S2 E9: Creativity is Scary. Focus On Becoming More Creatively Brave with Natalie Collie

Howdy Listeners

As always I’m very excited about my podcast guest. Today’s episode features my friend, Natalie Collie, who is a lecturer at the University of Queensland in The School of Communication & Arts. Yes, she’s a Dr.🤓

Nat’s remit is to teach writing to students from varying disciplines whose future jobs will require them knowing how to write. (maybe she could help me edit that very awkward sentence?) Her approach is informed by a personal and academic interest in creativity and storytelling and she’s helped hundreds of students develop a regular writing practice.

Let’s just say she knows her s**t and I think you’ll really enjoy our conversation.

📝Key Takeaways

🧩 Creativity is Recombination, Not InventionNat sees creativity as collaging, quilting, and cobbling ideas together. It’s less about being completely original and more about transforming what already exists into something new.

🎈 Playful, Low Stakes Creativity Unlocks ConfidenceAfter her own experience with writer’s block, Nat teaches with empathy. Divergent thinking comes first and keeps us in flow. The critical voice is still important but she has to wait for her turn to show up.

🌏 Storytelling Builds Connection and CommunityEmbodied creative practices help us orient ourselves to place. Nat’s research shows storytelling can strengthen regional communities and keep them vibrant.

🎓 Teaching Creativity in a Changing World is ComplexPost-Covid learning shifts, AI, student stressors, and neurodiversity have all reshaped education. Nat finds creative ways to teach and assess writing while keeping it fair and authentic.

🧒 Creativity Reconnects Us to Our Inner ChildSharing projects with her kids and embracing her neuro-spicy brain has helped Nat rediscover playful curiosity and move beyond creative blocks.

🌱 Baby Steps are a Radical Creative ActLow pressure experimentation, forgiving beginner mistakes, making things just for fun, and giving yourself heaps of time are powerful ways to nurture a creative practice.

✨ We’re Wired for CreativityLife fulfilment comes from following what excites us and one clue is remembering what made us lose track of time as kids.

🔗Episode Links

Nat’s official bio: https://communication-arts.uq.edu.au/profile/344/natalie-collie

Research on flow state in dancers: https://pearl.plymouth.ac.uk/psy-research/358/

Research on embodiment & time: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1207/S15326934CRJ1402_9

The Artist’s Way: https://juliacameronlive.com/book/the-artists-way-a-spiritual-path-to-higher-creativity/

Father of Flow, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s Ted Talk: "What makes a life worth living?” https://www.ted.com/talks/mihaly_csikszentmihalyi_flow_the_secret_to_happiness

The Vibrancy Society: https://thevibrancysociety.com

I hope you find the time for some low stakes creativity this week and don’t forget to share, rate, follow, or leave a comment.

xBec🤎