Follow Your Curiosity: Ordinary People, Extraordinary Creativity.

CPT #120: Play Is Resistance

"No thanks. I’m going to play today."

This episode is a little different.

If you feel exhausted, demoralized, or like a "ghost of your old self," you aren't broken—you are a human being responding to a global situation that feels less stable every day. In this episode, I explore why creative rebellion is a vital act of resistance. This isn't about being productive or making a statement; it’s about reminding yourself that you are still alive.

I’m Nancy Norbeck, Messy Muse Mentor, and I help exhausted perfectionists find gentle, playful ways to spark expression again. This episode is a call to reclaim your aliveness through small, five-minute acts of "useless" play that keep your head above water.

What you can expect from this episode (and this show):

• 🤦🏻‍♂️ No Pressure: I’ll never tell you to force productivity through resistance.
• 🤷🏻‍♂️ No Bypassing: We won't ignore reality or live in denial; we reconnect with the parts of reality the headlines miss.
• 😁 No "Shoulds": This is a sanctuary, not a school. There are no requirements to be an "artist" or produce "good" art.

I discuss the logic of demoralization and why staying connected to your joy makes you harder to control. If you’ve been yearning for a space to just be without the pressure to perform, this conversation is for you.

Ready to join the rebellion?

If this episode resonated with you, please subscribe so you never miss a dose of creative permission.

Take Action: If you need a physical space of sanctuary right now, I invite you to join our free Follow Your Curiosity Creativity Circle this Saturday at 3:00 PM Eastern. It’s an online, low-to-no pressure space where you can draw, daydream, or simply exist in a creative community.

Join the Free Creativity Circle here (don't forget to confirm your subscription!)

From Dyslexic 'Daydreamer' to Shakespearean Legend with Louise Jameson

Louise Jameson is a classically trained actress whose first love is the stage—she spent two years with the Royal Shakespeare Company at the beginning of her career—but she also became known to millions of British television viewers through her roles in such hugely popular television series as Doctor Who, Tenko, Bergerac  and  EastEnders. Her recent theatre credits include Vincent River and directing the UK tour of Revenge. Her audio credits include Doctor Who (Big Finish), writing ATA Girl, about the women of the Air Transport Authority during World War II, and  multiple titles for BBC Audio and Audible.

Louise talks with me about her unusually young start at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and how her training continued at the Royal Shakespeare Company, how her Doctor Who character, Leela of the Sevateem, reflected the feminism of the 1970s (and how she didn’t), how she started writing, and what she thinks of the opportunities for—and representation of—women in film and TV over the years.

If you want to watch this conversation, you can see it here on YouTube!

 

Episode breakdown:

00:00 Introduction

04:00 Louise describes childhood creativity, daydreaming, and reading early.

08:00 Drama school, age gap with classmates, and strict discipline.

12:00 Acting requires teamwork; Louise reflects on early career.

16:00 Louise's Shakespeare passion, favorite roles and performance experiences.

20:00 Louise talks about landing Leela role in Doctor Who.

24:00 Doctor Who impacts life daily; gratitude for lasting connections.

28:00 Leela's feminist traits and costume choices, fighting stereotypes.

32:00 Leela's intelligence and evolution, relationship with other companions.

36:00 Influence of audio plays; Gallifrey series has strong female fandom.

40:00 Louise discusses writing, self-doubt, and encouragement from collaborators.

44:00 Directing stage, teaching drama; regrets and living in the now.

48:00 Shakespeare’s rhythmic influence on Louise’s writing and teaching.

52:00 Conversation shifts to social media, attention economy, and technology.

56:00 Louise analyzes Shakespeare’s poetic technique and its storytelling power.

01:00 Louise explains collective magic of live theater and storytelling.

01:04 Progress and ongoing challenges for women in TV and film.

 

Want more? Here are handy playlists with all my previous interviews with guests in writing, theatre, and Doctor Who.

 

Check out the full show notes (now including transcripts!) at fycuriosity.com, and connect with me and fellow creatives on Substack.

Please leave a review for this episode—it’s really easy and will only take a minute, and it really helps me reach new listeners. Thanks!

If you enjoyed our conversation, I hope you’ll share it with a friend.

