#001: For the Love of Creatives: The Heart Behind Why We Do What We Do

Hello and welcome to For the Love of Creatives podcast. I'm Maddox and I'm Dwight. We're the connections and community guys and we're glad to have you along, so glad to have you along. So today we just want to tell you a little bit about who we are and how we got started and how we came to be doing what we're we're doing right now. So, um, for me post pandemic. I was wanting to create more relationships, a better social life, and so I started hosting small gatherings in my home on a regular basis. And for me, it was very similar. I was in a situation where I wanted to build community around me. So I did it by hosting small gatherings. And we were connected by someone who knew that we were hosting these gatherings and asked if we wanted to connect. Yeah, and, and we did, so, um. Actually Dwight came as a guest to one of my gatherings and um you know I don't think the friend that introduced us intended this at all, but we really hit it off when we met and, um, you know, we started dating, became a couple, and shortly like a month after the party that Dwight attended at my house, we hosted an event together. And we have hosted probably over 20 events together now in the last 2 years, um, what started out to be just something social and fun we began to realize was making a difference in our community. We were getting amazing feedback. People were asking when is the next event and, and we realized we were, we were kind of doing something that we really, really loved. And, and then there was a point where things kind of shifted a little bit when we realized a pretty serious percentage of the people that were showing up for our events was creative people. Yeah, creative people of every stripe, people that were involved in the various arts communities in Dallas where we're located. And we, we, we certainly enjoyed just the energy that they brought to each event. You, you could see that people that were, that were creative were in a space where they were willing to be open and curious, and they always brought a spark and an element of fun, and We realized that we, we really wanted to surround ourselves with those kinds of people because they lifted our energy. They, they made it so that we could, uh, appreciate that, that everything was just that much better because they were willing to approach things from that improv perspective of a yes and, and, you know, wanting to see what could come next. Well, and one of the things we noticed was creatives come in all shapes and sizes and colors and backgrounds and ages and it was such a diverse group of people and we both realized we loved that the more different the people were in the room, the more we got exposed to new and different things that was really exciting. Yeah. And it was just so amazing to have the perspectives that you, that would come from, uh, when you could see someone in their 20s connect with someone in their 70s, and they could just have so much that they could, uh, that they could connect on in ways that you wouldn't expect. Yeah, we literally saw the barriers that sometimes keep us apart when we're different. We saw those barriers melt away in our gatherings and we knew we were on to something that was important from the creative standpoint but also from the fact that we realized that there was a certain social healing going on in our events and that mixed with the creative part. Makes what we call people magic. It is, and people magic is an essential ingredient in everything that we do. Uh, the, the gatherings we've, uh, started to term them collectively the experience and we style it with the, uh, capital X for experience, uh, just to set it apart. And it's our signature offering. It's our calling card. It's what people know us for. And we're expanding into doing other things like this podcast. And, uh, who knows? Uh, with a little bit of work and a little bit of time, we're, we're hoping to build a whole community around it and have people that are able to draw upon each other's strengths and call each other and, and really see each other as their, their go to tribe. Absolutely it is much in the works. So just to kind of recap what Dwight just shared, there are 3 aspects to our business which is called For the Love of Creatives. There's the podcast, then there are is the experience, which is our events that we do several times a year. And then it is the pending community that we are intending to launch sometime in the first quarter of 2025. We're working on it night and day and we're very excited about it. It will be a membership community global with an online, um, contingency and a online, both, um. I, I kind of wanna circle around and say, you know, one of the. probably one of the main things that this podcast is about is it is the intersection. Where creativity and community meet because we have observed and and really seen proof that when you put the two together, they're they're fine on their own, they do well on their end. You can have community and not have there be a big creative component and vice versa, but when you put the two together. It creates something that's like jet fuel. And you, you have something you'd like to add to that? No, it, it, it really is magic. It's just like, uh, it reminds me of those silly ads from the 80s where you had, uh, peanut butter and chocolate combined and make a Reese's peanut butter cup. You, you combine two things that are just wonderful on their own, and you get them together and it's like amazing. It's, it takes things to another level. And that's, that's what we've been experiencing. That's what we've seen people, uh, express whenever they, they get to. To share what it is that comes up for them when they're a part of the experience. Uh, I, what really gives me no bigger thrill is whenever we talk to someone who identifies as, uh, someone that's a little shy or they call themselves an introvert, and they talk about how