🚀 Stop Grinding & Start Creating – A Mindset Power Move! 🧠

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Creativity Chronicles​
Unlocking Creative Joy, One Week at a Time

Did you know productivity
can be a trap?

Hey, Reader,

Something as simple as asking “What should I DO now?” can keep you stuck, unfulfilled, and creatively stagnant.

This email is about what to do instead.

I heard about this from the author, Martha Beck, in her podcast convo with Mel Robbins and it blew my mind.

Instead of asking “What should I do?” Beck suggests we ask: “What should I MAKE?”

🎨 The Power of a Shift in Mindset

As you read these bullet points, feel in your body the difference between “doing” and “making”:

  • “What should I do?” = Feels heavy, like obligation and pressure.
  • “What should I make?” = Feels light, exciting, full of possibility! 🎉
  • Doing keeps you in the grind. Making invites curiosity, creativity, and PLAY. It’s simply more fun.
  • Instead of “checking off boxes,” you bring something new into the world.
  • Making isn’t just about art—it’s about creating your life in a way that feels joyful and free.

So… what’s something YOU’D love to make today? Hit reply and let me know—I’d love to hear!

📈 Marketers, Join Me Live on Tuesday!

I’ll be igniting creative sparks for marketers by illuminating the latest empowering AI trends in a webinar hosted by the National Institute for Social Media next Tuesday.

If you want to create better content with less stress or simply don’t want to fall behind, join me! It’s free (and, yes, NISM will post the recording.)

📅 Date: February 25th, 10am PT
🔗 Save your spot here​

Stay creative,

Jon Leland, AI Creativity Over 50 Guy
​“Don’t die with your creative sparks still stuck inside.”

🤖 AI & Social Media: The Trends You Can’t Afford to Miss 🚀

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Creativity Chronicles​
Unlocking Creative Joy, One Week at a Time

AI is changing the game in social media marketing—are you ready?

Hey, Reader,

As you may well know, AI is shaking up social media marketing in ways we couldn’t have imagined just a few years ago. It has totally changed how I work.

If you’re not leveraging it yet, you’re already behind—but don’t worry, I’ve got you covered, and I can’t wait to share these new “power tools” with you.

I’m honored to team up with the National Institute for Social Media for a free webinar on Tuesday, February 25th at 10am PT, where I’ll break down the AI-powered tools and trends that I’m using to supercharge content creation, engagement, and workflow.

📚 What You’ll Learn

✅ Custom GPTs & AI-Branding Tools – Get AI to write in your brand voice and get better at it every time you post.
✅ Automated Graphics & Social Posts – How to use Canva AI to bulk design inspiring quote graphics.
✅ AI-Powered Presentations – Discover the mind-blowing power of Gamma to radically streamline slide deck and PDF design, including the leverage of multiple image generation models.
✅ AI-Optimized Marketing Workflows – Meet MindPal, the Swiss-army knife of AI apps that helps streamline your creative processes with input from multiple AI “agents.”

This isn’t just theory—these are real apps you can use today; and I’m going to show you how they work with hands-on demos so that you can get started upgrading your posts, presentations, and documents ASAP.

📅 Date: February 25th, 10am PT
🔗 Save your spot here​

Let’s explore together how AI can take your marketing to the next level while also saving you a ton of time!

I’m speaking from experience: these are skills you’ll want to learn because AI is opening whole new worlds of creativity.

See you there,

Jon Leland, AI Creativity Over 50 Guy
​“Don’t die with your creative sparks still stuck inside.”

🚀 Embracing the Journey: Lessons from 40 Years of Creativity 🎭

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Creativity Chronicles​
Unlocking Creative Joy, One Week at a Time

What Does It Take to
Stay Creative and Independent?

Hi Reader,

It’s hard to believe but true: As of last month, I’ve been a self-employed creative entrepreneur for 40 years. It’s been a journey—sometimes exhilarating, sometimes uncertain—but always filled with learning, reinvention, and, most importantly, creative freedom.

I co-created this image with my “AI friend,” Ideogram, to express the self-reflective spirit of this adventure:

🎧 Telling My Story on a Podcast

In my latest podcast interview, I got to dive deep into the lessons learned from this 40-year journey. I sat down with David Shriner-Cahn of Smashing the Plateau to talk about how I made the leap from traditional employment to media innovation, what’s changed over the years, and what still holds true for anyone looking to carve their own creative path—especially in this new era of AI and social media.

👉 Listen to the full conversation here.

🤔 What Does This Mean for YOU?

If you’ve ever felt the pull to create something on your own—whether it’s a business, a creative project, or even just a more meaningful way of working—here’s what I want you to know:

✨ The path isn’t linear, but it’s worth it. Creative careers evolve. Reinvention isn’t failure—it’s growth.

✨ Community makes the journey easier. You don’t have to figure it all out alone. That’s why I started the Creativity Sandbox Community—so we can embrace the creative journey in relationship with others.

✨ AI and media innovation are changing the game. The way we create and connect is evolving faster than ever. The Grand Canyon Gap between people and technology—something that I’ve been talking about since 1990—is bigger than ever and very rapidly widening further!

This moment presents an opportunity to embrace new AI & digital media tools while staying true to what makes your creativity uniquely yours.

If that resonates with you, I’d love to hear your thoughts. How have you navigated the twists and turns of your own creative path?

Hit reply and let me know—or better yet, listen to the podcast and share your takeaways with me.

🙋‍♂️ How Can I Help?

If you’re ready to embrace your own creative journey, let’s talk. I’m happy to chat and see if the Creativity Sandbox Community or some other form of what I can offer might be a good fit for you.

📅 To book a quick conversation with me, click here.

Let’s keep creating,

Jon Leland, AI Creativity Over 50 Guy
​“Don’t die with your creative sparks still stuck inside.”