever imagined.
Looking back on 2023 (and even the few years prior), I have unknowingly been in a bit of an artistic rehabilitation. Attempting to gently reintroduce habits that used to stoke that fire to see if I could bring the spark back. I unfollowed every social account that created negative thinking with a stern “one strike, you’re out” policy, I experimented doing crafts with my hands again to see if it would feel good or juvenile (spoiler — sometimes both), I dabbled in new mediums of creating, was honest with myself if something didn’t feel authentic, and took a lot of space to think and re-evaluate my habits and personal mindset. Rick Rubin said in his book, “Creativity is a fundamental aspect of being human.” I learned that even when you have suppressed it to the point you do not recognize yourself, it can always find its way back.
I am lucky to be surrounded by creative, vulnerable, and generous people. I get to be a spectator to their brilliant selves interacting with the world. I learn what dulls their sparkle, what elevates them, and so forth. We are all so different but oh so similar.
This is a potentially too long-winded way of saying, that is why I wanted to open up this journey. This struggle is not unique to me, and I would love to help others while I help myself. Here I will explore the nuances of creativity and dismantle the myth that one must be tortured to be an artist. A place to find practical ways to access and deepen creativity when one feels dried up and at a loss.
No matter your profession, I promise you creativity is part of the job description. And if you disagree with that, then may I remind you, it is an essential part of being human.
Deeply curious and far from an expert, I plan to talk to creative professionals, artists, and entrepreneurs about their relationship with creativity and by proxy, mental health. I will of course read every self-help book on the subject that I can get my hands on. I will share the interesting, the inspiring, the curious, and the frustrating.
I have a very good feeling about 2024 — something about this year feels buzzing with potential. As far away as I am from certain goals, they feel right around the corner. I wish you the same optimism and openness to change. If you have been feeling stuck, uninspired, and missing that little joie de vivre that makes you feel like you, I am glad you are here. You are in good company.
I have always been a very big fan of New Year’s and fresh starts, and there is no reason we can’t jump into this one with the resolution of reclaiming our creative, authentic selves to allow ourselves to be surprised by what the future could hold.
IN -
Space to do nothing
Quiet mornings
Journaling occasionally to sort out thoughts
Creative experimenting
Health goals to just feel good
Giving undistracted attention to loved ones
OUT -
Resolutions rooted in what you feel is inadequate
Scrolling out of FOMO
Doing what you are “supposed to”
Gatekeeping your fears
Jobs that make you miserable
The idea of failure
Just a thought — make a note of what you wish to have more of in 2024, and what you would like to reduce. The simpler the better. This can serve you well when facing decisions throughout the year. For me, MORE: intention, LESS: distraction.
Thank you for reading. Talk soon, Mads