We were lucky to catch up with Melissa Baker Nguyen recently and have shared our conversation below.
Melissa, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
I guess the first thing I had to do with creativity was define it- I’ve been told my entire life I am creative, but to me that didn’t really mean very much, because I couldn’t put my finger on what it meant, Often it appeared people used that word to define me as different from other people, but I didn’t always feel different, I just felt like me, and I assumed everyone else just felt like me.
Now, when I get asked about creativity, I define what it means to me to be creative, or a creative person. First of all I’m firm believer that we are all created creative in our own ways- it looks different for everyone, but I think the core value is the same. We were made to create. To me, creativity means: Consistency (the more you do, the more you’ll be able to do), Collaboration (don’t compare, or compete instead, collaborate), and Courage (it takes serious COURAGE to show up, to share- to give, and to show your work).
In order for me to keep creativity alive in my life, I just do it, I work at it, I give myself lots of time to day dream, and to problem solve- I try to minimize doom scrolling (which is easier said than done), looking at what others are doing sometimes makes me feel like I am not doing enough- so I cut that out. I work on my stuff, I try to better my technique, and share my abilities with others.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I’m an author and illustrator, I have written and illustrated 3 of my own stories, as well as 7 other books for other authors, I am currently working on book number 8 and I am so excited to see it come to life. I love working with authors and seeing their dreams come true of holding their published book. It never gets old.
I have recently started with more surface pattern design, and it has been amazing. I am working with a company from Eastern Canada called SuttonsButtons.com they sell bamboo pjs, that are just the most comfortable- I know this because she has just launched adult pj bottoms and I am the proud owner of a few pairs 🙂
I recently had the opportunity to paint a mural at my gym, here in town. It’s always so nice when local businesses support the arts. I was given free rein of a beautiful chunk or wall real estate to create a mural of my choosing. It turned out amazing, and I cannot wait to create more murals.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
I think honestly is super important, it’s ok to be a beginner at something, it’s ok to work from home in your pjs, it’s ok to just be you in your studio. When I first started out in graphic design I was constantly trying to “prove” that I was more than I was. Using “we” on the website, making me sound bigger than I was. When in reality, it was me in my studio, and that is ok. I wasn’t looking for million dollar branding jobs, I was looking to help make the world a prettier place one small business logo at a time. I wanted to be of service to people who needed it. Once I figured out it was ok to be small potatoes, people were fine with that it opened up a whole new world of possibilities. I still think honestly is super important- I will often say, “Hey I’ve never done it before but I’d like to try”- and generally it takes longer the first time, but the next time it doesn’t 🙂
I think working at bettering yourself in your craft is super important, there are always things to learn, and I believe we need to keep on the learning track. Keep trying new things, take a class, take on a challenge, collaborate with someone in your field that specialized in something you’ve never done, learn from others, learn from experiences, and say YES more often to new things.
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?
When I feel anxious or overwhelmed I first make myself name it. Often anxiety comes in like a big wet blanket and just takes its place and never has to answer for it. A few years ago, I started to make anxiety explain itself. What is causing this feeling? are you feeling anxious because it’s something you’ve never done? are you nervous? are you excited? are you tired? This works when anxiety and overwhelmed are a mild state that we live in- or that comes and goes depending on circumstances- I think being overwhelmed when looking at the big picture is natural. Big pictures often seem impossible to comprehend how we are going to do it. I live by two mottos ” little by little a little makes a lot” and “how do you eat an elephant?- one bite at a time” *please note I would never eat an elephant 😉 So I think stepping back and looking just at the first step in an overwhelmingly large project, or situation really helps. Then once that gets accomplished I can look at the next step. and little by little, I can manage to power through. Now this all sounds fine and dandy while writing it, but I have been so overwhelmed that it takes me days to even be able to look at the first step, let alone take it. I believe that if we can create a “panic pack”, or a strategy for times of overwhelm that we can implement during the panic then we set ourselves up for better success. Example, when I feel overwhelmed: a. I take 9 deep breaths (because it takes about 90 seconds for the body to figure out that we are ok and for me to decide if I am going to freak out, or make a plan) , I change locations, get up, go downstairs, head outside for a 5 minute walk around the block. b. arrive home, grab a glass of water, make a cup of tea, play with the dog, then I head back up to the studio- and generally my entire mind has shifted into a clearer state which allows me to find that first step, and start there.
Those are just somethings that I try to do, I have a list that I can look at if I am feeling like I don’t know what to do. But that list was created on a great day when I was feeling amazing, and because I’m the age I am- I know nothing lasts forever, so I took some time and made a plan, put a strategy in place for days when I’m not feeling my 100%.
Contact Info:
- Website:Â lostbumblebee.com
- Instagram:Â Melissa.BakerNguyen
Image Credits
Images were taking my Ashley Ketch of : https://www.ashleymarie.ca my sheep won’t sleep book being read by little boy in blue pjs- was taken by www.suttonsbuttons.com
