Creativity + Fear
In my last post, I shared a bit about how creativity is part of us all, it’s in our bones, whether we realize it or not. We also looked at how it can be applied to every aspect of our lives and because of that, it’s incredibly powerful.
But just because it’s something we can all utilize, doesn’t mean it’s always easy or comfortable. The thing about creativity is that it requires a bit of trial and error and it often leaves us uncertain about the outcome. It also requires us to be vulnerable, especially when putting part of ourselves into our work for others to see or experience. And that, my friends, is exactly when fear likes to makes it’s appearance known.
This is discussed in the book Big Magic. Elizabeth Gilbert writes that ‘your fear will always be triggered by your creativity, because creativity asks you to enter into realms of uncertain outcome, and fear hates uncertain outcome.’
And what do we often do when we feel fearful about something? We retreat. We run the other way. We stop and we tap into our senses, slowly moving back to a place of comfort. Of course, sometimes this can be a good thing if we are truly in danger. Fear acts as a warning signal that something isn’t right and tells us to use caution.
When it comes time to share our work or ideas, to take a risk, to open ourselves up and express what we are feeling, fear starts to loom around us. It knows we are at a vulnerable place and it’s letting us know that this is going to be scary.
But the thing about fear, like other emotions, is that we can’t simply make it go away. And if we try to suppress it, it can end up bubbling up and spilling over in different ways. It can also hinder us from ever taking any kind of risk. So what are we to do when fear starts to affect our creative work?
We learn to let fear be with us, but not let it stop us from reaching our goals.
If we can get to know how fear works in our lives, we can begin to expect it, prepare for it’s arrival and even let it exist peacefully with us. It’s one of those things where we can learn to acknowledge it’s presence, without taking the bait. And by working with fear and allowing it to be there with us, but not controlling us, we can actually have a healthy relationship with fear. And after a while, we’ll even get used to it being there.
This, of course, can take some time to adjust to. So here’s a few little tips to help get acquainted with fear.
Treat fear as if it’s a person. Acknowledge its presence, speak to it even (if you want to get really serious, you could even give it a name)! Welcome it but also be stern with it. It could sound something like this: “Oh hey there fear, how are ya? Yep, I’m doing a new thing here, I know you’ll want to tag along in this journey, which is fine, but I don’t need any input from you today. Just sit back and relax, okay? Thanks!” I realize this might sound a bit ridiculous, but when we are able to personify the reoccurring thoughts in our head, it often helps us to address them and coexist with them in a healthy way.
Ask yourself, what is the worst thing that could happen? Then ask yourself, what’s the best thing that could happen? We often think of the worse case scenario for every situation, but we forget that the “worst case” is highly unlikely AND there’s also a best case scanerio too - so by golly, lean into that one!
Talk it out with someone. Just putting voice to the thoughts and worries in our heads can alleviate the weight a bit. Talking it out, working with someone who asks good questions and helps you understand where the root of the fear is stemming from, is a powerful thing. I’ve experienced this myself time and time again after talking to my husband, a friend, a coach a therapist - whoever. It’s just helpful to untangle the web of thoughts by speaking them out loud.
There is so much more to fear and our creative work as it often requires a lot of self reflection and exploring some hard questions. If you want to dive into this topic further, visit my shop page for some of my favorite books related to fear and vulnerability. Of course I’m also always happy to have a chat with you about this if you are feeling that fear is creating a block in your work.