Courageous Creativity

Creators on "The Courageous Creativity Show" redefine success and purpose not merely by traditional metrics like applause or fame, but through a deeper commitment to authenticity, impact, and personal growth, especially when navigating life's challenges.

Here's how they express this:

Redefining Success

• Provoking Thought and Resonating with Audiences: For playwright Jeanette Hill, a play is successful if it makes people think or provokes discussion, even if they don't agree with the content. Similarly, if a character resonates with even one person, it's a success. The goal is for people to leave thinking, even if they don't have a good time. Jeanette believes that if the audience "got it" when they leave, that's what she's striving for. She recalls a time when people in a restaurant were arguing about characters and events from her play, indicating its success in sparking discussion and relating to their lives.

• Inspiring, Healing, and Transforming: Jeneen Hammond's motivation is to tell stories that inspire, heal, and transform, emphasizing the power of one's own story and voice. This mission to help communities tell their stories, as seen in her nine-month project in Pennsylvania, highlights success through collective impact and revival. Jeneen views herself as a "steward" of stories that come from "Divine orchestration," highlighting a purpose beyond personal gain.

• Authenticity and Vulnerability: The show emphasizes that genuine conversations and authentic work are key to impactful connections with the audience. Tarnisha Small, for example, found her voice and confidence through acting by embracing vulnerability and letting go of the fear of failure. Jeneen Hammond notes that writing from an authentic space, truly reflecting oneself, can be scary but leads to impactful stories.

• Emotional Connection: Success is often measured by the emotional connection a story creates, whether through laughter or tears. Jeneen Hammond herself knows a story is on an emotional track if it makes her cry or laugh.

Finding Purpose Amidst Challenges

• Drawing on Personal Experiences: Many guests transform personal challenges into their purpose.

◦ Grief and Navigation: Angel L. Henderson shares that navigating life after losing both parents requires immense courage, making her journey of building her own voice and seeking counseling a display of strength.

◦ Overcoming Self-Doubt and Trauma: Tarnisha Small's journey into acting was sparked by a friend's perception of her potential, helping her overcome low self-worth and shyness. Tamina Ward uses her experiences with childhood teasing, abandonment, and generational trauma to inspire young adults to break free from their past burdens. She intentionally "dropped the pack" of past hurts. Jason C. Louder's stories, like the one about "Baba Tunde the Grio," often focus on themes of love, hope, faith, and overcoming self-doubt and trauma.

◦ Healing from Pain: Jeanette Hill discusses how her play "Clean Sheets," which garnered a perfect score but theaters were afraid to produce, addresses cultural hurts, aiming to move from a "scab to a scar" for societal healing. She emphasizes that there's "no honor in pain" and that unresolved hurts can manifest as anger or other negative behaviors.

• Embracing a Divine Calling and Stewardship: Jeneen Hammond believes her writing comes from a "Divine orchestration" and views herself as a "steward" of these stories, emphasizing a purpose beyond personal gain. This resonates with the idea that every person has a "Divine calling and assignment and purpose."

• Proactive Creation and Entrepreneurship: Instead of waiting for opportunities, creators like Tarnisha Small choose to write and produce their own films to create roles for themselves and others, recognizing the need to be entrepreneurial. Jeneen Hammond developed "The Dreamer's Village" to help people revive their creative dreams and learn to monetize their gifts, emphasizing taking ownership of one's God-given dream and not waiting for external validation.

• Mindset and Resilience:

◦ Learning from Setbacks: Jason C. Louder views challenges as "learning opportunities" that can push one forward. He uses financial challenges in the acting industry as a motivator for learning and growth.

◦ "Just Do It": Portia Cue and Winston Wilson encourage creators to "just start" their projects, regardless of how big or small, and not wait for perfection or validation. Portia gives the example of Lita Renee Brown and Dour Ashwood producing their own micro-miniseries, "Pressure."

◦ Consistency and Persistence: Jeanette Hill, a prolific playwright with over 100 plays, exemplifies consistency, writing "all of the time." She advises writers to keep notes, save all writing, and not let "writer's block" stop them, encouraging "what if" exercises and knowing that "there's no such thing as useless writing." She also notes that her stride was not hit until she was 72, emphasizing the importance of showing up every day, authentically, and doing what you're supposed to do, regardless of external validation.

