A little over ‘strategy’…
I’ve reached peak ‘strategy’ ~ I’m not sure I’ve ever cared about what an algorithm needs (stubbornly determined to make my own business about well, me, and not that of a tech company) but I have come to a place in my work where I don’t want everything to have to be ‘optimised’ or perfectly positioned for marketing.
Frankly, I never have. But the pressure is there, in the dos, the don’ts, the hows, the ‘IS THIS CLEAR ENOUGH?’ of it all.
And I realised today, I don’t have capacity for any of it any more. I just want to be, create, show up, interact and make every day sparkly.
I covered one end of my kitchen table in paintings yesterday and worked the day away on new artwork. The table is still covered in paper.
I didn’t video much of the process, and my goal is to work as an illustrator creating amazing artwork that I’m proud of and brings joy to other people.
I’m also a Line 2 in Human Design, which means I like to be left alone to work and don’t really thrive of the disruption of making the creative process a piece of content. Not every single time.
I DO love sharing and talking about the process, but I have found more and more this year that there is a constant pressure to ‘share’ everything.
The truth is, the deepest, most meaningful work (and life moments) are not always captured and distilled into pixels.
The same goes with words ~ I don’t NEED to make neat little carousels that funnel my audience into an offer or allow me to hack the hormonal algorithm. I need to just write and express, without thinking of any ‘strategy’.
I love un-structured rambley long-form content from other people.
I can see through a piece of marketing trend, AI influenced, coach polished nonsense in two seconds flat. It doesn’t connect, it just feels a bit….empty.
And while it might be dripping in supposed strategy, it often has no brand recall whatsoever.
Because same-same does not stand out.
The phrase getting paid to be yourself? Signing up thanks.
And it turns out myself is a veritable Sparkly Menace.
This is when the creativity flows, and when creativity flows, it takes on a momentum that can’t be stopped.
I’m here to feel creative source bringing divine inspiration through ~ it’s magical, and it’s what the world needs.
The world needs your individuality. It needs you saying ‘hey, don’t shove me in a triangle when I’m a diamond’.
Because we are all here to contribute.
It’s not up to anyone to decide how things should be, and I feel like we are very much seeing the end of this cycle right now.
The fatigue of not wanting to do things the same way is the intuitive, deeper wisdom that is telling us there are new ways to do things.
If trying to fit into a status quo is holding you back from sharing your work, it’s time to ditch it. The reality is, AI is showing us how boring it is to be predictably the same.
The fact so many of us need to ask permission from a trained chatbot on whether our own thoughts or way of doing things is correct, shows me more information does not lead to more wisdom, or confidence.
We need to quit fluffing about and actually show up in a multi-passionate, multi-dimensional glory.
When we consistently outsource that internal wisdom to others ~ whether it’s a coach, a video of “a random person in their car dishing out opinions”, or a chat bot, what we’re really asking for is reassurance and validation.
We don’t need this ~ we need to finally be brave enough to show up and be messy.
To be brave enough and interesting enough to not always make sense.
If your dance with creativity has become inextricably entwined with what someone else is doing, whether you got enough ‘interaction’ on socials from it or you’re caught up in so much noise generated through social apps, you will end up just spinning your tyres.
I feel the need to be so wildly human again, to just show up and trust that this is enough.
That the connection between me and my creative process, my income and my business is not being continually influenced and impacted by an algorithmic world that is determined to keep me so busy running in circles, I lose sight of being present in my own weird and wonderful creative vision.
I don’t want to break a wordy blog post into some tidy carousel for shortened attention spans.
I don’t want to have to make sense, all of the time, to everyone.
I don’t want to have think of an ideal customer when I’m trying to have a conversation.
I’m just a girl, with a paintbrush and a deep interest in the magical side of life who wants to have winding, non-strategic conversations that don’t always have to make sense.
Intuition, magic, soul deep wisdom go beyond all that.
So does fun, just being randomly whimsical and being a bit silly.
And that’s what art and creativity is ~ it’s here to colour outside the lines.
Hi, I’m Megan ~ an illustrator and writer. I love oracle cards, identify with the artist/healer/witch archetypes, feminine business and creating beautiful artwork that brings joy ~ whether that’s bringing magic to your home or brand. I also offer 1:1 human design sessions for creatives, that help you uncover your own inner magic + apply it to your life/work. Learn more here.
