Jan 24, 2012 / General Advice & Pro Tips

Creative Manifestos

I came across this beautiful list of inspirational quotes from Brain Pickings, Five Manifestos for the Creative Life:

Empower yourself and realise the importance of contributing to the world by living your talent. Work on what you love. You are responsible for the talent that has been entrusted to you.

When I find a good quote, I like to print it out or illustrate it to tape it above my computer. On days when I feel tired or uninspired, I take a breath, look at one of my quotes, and try to embody the essence of what it is that I liked about the quote in the first place.

For the same reason, I’ll also print out emails from friends, teachers, and family to help keep me motivated. Kind words are a reminder that what we’re doing is useful, whether it’s related to your blog, your job, or your family. With writing in particular, a good quote can help get you writing when (you think) you’d rather be watching TV. It can also jump start your own story. How many times have you looked at a quote and thought, “Okay, now’s my time to write something memorable”?

Where do you find inspirational words? Better yet, what’s your favorite quote that you’ve written yourself?

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  2. Empower yourself – very important words. we will build a better world if we do that, and teach our children to empower themselves! show others that it is possible.

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  4. Erica V is a gem. May the force be with her, and I wish her victory over the dark side. “On days when I feel tired or uninspired, I take a breath, look at one of my quotes, and try to embody the essence of what it is that I liked about the quote in the first place.”

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  10. I lovelovelove favorite quotes and have them in all sorts of places, but here’s one that I keep so that I smile and remember.
    “Artists are like mice. They need old houses where no one can bother them and they can just go about their business and do what they have to do.” Bearden.
    When my husband is at work and my son at work and the old house mine, and I need to wander around and think or wander outside and pull a handful of weeds, I remember those words.

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  11. Nice quote!

    I have my own ‘motivational line’ to tell myself when I’m about to give up for the day: “Stay curious!”
    Because curiosity, to me, is the fuel of life.

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  18. If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing. Benjamin Franklin

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  19. “If your pictures aren’t good enough, you weren’t close enough,” Robert Capa allegedly said. And this is not just about space — and therefore it might not only apply to photography, now that I think of it. Remembering this line motivates me to try and get “closer”.

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  20. Inspiration comes from everywhere for me. I just never know when something is going to strike me as inspirational. Magazines, books, my kids, my spouse, a billboard, a cereal box, a sermon, a song, stupid Michigan drivers… life certainly does not lack for inspiration. I have a lot of inspirational quotes, but I’m not sure I’ve written any of them. I like “you’re either green and growing or ripe and rotting,” but I’m pretty sure I hear that at a seminar once. I also like “be comfortable with being uncomfortable,” and maybe that one is mine. Love to collect inspirational quotes too.

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  21. “What the heck, practicing an art isn’t a way to earn money. it’s a way to make one’s soul grow. Bon voyage.”
    – Kurt Vonnegut –

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  24. This is so true…and I have always tried to instill this in my children and their children…”Do what you love and you will be happy—doing what is forced upon you makes your life bitter”…….so if you love to sew …do sewing>>> you love math….be an accountant>>> if you love creating young minds…be a teacher…….

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  25. Whatever the human mind can conceive and believe it can achieve.
    A man who cuts his own wood will be warm twice. These are old quotes but I don’t remember who made them. I’ve always liked/ if you can’t say something nice about someone, talk about something else.

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  26. I don’t have a quote, my inspiration comes from within and if this does not work, I read up on other bloggers posting, never fails. These talented people have always got something to inspire myself and each other with. We can all come up with quotes, but what really does work? http://wp.me/p1j16x-3p

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  27. “Wipe the smile off your face! Experiments have shown that the simple act of frowning makes you more skeptical and analytic in your thinking.” (“Newsweek”, January 2012)

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