◦ Daily Practices: Guests maintain well-being through practices like gratitude journaling, meditation, exercise, and daily creative activities. Tarnisha Small starts her day with prayer, meditation, and gratitude journaling. Winston Wilson practices daily gratitude, focuses on top priorities, and engages in creative activities. Tamina Ward emphasizes that mindset fuels courage and resilience, and that even when physically limited (like her knees for running a marathon), mental focus can drive capability.

◦ Allowing for Breaks: Tarnisha Small advises taking breaks when feeling frustrated, as the industry isn't going anywhere, allowing for a fresh perspective. She also learned to not fear failure, which had held her back.

◦ Borrowing Belief: Tomina Ward suggests that when an individual's belief system is low, they can "borrow that belief" from good people in their circle.

• Community and Giving Back:

◦ Sharing Resources and Wisdom: Jason C. Louder stresses the importance of sharing resources within the creative community, noting that "we cannot exist without one another." Tamina Ward is compelled to "speak life" into young adults and educators, sharing her "wealth of knowledge" to help them avoid past mistakes and break generational trauma. She believes human beings are "the original AI" through storytelling.

◦ Pouring into Others: Winston Wilson, the host, expresses that his core value is helping others succeed and that talking to people and connecting with them is a key motivator. He daily calls someone he hasn't talked to in a while to offer support. The show itself aims to inspire at least one person to expand their path. Jeneen Hammond's "Dreamer's Village" provides a supportive community for individuals to revive and monetize their creative dreams. John C. Smith, a lifelong friend of the host, exemplifies how strong, long-lasting friendships provide unwavering support and positive influence in life and creative pursuits.

In essence, creators on "The Courageous Creativity Show" believe that true success stems from creating work that is authentic, impacts others positively, and allows for continuous personal growth and healing, driven by a deep sense of purpose that often transforms personal adversity into a powerful mission to serve and inspire their communities.

https://winstonawilson.com

Listen on:

Episodes

Saturday Apr 01, 2023

The Southeastern Theatre Conference paints a beautiful picture of the future of Theatre.

Saturday Apr 01, 2023

I had a chance to take part in my first ever Southeastern Theatre Conference. It was in Lexington Kentucky a city I've never visited. I always get a thrill from going to new places, especially ones in which I've been near but never spent any time. As many places I visited I truly dug the city. It was a cool place that you could walk around pretty quickly. The conference itself felt...like I was amongst my people. I don't say this lightly. I was impressed by many things at the 74th year of the conference.
Toni Simmons Henson is the newly appointed Executive Director and I saw how she navigated which I'm sure behind the scenes was a logistical adventure. It seemed flawless.
The amount of young people and educators that are passionate about the art of Theatre was eye opening. The gleam in their eyes and the care of the educators was evident.
The amount of events, workshops, and productions was a bit overwhelming, In a good way. There is no way a person could see it all.
I'm part of the Leadership Initiative which meant I was exposed to some of the strategies and vision for the future. It was a showcase of the past, present, and future for the organization. The engagement about creating a beautiful future for Theatre was inspiring.
I would be remiss if I didn't share something that was special and surprising. There was a session for Theatre practitioners of Faith. Having a chance to link my love of Theatre with following of Jesus was a moment I'll never forget.
I'm so looking forward to the future of the conference and the art of Theatre.
https://www.setc.org/
About the Southeastern Theatre Conference
The Southeastern Theatre Conference is a 501(c)3 nonprofit and dynamic membership organization serving a diverse constituency and reaching out across 10 states* in the southeast region of the United States and beyond.
As of July 13, 2020, the membership has 4,461 active individual members and 347 organizational members (theatres, educational institutions and arts organizations). Hover over the map to see how many active SETC members are in each U.S. state as of June 19, 2019.
* The 10 state region includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

Monday Feb 27, 2023

How do you balance life as a writer, educator, and leader? Alethea gives you a blueprint.

Monday Feb 27, 2023

Alethea McCollin shares with us how can begin to overcome obstacles to our collective journey. Everything from battling through the early days of Covid, to the challenges of writing, and managing life. Do you have a similar story? Plug into this conversation to hear the inspiration which will help us all. Do you have an inspiring story as a creative? Perhaps you know someone that does. Reach out us at CCpodcast@risingtidescharity.org. Reach out Alethea at the below links. Thanks again Alethea for being on the podcast and bringing your powerful energy!

https://aletheamccollin.com/
https://www.facebook.com/AletheaMcCollin.playwright/

Join the Rising Tides Community today for exclusive content. This includes educational classes, productivity sessions, and business strategies.
https://risingtidescharity.org

Our signature event Quiana's Voice is entering its second year and we need your help to hit our goal. We will use all of our funding to give creative tools to young people in our community.,
https://quianasvoice.org

Saturday Jan 14, 2023

Quiana’s Voice and a poem from David V. Wilson.

