Grief and creativity might seem like opposites, but they can actually work together to fuel your growth. As entrepreneurs and creatives, we often face losses—whether personal or professional—that challenge our ability to stay inspired.
We are all dealing with loss of some kind. Maybe it’s a loved one or a significant life change…but very likely it’s all the micro-griefs that comes with running a business, the identity shifts that occur as you grow your business, and the expectations of the life or business you thought you “should” have by now.
Micro griefs also include:
- Friends not knowing what you do or how to support you.
- Who you believed to be a perfect client and realizing it’s not a good fit.
- Invoices not being paid.
- Clients ghosting.
- Evolving, things you lose as you and your brand get bigger.
Yet, these very experiences can unlock new layers of depth in our work.
Grief Doesn’t Have To Silence Your Creativity
Instead, it can guide you toward more authentic and powerful expression.
I certainly never expected to have a grief coach on this podcast, but I haven’t stopped thinking about our conversation since we hit record.
Shelby Forsythia is a grief coach of over eight years helping people from all walks of life navigate life’s hardest transitions and begin to move forward. She guides her clients to create meaningful lives that honor and include the heartbreaks they’ve faced. Her work has been featured in Huffington Post, Bustle, and The Oprah Magazine.
She guides us in exploring how grief, in all its forms, can reveal your core values and inspire creativity. You’ll discover how to integrate these emotions into your creative process, and navigate grief while reclaiming your creative spark.
By the end of this post, you’ll see how embracing grief can lead to more meaningful content, deeper connections with your audience, and a renewed sense of purpose in your work. Let’s dive into how you can harness grief and creativity to build something beautiful from your experiences.
How Heartbreak and Disappointment Can Be An Indicator of Your Biggest Values
Grief and creativity go hand in hand, especially for entrepreneurs and creatives. As we process the losses, we also find new ways to express, adapt, and grow. Rather than running from these emotions, embracing grief allows us to tap into our authenticity and create work that resonates on a deeper level.
That creative spark you thought was lost may actually be waiting to emerge, influenced and enhanced by the very grief you’re working through. This process allows us to connect with our audience more genuinely, turning vulnerability into a powerful tool for storytelling and business growth.
Grief isn’t just about sadness—it’s a multifaceted experience. It changes how we write, communicate, and even market our ideas. It invites us to see the world differently, making our words richer and more relatable. By embracing both the challenges and opportunities that grief presents, we get two benefits. One is that it can transform pain into purpose. Two, is that it creates meaningful, impactful content that truly connects with others.
Whether we’re grieving a significant loss or experiencing micro griefs, these moments of pain often point directly to what matters most to us.
Grief and creativity can work together.
When you feel heartbroken or disappointed, ask yourself, “What’s on the other side of this?” You’ll likely discover that the very thing causing you grief aligns with a core value.
For example, if you’re an entrepreneur feeling isolated, the grief might stem from your deep value of connection. Recognizing that allows you to take action, like joining a community or seeking out meaningful interactions.
In copywriting, understanding grief and creativity can also lead to more authentic, relatable content. If you know what you value, you can use that to shape your messaging.
It’s not about painting over grief with toxic positivity; it’s about embracing the fullness of those emotions and turning them into something meaningful.
Think about it this way—if someone criticized your writing as “too cheerful” or “fake,” you might realize you value authenticity and depth. These insights, sparked by grief, can help you refine your voice. Whether you’re writing as a coach or for yourself, use these experiences to connect more deeply with your audience. Grief, when embraced, can be the key to unlocking your most creative and impactful work.
What would insult you if people said that about your writing? The other side of that are your values.
Does Grief Affect Creativity?
Grief can feel like it robs us of our creativity, but it doesn’t have to be permanent. The question isn’t just “How do I get my creativity back?”—it’s “How can I create while grieving?”
This is a common struggle many face. Clients often say, “I’ve lost the desire to create.” Whether it’s journaling, painting, or any form of creative expression, grief can make once-loved activities feel impossible. But here’s the key: creativity and grief can coexist.
