I have a background in the arts, and have also worked in nonprofits my whole life, so I feel like I know a thing or two about being broke.
It’s no fun.
While many people may glorify the starving artist stereotype or the nonprofit slave stereotype, it’s not something that my partner or I aspire to be.
You’ve heard the stories about musicians living out of their cars, with the last $2 in their account, while writing the song that would propel them into wealth and fame.
Sometimes struggling can give you a different perspective on things and can create some beautiful art, music, etc. It brings out that feeling of really being alive.
While there are many successes out there that have fostered their creativity in a period of great duress, I would argue that being broke stifles creativity.
I know there are many aspects of creativity, and for this purpose I don’t want to merely focus on artistic creativity. I think there are many ways to be creative – thinking outside of the box, making things work with limited resources, using old things in new ways, etc. In fact, creativity is often born out of necessity. Don’t have something? Figure out how to make it! Don’t have the right ingredients? Figure something else out.
For me, I wish I could say my debt has made me more creative. I guess in a way it has, because it forced me to speak up and write about my experiences. I couldn’t stand the solitude and shame anymore. In general though, I often feel creatively stifled. I don’t want to sing, or write, or photograph – it all seems too luxurious right now while I am in hardcore debt repayment mode.
As a former arts educator in an area of extreme poverty, I used to wonder why none of the children were attending free art classes. FREE! Why weren’t people knocking down the doors to attend artistically enriching, life changing classes? Oh right, because when you are worried about paying your rent, have three jobs, don’t have a car, don’t speak English, have 10 people living in the house and are worried about where your next meal is coming from, maybe free art classes aren’t your first priority.
Granted my situation is not nearly as bad. I have shelter, food, and a job and I take advantage of many privileges I’m afforded. But I can’t shake this heavy weight of debt. It stifles my spirit and wants to keep me silent. It wants to kill the humanity I have left inside of me. Sometimes I am so focused on paying off debt, calculating my expenses or looking for that very-next-gig, I can’t see outside of that very narrow sphere. It’s never ending and because of that I’ve spent less time on learning languages, writing, creating images, singing, etc. I don’t want to hold myself back, but it’s hard to think about anything else, when I want to be debt free more than anything else.
If you think about it, it all makes sense. Think of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which pretty much states that you need to meet some basic needs like food, water and sleep before you can think about things like creativity and problem of solving.
I clearly don’t want to shut a part of myself off for 4 years and be creative later on. It just reminds me how many things have been on hold because of this debt. Dreams deferred and life goals on lay away, purchased for another day. Dreams seem like things that only happen in the future, but I am stuck with today.
I don’t mean to sound too dark— on the contrary, I’d like your help with brainstorming ideas on how to unclog my brain to let the ideas flow; to let go of my fear, to strengthen my focus. So far the only thing that has helped is meditation, which I need to be more disciplined about.
Let me know if you have any ideas. I also want to hear from you if you think being broke stifles or promotes creativity?
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33 comments
Throughout history, the most creative times are those with where people endured the most suffering. So from a cultural point of view, it seems to be like true: Picasso painted ‘Guernica’ in the midst of a World War, and J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter when she was broke and unemployed.
I do think it’s an instinct to seek for solutions in times where things are rough – I started hustling severely when I lost my part-time writing gig, but I do look forward to the moment things will fall into place. I like comfort and security just a bit more 🙂
I like comfort and security too, though they can lead to complacency. I do think that being really broke can spur a lot of great things. It does seem like a lot of the best art and music were made at points of struggle.
I vaguely remember that diagram of Maslow’s Hierachy of needs. I took pysch 101 in university as an elective. Too much in depth reading for me.
I agree with you wholeheartedly that being broke helps your creativity. Sometimes, you have no choice to be creative, which may not always be the easiest choice. I feel it can help you gain new skills as you learn to do more things for yourself. Once upon a time, people used to do everything for themselves.
When you have to be creative to survive, you end up learning a lot of things!
This is an interesting thought. I think there is a difference between being creative out of necessity (coke+ketchup=bbq sauce) versus using creativity as an artistic outlet.
Your mention of debt being a weight sounds terribly morose. Do you have a set plan in place to pay off your debt? That might help give you some hope if you have an end-date (even if it’s 4+ years, at least that’s something).
I agree, there is a difference when you have to be creative, or when you’d like to be artistically creative. I may sound morose, and I admit to being dark at times– I am not proud of those moments, but I don’t want to deny them either. My debt at times feels overwhelming and unmanageable. I am hoping to be debt free in roughly 3 years from now, though I may have to adjust for sanity’s sake.
I can definitively say that being broke helps my creativity. When I’m broke, I’m consistently thinking of ways to get out of the broke cycle. It’s the reason CNAFinance.com and JRodWrites.com were born…I needed something more! Thanks for the great read!
That is so awesome that it has led you to great things!
Yes it did for sure…I can’t wait for your guest post on CNA!!!
I don’t have any ideas/advice, but I know that for me, debt has definitely helped my creative process. It gives me something to focus on, with an end goal in mind. I lost my job before Thanksgiving and the stress of that threw me into ways I could work on my debt. Etsy, ebay, design, etc. I’ve kept myself so busy that I haven’t had time to think about it too much. So for me, being broke and in debt with no job has absolutely helped the creative juices flow, so to speak. Plus for now, my creativity is what’s helping pay for the basic needs.
