The Creative Train Podcast
Explore and enhance your creativity and teaching abilities on the CreativeTrain.ca podcast! For over 30 years I have worked as an artist and arts educator, I understand the creative mind and the obstacles we all face. My job is to help you grow, succeed and find glorious satisfaction in your creative and educational results. From pep-talks to meditations with real world, hands-and-minds-on coaching strategies, CreativeTrain.ca is your resource for guidance on how to achieve your own creative goals and those of your students. These skills can be applied in any kind of venture, be it artistic, business and every social situation; your creativity, spontaneity and mental agility can be the difference between success and not-so-much-success. The mind of an artist is a much-misunderstood thing, but we are a special lot! Check out the titles of the podcast episodes and see if something resonates- these are ALL based on my real life experience. Hop on board at www.creativetrain.ca
Episodes
It happens. Literally, to everyone. whether you're an artist or not, sometimes you will lose your groove.
This is my own experience with the same thing- how I regained momentum with a reminder of WHY art is my life's work, not just my hobby!
If you are a new artist or returning to a creative pursuit, this episode is for you!
Art is not a competition, a race, or a measuring stick between you and anyone else.
Art is an outlet, a vehicle to express joy and bring beauty into the world.
We all celebrate the creations and innocent expressions of children, but please remember that the most joyful part of you is awaiting your return to making fun stuff and having fun doing so...
In this episode I explore the quantity vs quality conundrum we as artists and creators and now faced with: can we or should we use AI tech to do the thinking for us when it comes to creating new things?
AI is great for gathering and parsing information already made available online, but can it create something totally original, something not sourced in another person's creations?
One of my 12 year old music students had a very int...
As an artist, there are many types of relationships you have with other artists.
Some are casual and brief, others take shape and evolve over many years; every single one of them is worth your effort to a degree.
This is my story of how an almost decade-long relationship dissolved in and into silence, how I came to terms with it and how I chose to move on.
There are many lessons learned in this one. My biggest take-away is that ...
On a similar vibe to episode 39 about creative teaching methods, this episode focuses on developing and earning respect in a student/teacher situation.
I recount one of my best and one of my worst experiences with this issue, I truly hope that if you are a struggling teacher you can find some inspiration here; and if you are a student having trouble engaging with your teacher(s) maybe you can find some tactics to help create a mor...
I have touched on this topic in past episodes, but some events from this past week really made the relevance of those points come back to mind!
As teachers/educators, we are not only responsible for delivering information but we are extra-responsible to deliver that information in an engaging and inspiring manner to those who have placed their trust in us.
It's about inspiring your students to trust and believe not just what you ...
A wonderful conversation with Stacy Anderson and TJ Corbet- two women finding not only therapy but healing and joy through their art and creativity after brain injury and the "big C".
Art therapy is a very real thing, and over the next 30-something minutes you'll hear how these two amazing humans overcame severe odds to not only rise up but thrive in their artistic expression and also in how to find the simple joys in life with a...
Here's some of my experience gained from writing podcast scripts, radio and social media ads, and from talking to people for more than 30 years as an educator and public speaker.
If you are going to start a podcast but are not sure how to start getting organized, have a listen- I outline my own process from idea, to documenting, recording and editing to create an engaging, interactive and convincing podcast that educates, entertai...
Inspired by a real conversation with a musician who instead of learning some new technology and adapting his workflow, decided he should just quit altogether.
I won't let him get away with it!
My big take-away is that it's important sometimes to ask ourselves how much we value "traditional ways", especially if they are an impediment!
Have a listen, let me know what you think.
Lacey King is a creator and writer with some very unique perspectives on creativity, inspiration and process.
In this episode, Lacey and I discuss those "subtle energies" which we all know are there, but we have difficulty defining or describing.
Call it the Muse, a Vibe, a whisper or a tap on the proverbial shoulder; whatever you call it is unimportant, but how you acknowledge it, foster it and flow with it is super important!
An...
This episode ties in to a few others, on developing your unique voice, getting stuck in a creative rut, and asking yourself some very important questions about your work, your process and especially your results.
This was inspired by a new music student, who is not new to playing or songwriting, but one who found himself predictably stuck (we ALL get that!) and how he opened up to me about his creativity and goals.
Have a listen a...
This goes beyond your speaking or singing voice; in this episode I'm going into the topic of originality, artistic identity and creative integrity. Just a few small things!
This theme comes up often with my music students who want to branch out into songwriting, none of them *want to sound like someone else, but it kinda always happens that their early influences become obvious.
Is this a good or bad thing? Actually, it's totally ...
In this second episode, Daniel and I get into some pretty deep topics such as how people perceive us as artists and how that can affect family dynamics; our roles as mentors and educators, keeping focused and passionate when we feel overwhelmed and how your life inevitably changes from "normal people" mode when you are a full-time artist.
I found this incredibly inspiring and buoying and I hope you do too!
Daniel Moisan is a renaissance man by every definition.
His life in the visual, musical and performing arts and education has taken him around the world literally and virtually.
This is the first episode of our talk about making a living as an artist; dealing with self-doubt, financial pressures, defining our niche, successes and failures and a lot more!
Whether you are an established or emerging artist, this conversation will c...
I had one of the toughest weeks of my creative career last week as we were without electricity and a vehicle for a week and ALL of my creative projects suddenly came to a halt.
This episode is about how I had to creatively reorganize my routines to keep house and home functional and happy and the silly amount of effort it took me to get back to work once the lights came back on.
I'm going to share an important realization about this thing we all joke about in our circles of peers.
It can be a distraction, a pleasure, and it can be expensive; but other than that- what does having Gear Acquisition Syndrome reveal about us as artists and creators?
I honestly can't laugh this one off anymore!
As tech and AI become seemingly woven into our daily lives, many people are losing their once-respected jobs to these "things" which are supposed to make our lives easier.
In this episode I explore this issue from an educator's perspective; at what cost are to embrace this technological revolution?
I'd love to hear your thoughts.
So many new creators equate the cost of their tools with their ability to create, and this is so wrong!
Sure, you don't use a hammer to drive a screw, proper tools are necessary; but you should never feel discouraged by not being able to afford high-end tools or that you simply should not even try to create if you don't have the latest/greatest thing talked about online!
The history of art is filled with glorious examples of things...
In this episode I dig into the topic of A.I. generated art and the impact it already has had on the "real" creative industry.
No, this isn't some guy just complaining about how the good 'ol days were so much better, it's an honest and genuine look into the fact that many creatives are being pushed aside for the apparent ease of using A.I. for their images, sounds and much more.
I would love to know your thoughts on this topic- ha...
Timber Masterson is a truly diverse creative. Actor, author, writer, singer/songwriter and dreamer of dreams.
I have had the pleasure of working with Timber for a few years now, as audio engineer, co-producer and consumer of fine coffee.
In this episode, Timber and I discuss the pleasures and pressures that come with living a creative life- grappling with distraction, doubt, dilution, empowerment, inspiration and the Muse, and ho...
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