Grief robs us of our creativity—here’s how we can get it back
One way to approach this is by acknowledging grief as part of your process. I tell clients to add “while grieving” to their daily tasks. For example, “I’m writing while grieving,” or “I’m taking out the trash while grieving.” This simple practice honors the presence of grief and gives compassion to your efforts. You’re no longer just staring at a blank page; you’re recognizing the added emotional weight you’re carrying.
Another helpful strategy is to adjust your creative expectations. Start small. Maybe you don’t write an entire story or create a detailed painting right away. Instead, try a shorter form—haikus, sketches, or quick journal entries. Allow your grief to be part of the process without demanding perfection from yourself.
Grief means you’re doing everything for the first time again. Give yourself permission to let it be private first. You don’t have to make your art or your writing public right away. Keep identifying as a creative person, even if “grief brain” robs your focus and concentration. What will you do with what remains?
You can even use ChatGPT to analyze how you’ve written in the past to help you create that again in the future. That can help banish the blinking cursor—even if you don’t stick to the structure you had before.
Grief and creativity can work together. By accepting that grief changes how you create, you can begin to rediscover your creative spark—one step at a time.
The 5-step GRIEF Framework To Return To Life After Loss
Grief can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t mean the end of your creativity. In fact, integrating grief into your creative process can be a powerful way to heal. So how do you start?
Let’s dive into Shelby’s five-step grief framework, designed to build a good life from the life that loss forced you to live—and help you regain your creative spark, too.
- Ground – The first step is to ground yourself in safety. After a loss, the world feels unpredictable. You need a sense of security to begin moving forward. Whether it’s practicing mindfulness or spending time in nature, find what makes you feel steady.
- Release – Next, release the things that can’t come with you. Grief doesn’t just mean losing a person; it can mean letting go of a former identity or old routines. By creating small rituals, you acknowledge these losses and begin to free yourself from their weight.
- Integrate – Now, it’s time to weave grief into your life. Everything you do—whether it’s writing, working, or even socializing—will carry the lens of grief. And that’s okay. This step helps you adjust to seeing the world differently while still allowing you to function creatively.
- Establish – Set boundaries around your grief. Not everyone will know how to support you, and that’s okay. Determine who in your life can honor your grief and who can’t. This step empowers you to protect your emotional energy.
- Foster – Finally, foster a long-term relationship with grief. Grief is not a temporary guest; it stays with you. So how do you live with it? You create a life that welcomes joy, peace, and creativity alongside the presence of grief.
One of the most beautiful parts of going through this framework is that people have said: “You put words to the thing I didn’t have words to before.” Which is so powerful with your copywriting too.
This framework is designed to help you not only survive loss but also thrive with it. Creativity and grief can coexist. The question isn’t about getting rid of grief; it’s about how to create while grieving.
Work With Grief (of any kind) To Get Your Creative Spark Back
If you’ve gone through a hard season and need someone who gets it. If it would feel good to have someone hold space for you and support your expression professionally through copywriting…I invite you to check out my Services Guide to see how working together could best support you in this season.
I am a deep listener. I hold space for you (ALL of you), clarify what you are actually trying to say, and then write it so that it sounds like you and converts better.
Connect With Our Guest, Shelby Forsythia
Shelby Forsythia (she/her) is a grief coach, author, and podcast host. In 2020, she founded Life After Loss Academy. This online course and community has helped dozens of grievers grow and find their way after death, divorce, diagnosis, and other major life transitions.
Following her mother’s death in 2013, Shelby began calling herself a “student of grief” and now devotes her days to reading, writing, and speaking about loss. Through a combination of mindfulness tools and intuitive, open-ended questions, she guides her clients to welcome grief as a teacher and create meaningful lives that honor and include the heartbreaks they’ve faced. Her work has been featured in Huffington Post, Bustle, and The Oprah Magazine.
Take Shelby’s free workshop to get powerful, compassionate tools for moving forward (without being forced to “get over it”) and learn how to create a life of peace, purpose, hope, and joy—EVEN after devastating loss.