easy it was for them to just Make it so that they felt like they really got something out of spending a couple of hours with people they've never met before and leaving with a couple of besties. It's, it's just amazing. Yes, and that's why we call it the experience. It's not a cocktail party. It's not a networking event. It is a guided process where we take the guests through a series of experiences that. Create An energy in an environment where they can connect on a completely different level, a much deeper level. Yeah, it's definitely something that is not the thing that people call fun because they were just a little bit too wasted to really remember. It's something that goes at something deeper. It's something that we, we lose a little bit because we get the scripts that tell us that there are certain things that we're supposed to do and certain things that we're supposed to be, uh, ways that we're supposed to behave to the point that we forgot what it was just to be decent and good and to show up as yourself and have a good time. Absolutely and the podcast and the experience are very much about vulnerability. We invite our guests to come on and very vulnerably share their creative journey from the good, the bad, and the ugly to the riches and the success, what they've learned, how far they've come, um, likewise in the experience, we invite our guests. To get vulnerable because that's what creates the people magic, right? And, and as we've seen so many times before, it's when people get vulnerable, when they're just real. When they open up and show a part of themselves that maybe doesn't feel so good, that others can see themselves. And it creates a portal, a window where people connect in in ways that they didn't think possible. Yes, yes, yes, yes. The 3 main components of what we do are to create. To collaborate and to elevate. And that is a recipe for. Well, once again, people magic and creative bliss, creative dreams. And the with everyone coming together to Connect with those parts of themselves that uh they, they may be just work on alone, because they're not ready to, to share with the world. They're not ready to open themselves up to criticism. Uh, or if they just have things that they're, they're working out, we, we encourage people to find Opportunities to, to build in safe spaces, to make it so that it's OK for everything not to be fully formed. It doesn't have to be perfect. They don't have to, uh, have the worry of, uh, feeling that they're being judged as, as being something that's, that's not ready or not, uh, not, uh, uh, sufficient for, for being able to, to be posted in a show or to Uh, to be, you know, the final cut. Sometimes you, you need safe people that you can show things to, to give you a boost, a spark, maybe a, a point in a different direction, so that you can see things that you just can't yourself because you're, you're too stuck in your head. And that's, that's one of the things that I think is gonna be great about these opportunities that we have for, you know, the three things you just said, the creation, collaboration, and co-elevation. Uh, it's all about people building on, on their stories and having those opportunities to combine. With the experiences of those who've walked different paths and making something that's really special as a result. Absolutely, you know, we've been studying creativity and and trying to define what it is and what it isn't, and Um, and we'll probably go into this more in future episodes, but basically it's very, very simple. Creativity is about. Making something fresh, something new, something that didn't exist previously it's pretty simple, you know I'd like to plant just a couple of seeds and say, you know, in future episodes and probably very quickly in future episodes Dwight and I are both gonna take a turn where we share our creative. Journeys so you'll know more about us and what draw us drew us to be here and you know we can't emphasize enough that creativity is not always about art. We're talking about creative creativity in any shape, form or fashion whether it's visual or or whether it is um dance or or kinesthetic or or culinary. Absolutely, um, absolutely, um, so you will get to, uh, because our creative journeys don't really, neither of us are particularly, um, Artists. I mean, I, I have dabbled with paint, that's a painting of mine behind Dwight right there in the video, if you happen to be watching the video, um. But most of our creativity has, has been other things other than art. So, um, We want to invite you to. Listen with us every week we're gonna drop a new episode and we invite you to this is all about, oh, let me, let me just say this. This is all about bringing together heart centered creatives. So if you identify as a heart centered creative and if you are that you know you're that so if you're going, what does that mean? this may not be for you, you know, those of us that are heart centered, we know we're heart centered. If you have friends that are heart centered creatives, we invite you to share the link with them, share this podcast with them. It is a private podcast. It is for subscribers only. But we give you the link to help anybody become a subscriber that wants to be a subscriber. Dwight, have you got anything else you'd like to add? No, I think you've hit the, the major point. I mean, we want people to come along for the ride and subscribe, uh, engage, be a part of the community, you know, send us feedback. you might start out as a listener, but who knows? Someday you may be inclined to be a, a featured guest on our show, and we would love that. We are always seeking featured guests, and if you scroll down the show notes below the show notes, there is a link where you can um put in your bid to be. A featured guest and we would love that. So I think that's all we have for you today. We can't wait to see you in the next episode and uh just keep on creating. That's right. See you in the next episode.