How To Be Creative Without Being Selfish

How To Be Creative Without Being Selfish
By Dan Goodwin

One of the biggest reasons we don't spend more time and more focus on being creative is because we feel guilty that we're spending time purely on ourselves.

Being selfish - or being SEEN as selfish - is something we want to avoid at all costs it seems, and any hint of self indulgence in creating leaves us racked with feelings of guilt.

The irony is though, the more creative you are, the less selfish an act it is.

Here are the 3 of the top reasons why being creative isn't selfish:

1. You inspire others by your example. All of us are creative, far more than we realise. But when we consider artists only as people who are best selling authors or who have painting exhibitions in national galleries, we do a disservice to every other artist. By creating what you enjoy in the way you enjoy creating, you become an instant inspiration to others. People who see you stepping up to the page, canvas or worktop consistently take great comfort from your commitment to being creative, and follow suit in their own creative lives. It's almost irrelevant what you're creating, just the act of creating is great motivation to others in ways you'll never know. And that's far from selfish!

2. Your artwork touches and enhances the lives of others. So we've seen that the act of creating regularly inspires others. On another level, the actual artwork you create can enhance the lives of others too, both those people you come into direct contact with, and strangers you may never meet. Think about how you yourself have been inspired by artwork you've come across. Personally I know I take as much inspiration, if not more, from the artists I find online every day than any of the established and more famous artists in history. It follows that by getting your own artwork out there (which is easier than it's ever been before) you'll inspire others too. How could that possibly be seen as selfish?

3. Your own good feeling and happiness naturally radiates. It's common to think that by being creative we're being selfish, somehow turning our energy and focus inwards when we could (or "should") be using that to support those close to us. The point we overlook is that we can only give out a limited amount of positive energy if we ourselves are feeling frustrated, restricted and that we desperately need to fulfill creative needs within. By spending time each day exploring and satisfying your creative needs, you'll naturally feel better about yourself, the people around you and your whole outlook on the world. This good feeling will radiate to all you come into contact with throughout your day. Again, spreading good feeling like this can hardly be considered selfish.

From: http://www.howtodothings.com/hobbies/how-to-be-creative-without-being-selfish