#263: Show Your Quirks (the Art of Doing Things You Can’t Explain)

July 2, 2020 — This morning I took a picture of myself with a pencil in my mouth, and it opened a floodgate of ideas, including this blog post. That’s the magic of doing things you can’t explain.

Don’t ask me why I have a pencil in my mouth.

I can’t tell you.

What I can tell you is that I wake up every day scared out of my wits. Literally.

It’s the great paradox of being a creative person.

I want to make big, bold art SO BADLY — yet, the impossibility of predicting which ideas will pan out prevents me from investing the mental energy I need to make then pan out.

Problem: Energy Banker

Here’s my theory about creativity.

I believe that in all our heads sits a banker who controls how we spend our energy.

I’ve tried to reason with this banker many times, but he’s a real conservative type. He doesn’t trust anything “new” or “different.”

So when I pitch for a big loan, I usually leave with $10 to use on something small and predictable — like scrolling my Instagram feed or watching tiny house videos.