A creative garden is the space you set up to play with new ideas to see how they grow. It’s like an incubator for cool ideas and inspirations you want to simmer a bit longer. The seeds you plant could be for your business, career or personal life - whatever feels intriguing but doesn’t require immediate action. The class you were thinking of attending or developing? It’s a seed in your creative garden. Your latest passion for biking? It’s in there too. Thinking of trying … [Read more...]
Gratitude for All Your Creative Helpers, Even the Ones that Sting
April 3, 2014 By Leave a Comment
The act of creating is very personal, but how you choose to express the inner self is always influenced by external creative helpers. Some are loving and supportive, sharing encouragement and reflecting your light so you can view yourself in a more objective way. Other “helpers” are the nay-sayers or challengers, the people and personalities that get you to stand your ground or question the authenticity of your creative identity. You need both kinds of creative helpers to help you … [Read more...]
Balancing Tension Between Productivity and Creative Flow
March 6, 2014 By 2 Comments
Productivity is a common benchmark for determining perceived value in the world of work, but while ticking items off a to-do list can feel fulfilling, using the same approach to measure the value of your creative flow falls flat. That’s why you may sometimes feel a sense of underlying tension around expressing yourself creatively - there’s no set way to determine the value of the effort. You just need to trust the act of creating is valuable, and that can feel awkward for people used to more … [Read more...]
Weekly Creativity Kick-Start: Break One of your Own Rules
February 24, 2014 By Leave a Comment
Have you ever thought about where you stand in your relationship with rules around creativity or self-expression? Are you a rule breaker and trend setter, or do you find comfort in a bit of conformity because it keeps you feeling safer, less exposed? Maybe you just complain about the rules in society or work and how they impact your creativity because changing them feels overwhelming. But there is another possibility… Are you building and enforcing your own rules around creative expression, … [Read more...]
Weekly Creativity Kick-Start: Say 3 Nice Things to Yourself Every Day
February 17, 2014 By Leave a Comment
It’s so easy to let a whole day go by without saying even one nice thing to yourself. In fact, I bet it’s not even something that crosses your mind during the day...yet, if someone else gives you a compliment, you cherish it. In fact, you probably live on the creative high the whole day! Why is this distinction important? The inspiration to create comes when you feel safe and confident in who you are and believe in what you are creating. So, if you aren’t providing … [Read more...]
Weekly Creativity Kick-start: Release with Peace
February 10, 2014 By Leave a Comment
In a “doing” culture that constantly focuses on growth and moving forward, it’s easy to overlook the beauty of sweet release and how it can expand your creativity. There’s only so much head and heart space available and when it’s cluttered with old fears, disappointments or other people’s problems, creative inspiration can get crowded out of the picture altogether. So do you have a release plan, or in other words, a way to bless and finally let go of what has served you but is now free to … [Read more...]
Weekly Creativity Kick-Start: Find Your Space
January 13, 2014 By Leave a Comment
For this week's creativity kick-start tip I wanted to talk about the location of "your space". Where you decide to decompress or tune in to your inner creative guidance is just as important as what you do once you settle in for this special personal time. So where is yours? I have a few go-to spots, some indoors and some outside. I like to switch them up depending on the time of day and where I'm at in my mental space. If I'm too cued up and in my head, I go for a walk or sit out in the grass … [Read more...]
The Beauty of Living Life Open-Ended
October 11, 2012 By Leave a Comment
As a professional writer I'm trained to get things exact. Hit the target. Get a reaction. Maximize the word choice. Make an impact and make it count. All honorable things to shoot for in impeccable journalism or marketing-based writing. When the same approach is used as a way to look at life -- not so much. Often we view our experiences as "if I just knew, if I could just figure out. if they would just" and then we slowly trail off down the rabbit hole, succumbing to a whole new realm of … [Read more...]
The Importance of Rest, Integration and Patience for Spiritual Growth
July 20, 2012 By Leave a Comment
This year has brought extremes and changes in all parts of our lives -- personal relationships, politics, finance, institutions, health, family and most importantly, our core beliefs about all of it. With all the planetary shifts in addition to our personal ones, it can feel a bit like being railroaded, and you may be unsure how to manage things without feeling like the chaos is taking over. The truth is, chaos leads to clarity — eventually. But if you are not making time … [Read more...]
There’s the Truth and then There’s the “Truth”
June 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment
How do you know something is true for you? Do you feel it? Just know it? Experience tingles along your skin or a spring in your step? How about a pang in your gut that’s ooey gooey and eases through your body seamlessly? Sensations can sometimes be more obvious when you are standing at a crossroads or making big life decisions, but you can also feel them fleetingly when something synchronistic happens in your life and reflects your personal truth. But have you ever examined where your truths … [Read more...]