creating from lack vs creating from love

the surprisingly subtle shift that changes everything

Are you creating from lack, or are you creating from love?

Creating from lack is when we create something—it could be content, art, expression, writing, anything—in an effort to get other people to like us.

Since we carry an implicit belief that we are not enough as we are, we create & share in hopes that other people will validate us and convince us that we are enough.

In other words, we attempt to outsource our self-worth to other people—an impossible task.

Creation, meant to be energizing and playful, becomes heavy & stressful. Will they like it? Will they approve of it? Will it be enough? Will I be enough?

Rather than sharing what’s in our heart, we share what we think other people will like. Our work, then, reflects the person we think we need to be, rather than the person that we are.

Perfectionism kicks in as we tediously craft the perfect mask to present to the world—hiding our hearts in the process.

When we share our work and we don’t get the validation we hoped for, it feels like a personal attack. “Maybe I was right, I’m not good enough after all.”

Other times, when we do get the validation we hoped for, we finally feel like we’re enough… for about a day. But it’s never enough. It’s impossible to fill an inner void with any amount of external validation, so there is no rest.

We might even double down and intensify our efforts to craft the perfect mask to get even more people to like us; we think, maybe that will fill the inner void.

But it never ends.

Pinning our self-worth to an uncontrollable outcome—namely, how other people will respond to our work—we strap ourselves in to a painful emotional rollercoaster of highs & lows.

We are lost.

But there’s a much better way.

It’s to create from love.

To make this flip, we must consider the possibility that we are enough as we are—and that no amount of effort, achievement, success, nor external validation will change that.

Whether you’re actively working on cultivating this kind of self love, or whether you’ve never even considered this possibility, I encourage you to go with me on faith for a moment.

If we are already enough as we are, then why create? Why do anything?

I’ll tell you why:

Our creativity can help someone.

Our art can inspire someone.

Our expression can enlighten someone.

Our light can uplift someone.

This is creating from love.

Creating from love is when we realize (or at least pretend to believe) that we are enough as we are, and thus, we use our God-given gift of creativity to try to help others.

Here’s a powerful and freeing realization: while we might not be able to help everybody, and certainly not everybody will understand our work (and it might even trigger some), we can, with certainty, help our past self. Since we know exactly what our past self needs to hear—we can tell them! And in this abundant Universe, if there is one, then there are many.

We no longer need anybody and everybody to like nor understand our work; in fact, approval from others becomes secondary, if not irrelevant. We can trust in the intention in our heart.

Perfectionism crumbles. Hiding and mask-wearing crumble. They no longer make sense. Since we don’t have to fake anything anymore, creativity regains its energy of lightness & joy. And the presence of lightness & joy, I’ve noticed, tends to be a hint that we are closer to God.

We connect to the infinite energy source within each of us: our own authenticity. We could call it God or The Universe. And unlike when we’re trying to be someone else, this energy source never fades.

The kicker is that when we create from love, not only do we feel more energized & aligned, and not only do we help others, but we also end up getting the results we were hoping for when we were creating from lack anyways.

Because by sharing our authentic love with the world, and needing nothing in return—when just knowing that we might brighten someone’s day is enough—we begin to fill the inner void from the inside out. We begin to heal. We begin to feel that we are enough, we are more than enough. We are important. We have so much to offer.

And although we asked for nothing in return, the Universe starts to return our gifts.

For example: rather than attracting an audience with our mask, we start to attract an audience with our soul.

Tapped into the infinite power of our own authenticity, we might then go on to create an aligned business, an aligned life, and all together, we might go on to create an aligned world.

When we shift from creating from lack to creating from love, we can have it all.

I quickly want to share another example, because I’m not sure what you think of when you hear me talk about “creating.” When I talk about creating, what I really mean is living.

I used to get really anxious before going to birthday parties. I thought, “What if I’m dressed weird? What if I’m awkward? What if they don’t like my gift?”

Notice how it was all about me me me me me.

When lost in ego, it’s not uncommon to completely forget that other people even exist.

I was living from lack.

But what about my friend whose birthday it is? Can I help them feel loved?

With this subtle flip of mind, I shift from living from lack to living from love, and all the self-centered insecurity falls away.

Duh, it doesn’t f*cking matter what I’m wearing! I become free to be myself, and in that relaxed state, the energy I previously wasted in thinking all about myself, is channeled into a loving purpose. It’s a win-win.

It’s like how I used to feel self-conscious just walking down the sidewalk. Do I look weird? What do people think of me? etc.

Again, it was all about me me me me me.

But what about all the sweet people I’m passing by? Can I make their day a little brighter?

Suddenly, smiling at a stranger on the sidewalk becomes a creative act, an energizing act, a loving act.

When we shift from lack to love,

our anxiety falls away,

our lives become light & joyous,

and we become free to be ourselves.

We benefit, others benefit,

and therefore, the world benefits,

as every movement we make becomes a work of art.

Love,
George Poulos ♡

P.S. Here’s something fun you can try. The next time you really resonate with a piece of art—a song, a writing, a post, a smile from a stranger, whatever it is—ask yourself whether they might have been creating from love. You just might start to realize that there are Angels walking this Earth.

Inspiring Me This Week

Links in this section are affiliate links, meaning I will earn a small commission if you use them.

• My dad just self-published his second book! I read it the other day at Reading Rhythms in NYC (which was hosted by my friend Nikki, a fellow Substack writer!). People got really excited and intrigued when I told them I was reading my dad’s book—it made for great conversation. It was a fantastic read, touching on subjects like truth, self-love, and creativity in poetic form. You can buy his book here, and leave him some kind words on Instagram.

See you next time.