Nothing bad happens when we don’t create (but nothing good happens either)

One of the reasons it’s so difficult to be consistent with creativity is this: nothing bad happens when we don’t create. We make a promise to ourselves to show up and work on our art, but when we don’t, nothing bad happens. People don’t yell at us, we don’t get fired, art doesn’t stop hanging out with us. It’s all fine. 

In fact, often when we choose not to create, it kind of feels good. Cancelling plans and sitting on the couch feels vindicating. We made a choice, it felt kind of nice, and nothing bad happened? Easy choice, right?

But when we don’t work on our art, and when we don’t keep promises to ourselves, nothing good happens, either. We don’t get better. We don’t connect with a community. We don’t get opportunities. We don’t grow an audience. We simply watch other people do all those things, with lukewarm envy and a low-frequency buzz in our minds. 

This is the amazing thing about art, to me. It always gives back what you put in. Maybe not always immediately in the vanity metrics—you might not get famous or sell your work for a lot of money. But with all the stuff that makes life so interesting and exciting, art gives us back exactly what we put in. It gives us new skills, it teaches us to connect with others, it shows us how to appreciate good work, it challenges us, it gives us a place for our passions to boil, and for our minds to conduct a high-frequency hum. 

Is it crazy to ask if your own enjoyment of your own life comes down to how much you work on the art that matters to you and how many promises you keep with yourself?