Creating more than you consume. I’ve written a few times about this topic but still find that it is worth writing about again and again. But I think it is such an important idea and is something that many people don’t think about. Like many people, I don’t create much of anything and I would also put myself in the category of over-consuming media and entertainment. It is tough, our world is designed for consumption. The pull of entertainment, fast fashion and food are strong as it tries so hard to swallow you whole.
But you can break free and become something better. The world is full of people with potential, but through our old-fashioned education system, creativity is drowned and sucked out of people and replaced with the mindless consumption of stuff. Marketing tells us, buy this or that. Saying it will make us the person of our dreams, but with everything we buy, we seem to still be in the exact place we were. Never finding fulfilment or meaning.
“Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who’ve ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don’t need. We’re the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place.” — Chuck Palahniuk — Fight Club
But creativity and creation are exhausting, you say. Well, that’s a lie. Creating provides you with energy and passion. It makes you spring out of bed in the morning and fuels a desire to make the world as you see fit. The issue is that we have lost our creative fitness. We are all out of shape creatively. So, let’s start training.
Creativity fitness 101
It starts with a small first step. If you haven’t run for a while, you first have to walk. The same goes for creativity, if you haven’t painted since art class in high school then you first need to doodle.
Focus on building the habit. Success comes from the repetition of a task. So, make creativity a habit. Doodle or write a sentence every day, it might only be for five minutes but that’s the start. Soon you’ll be writing a paragraph or sketching the view from your window.
Slowly increase the time you spend creating. Just as you increase the weight in the gym or the distance you run; you also have to increase the resistance of creativity. Write 500 words, fill a full A4 piece of paper with a drawing. Swap the time you would normally watch rerun episodes of your favourite tv show for time spent cooking, drawing, writing and creating.
Review your previous work. Have a look at what you have created and see how you have improved. You’ll be surprised how quickly you managed to pick up the skill of being creative.
Publish and put your work into the world. Start publishing your writing on medium or your own blog, post your pictures on Instagram or sing to your friends. Have the courage to say I made this and I’m proud. Don’t let the people who are scared of your passion tear you down.
Keep creating and don’t stop. You are free now. You have the ability to build the life you want and bring positive value to the world.
But you will still consume. You have to. You need to eat food and you’ll want to consume entertainment. But the difference is that now you do it with purpose. You’ll watch that movie because you are interested in how the plot works and the shots the director chose. It is important to you because you can implement that knowledge into your own films.
You can and will also consume at times just because it’s easy. You are allowed breaks. The important thing is to remember that you are still creating more than you are consuming.
A strange thing you will also find is your desire to mindlessly consume will disappear. You will feel how draining it is and you will want to get back to mindfully consuming or creating.
So how will you start creating and putting value into the world? Maybe you’ll start a garden or write an article about your favourite movie or draw a picture of your girlfriend. Whatever it is, start now and keep creating!
Notes:
minimalism.life/journal/creation-over-consumption
chloehawker.wordpress.com/2016/06/13/creation-over-consumption-a-challenge/
medium.com/the-mission/stop-consuming-start-creating-f992bf66f7e0
ofpad.com/create-more-than-you-consume/