I looked up a quote I heard the other day attributed to Frederick Buechner and this is what I found: “Vocation is the place where your deep gladness meets the world’s deep need.” His words struck a chord given that I’ve been spending an enormous amount of time in this upside-down world of 2020 trying...
Tag: artists
How To Create When Your Heart is Broken – Revisited
A friend brought up this blog post, which I wrote way back in November 2016. She still remembered it, so I thought it might be time to run it again. Some of the greatest songs and stories are created by artists who have suffered a major loss or breakup. They channel all that pain, frustration,...
Advice from Your Future Self During The Time of COVID
During the pandemic, I’ve fallen out of touch with a few of my favorite people, including my Future Self. I used to enjoy chatting with her often as I created new products or programs or services. She was always one of my greatest cheerleaders, but also the person I could count on to advise me...
If I Hear the Word “Pivot” One More Time . . .
I was chatting with an acquaintance yesterday, and she asked how my business was doing during the pandemic. I said it’s been hit pretty hard, but I’m hanging in there. She admitted her business has been affected to, and then said, “But I swear if I hear the word “pivot” one more time . ....
Do You Even Have an Inner Artist? – Revisited
When people ask what my blog is about, I often say it’s an inspirational blog to help people tap into and support their inner artist. “Oh, that’s not for me,” some reply. “I’m not creative. And I’m certainly not an artist.” I’m always a little surprised by that response. It makes me realize somewhere down...
What Do You Hear in the Silence?
It’s awfully quiet around here. Oh, there’s the noise of a mini bulldozer moving dirt at the neighbor’s house and a ridiculously loud motorcycle going by and a dog barking down the street. There’s the hum of the microwave running as my husband reheats his coffee and the dryer tumbling. I can create more sound...
Learning to Embrace Long Pauses
I’ve always been a rapid-fire communicator. I think fast, talk fast, and process my thoughts out loud. When I was in high school, my mother once dared me to talk for two minutes straight without a single pause. “Time me,” I said, and then I did it. 120 seconds of babbling about nothing without a...
It’s All Still There, It’s Just Different
A friend e-mailed the other day to say, “It must be hard for you this week. You always throw a big party on your birthday and, this year, it’s going to be so quiet.” Indeed. It’s the little things that make you realize how much our lives have changed. Take coffee, for example. In the...
Your Creativity in Times of Transformation
I was talking to an intuitive friend and expressing to her how lost I’ve felt lately. The pandemic, the failing economy, the social unrest, the political turmoil, and my own business downturn are always on my mind and weigh heavily on my heart. I’ve thought of myself as a driver. Someone who jumps in and...
Protecting Our Future Normal
“I just can’t wait till things go back to normal.” How many times have you heard someone say that on a news broadcast lately? How many times has that thought crossed your own mind, even if you don’t believe it’s really possible? Living in this time of COVID-19 is hard, and one of the things...