CPT #119: Why Big Goals Fail

Ready to break free from unrealistic New Year's resolutions and finally make lasting progress on your goals? Let's take a look at a brain-based approach to achieving your resolutions without burning out or resenting yourself.

If the light inside you has gone out and you can’t seem to get it to spark again, the One Lock, One Key Illumination Session may be for you. It's a pilot offer with special pricing for the first 20 people who sign up here.

 

Want more tips? Check out all my previous Creative Pep Talks in this playlist!

Could you leave a review? It's really easy, and it helps SO much. Thanks! 

If you'd like to stay up to date on things like my courses and also get podcast and event updates, and my latest musings, subscribe to The Spark! 

Listen Again: Harnessing Nature's Wisdom with Jocelyn Hastie

We're seeing out 2025 with Jocelyn Hastie, another favorite episode from this year, and well worth revisiting.  I'll be back with some fabulous all-new interviews in 2026!

Original release date: May 21, 2025

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Jocelyn Hastie spent 30 years as an accountant before the combination of a stage 4 cancer diagnosis and a sudden job loss forced a radical turn, leading her to work full-time with horses as a way to foster leadership skills and personal growth. She joins me to talk about why it’s not fair to judge accountancy as boring, how bad management and leadership happens (including her own realization that she was a bad manager), what we lose when we forget the lessons of the natural world and our roots in it, what we can learn from the animals around us—including horses—and more.

Read about a lesson I learned from Jocelyn here.

Episode breakdown:

00:00 Introduction

04:25 Family influence suppressed creativity; art rediscovered after cancer diagnosis.

08:32 Jocelyn reflects on common misconceptions about accounting creativity.

12:39 Accountants add value, not just boring number crunchers.

16:32 Jocelyn’s career choice influenced by her father and education.

20:06 Radical life change after cancer and job loss in 2016.

24:35 Horses revealed Jocelyn's management flaws; learned new leadership styles.

28:09 Importance of authenticity and boundaries, not pleasing everyone.

32:25 Animals and nature as teachers for leadership and mindfulness.

36:05 Jocelyn describes her non-riding retreats and somatic awareness.

40:34 Emphasizes intentional learning versus just-in-case learning.

44:05 Life shifts can come from crisis or noticing “little knocks.”

48:54 Childhood expectations shaped independence; cancer forced acceptance of help.

52:23 Lessons from herd dynamics and horses’ instinct to regain calm.

56:07 Gestalt coaching emphasizes honoring emotions and shaking off fear.

 

If you’ve been tearing up when you encounter other people’s art because you’ve lost touch with your own, we should talk.

Check out the full show notes (now including transcripts!) at fycuriosity.com, and connect with me and fellow creatives on Substack.

Please leave a review for this episode—it’s really easy and will only take a minute, and it really helps me reach new listeners. Thanks!

If you enjoyed our conversation, I hope you’ll share it with a friend.

Listen Again: Creative Pep Talk #58: Do Nothing

Here's a holiday reminder: it's okay to do nothing while you're off work until the new year. And I hope you have a great time, whatever your holiday looks like!

Original release date: May 31, 2023

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It may sound counterintuitive, but doing nothing can be really good for you. (If you just felt your whole body relax at the mere thought, that's a sign!) I'll tell you why in this short episode.

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Get the 6 Creative Beliefs that Are Screwing You Up, plus biweekly updates on what's going on in my world (including upcoming events) for free!

I'd love to hear your feedback, questions, and experience with these ideas! Send me a note at fycuriosity.com, or contact me on Post.news, Spoutible, and Mastodon!

Listen Again: Stories, Dreams, and Tuskegee with Robert Constant

Because of the way the December holidays fall this year, I'm doing two Listen Again episodes this month, with two favorite episodes from this year. I hope you'll enjoy this interview with children's author and higher ed fundraiser Robert Constant, whether you're revisiting it or hearing it for the first time.

Original release date: January 15, 2025

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Robert Constant works in higher education fundraising by day, but his side passion is writing children’s books. He is the published author of two children’s books, Hey Tuskegee! and Hello Grandma!, both of which have spent time on Amazon’s bestsellers lists for their category. Robert talks with me about how your creative dream may change your life—and it may change someone else’s, too; that you don’t have enough energy because you’re not doing your creativity, not the other way around; and the fact that it has never been easier for most people to follow their creative dreams than it is right now.

