Overcoming Perfectionism

Creative Dominion

Dano McCollam

Darkness and depression do not have to be part of the creative process.

- Do you have to go through dark times to create your best art?

- You need to find authenticity in your art, but it’s not rooted in torment.

- The battle with perfectionism.

Dano shares his story of auditioning in an intimidating circumstance. At that moment he learned a life lesson in perfectionism, comparison, and intimidation.

The hardest album for Dano to release has always been his own. It never feels ready.

Creativity is not a mood.

Creativity is not a personality style.

- If you are undisciplined and lazy, that is not because you are a “creative”.

- You can’t wait for creativity to happen to you, you have to go after it. The same goes for revival. We need to take responsibility for our gifts, to steward our lives and go after it. You have to learn the skill set and the craft to chase it down.

- Revival is a lifestyle, not an event.

Creativity is not a gift. 

- Creativity is the nature of God inside all of mankind. That’s why people who don’t know God can be so creative.

- All creativity is the image of God in man. Not even all Christians understand this yet. Every human being is creative, it isn’t just the “artsy” types.

- You have to learn to stir the divine nature of God inside of you. God is never out of ideas, He’s never uninspired.

- Creativity is one of the highest manifestations of God.

Your creativity is supposed to give you favor, influence, and authority in society. It needs to be stewarded, governed and released. You rob the world if you don’t steward your gift.

- You need to be able to critique as well as create.

- Why do so many “creatives” struggle with depression/darkness?

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• Romans 1:19
• - Everything that can be known about God can be seen by what He’s created.
• - You have this same ability.
• - Your creativity is meant to reveal God and to promote an intimate communion with God, whether it’s religious or not (e.g. movies, songs, etc). To the pure, all things are pure.

- When you get in the zone of creativity, and your divine nature is really coming out, you enter into another realm with the transcendent one. You touch eternity. You touch Glory. You touch perfection. And then suddenly, your creation is measured by the stick of perfection. Your creation feels small in comparison to eternity that you just touched. If you don’t know God, you become depressed. And if you do know God, perfectionism leaks in because you just touched God in a new way, and now it seems small, nothing can compare to Him. How do you beat perfectionism? With thanks. Your creativity is the divine nature, give back to it, or the heart becomes darkened.

Creation is a vortex that sucks you up to the eternal nature of God.

- Creativity can only ever be from where you’re at. Give thanks for God flowing through you.

Dano closes in prayer for students.