Cover Photo: My son’s first art piece. He just had to fill the blank canvas!
What baby can teach you about creative work
Two weeks ago, my newborn son, Nate, did his first piece of art. He had just turned 4 months old then, so using the word “art” is stretching the definition, but hey, he did apply himself, okay?
While other babies at the workshop kept playing with the paint and putting it in their mouth, I tried very hard to keep Nate’s brush into his hands for him to draw something. He couldn’t bear to see this white page empty, so he filled it with blue paint. Here’s the result, in all its glory:
Nate’s very first art piece, at 4 months old.
I noticed something beautiful in the process: Nate never hesitated one bit. He firmly held the brush and painted without a care in the world. He didn’t think about how nice it would look or if others would judge it.
I mean, a baby’s brain is too immature for that anyway, but what if they are into something? Isn’t it true that creatives craft their best work when they don’t overthink things and just let their genius take over for them?
I was watching his art in awe not of what the result was becoming but of the process and the simplicity it took for him to “just do it”.
I’m now a full-time writer as of October 1, 2020. I’ve been writing two to three stories daily, averaging 3,000 words. I know writers who write a lot more than that, but for the most part, I’m pretty happy with myself. You know why?
I’ve written over 600 stories in the past 3 years, and still, I’m able to do like Nate — fill blank pages. I still remember reading and writing about writer’s block after my first month of writing back in January 2018. I feared lacking inspiration for things to write about. It never happened.
To fill a blank page with words, art, or anything in between, there are really only two rules: you must be an observant, and you must take immediate action. That’s really all the art of filling a blank page is.
Being observant
Nate’s the most curious baby in the world and that makes me happy. Babies his age are supposed to sleep 16–18 hours a day. I’ve never seen him sleep more than 14. He regularly sleeps 12. While that’s technically not good, at least, he develops very well.
He doesn’t like sleeping because he likes to explore his surroundings. He looks at every detail of every object. He notices things I’d never notice. He’s always happier when we leave home and explore outside or go to his grandparents’. Talk about an inquisitive adventurer!
When it comes to being observant, this baby puts any adult to shame. It’s admirable, really. When I look at him go, that’s exactly how I picture a creative genius. I sometimes call him Nate Da Vinci. That’s how I picture Leonardo Da Vinci living most of his days during the renaissance.
Imagine you were in Nate’s shoes. Actually, he doesn’t wear shoes yet, but you get the idea. How easy would it be to fill a blank page? Everything would be new to you. You don’t yet have an opinion of the world or the people living in it. Essentially, you have a fresh set of lenses. Surely, your creativity would be through the roof.
To produce your best creative work, you have to be like baby Nate again. Dare to ask yourself why things are the way they are. And I mean, really think for yourself. Don’t take the popular opinion or what you see on TV. Dare to be fresh like a newborn — free of the stain of society. Dare to be your raw self.
Taking action
Like Nate, ignore what others will think of your piece and just start creating. Don’t prepare, just do. Put your first brush stroke without having a clue what you’re going to paint.
Write a sentence. Any sentence, really. Just write the first thing that comes to mind. That’s how this story started. I know Nate would have done the same if he could write.
The “just do it” mentality works, but you must first be an observant, as previously mentioned. When you trust that you’ve experienced enough things, you can also trust that the creative juice will flow.
It doesn’t matter what the final result could be, it just matters that you start. And when you do start, you’re already ahead of the majority of people. Pablo Picasso is thought to have made about 50,000 artworks during his lifetime, including paintings, drawings, prints, sculpture, and ceramics. Do you think he had a problem starting things?
I know many people who want to write online and have 20 different ideas of topics to write about. They have a draft or two that have been sitting there for months. They’re maybe 50 percent done.
I know people who want to start a podcast or create videos on YouTube or TikTok. It doesn’t matter that you want to do it, it just matters that you do it.
Hesitation is what kills your creative genius. There is no perfection in creativity. That’s the whole point. Name one perfect piece of art. Name one perfect story. They just don’t exist, and it’s perfect like that.
Inaction is a creative’s greatest enemy. And inaction exists due to a lack of observation. Nate taught me that there’s no shortage of awe moments you can have daily. Change lenses, figuratively speaking. See the world from a baby’s perspective. See the world from your neighbour’s perspective. It doesn’t really matter, as long as you remain curious.
Humans lose their creativity too early and filling blank pages is harder and harder every day. It’s so hard that it has become an art form, really. We even invented the word “block” to append to any creative work. Artist block. Writer block. Whatever block.
It’s all an illusion, really. Live more. Create more. Just do it. That’s your recipe for success. It’s that simple, and babies have done it for millennia. So why not you?
You can do this!
— Danny