The Winding Path

It is easy to want to go from A to Z, from idea to conception, from unknown to superstar. But becoming an ‘overnight success,’ as we know, takes time—sometimes years, and in some cases decades, of work. Showing up day after day, and when you are constantly asking yourself, “What’s the point?” to do what the work requires. And I have learned that bringing any project to life takes you down a winding path. It is never straight or easy, never exactly what you expect.

Detours

While I consider writing to be my first love, music is what started me on my creative journey. With a natural ear for music, I started poking at the keyword when I was three and, at six, was taking lessons. And while I focus primarily on writing, music remains an integral part of my creative life. But it was through writing that, at times, I took detours to explore other creative outlets.

While living in Ottawa, I returned to abstract painting, something I hadn’t done since high school. I had time to hone my skills, and eventually exhibit and sell my works. I continued with writing and painting during the years I spent in Québec, experimenting with musical composition. I had been known for creative arrangements of classic gospel hymns, but this time I focused more on classical-styled compositions. These ‘detours’ took me away from writing while at the same time anchoring me to it. It showed that creativity is, at times, a winding path that leads you to where you need to be and beyond.

The Winding Path

What I learned from moving between various styles of creative expression was that it let me create better quality work. This has been especially true of my writing, because the longer I am away from a piece—to let it rest—I am more ‘critical’ of it, seeing not just its flaws but also how to improve it. It means moving through a creative project at a slower pace and curbing the urge to rush, rush, rush.

It is that winding path that embraces what Cal Newport calls ‘slow productivity,’ and moves us away from “the performative reward of unwavering urgency.”¹ As I attempt to slow down and do more deep work, I realize that there is always more that I can do. But we need to give ourselves grace to not hurry. We should, as Newport writes, give our “efforts the breathing room and respect required to make them part of a life well lived, not an obstacle to it.”²

Let me tell you today that you are loved, you are worthy, and you matter. And you don’t need anyone’s permission to be—wholly and unapologetically—who you are.

1. Newport, C. (2024). Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment without Burnout, Portfolio, New York, p. 117. [↩]
2. Newport, C., p. 117. [↩]