Creating in a Judgmental World: The Courage to Keep Expressing

We live in a world that has a lot to say about what’s “good enough.”

From an early age, we’re taught that creativity should look a certain way — neat, polished, measurable. We learn to color inside the lines, meet expectations, and produce results that can be graded or praised. Somewhere along the way, many of us forget the joy of making something simply because it’s ours.

This week on The Creative Connection Podcast, I sat down with Jacob Nordby, writer, creative coach, and founder of Creativity UnBootcamp, to talk about what it means to stay creative in a judgmental world. Jacob’s wisdom runs deep — he reminds us that creativity isn’t just about producing art; it’s about becoming whole.

And in a culture where perfection and productivity often take center stage, that might be the most courageous act of all.

🌿 The Cost of a Critical World

Judgment — both external and internal — can silence even the most vibrant creative voices.
We find ourselves comparing. We find ourselves critiquing. We doubt and question our value.

“Who am I to write, sing, dance, lead, paint, or speak?”

Every creative soul I’ve ever worked with has asked some version of that question.

And yet, when we take a moment to sit in the silence and try to avoid judgment, we lose something vital — not just our creative spark, but a piece of our own aliveness. A piece of our true essential self.

Jacob and I talked about how this pressure to “get it right” often leads to a deeper disconnection — from our intuition, from play, from joy.

Healing can and does begin the moment we start to create or ask ourselves what we want to do, or feel. Because you see this is an act of creativity — no matter how imperfect — is a declaration of freedom and a step toward creating the life you passionately want to live.

💜 Creativity as Resistance and Healing

Creating in a judgmental world isn’t necessarily a rebellion for rebellion’s sake; it’s an act of remembrance. It allows us to recall what we once dreamed of for ourself.

It’s how we return to who we really are before fear and expectation took over.

Jacob shared that healing through creativity isn’t about fixing yourself — it’s about allowing yourself to be seen. To write the messy truth. To paint without needing to frame it. To sing off-key and love the sound.

In that kind of honest expression, judgment loses its power.

I see this all the time with the artists, leaders, and storytellers I work with. Once they stop performing for approval and start creating for connection, their voice becomes clearer, stronger, and more alive. Creativity stops being something they do — it becomes who they are.

🌸 The Courage to Create Anyway

The question isn’t whether judgment will come — it’s what we’ll do when it does.

Will we shrink back, or will we keep creating anyway?

As I have shared before, it is a choice. What will you choose?

The truth is, the creative path asks us to hold both — the vulnerability of being seen and the freedom of expression.

When we meet that tension with curiosity instead of fear, we find something powerful: resilience, compassion, and the courage to keep showing up.

“When we stop asking for permission to create,” Jacob said, “we stop needing the world to validate who we are.”

When we do, we realize that this is when real healing begins and we can finally come home to ourself.

🌿 An Invitation to Reconnect

If this conversation stirred something in you — that quiet longing to express yourself more freely — I invite you to begin again.

• Start small.
• Write one line that feels true.
• Sing in the car.
• Dance in your kitchen.
• Say yes to that workshop, class, or creative circle you’ve been thinking about.

Because your creativity isn’t frivolous. It’s medicine.

Are you ready to reconnect with your voice, your purpose, and your sense of joy?

I’d love to have you join me for the Rooted In You Winter Circle, beginning January 3rd.

💜 Early-bird registration is open through November 15th — with a special rate of $297 and two bonus 1:1 coaching calls when you prior to January 3rd. Follow this link for more information

The Rooted In You Circle is a space to pause, breathe, and realign with what matters most — to create from wholeness, not hustle.

✨ Looking Ahead

Next week, we’ll keep the conversation going on the Creative Connection with Gem Wiltshire, Managing Director of Hollywood Access Inc.  We’ll explore what it means to bring your creative voice into the world with talent and courage — how to move forward in an industry (and a world) that often forgets the human heart behind the performance.

Listen to the Creative Connection on YouTube  follow this link.

Because creativity isn’t just about being seen.

It’s about seeing yourself clearly — and daring to share that truth with others