Welcome to the Creative4evr Podcast! - a podcast by Jai//Em

Quick Notes & Links:

Today we talk about the Creative4evr Podcast Mission. I hope this podcast -- 1) Brings us together. 2) Let’s know we’re not alone. 3) Motivates us to try to flip it so we’re doing more of our own creativity and maybe we’ll even start to get paid for it.

On this podcast...
// We will hear stories from other Creatives
// We’re going to strengthen our creative habits.
// We’re going to stop choking our muse to death.
// We’re going to take care of ourselves....know when to go to bed!
// We’re going to discuss and recommend books, TV shows, and movies with an emphasis on books. Many of the books will be from authors in marginalized communities, from authors of color, queer authors, and people we don't usually hear from.

We are on Twitter and Instagram: @Creative4evr. Don’t forget to be creative this week…even if you just think about it.

Full Show Notes:

Hey, hi, and hello! Welcome to Creative4evr. The podcast dedicated to keeping you forever inspired, forever motivated, forever creative, and forever YOU. I am Janet, a.k.a. JAI//EM, a.k.a. the voice inside your head, a.k.a. your biggest fan, and together we’re gonna get some creative shit done.

This is the very, very, very, very first episode and I am very excited about it. How many was that? 4? 5?  I’m really excited, this has been a long time coming! I’ve been working on this for a little while now and we’re finally releasing episodes, so it feels good. So, let’s jump right into it. You’re gonna get our mission statement, what we plan to do on this podcast, and we’ll talk again on the other side. Enjoy!

On this podcast, Creative4evr, we’re going to make sure that you stay inspired and motivated. Here's why. I have an expertise and it's living a double life. I work at my day job and I pay my bills. And then I spend the rest of my time being creative. Writing, podcasting, streaming on Twitch... I do all of these things outside of my day job that I'm passionate about, that I care about, that allow me to be creative. And I know so many people that do the same thing!

Over the years I've met artists, creators, dreamers, writers, inventors, singers and dancers. MAKERS. And all of us are working our ass off to make a living and be creative. We’re doing this in the wee hours of the night, on our lunch breaks, in the car on the way to work, while we're waiting to pick up our kids. We’re squeezing in our creativity in order to fulfill that part of our lives, while still functioning in the world and at our day jobs. Yes, sometimes those things intersect. Sometimes we are able to be creative at our day jobs and creative after work, but often I find that even if I am in a creative job, I'm still not doing the creative things I want to do. I'm not quite able to put those things on the front burner...

I hope this podcast -- 1) Brings us together. 2) Let’s know we’re not alone. 3) Motivates us to try to flip it so we’re doing more of our own creativity and maybe we’ll even start to get paid for it.

On this podcast we will hear stories from other Creatives. I don't mean that they will read their stories, although that's a great idea, I just mean I'm going to interview people like us and talk to them about how they squeeze their creativity out of each day. How they stay motivated, look at the world, what inspires them. I think it's so important to hear from people that are doing what we're doing. Sometimes, especially around awards seasons, we hear from six or seven super famous artists that are doing amazing work, but at a high level, for masses and millions of people. Yet, we don’t often get to hear stories about someone that has written one book that’s selling, but not well. We don’t usually hear from the artist that got a great gig, but it didn’t generate dollars for them. That's what I think is interesting, and I hope you do too.

We’re going to strengthen our creative habits. We’re going to get into the rhythm of our own creativity! How do we wake up? What is our mindset when we wake up? What are the things we do to ensure that when we have a moment to squeeze creativity out of ourselves, we use it?

We’re going to stay in touch with the world around us. Yes, you can be creative within a silo, without knowing what's going on in the world, but I think that's a short-term solution. We have to be in touch with what's going on inside and outside of our communities. Friends and family, but also strangers that we've never met nor seen.

We’re going to stop choking our muse to death. And that's basically saying we're going to try and let go so we can let creativity happen. So often we are the ones in our own way. I find that we are better at getting out of our own way if we hear about others that are doing so. But also, it goes back to strengthening our creative habits. If we strengthen our habits, it's easier to get out of our own way because it has become a part of our daily routine.

We’re going to take care of ourselves. Yes, sometimes falling into a pit of despair creates the BEST art of your life! I totally understand that, it has happened to me. However, it is not sustainable and there are things we can do to take care of ourselves. One of them is hanging out with, associating with, and talking to other people that are doing what we’re doing, so that it doesn't feel like we are alone, right? That's taking care of ourselves. Hanging out with other creatives. So, we are gonna do things like that, hang out with each other, take care of each other. But also, know when to go to bed! Know when to get up early and work out so that when we are creative our brain is able to do it, and our body is able to do it too.

We’re going to discuss and recommend books, TV shows, and movies with an emphasis on books. There are so many podcasts out there that review movies, talk about TV shows, etc., but I don't find there are enough people talking about books. Especially books that people really, really, really should have read. Everybody has a few books they pretend they've read or know about. We're going to change that. There are books that we all need to know, there are books that we all need to read. And I'm not going to lie, many of the books will be from authors in marginalized communities, from authors of color, queer authors, and people we don't usually hear from. YES, we are going to talk about TV shows and movies, but we’re going to talk about books, which leads me to my last thing. We are going to read more! I am going to shame you and make you feel like you're missing out. Before you know it, you're going to be reading more than you usually do. I guarantee it.

There you have it! Our mission statement. What we plan to do what the podcast and I'm super excited to watch it grow, change, evolve and ALL the things that happen when you decide to do something creative and go on a creative journey. I'm looking forward to it. It freaks me out a little bit, it’s a little scary, but I think it’s important to push your creativity and your limits. You shouldn’t always do things that are easy to do, right? We should be challenging ourselves, so I'm really excited about it.

We are on Twitter and Instagram: @Creative4evr. Don’t forget to be creative this week…even if you just think about it.

Further episodes of Creative4evr Podcast

Further podcasts by Jai//Em

Website of Jai//Em