There are common elements that we all need in our creative lives to be able to create to our full potential.
One of these essential Keys To Creativity is having the support of other people who share similar creative triumphs, struggles, and experiences.
Much of the time, being a creative artist of any kind can seem a very lonely and solitary existence. It’s easy to cut ourselves off from outside support and try to rely only on our inner motivation, especially when so often it feels that the close friends and family around us simply don’t understand why or how we create.
For the few of us that have the indestructible inner resolve that gets us through without the need for outside support, this is less of an issue. But for the other 99% of us, having encouragement from others who understand what we’re going through can be invaluable.
In the past, there often seemed few opportunities to meet and share with other artists, but in the information age we now live in, connecting with like minded creative people has never been easier.
Here are some of the major benefits of being part of a supportive creative community:
1. You can share your work in safe, constructive environment. This allows you to get useful feedback from people who know how brave you’ve been in sharing your work and respect you more for it.
2. Opportunities to collaborate. From brainstorming ideas for a new project, to being fully involved in a group project, there are many ways to collaborate in a creative community. The more involved you become, the more you learn who is most on your wavelength and you’d most enjoy creating with.
3. Knowing you’re not alone in your struggles. In the midst of creative block, it’s easy to feel that no one else in the world is experiencing – or has ever experienced – these kind of frustrating feelings. In a creative community, you have the understanding and support you need, at the times you need it most.
4. Breeding and cross pollination of ideas. In a thriving creative community, there are always dozens of ideas flying around. Often, whilst discussing a completely different idea or topic, a new idea will come up that gives you exactly the spark of inspiration you’ve been looking for, for that new creative project.
5. Celebrating successes. A creative success doesn’t have to be a huge event like signing a 5 book publishing deal. Maybe after a barren creative period, a success for you is showing up to create 3 days in a row. In a creative community, you can share these triumphs and get the praise you deserve.
Having the genuine, caring support of others can make a radical difference to your creativity levels.