You are creative, and you have the right to make art if you want to. I promise.

Now, before you start insisting that creativity is a trait that you don’t possess, just know that I have heard every excuse in the book. You weren’t born creative? You never have good ideas? You can’t even draw a stick figure? Trust me, you’ve been lying to yourself.

I like to think of creativity as a muscle. Everyone has muscles, no matter what. However, they won’t grow and become strong unless you exercise them. Creativity works the same way. It can be weak or strong. You get to decide. You are an artist, and you have been your entire life. You just might not know how to be one yet.

When you were a little kid, your mom probably hung up every scribble you ever produced on the refrigerator, convinced that you alone were going to be the next Claude Monet. After four years on this planet, you were well on your way to blossoming into a young artistic genius.

Before that could happen, however, something else got in the way. School. A magical place that helps you grow into the best student you can be. You were told to sit still, stare straight ahead, and quietly pay attention. If you could not do so, chances are you would have been diagnosed with an attention deficit disorder, or just sent to the principal. You could not doodle while taking notes, because then it looked like you weren’t paying attention. Your memorization skills were tested repeatedly, and standardized state examinations became the new intelligence scale. Even art projects had their own specific guidelines. That is, if the school you attended still had an art department, considering they are often the first to fall victim to budget cuts. So, what I’m saying is this: You might not believe yourself to be creative, but it isn’t your fault. You were told your entire life that science and mathematics would put you on the road to success, and art wouldn’t. As an artist, I am completely familiar with the skeptical question, “So, what do you want to do after college?”

I want to be happy after college. And neither science nor math will get me there.

So, if you have always admired your artsy friends but have never joined them in their creative adventures, your time is now. Go on Instagram and search #artjournals or #artinspo. Get inspired. Get a notebook. Don’t make the common mistake of purchasing a beautifully bound and decorated sketchbook, because you will be too intimidated to even touch the first page. One plain, spiral-bound notebook will do just fine. Slap some paint on there. Glue in a movie ticket and a Wal-Mart receipt. Google some cool photos and tape them in, too. Art does not have to be beautiful or perfect. Being creative isn’t about being able to make a ballerina look realistic on paper. It's about creating something new, and it's about making you happy.

So what are you waiting for? You just might surprise yourself.