Do you think you are NOT creative?

"I don't have a creative bone in my body."

I can't tell you how many times I've heard those words.

I've heard them at art shows, during live painting events, and from people visiting my studio. They'll stand in front of one of my paintings, smile, and say,

"I wish I could do that... but I'm just not creative."

Every time I hear those words, my heart breaks a little... because I don't think they're true.

Not because I think everyone is meant to become an artist.

But because I don't believe creativity belongs to artists alone.

We Were Created to Create

If you've followed my work for any length of time, you probably already know this about me...

I believe we were created by the greatest Creator of all.

The Bible tells us that we are made in God's image (Genesis 1:27). If that's true—and I believe it is—then creativity isn't a gift reserved for a select few. It's part of who we are because we reflect the One who created us.

Even if you don't share my faith, I'd invite you to stay with me for a moment.

Your existence is an extraordinary act of creativity.

Every fingerprint.

Every cell.

Every thought.

Every unique part of your personality.

You are wonderfully and intentionally made.

I've come to believe that the Creator placed creativity within every one of us—not so that we would all become artists, but so that we would all become creators in the unique ways we were designed.

So when someone says, "I don't have a creative bone in my body," I think they're saying the opposite of what's true.

You're More Creative Than You Think

Most people don't recognize how creative they already are.

Creativity isn't limited to painting, writing, music, or dance.

It's found in solving problems.

Finding a better way to do something.

Raising children.

Running a business.

Working with numbers.

Teaching students.

Preparing a meal.

Designing a garden.

Leading a team.

Every single day we adapt, imagine, plan, and solve problems.

That's creativity in action.

It just doesn't always come with a paintbrush.

Creativity Is a Muscle

I don't believe there are "creative people" and "non-creative people."

I believe there are simply people who exercise their creativity often and people who have forgotten that they can.

Creativity isn't a talent that some people are born with while others aren't.

It's a muscle.

Like every muscle, it becomes stronger the more we use it.

In fact, I don't think creativity is something we have to find.

I think it's something we have to remember.

It's already there.

We simply have to give it room to grow.

As an artist, I spend hours every day exercising that muscle. I'm constantly making decisions, solving visual problems, experimenting with colour, and imagining what doesn't yet exist.

After years of doing that, ideas tend to come more easily.

Not because I'm more creative than everyone else.

Simply because I've been practicing.

If you only create once every few months, it's natural that ideas don't come as quickly.

That doesn't mean you aren't creative.

It simply means the muscle hasn't been exercised very often.

The more we create, the easier it becomes to create again. Ideas begin to connect, confidence grows, and what once felt difficult starts to feel natural.

Your Creativity Doesn't Have to Look Like Mine

Not everyone is meant to paint.

Your creativity may come alive through photography.

Cooking.

Woodworking.

Gardening.

Writing.

Teaching.

Building a business.

Designing a home.

Or finding a better solution to a difficult problem.

Creativity isn't defined by what you create.

It's defined by your willingness to create something that didn't exist before.

Why We Stop Believing We're Creative

As children, we're encouraged to colour, build, imagine, sing, dance, and play.

Then we grow up.

Somewhere along the way, creativity becomes less important than productivity.

We're told to get a "real job."

We're warned that artists don't make money.

We begin measuring success by paycheques instead of curiosity.

Then something subtle happens.

We begin telling ourselves a story.

"I'm just not creative."

The problem is that the stories we tell ourselves eventually become the lives we live.

If we believe we're not creative, we stop trying.

We stop experimenting.

We stop making things.

And eventually we convince ourselves that creativity belongs to other people.

But I've become convinced that creativity never leaves us.

Sometimes only our confidence does.

Your creativity is always available to you.

It doesn't disappear because you've ignored it.

It patiently waits until you're ready to use it again.

I Work Out Life Through Painting

As an artist, I often say that I work out life through painting.

When I'm standing in front of a canvas, I'm not just mixing colours.

I'm processing emotions.

Asking questions.

Working through challenges.

Finding hope.

Trying new ideas.

Painting is where I make sense of life.

But you may not work out life through painting.

Maybe you work out life while baking bread.

Working in your garden.

Playing music.

Building furniture.

Writing.

Cooking.

Or creating something in your business.

The activity itself isn't what matters.

What matters is that you keep creating.

Because every time you create something that didn't exist before, you're strengthening the creative muscle that has always been inside you.

What Will You Create Today?

The next time you catch yourself saying,

"I'm just not creative,"

I hope you'll pause for a moment.

Because I don't think it's true.

Your creativity may have been neglected.

It may have been discouraged.

It may have been buried beneath years of doubt.

But it has never stopped belonging to you.

It's still there.

Waiting patiently.

Waiting for you.

So maybe the question isn't...

"Am I creative?"

Maybe the better question is...

"What will I create today?"

I work out life through painting.

Maybe you work out life another way.

Whatever that looks like for you, I hope you keep creating.

The world needs what only you can make.