S4E8: The Healing Power of Creative Self-Expression With Caitlin Gwynn aka Caitlin The Creative!
My friends, today is the final guest episode of S4! I will be bringing you some kind of season finale next week, but I just want to take a moment today to celebrate and thank all the guests who I’ve chatted to this season…there’s been something of a shift that’s happened, that I’ll talk more about next week. But for sure, that shift has been hugely facilitated by this group of wonderful humans.
So, for this last episode, I’m talking to Caitlin Gwynn; a friend and fellow small business owner who is so full of colour in every possible way. Caitlin is a creativity coach and small business cheerleader and she believes creativity makes the world go round. Caitlin sincerely believes that creativity makes her a better business owner and prioritising her own creative needs and play time during a period of burnout whilst running her online business has lead to her helping others do the same!
Caitlin creates experiences to help you bring the fun back to freelancing and, to help you unleash your own unique creative self expression… and rumour has it she is about to launch a podcast of her own.
Creativity, or creative self-expression, for me, has always been an outlet during my journey with my health, and in life in general.
What I didn’t expect, however, was to discover how so much of the creative process, how so much of learning to express yourself, can be used as a metaphor and as a training ground for healing and learning to live at peace with your chronic illness.
She’s a beam of light and her creative superhero ways are infectious.
P.S. I mentioned in the last episode that the waitlist for Your Chronic Illness Ally was open, and totally forgot that I’m not running a waitlist this time around! I am, however, running an early bird 20% off offer, which also gives you instant access to the members library. It ends on Wednesday 15th Feb, so briefly pause this episode whilst you head on over to my website (link in show notes) to check it out and join YCIA!
LINKS:
Caitlin’s website
Caitlin’s instagram
EPISODE NOTES:
4:00 - How creativity can be used in our lives as a force for good and a healing tool. How Caitlyn used creativity as a tool in her recovery journey
7:00 - The myth of creative vs. not creative and how you can tap into your creativity when you’ve not been used to seeing yourself that way
10:00 - The different creative outlets we can turn to. Thinking beyond the scope of traditional creativity.
10:40 - How you can start to own your creativity more.
10:45 - Embracing creativity as an imperfect experiment and how that provides a good learning ground for the healing journey and learning to live at peace with your chronic illness. Appreciating the process and the result whatever it turns out to be.
15:30 - Tuning into your unique self expression when you’re scared, low on energy/time/mental space and bringing it into your life in a practical sense.
17:45 - The role of boredom. Allowing yourself to be bored and the role of creativity in boredom, and boredom in creativity!
22:50 - Engaging a creative way of thinking and problem solving outside of creative practices. The role of self-concept in allowing yourself to be creative.
31:00 - Practical steps you can take to (re)ignite your creativity without all the pressure.
40:00 - Life is about more than your chronic illness and having a hobby, being creative, is a great reminder of that.
41:45 - Thinking about the creative activities you love doing.
46:00 - Creativity that brings you joy and mindfulness is the best gift you can give yourself.
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