How To Shatter And Challenge Cultural Stereotypes In The Creative Sense

Posted on 10 December 2015 by Mabel Kwong

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There are times when cultural stereotypes hold us back from going after our dreams and creative passions. As an Asian Australian of Chinese descent, I’ve often felt this way. But then there are also times when we somehow find the strength and spark of courage to challenge expectations that we have of ourselves, and the expectations others have of us.

For a long time, I struggled to call myself a writer. My migrant Malaysian parents encouraged me to pay more attention to maths and science subjects at school – and I did and was much better at them than English. Today, I have written a blog.

I see someone out there. Florence and the Machine, Melbourne 10 November 2015 | Weekly Photo Challenge: Eye Spy.

Culture needn’t be a barrier towards what we can achieve if we have self-belief. Finding that self-belief, however, usually means standing up to what we’ve always believed in.

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Why It’s Hard Being A Blogger. And Why Some Asians Find It Hard To Be Creative

Posted on 8 October 2015 by Mabel Kwong

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Blogging. It’s a space where we are creative and share creativity. Our writing. Photography. Fashion tips. Handmade craft. But blogging and creativity don’t always come easy, sometimes perhaps more so if we’re Asian.

Next week marks three years since I started this blog. Three years of being a multicultural blogger writing about all things culture and what makes Australia, Australia. In all honesty, it’s been challenging getting inspired and weaving words into sentences for every blog post.

Creativity knows no boundaries. The beauty of each sunset knows no boundaries | Weekly Photo Challenge: Boundaries.

Creativity is about seeing the light, connecting ideas. It’s about discovering solutions to problems and seeing the same thing in different shades and from different angles. Each of us believes in certain values and stereotypes – two things that might hold us back from being the creative person whom we want to be.

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Reasons To Wake Up Early

Posted on 14 August 2014 by Mabel Kwong

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Early mornings. Some of us like them and have our reasons for waking up early.

I’m not a fan of waking up early. Don’t like waking up before 9 a.m. But since I have a day job, I have to and grudgingly drag myself out of bed at early on weekdays. And I’ve come to see the upsides of rising early.

Layers of fog, layers of colour on a winter Melbourne morning | Photo Challenge: Texture.

Layers of fog, layers of colour on a winter Melbourne morning | Weekly Photo Challenge: Texture.

Some of us wake up early because we want to get going with our day. We wake up early because we have to – we need to make breakfast, do the laundry or maybe do some exercise. We also wake up early so we can do what we want to do.

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