I am sorry to hear about your job, but glad you are being creative going forward. It is nice to make money and know it is coming directly from your efforts.
I can see where not having as much money as you need to be 100% comfortable could stifle creativity. I would have a hard time using my brain at all if I were worried over my financial problems or working overtime to try to bring in more money as a solution to those problems.
It’s hard for me and something I am trying to balance.
I think you might benefit from getting outside and spending some time in nature to get your creativity flowing – that’s something you can do without spending a dime and I think it really helps (it always inspires me, at least!). Even when it’s cold and freezing.. There is a stark beauty to winter, especially out in the woods. Good luck getting those creative juices flowing again!
I’ve been thinking that I’m spending too much time in front of a screen and could use some more nature. On one hand I want to be a ‘successful blogger’ and freelance, but I also want to live a creative life outside of that, in addition to my full-time job. I’m striving for that ever elusive balance.
I’m not really creative so most of my outlets tend to be active (hiking, working out, etc.). I do like taking photos while I’m doing so, and though they’re not the greatest, it’s nice to be able to ‘share’ those moments from my camera phone with loved ones. There’s a lot of beauty out there!
I love your photos, they are so fun and nice. There is so much to explore and the world is a beautiful place.
I don’t have an artistic/creative bone in my body but my debt has stifle some of my life choices i.e. having to wait until 2015 to get married because we want a wedding without going into any debt for it. I also don’t travel. The only real good thing that has come out of my debt is it giving me a topic to blog about. 😛
I beg to differ my friend! You are a creative writer and blogger. You aren’t cookie cutter, and that takes some creativity.
I would think it would stifle creativity more than help. Debt tends to have a way of stressing people out and I would have a hard time trying to do anything creative if I had financial issues swirling around in my braing. Of course, that’s just me and others might be able to push those types of thoughts out of their head if they need to.
For me, debt is hindering my possibilities in a lot of way. It also makes me think about things differently, which can also make me more creative.
I haven’t been broke for a long time but I do know that I get creative when angry. I have no idea why. =/
Haha, nice. Maybe anger is your motivation for wanting to do things. Anger can be a powerful force. I think anger is more motivating than depression.
I understand your dilemma completely. In our long married life together, Hubby and I have experienced the many ups and downs–unemployment, serious illnesses, financial loss, worries about our children etc. It is really hard to live contentedly in the present when these things press on our minds and hearts. For us, it has been our faith that keeps us moving forward. We know deep down that there is a purpose for everything in our lives, and God has always led us to the other side.
I have always been a doer in life, so using my hands, whether just baking bread, knitting, or simple sewing helped to keep my mind off my worries. Getting lost in a good book or exercise helps too. Of course, nurturing my family also helped! (for many, that could be pets too) But clearly, sometimes it just required patience and stamina, and I knew that ultimately”this too shall pass.” 🙂
I’m so glad you guys have gotten through so much together. Life isn’t easy and definitely throws some curveballs. I also think I’m a doer, but sometimes my depression, or doubt can stifle that. When I’m like that, I usually start with cleaning 🙂 Clean house, clean thoughts. I would love a pet so much, but not until I’m debt free. I think I am going to use this time as motivation to express myself in new ways. That’s how this blog started, so I can start other things with it, too.
I think being broke has made me creative in the way that I’m always looking for new ways to save and earn more money to get our debt paid off quicker. As far as traditional creativity, though, the debt absolutely stifles me sometimes. It is a heavy burden, debt, and it consumes WAY too much of my thoughts. Great article, Melanie.
It’s made me more creative on the hustler side too! I’ll do a lot of things to try and make money, haha. But debt consumes a large portion of my brain, which I am trying to fix, and work through.
I’m a musician and an artist (yay for arts teachers!!!), and I do actually feel that I churn out my best work or create my best music when I am feeling desperate or depressed. Vulnerability creates great passion, dedication, and emotion.
But I have never been so poor that I cannot afford paint, sheet music, or reeds for my clarinet. Now that would be some hell I’m not sure I could get through.
I write, sing and act, and have also worked as a teacher, arts admin. I love it! It’s interesting how depression can fuel creativity in that way, it just is born out of those experiences. Being so broke that you can’t afford your creative life is rough!
For me it made me more depressed and stressed but absolutely more creative. You know I’d sacrifice a little creativity for less stress! “Necessity is the mother of invention.” So true in my case. I found new ways to make my money stretch and ways to make money. It also gave me a lot to write about.
I agree! You are forced to be creative and figure things out in new ways. I love your blog — so glad we met this way and our experiences motivated us to write in these spaces. It does give you a lot to write about 😉
When money was tight, I had to get creative in regard to making extra income and saving money where possible. But in regard to more traditional notions of creativity (artistic, personally fulfilling?) Hell no – when you’re in survival mode you have to prioritise and there just wasn’t as much time/energy for that stuff.
Agreed. Being broke forces you to be creative in new ways financially, but artistically it can be stifling. Who needs art when you need $ to survive?