In this conversation, Carolyn Fallert and Anne van Damme discuss breaking free from corporate glasses and the destination mindset to embrace the 3D sphere of creativity in everyday life. Creativity is not a simple equation. It’s a lot more in dept than 1 +1=2. From viewing logo design as "cleaning your brushes" to finding joy in side projects, we explore how stepping away from linear productivity allows us to build our"experimentation muscle, trust the process, and reclaim childlike playfulness.

• Cleaning Your Brushes: Administrative tasks aren't just logistical chores to cross off a list; they are an invitation to practice creativity and infuse meaning into every step.

• Overcoming the Destination Mindset: Fixating solely on getting published or finished means walking past the "gardens" on your left and right

• Building the Experimentation Muscle: Unrelated side projects—like building a physical garden wall out of cement or sewing clothes—train you to try new things without fear and help you become a whole person.

• Creativity as a Pot of Soup: Moving away from the rigid corporate formula (Energy In = Output Out), art is like making soup from scratch—an intuitive, multi-sensory process of intermixing ingredients from a seemingly empty pantry.

• Playfulness through Hermit Crab Essays: Borrowing existing shells—like writing a fine-dining review from a dog's perspective or a restraining order against a bikini wax—taps back into the uninhibited joy of a five-year-old.

• Stopping to Smell the Flowers: Pausing to appreciate small details, like bees and blooms in a newly planted garden, nourishes the creator and feeds back into the main artistic work.

Find Carolyn:
Substack: https://yourpowers.substack.com/

Instagram: @in.our.powers- https://www.instagram.com/in.our.powers/

Podcast: In Our Powers (launching August17, 2026)

YouTube: @inourpowers - https://www.youtube.com/@inourpowers

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Find out more about our host Anne van Damme (⁠@annevandammesongwriter⁠)
Listen to her music on ⁠Spotify⁠or ⁠anywhere else⁠
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Learn everything about Amie McNee (⁠@inspiredtowrite⁠)
And ⁠The Inspired Collective⁠