If we are willing to put our creative work out there – into the world in some way – it will be judged and ranked. What if our book doesn’t make it to a bestseller list, our painting is not accepted by a gallery, our blog doesn’t show up on a Google page one, or […]
self-esteem and creative people
Scarlett Johansson on Negative Body Image
In the movie The Black Dahlia (2006), based on her infamous murder, struggling actress Elizabeth Short (aka “The Black Dahlia,” played by Mia Kirshner) is shown auditioning for role after role. Scarlett Johansson (who acted in the movie) said she has “a lot of friends who are very talented actors and musicians who struggle… “Any […]
No One Normal Could Have Done This
In a very poignant scene at the end of the movie “The Imitation Game” computer scientist Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch) has been undergoing court-mandated hormone therapy to “cure” him of his homosexuality, a treatment that left him very ill but allowed him to continue his work rather than going to prison. One of the most […]
Tom Hanks on writing and self-consciousness
Writing was “just a battle of self-consciousness.” In a PBS NewsHour episode, Tom Hanks spoke with Jeffrey Brown about writing his first book – a “collection of 17 short stories, mostly about people seeking connections of one kind or another.” Tom Hanks: Once I could get involved in the individual stories, then [my eyes] sort […]
Overcoming low self esteem: “Where was my self respect?”
Our self-esteem or positive self concept, and how well and deeply we value ourselves, and impacts how fully we can live and realize our talents. The horrific experience of abuse interests me as a creativity researcher for how it can distort awareness and self concept in such destructive ways, and how much it can shut […]