What and who inspired me to create a blog?
When researching the meaning of the term creative outlet, I was surprised to find that two of the top articles were focused on not just what it means exactly, but rather how your work and career benefit from having a creative outlet. Maybe I happened to gravitate towards those articles since, in fact, this blog has served that purpose for me.
As a manager, much of my attention has been focused on, well, managing, and less on creating products and delivering services directly. Although I have had opportunities in the workplace to create and lead initiatives, having the opportunity to create and own a product, so to speak, is gratifying.
So, what does creative outlet mean then? Creative outlet seems to refer to anything that gives someone the opportunity to create something or do something that is enjoyable and separate from the prescribed duties that come with normal adulthood responsibilities. Perhaps creative outlet is just the new age term for hobby.
Looking back, I have had many creative outlets. For example, I have enjoyed taking photos for as long as I can remember. At the moment, I have over 50,000 photos and videos in my iPhone and a story for each one. One of the best decisions I have made in recent years is recently deciding to put those stories into writing and illustrating them with the photos I have taken.
I have just had so many thoughts and reflections on my travel experiences swimming around in my head since, particularly, my trip to Nepal.
It’s been great to now have this blog to serve as a creative outlet to share my stories and photos with those who, I hope, will enjoy and potentially be inspired by them.
It has also been freeing to have an account separate from my personal ones to fumble through learning website building and blog creation, thumbnail designs for Pinterest and instagram, and finding my writing rhythm while not worrying (as much) about the typos and errors that inevitably appear despite proofreading numerous times. As others writers have conveyed in the past, I suppose there is sense of security writing under the guise of a pseudonym.
Overall the creation of this blog has been the perfect creative outlet for me to put myself out there with less trepidation. In a short time, this experience has proved to be cathartic, challenging, and rewarding.
Who inspired me?
Who was it that inspired me? Who helped me discover this buried desire to create? Without realizing it until recently, it was primarily John and Bev, also known as The Retirement Travelers. I have been following their YouTube channel for some time now. Their video about why they create YouTube videos was a turning point for me in realizing I wanted to reconnect with my creative side and reconnect with writing as one of my creative outlets.
John and Bev are early retirees who chronicle the adventures of selling their home and their possessions, traveling around the world to beat the clock on some health issues they disclose, all while learning to navigate new technology and developing new skills along the way. They just celebrated a huge milestone of 100,000 subscribers on their YouTube channel, the launch of their (free) Travel School series, and are about to explore their 100th country.
I hope those who stumble upon this site find it to be remotely as interesting, helpful, and inspiring as the content created by The Retirement Travelers.
If you’re reading this, thanks so much for tuning in and helping motivate me to learn, create, and reflect.
What is your creative outlet?
Do you cook, play an instrument, or crochet? Do you fly fish, rock climb, or mountain bike? Are you learning another language, planting a garden, or practicing yoga?
What is your creative outlet? I would love to know – tell me in the comments.
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