slow inside

Lisa Hsieh was a clothing designer before she was a mom. She made clothes that looked good on thin people, slit maxi skirts and crop tops, clothes that were crisp, clean, and sharp —conditioned by the fashion industry that she had worked in for a decade. Then she became a mama and everything changed. It was time to let go of all that had come before and leap into something she’d never done: design...

Brooke Shaden has clarity. She knows why she’s making. And that why pervades everything. The why is her legacy, her message, her brand. Brooke’s why is to inspire creativity in others. When you have that kind of clarity you don’t worry about changing creative direction or trying out a new medium. You don’t concern yourself with those who rail against your making or criticize your style. Her why is...

Jesh de Rox is, at heart, an explorer. He's spent his life asking the big questions: the ones that help make sense of who we are and why we're here. And he's built several very successful businesses in photography, thought leadership, and business coaching, around the same two things: joy and personal growth. Jesh's work has been featured in Vogue, Huffington Post, Elle, and Range Finder, to name...

Satsuki Shibuya is a painter, poet, and spiritual guide. She is also the first repeat guest on The Creativity Habit Podcast . In this second conversation, we dive into the heart and mind of this spiritual thinker. We talk about love and purpose, flow and discipline, creativity and truth. It’s both profoundly spiritual and very practical. Some things we talk about: how to keep putting your most hon...

Hall Newbegin is a "hippie entrepreneur" who went from making soap out of his basement to running a multi-million dollar business selling sustainably harvested products including perfume, incense, candles, and soap. Hall brought the places he loved to people who cared through products he made. Some things we talk about finding the courage to wander off the known path in order to find you...

Loveis Wise was a junior in college when she got her first art commission with Refinery 29 and a senior when she became the second black women in the history of The New Yorker Magazine to design its cover. Loveis grew up poor and no one in her family thought you could make any money making art but Loveis knew what she wanted and she want for it. Today Loveis has more work than time. Her illustrati...

Michelle Gardella is an internationally recognized photographer who hustled her way out of poverty to become one of the top 30 photographers in the world by Rangefinder Magazine and one of the top ten photographers in the US by Professional Photographers of America. Today Michelle is a truth-teller who uses her camera and her words to ferret out the false and showcase the real through her River St...

Susannah Conway's business was born out of grief. When her partner died unexpectedly of a heart attack thirteen years ago, Susannah turned to photography and writing as a way through. Photography brought her into the present moment while writing helped her sort through the past ones. But eventually, her photography and writing turned into a thriving online business helping thousands of women aroun...

Arielle Estoria never wanted to be center stage but sometimes life decides your path for you. In college Arielle stumbled into slam and spoken word poetry. Her words had power. They resonated and moved the audience. Arielle decided to devote one year after college to her creativity. One year turned into four and today Arielle performs on stages around the world, bringing people together through th...

Carrie Schmitt is a painter, writer, and teacher. Several years ago Carrie became so sick she couldn't move. Any physical exertion would cause her body to break out in hives and her entire system to overheat. The only thing left, the only relief she found, was in painting. Thus began Carrie's life as a full-time artist. Today Carrie teaches workshops, has several books, sells art around the world...

Emma Louise Sophia is a writer, photographer, and teacher. Emma did not have an easy time of it growing up. She battled eating disorders, depression, and anxiety. But then she met and fell in love with her future husband and got pregnant and that changed everything. Emma sobered up, pulled what had come apart back together, and settled into a whole new life as a mom, an artist, and an entrepreneur...

Multi-disciplinary artist, Liz Tran , makes joy for a living. Her art is big and colorful and full of play. It is about extroversion and experimentation and all the things that look like happiness. Art is where Liz escaped from anxiety and depression and found safety and freedom. Today Liz's work is all over the world. From Toronto to Miami, San Francisco to Iceland, her paintings and sculptures h...

Sheila Pree Bright is a photographer using the camera to change how we see the world. Her work has won numerous awards, she was a runner-up for the million dollar TED prize, her photographs have appeared in galleries and museums around the world and she lectures all over the country. Her images break down old beliefs, shake up stereotypes, and help us all see the “other” for what they truly are: p...

