I think the bulk of humankind spends their time experiencing things rather than creating. What do I mean? Here’s an example. Would it be easier to make your own wine or to go to a wine bar? Go to a wine bar, duh. What’s the point of making your own wine if you venture to a well designed, atmospheric, sexy space where someone has already done it for you? Another example: eating out vs. cooking. In Seattle there’s lots of chic, trendy, paleo-gluten-free-all-natural-or some-other-diet-buzzword restaurants worth trying….who wants to purchase the ingredients, cook up a dish, eat it and finally clean it up? Most opt for the former because it’s effortless and quick.

A third example: reading vs. writing. It’s much easier for me to read Atlas Shrugged than to write this blog post. My cozy, lazy self wants to read the book but my ambitious self wants to crank out a post. What I’m getting is that we forget the value of creating. It’s more pragamtic to not do it. But we miss out on a huge opportunity for self-expression and a way to leave our mark on the world. So what’s holding you back?

This has been on my mind for a while with watching films vs. creating films (i.e. acting in them). Films have an ability to take us to a new universe that is so different from our normal, somewhat uneventful life. Or it helps us escape the struggle or pain we have in our own life. But why not instead of relying on films as an escape, live a life that is interesting? Create an amazing existing. Maybe one day, someone would want to make a film about your experience because it was so captivating. I rest my case.

JK