We have a loose and informal community of creatives. I try to be a part of the conversation and facilitate the discussion and the goal is the discussion guides us to a place of inspiration, hope, encouragement, and belonging. Gauging the effectiveness and reach of the community happens through feeling and anecdotal evidence. I just want to know it’s going somewhere positive.

Here are the challenges:

1. It’s mostly virtual and hardly face to face.
2. Many people with many different needs, wants, hopes.
3. It’s too easy to avoid being known in a digital community (a phrase I heard from the guy behind this).

This is how we can address these challenges:

1. Meet with people face to face who we connect with online.
2. Keep my interests and goals clear and focused so others with the same interests can connect.
3. Create space where people can tell their stories.

I want to begin addressing #3. The purpose is layered. While creating community by forcing people to make themselves known, we’re also struggling with a creative challenge. I want this to be a labor of love. In telling your story you’re creating something much larger than what you can see. You’re adding to “the stock of available reality.”

I will formally begin this venture after August, but I hope you’re subconscious begins thinking about your story.

On Wednesday Chris Hunter will be featured in the Bereshit Bara Creativity Series. Chris lives in Olympia Washington. He teaches science to people in the 8th grade. He eats one chocolate croissant per week and prefers cats over dogs. Although he didn’t write about it, he believes challenge and discomfort are catalysts for creativity, and that often these are delivered by fateful forces. So to this, he often succumbs.

I don’t know Chris, but one friend described him as the most creative person he knows. I hope to see you on Wednesday. If you check out the Podcast on iTunes you can hear the episode before Wednesday.

I usually add a few things in the Podcast that aren’t in the post. I’ll be featuring some posts from our creative community in the future podcasts as well.

Let me know in the comments what creative project you’re working on.