Hello fabulous creatives,
This week I’m on a mission to encourage you to dare to show up with your creative work and be your most authentic self. We live in world that is becoming more and more glossy and perfect by the day. Although I enjoy a spot of glamour and I appreciate beauty, I believe that it has tipped us all into an obsession with being perfect. Perfection leads to self judgement and this stops us from taking creative risks, or daring to show up authentically. I think we need to take a stand for our uniqueness, rather than compare ourselves with the air brushed industry standard.
In the blog, I mention the bold, brave new venture by David Baddiel who created a documentary about his dad who suffers with dementia. It is poignant and funny. Most importantly, I feel that David is a role model for bravery and authenticity. He dares to show up and show us his vulnerability. It moves us, while entertaining us at the same time.
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/the-trouble-with-dad
I would love to hear your feedback and your point of you on this topic. This is my passionate stand – what’s your perspective? Do let me know in the comments below.
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2 Responses
Great post Nicky. As you know I watched the documentary as well and I think where you are looking is one of the toughest challenges for people prepared to share their lives, themselves to the public. As Baddiel said he’s been sharing intimate parts of his life all his career and doesn’t seem to be anxious about privacy in the sense of exposing very private aspects of both his life and his family. I did wonder though about how much real permission there was from his father to be shown in such a revealing way and whether that’s ok? Same with the other sufferers who were included – although also very touching. But is it ok if they can’t give any meaningful consent? What do you think? I’m on the fence by the way because I think the more we hide this stuff away the more negative our judgement of mental illness becomes.
Hi Rona, really interesting point. To be honest, I don’t know the back story and assumed that David would have asked for permission from his father to be involved in telling the story. In general, I do think it’s a difficult issue for creatives who have a yearning to explore personal issues when there are other people involved. I do think consent is important and I also think it’s sharing these life experiences that creates greater awareness and empathy in our culture, so overall I think it’s vital for us all to be more honest. Thanks for your thoughtful perspective.