Creativity comes in all shapes and sizes
This blog exists because someone (my sister… we’re just gonna call her for your enjoyment) told me that she’s not creative.
Not in a self deprecating, fishing for compliments kinda way… in a very confident “that’s just not me” way.
This got me thinking about how many business owners quietly opt out of creativity (or other things) before they even start, not because they lack it, but because they do not see themselves that way.
Somewhere along the way, creativity became synonymous with art, branding, endless content ideas, and people who can pull a perfectly worded caption out of thin air.
If that’s not you, it’s easy to assume creativity belongs to other people.
Meanwhile, you’re still thinking, solving, noticing, improving, and adapting every single day.
NEWS FLASH… that’s creativity.
Creativity is not one thing
There are so many different types of creativity
Some people are visual thinkers… they see things like colours, layouts, font styles, you name it. They can visualize how a space could look and feel nicer, how to fix a graphic so that it’s on brand and pops or even a marketing plan from scratch.
Some people are idea people… they throw out ten half baked thoughts and maybe one of them turns into gold. Or in my sister's case most of them turn into blogs.
Some people are systems thinkers… they see how things connect and where things are breaking. They see where the gaps are and what needs to be changed so it flows flawlessly.
Some people are editors… They don’t create from scratch but they can take something rough and make it make sense. They can enhance a draft and turn it into a masterpiece.
Some people are decision makers… they look at five options and instantly know which one is right or wrong, and why.
ALL of those are examples of creativity and are under-appreciated (in my opinion).
We usually applaud the ones that look good on social media… the perfectly branded feeds, aesthetic colour palettes, beautifully designed graphics, clever captions that sound effortless, polished videos, and people who seem to pull ideas out of thin air while sipping an iced coffee on camera.
The problem with the “I’m not creative” label
When you decide you’re not creative, you stop giving yourself permission to experiment. You stop trusting your instincts, you often just don’t try. This is when you decide that creativity belongs to other people, so you opt out before you begin.
Let me give you a real example.
For years, my sister REFUSED to write content or do anything remotely creative. She wouldn’t write social media content or blogs, touch a Canva graphic.
Nothing.
She was very firm in her belief that she’s not creative and wants nothing to do with it.
So I made a task for her called “pick the next blog.”
That was it.
There was no pressure to write, I didn't ask for any drafts. Just choose the blog idea that’s next, so I can write it/edit it.
The second she realized there was nothing to pick from, she immediately started listing ideas.
Solid, useful, hilarious ideas!
Topics that actually made sense for business and for the TVA PTBO brand.
Not because she was trying to be creative, but because she saw a gap and instinctively wanted to fill it.
Because the task didn’t actually involve sitting down to write or coming up with clever ideas, she didn’t think of it as “creative” and was just trying to be helpful.
(The 4 of the last 5 blogs you’ve read… her ideas… so is this one)
When you label yourself as not creative, you overlook the ways creativity already shows up, resist things that you’d probably be good at and rely on other people’s methods even when they don’t fit you.
Creativity shows up in how you run your business
If you think creativity only matters for marketing or branding, you are missing a huge piece of the puzzle.
Creativity shows up in:
How you design your services
How you communicate with clients
How you solve problems when things go sideways
How you build systems that actually fit your brain
How you decide what NOT to do
If you have ever:
Simplified something that everyone else overcomplicated
Found a workaround instead of forcing a broken process
Asked a question that made everyone pause and rethink things
Connected two ideas that didn’t seem related
BOOM! You’re creative..
Stop forcing the type of creativity that doesn’t fit you
One of the biggest mistakes I see business owners make is trying to “be more creative” in ways that actively drain them. The ways that come with disdain and dread.
You don’t need to:
Post content every day if writing exhausts you
Design pretty things if visuals are not your thing
Brainstorm endlessly if you are better at refining
Build from scratch if you excel at improving
You need to figure out how YOUR creativity actually works… then build your business to support that.
Fostering creativity without burning yourself out
If you want more creativity in your business, don’t start by doing more.
Doing more is never the answer.
Start by paying attention.
Notice:
When ideas come easily
What types of problems you enjoy solving
What drains you versus energizes you
How you naturally think through things
Then protect that.
That might look like:
Blocking time for thinking instead of producing
Saying ideas out loud instead of writing them
Using templates so your brain doesn’t have to make new decisions
Letting someone else handle the parts that kill your momentum
Creativity thrives when your nervous system is not fried. And YUPP, you guessed it, systems help with that. Nothing kills creativity faster than chaos and constant decision making.
TL;DR
You don’t need to suddenly become a “creative person.”
You also don’t need to force yourself to enjoy things you clearly hate.
It’s ok to not like writing, design, brainstorming on demand, Canva, content just for the sake of content… It’s completely fine to say, “I don’t enjoy this” or “I’m not great at this.”
What’s not helpful is slapping a label on yourself that shuts everything down.
“I’m not creative.”
“I’m bad at ideas.”
“I’m just not that type of person.”
Those labels are usually way bigger than the truth.
The reality is, you’re already creating every single day, you’re just doing it in ways that feel natural to you.
Solving problems
Making decisions
Noticing gaps
Improving what already exists
Making things easier
That all counts, even if it doesn’t come with a pretty aesthetic or a social media caption.
The goal isn’t to look pretty on Instagram, the goal is to build a business that actually works for you.
That means understanding how your brain works, what drains you, what energizes you, and where your version of creativity already shows up, instead of forcing yourself into someone else’s lane.