Join us for Make Bad Art starting on January 20 and get 2025 off to a fresh creative start! Details at MakeBadArtCourse.com. 

Episode breakdown:

00:00 Introduction

01:18 Dreaming of creating, jazz club inspiration.

09:56 University licensed book for bookstore sale.

14:19 Inspiring Tuskegee history: educate, inspire, acknowledge excellence.

17:27 Positive Tuskegee spirit highlighted through historic pride.

24:25 Writing a book changed my life positively.

31:40 Experiencing book signing events feels surreal.

33:39 Signed a book for an appreciative fan.

38:39 The singular experience of seeing your book for the first time.

46:06 City buzz inspires thoughts on future books.

51:13 Fight for self-control and personal ownership.

56:02 The value of finding the way that works for you.

 

Want more? Here's a handy playlist with all my previous interviews with guests in writing.

 

Check out the full show notes (now including transcripts!!) at fycuriosity.com, and connect with me and fellow creatives on Substack.

Please leave a review for this episode—it’s really easy and will only take a minute, and it really helps me reach new listeners. Thanks!

If you enjoyed our conversation, I hope you’ll share it with a friend.

 

 

Listen Again: CPT #94: The Secret to Holiday Joy

This message from last year might not just change your holiday, but also your whole life:

If you feel like you've lost the joy in the holiday season, you may be overlooking the very simple secret to finding it. I explain how to reclaim it in this short episode (spoiler: it applies to more than just the holidays!).

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Could you leave a review? It's really easy, and it helps SO much. Thanks!

 

Holiday Joy Quest 2025

In this week's pep talk episode, I talked about doing less so you can be more in the moment and create a holiday that feels the way you want it to feel.

I've decided to create a weeklong quest to help you do exactly that, and I hope you'll join me. 

We start on December 15, 2025, and it's free and open to everyone. Learn more and sign up here.

Creativity Doesn't Need Permission with Safiya Robinson

My guest today is Safiya Robinson, a storylistener, writer, and explorer of creativity. She is the author of two books and the host of the Writing Black Joy podcast, a space that celebrates the joyful narratives of Black creatives. Her work centers joy, authenticity, and the belief that creativity doesn’t need permission. In addition, she is a keen world traveller who uses her writing to explore her experiences and philosophy on life. Safiya and I talk about our perceptions of creativity, what writing does for us, how AI may be interfering with those benefits (and when it can be very useful), the power of putting your work out there, what we’ve both learned from choral singing, and more.

 

Episode breakdown:

00:00 Introduction

04:07 Childhood experiences with writing, music, and letter writing.

08:11 Discovering creativity as an adult, redefining what creativity means.

12:13 Leaning into creativity, starting a blog at age 39.

16:23 Making space for creativity and keeping it alive.

20:25 The impact of AI on student creativity and writing.

24:08 Outsourcing creativity to AI and the value of writing.

28:08 AI and the creative process.

32:00 When AI is useful for cover letters but not for art.

36:02 The balance between making creativity accessible and keeping human uniqueness.

40:05 The origins of Writing Black Joy.

44:10 The courage required to share creative work publicly and its impact.

 

Want more? Here's a handy playlist with all my previous interviews with guests in writing.

 

Check out the full show notes (now including transcripts!) at fycuriosity.com, and connect with me and fellow creatives on Substack.

Please leave a review for this episode—it’s really easy and will only take a minute, and it really helps me reach new listeners. Thanks!

If you enjoyed our conversation, I hope you’ll share it with a friend.

CPT #118: What Pro Athletes Know that Creative Perfectionists Need to Learn

Ever feel like your creative work has to be perfect every single time? In this episode of "Follow Your Curiosity," I share that elite athletes only succeed half the time—and why creative people should lower their expectations and embrace imperfection, too. Discover how shifting your mindset can help you get unstuck, trust the process, and keep going, even if you miss more "shots" than not. If you believe every project you start has to turn out well, this episode is for you.

If watching your kids build a pillow fort makes you wonder where the heck that zany, wild, playful part of yourself went... the Stop Performing, Start Living Reset may be for you! It's a pilot offer with special pricing for the first 20 people who sign up. Contact me for more.