At the very end of last year I read a book called Women Who Run with the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype by Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Ph.D. I think I might have listed it as one of the best books I read in 2020.

It was one of my favorites because it opened my eyes to the power we have as women and how we can tap into that power.

One theme she emphasized over and over again was how important it is for women to take time to be creative. Through writing, drawing, painting, cooking, singing, playing an instrument, anything that helps us express ourselves.

This is something I started to feel out on my own since last summer, this urge and need to create and have some sort of outlet for myself. After I read the book, I understood where it was coming from and why it was important.

So since then, I’ve been trying to do something creative every day. Recently, that has been working on fleshing out my novel. But I’ve also been exploring my creativity through crocheting Harry Potter characters and practicing tarot. I’ve taken a break from drawing and learning graphic design but that’s something I definitely want to get back into once I feel good with where I’m at with my novel. I even try to make my space look “creative” or at least make it a place that inspires me to be creative.

I’m also challenging myself to figure out how I can be creative at work. Or recognize when I’m being creative. Because creativity doesn’t always mean being artistic. A lot of my tasks can feel mundane and normal, so I try to think about how I can make create something new to help our workflow or reframe my thinking about the task as something creative.

I realized last summer that I need to be able to be creative, because that’s when I feel the most satisfied, the most complete. Like I’m doing what I’m supposed to do.

I’m not going to lie, there are days when I don’t want to work on my novel and I rather check out and binge a show after a long day at work. But I tell myself to spend 30 minutes towards working on it and I am always glad when I do.

If you’re losing motivation to be creative, or you don’t know how, I recommend to read Women Who Run with the Wolves. It’s a dense book but you won’t even have to finish it before you get the urge to start looking around you to see how you can bring more creativity into your life.

I also recently heard about a documentary called The Creative Brain and watched it. It dissects what it means to be creative and how. Obviously, being creative is not something only women can do, men are also very creative. It’s part of being human.

Challenge yourself to be creative every day and see how you feel. I know you’ll feel something!