No. 21: Why I'm No Longer Waiting for Permission to Be Creative

Claiming What Was Always Mine

For a long time,

I treated creativity like something I had to earn.

Something that required approval.

More time.

More confidence.

More certainty.

I waited for the right conditions.

The right season.

The moment someone else would say,

yes, now it makes sense.

That moment never came.

What Waiting Cost Me

Waiting dulled my voice.

It taught me to doubt what wanted to come through me.

It made creativity feel optional —

a luxury instead of a lifeline.

But creativity doesn’t wait patiently.

It grows quiet when ignored.

Restless when postponed too long.

I felt that restlessness everywhere.

Choosing to Begin Anyway

So now, I begin without permission.

I write even when I’m unsure.

I create even when it’s imperfect.

I share even when my voice feels small.

Not because I’m fearless —

but because I’m tired of silencing myself.

Creativity, I’ve learned,

isn’t about confidence.

It’s about devotion.

Letting Creativity Be Gentle

This isn’t about productivity or outcomes.

It’s about allowing expression to exist without pressure.

Letting creativity be slow.

Messy.

Tender.

Letting it belong to me again.

A Reminder for You

If something creative keeps tugging at you —

a story, an idea, a quiet longing —

you don’t need permission to begin.

You don’t need to justify it.

You don’t need to make it useful.

You’re allowed to create

simply because it brings you back to yourself.

If you’re choosing your voice this year,

I’m walking that path too.

—Steph