Productivity Toolbox: The Next Right Action

This was originally posted on Scoutie Girl earlier this year. I'm repeating it here because a) it's still relevant and b) I could bear to read it again. Feeling overwhelmed with a few tasks before me this morning, I pulled this tool out of my productivity toolbox and lo & behold, I got moving.

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The other day someone asked me how I managed to accomplish what I’ve accomplished these past several months. My answer? One action at a time.

Of course I used planning and productivity tools along the way, it’s what I do, but at the crux of getting things done lies a simple, powerful tool: the next right action.

You have a goal; you may have several. You want to make them happen, but you feel scattered or stymied and don’t know where to start. Stop, take a deep breath, and ask yourself: "What am I trying to do here? What’s my next action?"

Is it sending the email? Researching your local craft fair options (15 minutes is all it takes to get started!)? Maybe it’s putting the finishing touches on that painting or writing up the listing description.

Or, maybe it’s a massive brainstorming session to get all of those ideas out of your head and onto paper.

You don’t need to figure it all out now, just figure out what needs to be done next. Then do it.

Keep taking that next right action and I swear, without your even noticing it, things will get done.

I dare you to try it and see for yourself.

On productivity and play...

creative play with dandelion, before & after pics (created using GIMP)

Yesterday I spent the afternoon playing with images in GIMP, a free image manipulation program with features similar to Photoshop. I let go of must-do's and played, with no expectations.

I ended up:

~ stumbling upon an image, by digitally modifying one of my photos, that would be a perfect book jacket for a book, thus inspiring me to start researching its publication,

~ drafting a poster for a project that's brewing,

~ figuring out how to transform images in a new-to-me way, opening up many, many creative possibilities for new products,

~ designing two new greeting cards for the shop, with two more in draft state, and

~ experiencing a powerful wave of creative energy that I hadn't experienced in a while, motivating me to carry on with my creative biz.

Right brain play translated into new projects and a renewed energy to carry them through.

The moral of this story?

Unstructured, creative play can be just as valuable to productivity and business as goals and to-do lists.

Try it. You might be surprised at the results.

Scoutie Girl Blog Post

It's time for another blog post on Scoutie Girl. This week I muse about success factors and what could be put in place to increase our chances of meeting our goals. I want to know: what are your success factors?

And if you missed my previous post there a few weeks ago, go check it out! Called A Procrastinator's Guide to Procrastination, it's where I finally come clean: I'm a planning geek who procrastinates. <gasp!>

Where I'm At

"She didn't always know what the Universe was trying to tell her, but she trusted it,

knowing that it was perfectly stitched together, just for her."

(prints available here, cards here)

I have three draft posts ready to go, but none of them seems fitting. Instead, I offer you a glimpse into my headspace these days. Thank you for letting me indulge.

~ I am drawn to images, colour and space. To visuals that entice me to step inside and get lost in the breath of possibility and the surreal.

~ I feel a need to let my right brain take over for a while and give my left brain a rest. I feel called to soften my approach: less striving, more unfolding.

~ I want to make art and make it available, to deliver colour to those who seek it.

~ I want to be still, and receive. During the past three weeks, I've added a meditation practice of sorts to my morning pages ritual. It's provided me with insights - some practical, some bewildering, all welcome.

~ I feel an urge to express myself in words and images: time at the art table and at the keyboard, braindumps of words and ideas flowing from my fingertips. So many things are bubbling at the surface.

~ I am not sure how to deal with my return to 9-5 work, three days a week. I welcome the promise of a paycheck. I fear the break in freedom of time and space that I've enjoyed during the past 11 months.

~ I am taking stock, re-visiting my priorities, solidifying my definition of meaningful work, making sure that what I am building supports the life I want to create overall.

~ I trust that all will be well. Deeply.

Photo Pause: Of Earth, Wood and Stone

A temporary pause from words, to let the visual speak.

These images are the result of impromptu and cathartic camera play at Squam Art Workshops (Squam Lake, New Hampshire) a few weeks ago. I am drawn to their earthy pull; it has a very grounding effect on me.

moss on rock

spiral bark

the gulf

orange 'shroom

white rock and pinecone

a soft spot to land, and grow

lichen in afternoon sun

sunny moss on stump