How to be a Creative Rebel

Unlock your uniqueness in a society that loves conformity…

When I was visiting my sister in NYC last year, we made plans to go out to dinner, and I decided we should get dressed up.

Not the kind of dressed up you might expect in New York City.

I pulled out a bright orange flowy jumpsuit for me and a neon pink dress for my sister. I assigned each of us a rainbow pom pom necklace. She put a flower in her hair. We had so much fun trying to look as silly and colorful as possible.

As we walked down the street towards dinner, people looked at us and smiled.

It’s so rare to see bright colors and flowers against the gray and black backdrop of NYC.

Their smiles filled me up.

Sure, we looked ridiculous for a Tuesday-night outing in the city, but the joy I felt from people feeling our joy created a swirl of goodness in the air.

Ah, it’s the best feeling.

This is the power of creative rebellion, the effect of what happens when we reclaim our individuality and self-expression.

Maybe you’ve been to a Pride Parade or witnessed the creativity that flows at Burning Man. These are two of my favorite events because people get to be unabashedly colorful, creative and free. I think that’s why we’re are so drawn to these celebrations.

But what if we were creatively rebellious all-year round, and not just at parties and parades, but at home, at work, and everywhere in between? What if we let our uniqueness out all the time, because that’s who we are, and we are who we are all the time. And I don’t mean dressing in costume everywhere, but expressing ourselves authentically.

Creative rebelliousness unlocks our potential and allows our natural creativity to flow. 

What could that look like?

On one level, it can be as simple as what we wear every day, since this signals to the world who we are.

When I spent time in Berlin last summer and I felt like people looked effortlessly cool. Envious of their style, I spent a lot of time and money trying to buy things that made me look as cool as them.

But then I realized: their coolness is just from them just expressing themselves authentically. Creative rebellion is built into the culture in Berlin. It almost doesn’t even matter what you look like, as long as you’re being yourself. You can wear what you want, put holes in your face or tattoos on your body and just show up as you are.

The way to look like a cool Berliner was to let my natural creative rebel out.

Months later I returned to NYC to get rid of things in storage, and I uncovered boxes and boxes filled with clothes that were so not me. Dozens of pants, tops, jackets, shoes that I remember buying because I wanted to look a certain way, but because they weren’t really me, they ended up just sitting in my closet, and now a storage unit, and soon to be in a donation bag. There were sooo many clothes like that (it was kinda gross). Who had I been dressing for, if not for my own creative expression? 

America is caught in valuing physical appearance so much. It instills fear, a sense of not good enough, and it totally stifles creativity. Everyone ends up looking the same for fear of being too different or “uncool.”

What would America look like if we all accepted and admired everyone’s completely original look? Or what if we got to Berlin’s level and just stopped caring about what we looked like together and just appreciated each other for our uniqueness?

Finally, after 27 years plus a year of nomadic living, I’ve embraced my authenticity in my external expression. I now wear flowy pants like I’ve always wanted to, colorful earrings and shmatas. I stopped wearing underwear and bras because I feel more comfortable and free without them. I stopped wearing makeup and highlighting my hair (this was the hardest reprogramming — I used to wear a full face of makeup and fake eyelashes every day).

There was something about letting go of all of these things that felt rebellious in the best way. Once I did this could I build back up my own opinion on what I wanted to wear, based on what made me feel good, instead of how someone else told me I should look.

Speaking our truth is another act of creative rebellion.

I write in a journal every day, and what flows through my hand sounds like my real voice. It comes straight from the heart.

But when I write something where I know someone else will read it, I find that my head gets involved.

Our society teaches us that it’s best not to be so “out there,” challenge the status quo, or say something that might upset someone else. Or what if we say something that people don’t agree with and are wrong! Oh no…

This is something I internalized from a young age, so speaking my truth, owning my truth as legitimate and true for me, is a real challenge.

My intention in posting on this blog and on social media is to learn how to express myself. I want the voice in my journal to be the same one here and the same one when I speak out loud to people.

Keeping this blog and posting on social media is an edge for me. Part of me likes to be very private and thinks a simpler, quieter life might be better for me. But I really want to find my true voice, and I think this is a good way for me to practice.

My hope that in doing so I can inspire others to speak their truth too. Frankly, it might not even matter what I actually share, but just the fact that I’m sharing anything at all gives others permission to speak their truths -- and what a beautiful world it would be if everyone authentically shared their voices! 

To be a creative rebel also means to make bold life-affirming decisions that go against the grain.

This means acting from your own inner desires instead of someone else’s expectations or advice.

For most of my life I pretty much did what I was “supposed” to do according to my midwest suburban values. Then when I graduated college and decided to start a company instead of getting a “real job,” this was my first (conscious) rebellious act. It was the first time I chose to follow that intuitive feeling that said “that other path isn’t going to fill you up. So why would you do it?”

Thank God for this rebellious decision, because it led me to a life of pure adventure where I learned more in 5 years running a company than I could have in 20 years working for a magazine (which was my original intention).

I think that’s what creative rebellion is: choosing the path of adventure. 

I’ve been trying to embrace the path of creative rebellion in building my new business. In the beginning I found myself following “the old way.” I thought that I needed to spend a certain number of hours per day working. If I was stuck on something, I thought I should sit at my computer until I figured it out. This was not bringing me any joy. Only stress and pressure, from myself! 

So I decided to change it up.

When I get stuck, I step away from my computer. I’ll go for a walk, make some food, call a friend. It puts me in another headspace, changes the energy in my body and then I can return to work with a fresh perspective. Some days I will wake up and decide it’s better not to get on my computer at all. I’ll spend a day in my backyard reading, listening to music, meditating. And it’s crazy how much inspiration comes from this! Way more than I get when I stare at the screen all day trying to type something out from my brain. 

I love embracing my rebelliousness to create a new way of building a company that works for me. I know that pleasure and creativity is the way to birth something, so it’s up to me to make it a part of my process.

I guess I’ve always been a bit of a rebel.

I never liked to do what I was “supposed” to do; I preferred living a little on the edge. Growing up, I got in trouble way more than my sisters and my friends. When I was little I had a vision of my older self with blue hair and a nose ring, and I thought that was the most BADASS thing ever. I hoped someday I would have enough confidence to do this. I just recently got the nose ring...not ready for the blue hair...yet. 

We’re all rebels deep down. We are each so unique that the current “right way” to move through life really doesn’t work for all of us. There is a no “one size fits all” approach that truly serves every unique human personality and need. 

So, we have to create it for ourselves. We have to unleash our deeper rebellious spirit to challenge a homogenous culture that doesn’t quite serve us and create a new culture that does. 

How have you creatively rebelled in your life? Do you have any fantasies of what you would do?

.

If you want to embrace your creative rebelliousness at work, I can help. I’m on a mission to support business leaders to break out of old systems that don’t work for them and transition into a new, natural way of leading companies. Click the link below to see what I offer.