can you love yourself when you’re not winning or achieving?
something to consider.
"There is always something left to love. And if you ain't learned that, you ain't learned nothing." – Lorraine Hansberry
When I first started #blkcreatives in 2010 (when it was called My Creative Connection) and then again in 2012 (because you know how it can go), I didn’t do anything for achievement - I did it out of love.
As a recent college grad, I worked in a warehouse as a handler and then at a behavioral youth center working with at-risk youth - two things that I did NOT go to school for. My degree was in News-Editorial Journalism/Communications and I wanted to be the Editor-In-Chief of VIBE Magazine like Danyel Smith and Mimi Valdés.
Throwing boxes and ducking tantrums weren’t part of my plan. It was always a dream of mine to be a writer, to tell stories, the nine-year-old kid in me who absorbed TV shows late at night or the fourteen-year-old kid who read Elliott Wilson’s Editor’s Letter on my lunch break at a grocery store.
Around me though, a lot of my peers were facing the same struggles and then there were others I’d come across online who were building their own paths in different ways - blogs, shows, platforms, - way before it became popular to do so. I was inspired to tell these stories of other young Black folks making their own rules and using their creative gifts.
For me that’s what this platform was made for.
And then social media hit. We grew our following thanks to our Twitter chats, and then my viral manifesto and the Internet - along with our devices - evolved into every sector of our lives and the energy began to shift.
Suddenly the numbers, the looks, the aesthetics, the paperwork and admin duties that come with deals, the planning, the strategies, and the hustle consumed everything so much to the point where the important things - sharing our stories, gathering communities, being a vehicle for resources, along with my health and wellness - were getting pushed out of the way.
I asked the question ‘can you love yourself when you’re not winning or achieving?’ because in this season, I’ve had to learn that sometimes life won’t revolve around winning or achieving. For me, this time of rebuilding means that I’m cleaning up messes I’ve made out of fear or not knowing who I am. When you answer the above question I want you to think about what this time in your life means to you and the moments in the past where your focus wasn’t on winning.
let me know how it works out for you,
Melissa, founder of #blkcreatives
Tag me on Twitter or IG with your feedback.
The Process with EmmoLei Sankofa
EmmoLei Sankofa is connecting dots through sound in time as a composer, producer, musician, and artist. Read her interview with our brand manager, Rita Hawk.
Links that Help (stays the same)
how to respond to hiring calls for creative work on LinkedIn, Twitter, etc
Are you a writer who’s joining #1000WordsofSummer this year? FAQs.
A reminder that our 2024 reading challenge is for ALL levels, join us!
This Network Finally Has Good Shows — But Not Enough People Know About Them
Our full BookShop List always has a reading recommendation for you
HOME & HOME: Mick Jenkins & TOBi (Tour Documentary) by Rap Portraits
a brand new Write for Relief playlist
Arthur Jafa: BLACK POWER TOOL AND DIE TRYNIG via 52Walker
EmmoLei Sankofa on her creative process as a composer, comedy as a musical influence, the place for revisions, and more
How to break out of a shame cycle
Until Next Week, Take Care! (stays the same)
Fuel your creativity via stories and practical wisdom on our blog
we’re revamping our job board!
Start your next read via our creative library
WHEW.