Creativity Tip: Don't Be A But

In the previous blog, you may have noticed that I complimented myself. People who know me aren't surprised by this: I have a fairly healthy self esteem.

I owe this to my parents, who raised me and my siblings with the firm faith that we are the best thing on God's green earth. Unconditional positive regard -- heartfelt praise with no "but" attached -- is as much a part of my childhood as blintzes and bagels.

As an adult, I've discovered some unexpected advantages of high self esteem:

1. Since I believe I'm good, others believe I'm good. They are predisposed to like what I write, what I say, what I do.
2. I am free to appreciate the talents of all those around me. The undeniable fact that Jody Summers is a fantastic writer doesn't scare me. Even better, Jody and I learn from each other.
3. Full circle to point 1: People who have faith in my talents believe me when I tell them how talented they are. That matters, because people rise, or fall, to meet expectations. And my expectations are every bit as high as my self esteem.

Bottom line? We're all here striving to improve, to be more creative. That's good. We're good. And there's no "but" about it.