In the Works: A Workshop on Creating Intentional Spaces, an Online Shop and More

Despite the break in momentum over the holidays I've still been dreaming, scheming and working on creative business projects. My soul and brain are full - the good kind of full.

Here are a few things in the works...

An online shop

I know I know, this one's been in the works for a while. Last fall I started working on it, this month I plan to finish it. It's coming, I promise!

prints available online, soon!

A workshop on creating intentional spaces

This project came to me quickly and has been growing, consuming me in a very good way. I believe our homes and physical spaces feed us, supporting not only who we are today but who we want to become. Imagine what would happen if we all had spaces that supported us in being the best "us" we could be!

I'm energized by this project and I'm enjoying the process of putting it together. I plan to dry run it locally and see where it leads. I'm also toying with the idea of converting it to an electronic format and offer it here, I think that could be a lot of fun. Stay tuned...

the library nook, one of my favourite spaces in our home

And more

A line of greeting cards, a newsletter, consulting... all projects percolating as I enter the new year.

~~~

It's been a full and inspiring few months since I left my 9-5 job and after playing with many ideas and concepts, this month - or at least this week - is all about playing with specifics.

I'm tapping into my left brain, complementing the power of vision with the power of planning and action. Though I geek out on brainstorming and bubble charts, part of me is a little giddy at the prospect of getting down to plans and spreadsheets. <Hee!>

This work transition journey has been good to me so far, I'm learning a LOT. Thank you for being here along with me. I am grateful.

Work Transition and the Four Pillars

four pillars on crumpled paper

Believe it or not, the four lines scribbled at the top of the crumpled bit of paper you see above are what ultimately prompted me to resign from my 9-5 job.

A few days before I took the leap, I brainstormed on what I would like to contribute through my work (in this specific case I'm talking about paid work, the exercise described below could certainly apply to volunteer work too). I grabbed a few sheets of paper from the printer and started writing without thinking. No edits, just a braindump.

I started by using a format I saw on the Web, filling in blanks under the categories of Intentions, Modus Operandi and Activities (scroll to the bottom of this guy's About page for the initial inspiration, and thanks to Sis for sending it to me!).

Then I moved on to words, quickly jotting down what came to mind about what I value, what I'd like to do and how I'd like to do it. Words like...

learning

respect

compassion

art

beauty

prosperity

play

honesty

expansion

community

trust

and the list goes on...

After re-reading and mulling over what I'd written down I noticed a pattern that led me to four pillars that pretty much encapsulated whatever I was trying to articulate that night:

Art & Creative Expression

Learning & Growth

Business & Productivity

Space & Community

I wanted my work to revolve around at least one, preferably many or a combination of these four things.

Two days later I sat in my cubicle reading these four lines again and again, trying really hard to see if there was a match to be made in my current job. In some cases yes, in others no; overall I knew that I would be navigating against a very strong organizational current.

It was time to try something different.

I'm not sure if I'll ever find or create paid work that involves any or all of the pillars, only time will tell that. What I do know is that the pillars offer a guide, a framework (one of a few) against which I can do a gut check when comes time to make decisions or take action.

That's exactly what I did that morning back in August, right before I walked into my manager's office.

Four lines. All of that.

~~~

How about you? What pillars could guide your current or desired work?

In the Works: Solstice Reflections, Art and an Online Shop

I've been playing with a few creative projects these past few weeks. Here's a glimpse of a few things I  have in the works...

Solstice Reflections 2011

The Winter Solstice holds a special place in my heart. In 2008 I created a space for my personal reflections leading up to December 21st; last year I curated a Winter Solstice group art exhibit right here in Ottawa featuring five local artists.

This year I decided to take it online and offer you a gathering of reflections from a group of lovely women on the spirit of winter and the migration from darkness to light. It starts here December 1st.

Come join us?

AEDM Day 17: purple girl, a work in progress, 16"x16" on canvas

Art, art, and more art

Oh how I'm loving Art Every Day Month. I've been painting up a storm, learning, practicing, taking creative risks and struggling working through the process.

I've come to accept that there may be more pieces in progress at the end of the month than there will be finished ones, but that's OK. So far the process and some of the interim results have been reward enough.

 a selection of prints will soon be available online

An online shop

I'm also hatching an online shop for my artwork! I'll most likely start with some prints and work my way to originals. I'm still firming up the where & how, but it's coming along. Stay tuned.

