The act of creating is very personal, but how you choose to express the inner self is always influenced by external creative helpers. Some are loving and supportive, sharing encouragement and reflecting your light so you can view yourself in a more objective way. Other “helpers” are the nay-sayers or challengers, the people and personalities that get you to stand your ground or question the authenticity of your creative identity.
You need both kinds of creative helpers to help you come into the full expression of who you are, and they both deserve heart-felt gratitude. After all, they’ve shaped you in immeasurable ways, some you may not even notice until years later.
Balancing the Inner Creative Self with External Influences
The end goal of creativity isn’t about making something that is beautiful and captivating. It’s the process you use to learn about YOU. It’s supposed to be messy, non-linear, divergent and sometimes extreme. Living into your unique expression stretches you while it also pushes you, but none of that growth can happen if your creative helpers aren’t a part of igniting change in you. They play a big role in how you see yourself at all of different stages of inner exploration, and the paths you take because of or in spite of them.
When you can honor and express true gratitude for all types of creative helper influences, and really mean it, something inside you opens and softens. It doesn’t feel like you against the world, or as if you are simply following someone else’s positive influence. You find the middle ground that’s YOU, where the two roads intersect you to see the value in it all. This opening of the mind and heart also shifts your view on what you consider “positive” or “negative”, enabling you to see something merely as information without judging it.
So What Does An Expression of Gratitude Look Like for You?
The true influence your creative helpers share includes the shining moments of praise, the random acts of gratitude, the harsh words said in frustration, the rejection of disagreement, the mutual agreement of a stalemate — and so much more. It’s a collection of human emotions, insights and opinions mushed together, and all deserve a thank-you for showing up and allowing you to question what you really want and need. That’s a pretty cool gift!
Expressing gratitude is also a way for you to put more love into the world as an individual, while also expressing gratitude for your own personal expansion and growth; to see and appreciate how your path has come to be. Reviewing your expression of gratitude can also help you decide what you still want more of, or what types of “helpers” can be released now that you have learned what they have to teach.
There is no right way to “do” gratitude or express your thanks. I have learned quite a bit from the challenging creative helpers in my life, so when I realize that our paths no longer need to be connected, I simply thank them intuitively for what they’ve shared and move forward in a new direction. Of course it doesn’t take away the emotional impact they’ve had on me, (and sometimes I’m sad for a bit) but that’s part of my learning, and I work through it.
As for the positive creative helpers in my life, I simply express my thanks to them in a specific way. It could be an email thanking them for their unique influence and insight, or I share a lovely sentiment in-person so they feel my appreciation. Not everyone knows how to take in acts of gratitude, so I do my best to share something I know will work for who they are, letting them take it in how they choose.
Exploring the Gifts from your Creative Helpers
If you aren’t sure where to start with how to expand and share gratitude, start by making a simple list of your creative helpers. Who shows up first or most often? Who is no longer in your life, but has absolutely changed who you are? Are there people who you never thanked, but now feel inclined to do so?
To fully appreciate the power of the human spirit, we need to start with ourselves. If you can find ways to express gratitude for all of the influences that helped you get to this point, you are honoring the humanness in you and how it influences the humanness in another. How amazing is that?
What are some ways you show gratitude for your creative helpers that have shaped the person you’ve become?
Photo: BK, Eugne Kim