Write Without Fright: A Desire to Inspire
Photo of Koi Pond I took at Duke Gardens
Since I launched this website back in February of this year, I’ve spent a lot of time updating and refining the design of this site thanks to feedback from friends and family. So far, this website serves as a template for creators like you who want to showcase their skills, portfolios, and creative services. I’ve heard plenty of praise from friends who apparently even “stalk” my website for inspiration for their own websites and portfolio ideas. I’ve also heard criticism about the focus being a bit too broad for anyone to understand what to take away after visiting.
My intention for this website was to share different aspects of my creative life with you as a means of education and inspiration. I haven’t truly begun this journey since I've been procrastinating on releasing a new blog post—until now. What took me so long to finally start writing again is a classic excuse—indecision. I didn’t know what to write about at all. It feels like I can write about literally anything, and yet I feel so restricted with what I should or shouldn’t say. I wasn’t always this apprehensive when it came to trying something new.
When I was younger, I had way more confidence in myself. There wasn’t much I didn’t want to try or experiment with but I eventually found my passions in dance, fashion, design, and photography. These interests naturally led me to writing since it was an easy way to share what I learned with others. Starting dance at a young age, I’ve had plenty of opportunities to teach, and that inclination continued into my adulthood as I led my own classes at nearby dance studios.
Once you become a teacher, you never lose that quality. You’ll always have the duty or urge to share your knowledge with the people around you. The best part is, if you walk through life as a student, you will always have someone to teach. Writing was a new skill for me that I could improve upon. This eventually became a new medium for me to express myself emotionally and creatively.
My artistic passions are rooted in personal visual experiences, which can often lead to varying interpretations. Anything I struggled to convey through my artwork could easily be articulated in writing. Expressing myself in words through a public blog or personal journal felt different than writing for a school assignment. There were no rubrics, checklists, or grading scale; it was just me and my truth.
In the spring of 2018, I decided to launch a blog similar to this one after leaving business school. I don’t regret my decision to drop out; I originally wanted to pursue architecture or design—something a bit more on the creative side. If anything, my time in college offered me an atmosphere that fostered growth and learning. It shaped me into someone who values academic pursuits and adopts an intellectual approach to art. I have a great appreciation for those who dedicate themselves to mastering their fields.
This kind of respect inspired me to seek out creative mentors—people I genuinely believed cared about my development. Listening to their advice, however, didn’t lead me in the direction I wanted to go. I would mention my desire to start a blog and my mentors feared I wouldn’t be taken seriously as a writer because of my tone and honesty. I guess they didn’t want me to feel ridiculed, judged, or belittled, probably because these were the kinds of emotions they had to endure as hey pursued their writing careers. Adding in the fact that I was a college drop out, their concerns weren’t invalid.
Ironically though, that fear alone is what stopped me before I could even get started. I believe people that feel responsible for your growth like parents and mentors just want to protect you sometimes. Unfortunately, that much protection didn’t foster any confidence in my abilities so I just stopped writing for years. I ultimately felt discouraged.
Within the past few years, I’ve been able to convince myself to stop feeding into these fears and give writing another shot. This motivation came from people like you in my life, who approach challenges with bravery and belief rather than fear. That’s the main point of this post. Whenever you can, whenever you find the opportunity to inspire or motivate someone to keep going, don’t let that moment pass by.
I firmly believe in leading by example. To inspire those around me, I must first find my own inspiration. Similarly, to motivate others, I need to be motivated myself. I practice this philosophy through my gym videos online. My heart is full whenever someone tells me they began their fitness journey because of what they saw in my content. That is truly the reason I share these videos. I have very little interest in going viral or getting a bunch of likes and followers. I just want to know that I’m a positive impact on those around me. My goal for writing this blog is no different. It is not about becoming the best writer who never faces any criticism; it’s about sharing my experiences as an artist and encouraging others to bring their dreams to life.
If you’ve taken the time to read this, I thank you. I have another post coming out next week about dealing creative burnout, something a lot of us have either gone through before or going through right now. If you have any ideas for what you’d like me to speak on, feel free to comment under my blog posts or send me a direct message on the socials. I’d love to tackle any subject you want to throw at me. See you in the next one!