On Lingerie and Waiting Tables
Lingerie and Waiting Tables
Lest there be misunderstanding and confusion regarding my remark about abandoning creativity for selling lingerie and waiting tables, I decided I better follow up with another post.
As a creativity coach, I believe creativity can be part of everything we do, whether it is playing piano, frosting a cake, or, yes, selling lingerie. Each of us has our own, maybe not unique, but most authentic and natural way to express our creativity, and when we can happily engage in that form of creativity, then we find that it spills over into most if not all areas of our lives.
Some people bring amazing creativity to jobs like waiting tables and selling lingerie because they have a talent for connecting with people and being of service. The thing is, people in positions like these are usually guaranteed a financial return on their investment of time and energy in salaries and tips.
However, singers, composers, actors, writers, painters, and others in the arts can put lots of time, energy, heart and soul into developing skills and creating work only to get absolutely no remuneration at all. So, they turn to something that will pay—like waiting tables and selling retail—as a job, not as another form of creative expression.
As a mother whose sons have waited tables yet find primary creative expression and satisfaction in photography, music, writing, and networking, I don’t want to see them–or any of us–totally sacrifice creative expression on the altar of economic and societal demands. I don’t want my youngest to become an accountant, for instance, when what he loves is composing music…
Oh sure, there may be times in our lives where we put our creativity on hold for weeks, months, or (shudder) years while we pay bills, raise children, etc. But not give it up altogether!
I don’t know about you but I would be one unhappy person. When I am too long away from the loom or writing, I get cranky. Things in my life don’t flow as smoothly. I lose some sense of who I am. Actually, if I gave up writing and weaving, I wouldn’t be who I am. I don’t know who I would be…
I don’t want anyone, because of economic demands and social expectations, to surrender their creativity, to let go of the immense joy and satisfaction that comes with expressing themselves through whatever medium calls to them. Who knows what would we lose individually and as a society?