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You are creative.
You are. And you’re probably in your own way.
Everyone is creative. In fact, I believe that creativity is one of the reasons why we’re here, on earth, as humans: To express. To solve problems. To make things. To have fun. To create new ways to do things. To connect to a force bigger than us. To channel our ideas and whims into something fun, productive, and new.
We are creative beings, and when we are stifled, we usually become miserable.
And we usually don’t know why we feel miserable. But it’s because we are disconnected from life.
Being open to creativity, fun, and joy is life-affirming.
I believe that creativity is a healing, spiritual force.
And no matter whether we are professional creatives or not, we can benefit from the healing power of creativity.
I used to think I wasn’t creative.
Really. This approach to creativity changed my life.
Just over ten years ago, I was a struggling musical theater actress. I got some jobs here and there, but I was mostly riddled with anxiety, insecurity, and perfectionism. I was miserable. I was self-sabotaging. And I had absolutely zero personal agency.
I would sometimes think: “Oh, I’m not creative. I’m just, y’know, good at singing, and taking directions from a director, and mimicking accents and stuff.”
It wasn’t true. I was creative. Everyone is. But I didn’t recognize the ways my creativity wanted to express itself (writing was a big one). But was was true, was that I was stifled, and locked in a cycle of self-critical perfectionism.
When I read the book The Artist’s Way in 2012, it changed the way I approached everything. I was skeptical, sure, but I also recognized myself in those pages: That is me. I am stifled by perfectionism. I am just waiting for something to happen, and nothing is happening. And I am miserable because of it.
So, I jumped in, and started creating. I started “before I was ready” and before I even knew what I was creating. The result of me jumping in and starting to create? The F*ck It Diet. Which led to a book, and a whole career.
My first website? It was janky as fuck. Really.
I started writing The F*ck It Diet before I had an audience. I started writing before I knew what I was doing. I started when it was messy and ugly and filled with typos.
Now I have a big audience. And I’m still filled with typos. And it still works. I’m sure there are typos in this very sales page.
There is no need for perfection. You can edit and change and learn as you go.
And that perspective made all the difference.
Perfectionism is sabotaging your creativity.
I’m going to run a 4 month creativity club.
(I was going to call it a creativity cult, as like… a joke. But then I decided against it.)
It’s going to be an interactive group coaching experience, with a private membership group, and 8 live zoom calls. And it starts in juts a few days, on September 26th.
There are two reasons I’m running this:
One: I have a lot of experience with, and passion for, the creative process, and how healing it is. And I have created a lot of things. Both things I’ve been paid very well for, things I’ve barely been paid for, and things I will never be paid for. (Websites, courses, ebooks, books, songs, two-woman cabarets, one-woman shows, podcasts, business ideas that took off, business ideas that are dead in the water, and much more.)
Two: I need this. I need to be re-focusing on creativity myself. I know that I am happier when I am actively pursuing creative endeavors. The last two years have been difficult in many ways, and it’s become clear to me that the only way out, or rather: through, is to dive back into my relationship with creativity. And to create. And I want to bring you with me.
Our goal in the group will be to focus on our own creative lives, and focus on our creative projects – more specifically, I will be recommending focusing on one creative project during out time together. But we will also be exploring our creative lives as a whole, which will touch many creative expressions in our lives. And creativity is not always linear. Often we need to create things in order to better understand the next thing we need to create.
What will this experience be like?
We are going to spend time together in a private group on Mighty Networks (like a facebook group, but way better. I used this for some past live versions of f*ck it diet courses, and it’s an awesome platform.)
I will be leading, guiding, and setting up our flexible curriculum: our daily routines, and our weekly themes, tasks, activities, exercises, things to focus on. I’ll be sharing advice, personal experiences, and group coaching and guidance, and lots of context based on my own (many) creative endeavors – both successes and failures. I will be leading and guiding, but this is also a collaborative experience that you’ll be a part of.
And this will coincide with my instagram sabbatical, so I’ll be highly engaged in this Mighty network group.
We will be focusing on getting into a supportive routine, engaging in exercises and activities that help break up our stagnation, overwhelm, procrastination, and perfectionism, and taking action with small daily, doable steps.