It's been an expansion-filled few weeks. I am grateful.

Work Transition Checkpoint: Two Weeks In

She Donned Flowers, work in progress, 8"x8" on canvas

It's been two - TWO - weeks already since I've left work. It's time for a few more random thoughts and observations on how my road to transition has been so far...

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I thought I'd spend the first two weeks cleaning up my office/studio. Nope. I spent it kicking off creative  projects, catching up on odds & ends, and making art. A lot of art. In fact, my committing to Art Every Day Month is giving me a welcome focus, maybe even bumping laundry from its spot as my top key productivity indicator <gasp>. (Check out my previous checkpoint for the deal with laundry if you don't know what I'm talking about.)

But today, first day of week 3, I spent about four hours scrubbing the office/studio and it felt. good. More on that to come in another post.

~~~

Hubby and I did our first monthly budget sans my paycheck and it wasn't that bad. I surprised myself at how upbeat I was during the entire thing, knowing full well that I was starting to tap into the savings I'd built up.

I was upbeat right up until I started thinking about a few months down the road and where my savings would be then if I hadn't found a source of revenue. Then I started quietly freaking out at the thought of not knowing where that revenue would eventually come from.

But I caught myself before the downward spiral set in and discovered a new mantra. I gently crooned it to myself as I shuffled around the house: "It's OK to not know. It's OK to not know. It's OK to not know yet..." And then I felt better.

Steph 1. Money fears 0.

For now.

~~~

I am practicing trust - in the Universe and in my own abilities, patience and letting go. A lot. Being still and listening to my intuition is key. I suspect faith in myself and in a Higher Power will play a large role in my transition.

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I planned to give myself the month of November to NOT think about specific revenue streams or creating work, but I'm already starting to think of possibilities. Pieces of the puzzle are becoming clearer, I'm just not sure how they all fit together. But it's OK to not know yet...

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I am loving this being-at-home thing. Seriously loving it. I already have a blissful routine going that involves morning coffee, morning pages, connecting online, writing, maybe some project work and then art-making later in the day. Sometimes I even throw in a little domesticity like dishes or dinner!

I love it. I'd be lying to you if I said I didn't.

~~~

Till the next checkpoint...

Work Transition Checkpoint: First Few Days

the ultimate productivity touchstone: laundry

If I may indulge (spoiler: I will), I thought I'd share a few random thoughts and observations on leaving work and my first few days at home. From the profound to the mundane, a Work Transition Checkpoint...

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Friday was my last day at the office. I spent most of it sifting through, purging and packing up what remained of my cubicle wares, and spent the rest of it saying goodbye to my colleagues. When came time to shut down the computer and leave the office I got emotional. Before leaving I glanced around the empty floor, bawled my way to the parking lot and halfway home. It felt like I was closing a door on major chapter of my life.

Melodramatic? Maybe. Real? Yes.

~~~

Saturday night I spent a few hours working on an introductory PowerPoint slide show/movie for this space, Creative Living Experiment. Ironically that's exactly what I'd been doing during the last two weeks at the office except the subject matter was Business Intelligence.

Funny how I immediately gravitated to what I know. Yes, PowerPoint is my security blanket. And yes, I need to find better things to do on a Saturday night.

~~~

Yesterday was my first "official" day on leave (I had Mondays off so Monday was just another regular day in my book). All of a sudden I became extremely aware that there would be no paychecks coming in anymore, feeling fear and insecurity quickly making their way into my thoughts. I knew that would come, but geez, on Day 1?

I sat with the feelings, journaled about them and worked my way through, realizing that they stem from a lack of trust in my own abilities and a fundamental belief that I am unable to bring in money other than working for the government. KABLAMO!

Must explore that one further.

~~~

I'm working on a few creative projects that bring me joy. I've taken action and small risks (to me). Maybe it's training for bigger ones to come?

~~~

I am also doing a LOT of laundry. Load after load, it makes me feel productive. Dirty clothes in --> clean clothes out = immediate satisfaction. I'm running out of stuff to wash though, soon I'll have to find another way to deal with my productivity-related issues. Too bad vacuuming doesn't have the same effect.

~~~

Till the next checkpoint...