The Ripples Your Creativity Creates
“Sometimes we don't see how our creative choices influence others, how they contribute to a larger story of creativity being lived and shared in the world.”
Every time you choose to create - whether it's arranging flowers in a vase, writing in your journal, or making something with your hands - you're creating ripples that extend far beyond that single act. Sometimes we don't see how our creative choices influence others, how they contribute to a larger story of creativity being lived and shared in the world.
I think about my Granny, who kept almost every drawing I ever sent her as a child, storing them carefully in albums as if they were precious works of art. And my Grandpa, who sent me books about artists and creative writers he thought I would be inspired by. My grandparents couldn't have known how their simple acts of valuing creativity would influence not just my life, but the lives of countless students I would later teach. Yet here I am, decades later, still feeling the ripples of their creative encouragement.
In my upcoming book, I explore how our creative legacy isn't simply about what we make - it's about how we live creatively and how this touches others. It's about the permission we give others when we honour our own creativity, the doors we open when we share our creative journey honestly, including the struggles and the doubts.
Your creative legacy might look like:
The child who sees you making time for creativity despite a busy life
The friend who feels inspired to start creating again because of your example
The family stories you preserve through your art or writing
The creative courage you show that helps others find their own
In our Creative Hearts Community, I witness these ripples consitently. One member begins painting again after years of hesitation, and suddenly their teenager shows interest in art. Another shares their creative struggles honestly, and others find courage to face their own creative fears. These are all part of how creativity stays alive and flowing through generations.
Today, I invite you to consider: What creative legacy are you already creating, perhaps without realising it? How might your creative choices be influencing others? What creative gifts were passed to you that you might pass on?
Your creative legacy doesn't need to be about making masterpieces. Instead, it's about living creatively and authentically, showing others that creativity belongs to everyone.
Learn More About Flourish: The Art of Creative Living - my year-long program.
Be kind to yourself and nurture your creativity.
With my warmest wishes,
~ Nicola
P.S. My book explores this deeper meaning of creative legacy, and in our community, we support each other in creating ripples that encourage creativity in others. I warmly invite you to join us in the community to discover how your creative journey can inspire and support others while staying true to your own path.
P.P.S. My gorgeous stepdaughter Skye and I went on a camping adventure exploring north Queensland together. It was so wonderful to spend time painting and doing photography in such stunning locations. Skye is a wonderful photographer and has done many of my branding photo shoots in recent years.
Skye’s also been the chef photographer on my art retreats over the years. I’m ever so grateful to get to be creative with her. Check out her Instagram here.
Who has inspired you in your creative life? I’d love to hear in the comments below!
About Nicola Newman
I'm a Creative Business Coach, Award-Winning Artist & Mentor for Creative Hearts who want to flourish, flow & prosper.
My passion is inspiring and supporting Creative Hearts to trust their inner wisdom and carve out a life that’s personally meaningful and fulfilling to them.
I share practical, evidence-based tools for Creative Hearts seeking to improve their lives or businesses. My work draws from acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), mindfulness-based techniques, body-based practices, and neuroscience -- and my own creative living adventures -- among other approaches.
My mission is to support Creative Hearts to:
Dissolve creative blocks, develop a loving relationship with themselves, nurture their creativity and reframe the beliefs and patterns that keep them from following their heart and making the creative contribution they would love to make in the world.
My approach is to embrace gentleness, playfulness and self-care to navigate self-doubt and instead cultivate deep self-trust so you can truly enjoy the creative process, bring together your body of work, make money doing what you love and leave a creative legacy you’re proud of.
Let’s pour a cuppa and get to know one another, shall we? :) Read more about my story here.