And we will also be meeting as a group on zoom, every two weeks for four months. 8 calls in total. Starting Monday, September 26th at 2 pm EST, and running every two weeks through January 2nd
This is a live, interactive group experience.
So… who is this experience for?
It’s for anyone who is drawn to exploring their creativity.
It is most geared towards people who want to get a creative project off the ground. This can be something you’re super clear on, like: “I want to write a book” or “I want to create a business or online course,” but it doesn’t have to be something you’re clear on yet.
AND, you also do not have to be a creative person by trade, you do not have to know exactly what creative project you want to focus on, and you do not have to use this experience to create anything “public.”
I have personally found great joy and fulfillment from my big public projects, and from my private songwriting projects, or tiny organization or gardening projects. It’s all healing.
Whether you have a creative project you are hoping to turn into a career or business, and spread your creations far and wide, or whether you’re hoping to just start bringing more creativity into your personal life, you can join the creativity club.
During this first creativity group coaching experience, I am inviting everyone at any stage of the creative journey. I may find in time that I want to focus on working with specific groups of people (maybe the next version will be just for professional creatives, or just for absolute newbies. Who knows!) This time, it’s for everyone.
I am also going to be re-reading The Artist’s Way during the first 12 weeks of our 16-week program. I invite anyone to join me in reading the book, especially newbies to their creative journey. I’m sure the book will inspire some pieces of our discussion, but the “curriculum” will be based on my own experiences and perspective.
Here is a list of some creative projects that could be great to work on in the creativity club:
-starting a book (whether it’s to traditionally publish, or self-publish. Whether you’re a professional writer with an audience, or just want to write for fun.)
-growing a social media account (Yes, I’m going on a social media break because it’s such a creative project, and I want to focus my creativity in a new direction for a few months. But, also yes I can support with social media creativity! In fact, it’s an expertise of mine. I happen to love it. I just also need a break.)
-building an online creative business or newsletter (this is not business or marketing coaching, but there is a ton of creativity, and self-trust, and pushing past perfectionism involved with growing a business, marketing, and being visible, so that’s the angle we will be focusing on.)
-Just exploring your own creativity. Or truly, any artistic project, big or small.
I will be able to support you whether you’re at the beginning, middle, or near the end of your creative project, and trying to get it noticed.
My current artistic projects?
Starting my third book, writing and growing my substack and new podcast, exploring gardening and permaculture and working on slowly creating a haven in my backyard, and: creating and running this very course.)
Some big things I’ve learned about creativity:
1. You do NOT have to know what you’re doing yet.
Every book I’ve ever started writing, I have only had a general idea of what it would end up becoming. But I did not figure out what it actually would become, until I was in the thick of writing it.
We don’t figure things out by thinking, we figure them out by doing.
Creativity doesn’t happen best in your head, it happens best in action. It will often start in your head as an idea, but that idea will not be able to take form in your head. You’ll have to take action, and see what reveals itself.
You have to start before you’re ready.
For instance, look at this janky-ass webpage that I’m using to talk about this new creativity project. I’ve let it be… extremely basic. Why? Because I knew that if I got caught up in making it perfect, it would take me 30 more weeks to get it off the ground. One day, I’ll come back in here, and update all of this. I’ll make it look better. I’ll refine it. I’ll update it. Or I’ll morph it into another project.
I had an idea of what I wanted to offer, something that is exciting to me. But until I sat down to write it all out, and create the group, and the sales page, it was just an idea.
2. You don’t have to go public with your creation immediately.
Some things need and deserve an incubator. For me, that way I did this, was write The F*ck It Diet with a pen name for the first 3 years. I wasn’t ready for it to be public(ly attached to my name!). But once I was ready, I shared my full name.
This experience can be geared toward “public” creations (like a social media account, business, course, or blog), or a creative project that will eventually be public (like a book or play), or a creative project that is just for you.
3. Perfectionism is the death of creativity
Perfectionism from your own self-criticism, and perfectionism taken on by what we think of what other people will think.
This is one (of the many reasons why) “cancel culture” or the internet’s mob pile-ons and cries of “do better!” when we use a word or phrase someone doesn’t like, can be so stifling to our creativity, honesty, and authenticity. We’ll be exploring the fallout of this part of our culture, and how and why to navigate it.
