EP (50) Christina Hug: Unleashing Our Creativity and Inner Maker With a Community Focused on DIY, Design and Tech
It's funny how in life, we play so much as a child and often leave that behind as we get older.
Well, when Christina was living in San Francisco, working in the startup environment and putting in the long hours, she made it apart of her weekly life to have a date with herself. But this wasn't any date - it was a creative date. Alone.
She would sign up for DIY courses, drawing classes, a painting class or various other maker type events that would pop up around the city. The opportunities were endless. And she went even if she had never done it before. It was a way for her to dive back into her creativity in a different sense and use her hands to build something from scratch.
Upon returning back to Canada, she tried to find a similar community to get involved with. But once she started researching, it just wasn't to be found. So she went around to all the different maker studios to do her own set of research, and figure out what was missing and how she could help.
Not to really to her surprise, she realized that there was a need for a community website, that listed all the different events for people to get involved with. That's exactly how The Makers Nation was born.
"The Makers Nation is an organization that seeks to coalesce the art, tech, design, and maker communities in cities around the world. Our approach is twofold: we develop resources like the Makers Digest to expose larger audiences to the crazy-awesome maker activities happening in their cities, and we put on events that allow innovators, thinkers, and doers to meet, collaborate, learn, and make things."
They believe everyone has the ability to be creative. It's likely that a lot of us just forgot how to be creative as adults, or got scared to be for fear of criticism - either from ourselves or others.
There are over 10 cities around the world that have signed up to 'unlock' their city - which means that Christina works with a city organizer every week to get a list of events that are happening and adds them to a weekly 'Digest' newsletter.
Her goal is to bring a community together, open up the doors to people who want to learn new skills, unleash their own creativity and get vulnerable with the process.
If you're interested in getting involved with a makers community, check out The Makers Nation website, and even consider unlocking your own city!
SOME QUESTIONS I ASKED:
Have you always been a creative person?
What did you do in San Francisco before coming back to Toronto?
How did you know that The Makers Nation was what the community needed?
What was your research process before launching the community?
Are you working on The Makers Nation full time, or do you have a side hustle that pays the bills?
How have you been able to connect with all these cities around the world?
What types of events and programs does The Makers Nation offer?
What is your big hope for this community?
Have any interesting opportunities presented itself since you launched this community?
And so much more...
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:
How creativity can expand other areas of your life
The vast community of creative makers in your city and what you can get involved with
Different events, such as Meet and Make
How to grow your email list when you're just starting out
Why everything isn't always what it seems, and how to manage expectations
Different ways to stay motivated as an entrepreneur when times get tough
How thinking outside of the box will help you as a maker and with your creative process
Why you should go and be a 'sheep farmer' before you get a 'real job'
The importance of a newsletter when you are launching a community
And lots more...
OTHER LINKS:
CONNECT WITH Christina & Makers Nation
WEBSITE | C INSTAGRAM | MN INSTAGRAM | TWITTER | MN TWITTER
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Edited by: James Nicholson