Age and growing older has been in my thoughts this week along with the impact it can have on creativity. There follows some random observations, which I hope to work into something more coherent at a later date.
In the field of popular music there does appear to be a trend to produce good work early on, which is often not matched in the minds of the public in later years. There are exceptions to this of course and you will have your favourites. In literature there are great examples of work produced by writers all the way through their career and writing does seem to favour the passage of time and the impact life has on each of us.
Perhaps some people get lazy; perhaps success takes the edge of the drive to create; maybe self-doubt creeps in to hamper their creativity to the extent they can’t complete to a standard they feel comfortable with – I don’t know. I like to see artists bringing out new material and pushing forward regardless. It must be hard for some to be aware of being compared with their younger self in a less than favourable light. That can’t be good. However, as anyone reading this who has work available in the public domain, criticism in all its guises is something we live with.
It niggles me when I hear people say they can’t wait for retirement to have the time to write or paint or even read. I have to bite my tongue on these occasions, as I feel if you are not doing it today then it’s unlikely to happen when you retire. Generally people just don’t turn on the ability to learn and be creative. It’s something anyone can develop, but in my experience I have seen too many people failing to fulfill their expectations and I find this sad. Perhaps I should say something the next time, but I worry over how to phrase it. If you think you want to create something, whether it be a short story, a drawing, a song, learn an instrument, a language, whatever, resolve to start today.
I was advised this week to watch the impact my drive and enthusiasm for CPD (Continual Personal/Professional Development) may be having on my well-being. Due to commuting I’m away twelve hours a day and fitting in study around work is tough. I don’t really relax and am constantly doing stuff and that’s okay. It’s the way I am and I like to be focused on working up new ideas for stories. However, it was a good point and I need to take it on board.
I’ve recognized and accepted that up till now I was dismayed with the concept of growing older. However, I’ve realized as I age, my ability to learn new things appears to increase, which I thought was at odds with accepted thinking. This is a good thing and quite a revelation to me. I am the sort of person as soon as they create or achieve something I dismiss it and resolve to do better next time. I feel my work is improving and in the end that is what matters. So having a hang-up about ageing is ridiculous in light of this, as it is this process that is allowing me to improve. It’s not perfect, but in an imperfect world, it’s pretty close. I should welcome the fact I have experience with all its imperfections and build on that, rather than worry about the passage of time. Age is no barrier to creativity and shouldn’t be seen as something that affects our ability to be creative.