Some other things we’ll be exploring:
1. Taking stock of our creative pasts.
How our experiences paved the way to right now. How our skills can now merge into our current creative lives. How our “failures” and accidents teach and inform us. Many failed experiences clarify what we want to create in the future.
2. Creating space and simplicity.
Chaos is a distraction. We will focus on finding simplicity, “taking care of business,” and decluttering, to help us create the ideal environment to … create.
3. The power of unlimited time & the power of deadlines.
Absolute freedom is lovely. But sometimes there’s nothing more inspiring than a good old fashioned deadline
4. How perfectionism is showing up for us.
In order to be happy, and open to creativity (and really, the flow of life…) we have to push past our perfectionism. This is something we’ll be focusing on a lot.
5. How distractions show up for us.
How to bring in easy, doable small moments of down-time and contemplation. Creatives need space for dreaming and creating.
6. Using discernment.
When it’s time to change course or let a project go. Some of my biggest breakthroughs and projects have come when I let other ones go.
7. Taking action.
8. Make it fun.
9. The pros and cons of turning your creative project into a business.
10. Creativity in the age of cancel culture.
11. Trusting your instincts, your interests, and your intuition.
12. Body, Mind, Spirit… and Creativity.
And lots more.
FAQ
Are we just going through the book The Artist’s Way?
No! I love the book The Artist’s Way. It is an awesome touchstone for exploring and healing our creative lives, and it is what kickstarted my own creative journey. AND! I am going to be re-reading the book during the first 12 weeks of our 16 week program, and I’m sure the insights I get from my re-read will inform the experience, and be infused into our calls. You are welcome to read along with me, or not, but this experience is not an “Artist’s Way” book club, instead the things I share, and our curriculum, will be based in my own take on healing our creative lives. Some of those things are based on my experience applying The Artist’s Way, some are not. I do recommend reading the book to anyone wanting to explore creativity in the way we are going to, but that can be done before, during, or after our experience together.
Is this Woo Woo? Or Spiritual? Or Religious?
I believe creativity is a way to connect something more: to God, or, if that’s not how you look at it: to the creative life force itself. I go back and forth in the way I look at it, but either way, to me, it is spiritual.
Creativity is inspiration, and ideas, and ingenuity.
All are welcome in this group, but if all spiritual talk bothers you, you may not enjoy my style.
When are the live calls?
The live calls will be on Mondays at 2 pm ET, every other week, starting September 26th. This allows it to be around lunch-time in the US, and nighttime in the UK. Sorry Australia! You are welcome in the group whether you can attend the calls live or not, you will have the chance to ask questions ahead of time, and watch the replays, and we will have a very active private group for connecting.
I can’t afford this, why is this so expensive?
For a 4-month, live group coaching program, it’s actually not that expensive at all. In fact, this may be the cheapest I’ll ever charge for a live, personalized group coaching experience that runs for 1/3 of a year. But I know it will be out of some people’s budgets, as all things are. I’ve made a payment plan and early bird price, hoping to make it easier.
How much time will this take up each week?
We’ll be having a live call every other week, so that’ll be about an hour, twice a month. Daily exercises and activities will be a suggested minimum 30-60 minutes, that’ll be both the exercises and your creative projects. How much time you spend will be based on how much time you have. Creativity is about taking consistent action, even if it’s small.
Then, it’ll be how much additional time you spend connecting in the group!
I am planning on taking a significant social media break during this experience, which is going to free up a LOT of time for me. You have no obligation to do that! In fact, some of you may be focusing on creating your social media business or brans or creation. But things like that are always an option to open up more space.
Why do I need YOU to help me be creative?
You don’t! You don’t need anyone. But, if you are craving the collective experience, the group inspiration and structure, and the coaching and guidance, come and get it!
Will we get personalized coaching?
This is a group coaching experience. You’ll almost certainly get personal support and attention in the membership group and on the calls, the other benefit of group coaching is that we get to learn from other people’s questions as well. If you are interested in private creativity coaching, that can be added on separately.
If you have any questions, please reach out to caroline@carolinedooner.com