Tribe Life Tuesday: Living in the Land of Inspiration

A weekly post from my childhood to grown-up friend Carrie ~ 

sharing her awesome life and her desire to have community while doing it!

What inspires you? 

Where do you go when you need inspiration? Is it somewhere physical or mental? Or maybe it’s a bit of both?

Inspiration and creativity are intricately intertwined, and I have found the best way to break out of a creative rut is to spend time in a place that inspires me. If you currently feel stuck creatively, that’s okay; I want to challenge us today to expand our view. So let’s take a little mental road trip. There are many things for us to experience, see, and share on this trip. So buckle up, buttercup! 

One of my favorite humans on the planet, Bill Johnson, says, “when we are anxious it cuts back our capacity for creativity.” I have had the privilege of experiencing this first hand. You see, there was a long period of time where I wrestled fear and anxiety. These uninvited guests seemed to come out of nowhere and stayed for far too long, three years, in fact. For whatever reason, the worst or hardest parts of life began to shine the brightest and became my focus. No matter how hard I tried and how many affirmations I spoke over myself, the wrestling match continued and seemed to not give way with each blow I threw. I remember asking myself "how did I get here?” over and over again. I just wanted to feel better. I didn't want to feel the way I did. But I am grateful for that time because it did a few things: 

• It made me fight to remember who I was so the next time fear and anxiety wanted to wrestle I rose up in the confidence of who I am.
• It made choose who I wanted to be. I refuse to let fear dictate to me who I am. I will be my best self even when others around me choose not to be. 
• It grew spiritual and emotional muscles I didn’t know I was capable of. Now I’m basically Arnold Schwarzenegger. 

I say all of that to get here: you are made for a life of creativity. Not just the artsy kind, but the business kind too. You are the one who will have creative solutions for the problems presented on your job or in your business. We are problem-solvers with creativity to spare! 

When I think of creatives I think of the right brained people, but after doing some research, I’ve discovered that’s not entirely accurate. First off, both sides of our brain work in tandem with each other, so the whole left brain or right brain debacle is debunked. You aren’t one or the other, you're whole brained! The two sides of your brain look very much alike, but there’s a huge difference in how they process information. Despite their contrasting styles, the two halves of your brain don’t work independently of each other.

"In a study performed by a team of neuroscientists they set out to test the premise of having a dominant side of the brain similar to having a dominant hand. Through all they discovered nothing could prove this theory true. The human brain doesn’t actually favor one side over the other. Both sides of your brain are an information highway and they work together, complementing each other to get you to your desired result. Whether you’re performing a logical or creative function, you’re receiving input from both sides of your brain. For example, the left brain is credited with language, but the right brain helps you understand context and tone.” You can read more about how our amazing brains work here.  

Today, I want to liberate you left brainers to be creative and you right brainers to organize! These are disciplines and practices not limited to which side of the brain you lean on more. If you’ve been feeling stuck creatively, this is your invitation to get unstuck and embrace that beautiful side of you. Kick off fear and anxiety, get inspired, and then flex your creative, problem-solving muscles. You are uniquely you and all of you is a beautiful compliment to your community. So bring your best and most inspired self to the table and create a safe place for others to be creative and feel inspired.  

Thank you for reading.

See you next Tuesday!

Carrie

For more on the research mentioned above click here. 

*Please note that content in guest blogs is not necessarily shared by the station manager (i.e. Wendi!)