Mati was 18 months old when her father died in a car accident. He was an artist, a woodcarver. As Mati got older, she made a lot of art but making art was hard because it reminded her of death. And then when Mati was 29, she went to art school and she gave her life to art. Mati got an agent. She wrote and illustrated children’s books. She started a blog and built an online following. Today, Mati l...

heads up: this conversation was recorded in Thailand. There is a clicking sound in the background. That is a gecko. Gabrielle Tesfaye has been making art forever. When she was little she knew she would be an artist. When she went to art school and people asked her what she planned to do with the rest of her life she simply replied, "make art." And that's what she does. All the time. Gabr...

Amber is an illustrator who makes images of women all shapes and sizes. Hairy and big. Short and wide. Arms too long, legs too short. Women who are beautiful simply because they are women. Amber's work has appeared on the cover of numerous publications including The New York Times Magazine, she's partnered with big names like Conde Nast, Man Repeller and Gucci and she sells her art all over the wo...

Harper Watters is a soloist with the Houston Ballet - the fourth largest dance company in the United States. Harper has stood out his whole life. His parents are white. He's gay. He's a ballet dancer. He doesn't fit. When Harper was growing up, not fitting in was hard. People stared at him. He was scared of being bullied. But as cliché as it sounds, it was when Harper learned to use his difference...

Satsuki Shibuya had it all: her own graphic design business, great clients, money in the bank and then she got sick. So sick she couldn’t get out of bed, read a book or talk on the phone. And she stayed sick for a year and a half. During that time she lost everything: her business, her clients, her reputation. But she found something bigger: painting. Now she’s a watercolorist with 33,600 Instagra...

Melissa Dinwiddie is an amazing talent. It’s like everything she touches becomes beautiful. At 12 she was in adult-drawing classes. At 19 she was a dancer at Juliard. When she was 27 she was in galleries for her paper cut art and by 29 she had her own business making commissioned calligraphy and papercut art for clients all over the country. Now Melissa runs the Creative Sandbox. It's a community,...

Murphy Funkhouser Capps has lived many, many lives. She’s been a military preacher’s daughter. A theater geek. A bible college dropout. Lived in a car. A party girl. A six-figure earner and then broke. A single mom. A married mom. A playwright. An entrepreneur. A branding specialist. Unemployed. Fired. A CEO. A storyteller. And, above all, a survivor. This is Murphy’s story. Much of it anyway. Fro...

When Alexandra Bowman isn’t working her 9-5, she’s an illustrator. She draws all kinds of pictures, many of them women of color who are artists, writers, activists, and leaders. She “ focuses on ways to celebrate the female and illustrate her as a focal point of the community and social movements.” Alexandra's work has been featured in The New York Times, Edible Magazine, Pop-Up Magazine, Food 52,...

Melissa Dinwiddie is an amazing talent. It’s like everything she touches becomes beautiful. At 12 she was in adult-drawing classes. At 19 she was a dancer at Juliard. When she was 27 she was in galleries for her paper cut art and by 29 she had her own business making commissioned calligraphy and papercut art for clients all over the country. Now Melissa runs the Creative Sandbox. It's a community,...

Allie Monday is a woman-centered high-end boudoir photographer who believes women are "badasses and should be photographed that way." She doesn't airbrush, photoshop, or gloss over a woman's beauty. Instead, she highlights it, exactly as it is. She has learned that when she gives other women a chance to see and know themselves through the lens of a loving camera and a compassionate photo...

Sonal Nathwani is an artist. She was born in Africa to Indian parents who fled to England to escape bad things in Africa. She grew up in England before moving to Belgium, Florence, and eventually, Vienna. Sonal Nathwani is old enough to know that it doesn’t matter what someone else tells you matters. That when you make art, what is most important, is that you make it for you, that you do it first,...

Ash Sierra dropped out of college her sophomore year to explore herbalism. She began making salves and tinctures for friends and family. It was never meant to be a business. Today Ash runs Ritual Botanica, a private consulting practice and a thriving business selling tinctures, salves, dried herbs, oils, teas with over than 55,000 followers on Instagram and customers all over the world. Some thing...