In The Works... (or Life is Full)

So. Many. Exciting things in the works...

• painting, painting, painting, stretching out of my comfort zone, trying new things

 

a step outside of my creative comfort zone that's leaving

me both perplexed and exhilarated

• working on new items to put in the shop
• 100 iPad Faces project (54 and counting!)
• agreeing to be the subject of a mini-documentary/artist profile for a local film student's class assignment
• a new Website, learning how to build it using Wordpress
• "springifying" my home, tidying up the studio, renewing my physical spaces
• exploring poetry and reporting back via Weekend Poetry Dates here, in honour of National Poetry Month
• spring hikes with D., playing with my camera

baby pine cones, all in a row - Mud Lake, Ottawa

• working with a consultation client to help her fulfill her calling, witnessing how her eyes light up with inspiration when the a-ha moment hits
• new juicy service offerings to help YOU fulfill your calling

Oh my, such goodness and such creative energy! It must be spring.

Less Control, More Trust

part of a work in progress on the art table,

painting is often a good way to quiet my mind and connect to my Higher Power

"Letting go of my insistence for immediate gratification, I relax into the better working-out of details and dimensions hidden from my view."

~ Julia Cameron, Prayers to the Great Creator

This past weekend I erased my whiteboard full of plans and to-do's to make room for Ms Cameron's words above. When I physically cringed at the first swipe of the eraser I realized just how much I needed them in full view.

These days my insistence for immediate gratification is high and my ability to relax into the better working-out of details by something bigger than myself - the Universe, my Higher Power, whatever you want to call it - is low. I'm not trusting, I'm trying to control. A lot. Frankly it's draining.

Though my chest tightens at the thought, it's time to loosen the grip. A little less control, a little more trust.

Thank you Ms Cameron for the reminder.

~~~

Are there parts of your life that could benefit from a bit of letting go? How do you feel about loosening your grip and seeing how things unfold?

Featured on Do What You Love

A quickie post to let you know that I'm happy and grateful to be featured on Beth Nicholls' Do What You Love Shared Stories today!

I love how she paired me with someone who seems like a kindred spirit going through a similar journey - but of course we all are right?

Check out our stories and all the other stories from folks doing what they love. It's a gathering of inspiration.

Productivity and the Importance of White Space

an example of purple space

Working at home with no one to report to but myself is prompting me to search for optimum - heck I'll settle for sustainable - work patterns that aren't forced on me by a 9-5 work day.

About two weeks ago I gave myself a mental health day: I put my to-do list aside and let my intuition guide my actions for an entire day. I liked it so much I decided to try it for a full week.

What I discovered is the importance of obligation-free time, or white space.

Designers and visual artists know that deliberate white space can make or break a piece. Lo & behold, deliberate white space in one's schedule can make or break productivity too.

In the frenzy and panic around creating revenue I forgot to allow myself time to just be, time to synthesize all I'd taken in and done over the past two months and let it gel.

Last week's deliberate increase in white space allowed time for insights and words to crop up. It generated plans, paintings in progress and service descriptions in the form of journal entries. It created flexibility and flow.

This week my intuition tells me it's time to take action. It's time to take the plans, the works in progress and the journal entries and firm them up into something tangible and complete. I feel rested and ready to do so. Reducing white space in my schedule is as much a deliberate choice as increasing it.

'Tis a fine and tricky line sometimes this quest for optimal sustainable productivity. Luckily if I'm not sure what to do, a gut check is usually all it takes to set me in the right direction.

~~~

How do you create more white space in your schedule? How do you know when it's time to reduce it?

Work Transition: The New Mental Health Day

a messy but fun stint at the art table during my mental health day

When I worked in an office and needed a mental health day I stayed home. Now that I work at home, what am I supposed to do?

The conundrum presented itself yesterday and left me scratching my head.

I thought of getting out of the house, but didn't feel like it. Then I toyed with the idea of a computer-free day, but that didn't appeal to me either.

So what did I do?

I decided to follow my intuition the entire day and go only where I felt drawn, putting aside my to-do list entirely. <gasp>

Here's where that led me:

~ I started a running "Ta-Dah list" (thank you Ms Julia Cameron, for introducing me to the concept!) that includes all the stuff I accomplished during the past eight weeks, lest I start berating myself for being incompetent because I haven't secured a solid revenue yet. Then I had a conversation with myself about expectations.

~ I wiped my office whiteboard clean and brainstormed about what's on my plate and what's coming up.

~ I had a second conversation with myself about expectations.

~ I started recording meals and snacks in my food journal again.

~ I did laundry and dishes.

~ I picked up a book that had been sitting in my library bag for a week and read perfectly timed passages.

~ I fished out a workbook I paid for years ago and again, flipped through perfectly timed worksheets.

~ I caught up on Facebook.

~ I painted.

~ I made homemade soup.

~ I wrote this post.

~ I vowed I wouldn't bore you with the minutia of my day.

I never cease to be amazed at the little things that are cropping up during this journey, things like how the heck do I take a mental health day when work is stuff I used to do on a mental health day when I worked in the office?!

Seriously, I'd never thought of that.

~~~

What do you do on a mental health day? Do you work at home or in an office environment?