I didn't know much about the Divergent trilogy when I started reading the first book, I just longed for an engaging read. But I soon discovered it was actually perfect books to read this year, the year I'm facing my creative fears.

The fears they face in these books are not the fears creativity bring. Their fears are the ones associated with survival, but different fears work pretty much the same at it's core. They come from the same part of our brain, from the same instinct of survival.

To live a creative life means we need to face those fears.
This is what the Divergent trilogy can teach us about that.

There's the limits of our physical reality, and then there's the limit we put upon ourselves. The petty, unnecessary and fear based limits. The ones holding you back from living up to your own potential. The limits that becomes reality, through us believing our doubtful voices. 

There's enough limits in the world without us adding to them. Let's bring them down instead.

Do you dare to show your own weird self in your creativity? Are you scared your art just blends in with everyone else's? Do you want what you make to stand out? Then you'll want to learn to tap into your unique weirdness, your quirks and whatever makes you you.

It'll strengthen your creative voice and style, and help you make things no one else can make. 

One of the unexpected paths that emerged when I decided to follow my fear this year was the fear of drawing. If you're not in the boat with me here, it may seem a bit silly. Seriously, how scary can it be to draw? That's something most of us have done since we were kids. Well, for me, that was the problem.

Today, I reveal the steps I took from scared with no self-confidence to calm and confident when I draw.

Imagine a meadow with a fence around it. It's warm and sunny, little bees and flowers moving slowly in a light breeze. Well walked trails go up and down through the grass, you stroll around on them. One of them eventually takes you to an edge of the meadow. You stop, look.

Beyond the fence is a forest. The forest is darker, filled with shadows and uncertainty. 

That's where we're going today. You coming?

A huge, beautiful library with a high ceiling and big windows. Rows and rows of bookcases. But no books.

The streets packed with people. Rushing from importance to serious. But no one is on their phone.

A meeting, with enthusiastic people sitting around a table. No one is speaking.

A world with no voices.

Our most important creative work often lies in the place where our fear and passion is strongest. Naturally, creating in that place is hard, very hard.

We care so much, we can barely touch it.

It’s so loaded with hopes and longing, we get scared of it. We get scared we can’t do it, that we’ll fail and all those hopes will come crashing down. If that dream disappears, we don’t know who we’d be.

Our dream gets trapped in a state of inaction.

But we can do it, with some manipulation of the situation. Let me present a model for doing that scary, passionate work.

Where did Creativity go?

Anyone seen my creativity? No?

Nobody?

Do you feel like you've lost your creativity? Did it run away and now you can't find it again? You're not alone, it happened to me too. Don't worry, we'll find it together.

Let's go searching.

Today, you are a detective. I want you to go get your detective's hat, fake beard and plastic nose. Seriously, we’re on a mission here.

Self-doubt can mess with our creativity to point of keeping it hidden deep, deep inside of us. Fighting against self-doubt can feel impossible, especially if you’re not sure whether your thoughts are self-doubt or just you being realistic. The case here is to identify your self-doubt to see if it’s messing with your creativity or not.

You ready? Good.

Now, let’s go undercover and catch self-doubt in the act.

Oh come on, I can’t do that. I’m not strong/creative/skilled/experienced/adjective enough.

We all have those thoughts. We firmly tell the world no. We guard what we can and can’t do like our lives depended on it.

Unfortunately, we’re not completely wrong. Our doubts are often based in some kind of truth, or else they wouldn’t be so powerful. But they don’t tell the whole truth. Only the part keeping us from doing the work we’re hesitant to do.