The “Bad Habit” that Turned into My Creative Breakthrough

My Earliest Coping mechanism – Escapism

I’m a visual person and most probably undiagnosed neurodivergent. Growing up, monologues and passive learning were the bane of my existence.

As a child I zoned out when I lost interest in something and would go to the fantastic place in my head called the La La Land, often referred to as daydreaming (excessive is maladaptive daydreaming). Only fun things happened there. After a while I’d snap back to reality only to find that the lesson was over, and it was usually Geography – my least favorite subject!

As the years went by, this harmless pattern became my go to coping mechanism. Escaping into my fantasy land. The consistently used neural pathways made it so easy. This not only hindered my academics but also hampered my social skills.

Owning my Struggle

Fast forward a few years, I decided to take control. Having overcome it, I can talk about it but it wasn’t easy. It took many years to unlearn this coping mechanism and replace it with something healthier.

But the first step to it was owning it. Accepting that I had a focus issue was the hardest part because it involved crushing my ego. It meant confronting thoughts like – something is wrong with me/ I am not normal/ I’m broken. It’s bad enough when that comes in the form of external criticism, why would I want to inflict it on myself willingly?

It was heartbreaking at first, especially because I was the patient trying to be my own therapist! It’s like trying to look at the problem from outside the box while standing inside it. Ridiculous. But a lot of wonderful and incredulous achievements require a dash of ridiculousness, or a whole bucket of madness. Be dumb enough to believe anything is possible. And so it is! Which brings to my next step.

Repurposing your flaws into your strength

Over time, I learned to extricate myself from what I call “monkey mind” behaviour. It wasn’t easy. That admission allowed me to use the same imaginative capacity that once led to endless daydreams became a source of creativity and self-expression. As an aspiring writer I discovered that my propensity for escape – daydreaming was actually a deeply visual and potent tool for writing –Hyperphantasia. Hyperphantasia is the rare ability to visualize vividly with only about 3 % of the population having this ability, as per statistics. Big dreamers, writers, and visionaries often use this capacity to transform their inner wanderings into art, poetry, and design.

The lesson – You can turn your flaws into your greatest strengths if you just ‘own it’. By sharing my personal story I hope to be able to inspire you, the reader to believe that the very traits we detest in ourselves can be repurposed to drive our boldest achievements.

Think about it

What’s one ‘bad’ habit you carry, and how might you flip it to fuel you toward your next big goal?