On Design and Life...*

 

my super-comfy, super-functional, red potato peeler

How many hours do you think were put into designing that red potato peeler above? What about our toothbrushes, or our shiny new phones?

Now here's food for thought: how much time and effort do we put into designing our own lives?

Hm.

~~~

Living deliberately, in choice, with intention; reflecting; letting go... these are all part of my personal life design process.

Learning when to add features, adjust what's there, or remove the superfluous; knowing when to push, and when to let things unfold in their natural state.

'Tis a delicate dance.

In the end, whether we're talking about life or an ergonomic shovel, it's about creating a quality user experience with the product.

Food for thought.

~~~

Are there areas in your life that are asking for deliberate design right now?

If so, why?

* This post was brought to you by Objectified, a documentary in which various designers share insights into the design of objects we use every day (see trailer below), plus my love of taking concepts and transposing them into a different context.

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.

Back from Squam Art Workshops (or, Navigating Re-entry)

 

a tiny soft spot to land, and grow

Each year brings a different experience, fulfilling exactly what needs to be fulfilled at that given moment. This is what I've come to discover and accept.

I don't know how to describe this year's Squam Art Workshops experience. Deep knowing. Willful surrender. Anchored exhilaration. These are the words that come to me as I type.

Since this was my fifth time attending, I fully trusted the logistics and social aspects of the retreat. At the superficial level, I was not worried

I was however perplexed by the fact that going in, I felt tight and closed to feeling anything deeply, reluctant to let myself be open to any inner exploration, revelation or connection. That was Wednesday night.

By Thursday morning, about 9:30am, I wept openly and uncontrollably. Reluctance begone. Receiving begin.

I'll be honest, this year's Squam Art Workshops experience has left me a bit like a deer in headlights, wondering a big ol' WTF???

But because the questions that surfaced feel solid and true, I'm willing to sit with them and see where they lead me.

Reluctance begone. Receiving continue.

To all who attended, newbies and seasoned alike, I wish you a gentle re-entry.

More processing to come later...

Work Transition Checkpoint: 10 Months In (In Which The Road Twists)

dream frame with a mini image of Giselle;

winged muse and hand-of-Goddess in the background

"I have long wondered: at what point, if ever, do we say to ourselves or a beloved, 'This dream in this form is not possible. You are not attending to life's realities. You need to regroup.'"

~ Jen Louden

I am choosing to move forward on an opportunity to work three days a week at my former 9-5 job. It was tough decision, and it wasn't. I need the money, plain & simple.

It hurts a little (sometimes more than others) and it's a relief. A familiar, obvious, and attractive choice, these three days will offer a revenue base that will allow me to continue my journey to meaningful work a little more freely.

On the surface, this return to the office may seem like two steps back after a major step forward this past year, and it may be. But more and more I'm choosing to see it as just a step, another phase in my transition to meaningful work until the next one comes along.

More and more I am considering it as an opportunity to serve my dream and move it forward through expanded connections, new experiences gleaned, funds, and as an incentive to focus and prioritize work during my days at home. It may even mean a little more fun.

Everyone knows dreams love fun.

Already the release from financial pressure has left space for renewed excitement about the work I've begun putting out into the world this past year. I feel things percolating, and I'm eager to continue.

In a strange way, this twist in the road is validating the life I want to create, inviting me to question my vision - and solidify it.

My dream is far from dead, it's simply changing form to where it needs to be today.

It's time to regroup.

Bring it.

~~~

If you're struggling with a reality gap when it comes to creating meaningful work - wanting to be at a certain point, but not quite there yet - you're not alone. The blog posts below brought me comfort in navigating and accepting my own gap; I share them here in case they may be of comfort to you.

• Can Dreams Be Dangerous? by Jen Louden
• How To Deal With Disappointment by Beth Reacher, The Career Stylist
• The Life Cycle of a Visionary by Lissa Rankin

On Meaningful Work, Reality Gaps and Divine Timing...

a product of therapeutic camera play, a perfect antidote to gap-induced grumpiness

When it comes to my journey to meaningful and viable work, I am not where I want to be.

Let me clarify: I'm extremely excited and proud of the products and services I offer and the ones I have in the development queue as I type (seriously, LOVE them!). From a fulfillment perspective, I consider my ongoing journey to meaningful work a success.

In conjunction, my desire for meaningful work includes its ability to support me financially. I seek a certain level of comfort and lifestyle, and, in order to consider my journey to meaningful work an overall success, it needs to support that too.

My leave from my former 9-5 gig ends soon, and I must consider my options. I have bills to pay. This is my reality.

Thanks to the generosity of my former manager in offering me a one-year leave last year, I have a fairly obvious option available to me. Returning to my 9-5 job, even if for a few days a week, would ease my financial conundrum considerably. I am grateful.

I am also disappointed. The reality gap of wanting to be financially viable (or at least somewhere close) in my new work, but not being there yet, hurts. Yet, perhaps my expectations were not very realistic to begin with.

I am extremely proud of how far I've come this past year, and of the foundation I am laying every day in my journey to meaningful and financially rewarding work. Never before have I been so eager to get to work each morning. I feel blessed.

This fuels me to go on.

Despite my current reality gap, I still firmly believe that it is possible to do what you love and make a good living out of it; I have no plans of giving up on that. What I'm learning though, is that it may not be on my schedule.

In the meantime, may the journey continue...