Creativity - Have you been Confident Enough to talk about It

After six years in the commercial of making and selling designer kids clothes, every time we design a brand new Collection, it will be gets easier. However it is constantly on the amaze me the number of hours get into catalog layout (not to mention all of the creative development, art time, photography and Photoshop work that gets into before even getting to print time). We've established a bit of a "look" to the catalog pages and our graphics and clothing styles but we always try to keep it fresh and interesting. A week ago, our summer intern researched in the catalog pages she was proofreading and asked my hubby, Ken, and that i as we were ever afraid we'd exhaust ideas. Both of us answered simultaneously, "Never. "

We're not worried about reaching the limit on our creativity -- our only problem is reaching the limit promptly to make all of our ideas a real possibility! It can be because we're both somewhat "creatively obsessive" -- meaning our minds never appear to turn off -- so we're always wasting new suggestions for our designs... always. The answer to continually having new ideas would be to feel confident in dreaming them up AND throwing them available.

Was I forever by doing this? Well, I believe I've always were built with a creative side or streak within me which was never fully exercised until starting my company. However i wasn't always as confident (or possibly "comfortable" is more accurate) in launching out new ideas that may potentially be denied, dismissed, or laughed at. Let's be honest, no one loves to feel rejection -- even when it's just for a concept. Interestingly though, I've found that people not born with the creative confidence gene can in fact learn how to develop it. While you create (with anything in your lifetime that you are doing -- new recipes, interesting outfits, a distinctive fundraising idea) and people "creations" are positively received, that positive reinforcement seeps to your soul to make you more confident to carry on to keep trying new ideas. So the inspirational cycle goes...

I've experienced this sort of rise in my very own creativity and I've watched it firsthand with my children over modern times that we've had the company. They've witnessed a continuing barrage of recent suggestions for our designs being tossed around, as well as more importantly, they've seen the open-minded method in which Ken and that i usually receive one another's brainstorms. Due to residing in this sort of environment, I've noticed my children unabashedly offering up ideas, suggestions and inventive solutions with techniques they not have before. I recieve a warm feeling inside each time I hear one of these begin to say, "How about we attempt something similar to... "

So what comes first: the creativity or even the confidence? Fortunately It can and frequently does work for both. If you have confidence in that which you do and that which you create, others might find the worthiness inside it too, and you will feel confident to carry on thinking outside your box. And if you make the perfect, constructive, open-minded listener you'll not only help others to achieve the confidence to keep on keepin' on within the creative department, however, you will probably also spark additional suggestions for yourself. A lot like creative karma. Everyone has more plans than we believe. Throw 'em available!

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