Saturday Jan 14, 2023

Quiana's voice had a successful first year. We raised three thousand dollars towards our goal. Our board member David V. Wilson shares a powerful and inspirational poem that we know you'll love. Our goal is five thousand dollars. We will be delivering this to a deserving young creator. Click here.
https://quianasvoice.org
https://risingtidescharity.org
Join us in our mission to help young people (and young at heart) creators find their voice.

Friday Nov 11, 2022

Why Quiana’s Voice and how I feel about us.

Friday Nov 11, 2022

I want to thank everyone for helping us bring to Quiana's Voice. to the world. In this message I will share my gratitude and what drives me.
https://quianasvoice.org
https://risingtidescharity.org

Monday Oct 31, 2022

Winston’s personal message about ”Quiana’s Voice” November 12th at 5pm

Monday Oct 31, 2022

When I loss many friends and family to external violence, diseases, and suicide before they had a chance to fully share their creative voice it hurt. I felt that if I and all of us, who aspire to be spiritual and creative souls could begin to pour into people. We would do this one person at a time and we could make a difference. My personal belief is that once we do this, it will create a rising tide of love that contrasts the belief that we are disconnected from each other. November 12th at 5pm at Mary Mac's Tea Room. It is going to be amazing.
Get your ticket below.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/quianas-voice-tickets-291844754517
Learn more about Quiana's Voice
https://www.winstonawilson.com/quianas-voice.html

Saturday Oct 15, 2022

Jay Weiser shares with us how to be prepared for the future challenges in life and business.

Saturday Oct 15, 2022

The five leadership superpowers is a framework created by Jay Weiser to help organizations handle the present and prepare for future disruptions. He shares that our most recent situations are opportunities to create plans and integrate them with the daily activities of our organizations and lives. You will love this conversation. This is applicable to creatives as we synthesize world events into our art.

https://www.jayweiser.com/

Saturday Sep 10, 2022

How do we push forward as an actor? Jasmine Ahine shows us a few steps.

Saturday Sep 10, 2022

Jasmine shares her journey as an actor, producer and educator. She is an incredible testament to never giving up. You will enjoy this conversation with a rising star.
https://www.risingtidescharity.org
https://quianasvoice.org

Wednesday Jul 27, 2022

Do you wish to live your life on your own terms? Dana returns to give us some guidance.

Wednesday Jul 27, 2022

Dana Stringer returns to the show to share her incredible journey. She has created her own path in pursuit of her art. What I always have loved about Dana is that she is making her own "box" and is finding an audience.
Donate to "Quiana's Voice" to help us raise $5k to give to a young deserving creative. go to Quiana's Voice to submit your name and help us with this goal.

Sunday Jul 10, 2022

The Creativity Cocktail introduces the Productivity Cocktail.

Sunday Jul 10, 2022

Being personally productive has helped my creativity immensely. It gives me the margin to be present with my art. There was another channel called "TimeBuster Tools" which I shared my practices. This channel shared my philosophy as well as some of the solutions that I use (and stopped using). Linking the success of Creativity Cocktail with TBT, that channel will now be known as "Productivity Cocktail." Episodes here will now begin to alternate between "Creativity" and "Productivity." These are my two loves and my goal is to help you be excellent and grow in both. TimeBuster Tools will continue on in blog form with an emphasis on short-term tips. I'm so excited, so don't forget to subscribe and let me help, help you. Thank you to do those all over the world that have helped us get to this amazing moment.
Productivity Cocktail on YouTube.
Creativity Cocktail on Apple Podcasts
TimeBuster Tools blog.

Saturday Jun 04, 2022

War on clutter part two. Is it a struggle for you? It still is for me. Let me give you my thoughts on how to fight back!

Saturday Jun 04, 2022

Clutter is everywhere. Not just physical items but digital items. I share my thoughts on this ongoing war and my thoughts on consumerism and how it effects my creativity.

WINSTON A. WILSON

My purpose in my life is to serve our community by giving my energy and focus on improving everyone’s life around me. I do this through the talents God has given me and through the passion of execution. .