Taking the Lead to Reinforce Creativity and Passion

I began this conversation on my FB page with Elayna Fernandez of Positive Mommies . She invited me to join and encouraged me to blog about it on her site. So, I've also decided to share it here with my readers.  It's a short recollection of how I lead my daughter to find and share her passion.

While on Facebook I uploaded my daughter's first drawing on her brand new drawing and received several positive comments.  One of the comments asked, "How did you encourage her art?" At first, I wanted to respond, "I don't know. You just try to be positive and hope it works.”  Then, I remembered a time when she was younger and a conversation about her art changed things for the positive.

I spent the first few years of her life letting her discover her passion. We tried sports and ended up with unused tennis and soccer gear.  But I remembered that from the time she was a toddler she took pieces of paper and pencil everywhere we went. She even grabbed the little pads and pens off of hotel and office desks to scribble little stories.

When I realized that art (writing and drawing) was her passion, we began to focus. She was a preschooler when I noticed her tearing up her art and exclaiming, "It wasn't very good."

I could’ve given her a big hug, told her how beautiful her art and hung it on the ‘fridge.  This helps, but it makes me the art critic.  I wanted her to let go of criticism and paint for her own enjoyment.  Instead, I retrieved it from the trash and invited her to join me on the computer.

There, we spent a bit of time looking at the art of different artists. I showed her the likes of Van Gogh and explained that he sold very little in his life time. Then, Juan Miro's modern art so she could see that surrealism is also art. After viewing a few more artists and genres of art I explained that several of these artists didn't get any press while they were alive ... but they kept on painting and that's why she now enjoys their art in (NYC) MOMA (Museum of Modern Art) - where we've visited many times since she was in a carriage, only a few months old.

We ended the conversation by me telling her to, “Do what you like, follow your own mind, your lead and don’t let anyone else judge your art. Paint for your heart, from your heart and (then) it is GREAT art!" 

I would love to hear how you take the lead in your life to motivate your passion or the passion and creativity of others. Please share in the comments section.

With love and joy,
Karen McMillan, ACC
Chief Energy Officer
Conscious Leadership & Retreat Coach