Maturing into Life as a Creative

Katie Haberer

“When I was growing up, I knew I loved the arts. I didn’t know what I would do “when I grew up,” but I prayed that being creative and letting that part of myself shine would be a part of it.”

For as long as I can remember, being creative has been a part of my soul. But how that translates into my daily life has evolved many, many times. And it’s taken me 28 years to understand that creativity is both a spiritual gift and that can be used to navigate almost any area in life. But just like any other spiritual gift, it must be used and sharpened in order for it to grow with you.

When I was growing up, I knew I loved the arts. I didn’t know what I would do “when I grew up,” but I prayed that being creative and letting that part of myself shine would be a part of it. I grew up as a dancer at Meredith Gravely School of Dance. I loved art, music, jewelry making, painting, writing - anything that would let my imagination run wild.

But eventually, I found myself as an 18-yearold on early acceptance to Virginia Teach as a Mathematics Major. As I approached adulthood, I began to suppress the creative part of me; or at least the belief that it would get me anywhere in life. I still didn’t know what I wanted to do in life, only that being good at math would likely get me a good job.

I wanted nothing more than to get done with school and get started in “the real world.” Instead of using my college years to explore my creative side, I went through college as fast as I possibly could. I graduated with my Bachelor’s degree in 2.5 years.

As soon as I graduated, I got a call from a local High School offering me a job teaching Math. This is exactly why I majored in math; I knew there was a high demand for people with math skills. I was 20 years old when I accepted this job as a math teacher. While teaching did allow me to be creative in how I taught and how I connected to the people around me, the

And even though I felt like I knew everything about life at the time, as a few years passed… I realized that I knew nothing about navigating adult life and the complicated emotions and decisions that come with that. I felt very restricted and trapped, in almost every area of my life at the time.

And eventually, I was looking for an escape from adulthood without even realizing it. Influencer Marketing and Lifestyle Blogging was on the rise online. I started to see all kinds of people my age, somehow, making a living from just sharing their unique lifestyles online. Travel has always been a huge passion of mine. I looked at myself in the mirror and said “I’m going to become a Travel Blogger.” And I did it.

I created a blog called WineandWeekends.com. I started by writing about some trips that I had already taken myself. Then I started sharing fashion, cooking, and lifestyle inspiration… pretty much anything I thought people would read. I invested in better cameras, better computers, better clothing, etc. And eventually, I began seeing results with a heavy increase in social media followers.

I began blindly e-mailing hotels, restaurants, tourist attractions, and even tourism boards asking for free stays and experiences in exchange for photography and coverage on both my blog and social media accounts. And to my surprise, people said yes. I was ecstatic.

I began to push the envelope even more by emailing brands, boutiques, and everything in between offering to model their clothing, products, and brands on my trips. And again, people said yes. All of my dreams that I never let myself believe in were coming true. I was traveling the world, for free, wearing free clothes - and this went on for about a year.