Transformation- Making your own rules one stumble at a time

I write this blog post to confess to falling off the wagon!


Transforming your real job into a creative one is more than meets the eye. 

I know a lot of you can relate this mindset........

“If I could own my own business and make my own hours  life would be so______”
“If I could paint (sing, write, cook, sew, etc)  for a living instead of working this job life would be so________”

After you make those leaps of faith there is another list of “If” statements with a blank at the end.  They read something like......

“If I can get in this show life will be_________”
“If I can get past this show life will be________”
“If I can get this commission done life will be________”


As it turns out, a life on your own terms (as fantastic as it is) is filled with tiny intricacies that you did not anticipate.  The largest one being the ole “the buck stops here” thingy.   The good and the bad of it is pass or fail......Your name is on the door/ sign/ business card/ blog post/ fb page or, in my case, painting. 

My decision to make my hobby my work was really about what type of person I wanted to become.  I wanted to be the kind of person with a strong work ethic and a great mind.  I wanted my work to demand an excellence from me both professionally and personally.  One of my idols,  Eleanor Roosevelt, once said, "People with great minds talk about IDEAS.  Average minds talk about EVENTS.  Small minds talk about PEOPLE.  And the smallest of minds talk about THEMSELVES.”   I wanted to constantly be evolving away from being one of the small minded people.

I once read a quote that said “creativity ultimately comes down to discipline”.  I thought that meant work hard.  I pictured myself hanging out in some bright colored space, surrounded by my pretty things and just making dreams come true easily because I AM disciplined!  Stressing over getting in a show, several nerve racking months getting ready for said shows, trying to get an inventory, marketing, websites, client expectations, galleries......blah blah blah.......Boy did I learn what that quote meant!  I came face to face with creative and personal blocks.  Mine being of the mental variety-  Not managing time well, being a workaholic, control issues, perfectionism, gossiping, and filling my mind with junk.  My serene studio in my head had become a junk pile of chaos.  It became abundantly clear that to strive for greatness......it was my MIND that needed the discipline!  That realization lead me on a path to much personal growth and satisfaction as well as professional pride and success.

Recently, I have fallen back on my old ways........:(  My offenses- control issues.......mind junk........gossip.  Sure,  facebook stalking, reality TV and gossiping with the girls can be fun.  The price- lack of imagination, negative inner dialogue, that icky feeling when you are not living up to your own personal standards and distancing yourself from the people who can see through you and your bullshit.  I can go through the motions like the best of them but is that what I made the leap of faith for?  In the last few weeks I have asked myself.... "Self......What kind of mind are you?”.  Let’s just say the answer was not a great mind.  It was much like that feeling after a night of going out to dinner with friends and then you end up singing karaoke till 2 am in some hell hole after doing jello shots when you have to get up early.  Your head is closer than it ever should be to a toilet and you just say ....”really, is this fun?” 

I know this all sounds so dramatic!  My ideas about life and the pursuit of happiness used to be so out or whack that I would have never even noticed before.  I would have just chalked my funk up to needing a vacation, a new outfit or a girls night out and I would have done all three.   I just want so much out of life and I really don't want to be the one tossing the hand grenade onto my peaceful lovely life. 

So, the school of “Transforming your real job into a creative life” gave me this homework below and so far.......this has been a GREAT week!  Just in time for show season and the holidays.  As usual......Grateful for the velvet hammer- life.

How to enhance your creativity: Links between Creativity and Emotions 

Negative emotions (like fear) are designed to make us focus narrowly on a threat (e.g. is that moving thing a snake?).  Positive emotions (like feeling happy or upbeat) are designed to make us want to explore, try new things, learn new information, and build relationships with other people. Positive emotions signal to us that the current environment is safe enough that we can do things to prepare for the future. When people are experiencing positive emotions, they tend to look at the whole picture rather than details (i.e. attention is broader).

1. Developing closer relationships
2. Imagining a positive future
3. Mindfulness/ meditation
4. Expressing gratitude (either verbally or by writing down grateful thoughts, or through actions),
5. Doing kind acts for others
6. Exercise
 7. Spending time in nature
8. Reducing avoidance
9. Learning to dispute negative thoughts
10. Reducing gossip and sarcasm
11. Assessing your media diet and reducing your intake of negatively toned news/entertainment
12. Learning how to effectively deal with interactions with other people that trigger negative emotions in you