Creative Life

We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us. The old skin has to be shed before the new one can come.

Joseph Campbell

I chose this quote tonight because I appreciate Campbell’s work. It makes me think a couple things. First that it is quite a biblical statement. He’s more well read than I am but I know for sure this is an idea within the Christian belief system. The second thing is that it’s frustrating to hear. We spend large portions of our lives knowing exactly what we want and how we will get there and a lot of us do it just that way. But

What’s interesting is that the creative life calls us to live differently from the norm. Creatives spend their lives being doubted and told to get a “normal job.” And that the craft they’ve been called to is just a hobby. And it stays that way until the world approves. When you plan to live the creative life, you must plan to lose whatever it is the entire world expects of you. (It’s very similar to the idea of choosing or being chosen to walk the Christian life)

To end this, I wanted to share. I spent today cleaning and listening to youtube videos about creativity and writing and came across this:

Happy New Year

I hope 2023 is good to us all!! I want to take the time to wish you all a happy new year filled with abundance and prosperity.

Here’s to my 2023 goalsss
I completed all my 2022 goals ahead of schedule except for finishing my novel😭😭 I hope 2023 brings a complete novel and is full of love, continued growth in my business goals, and bond building in my most treasured relationships.

#jaynepress#happynewyear

You’re Doing Something

I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before, and more importantly, you’re doing something.

Neil Gaiman

I don’t like making mistakes but even more than that I love learning new things! It took a lot of rough drafts to figure that out. I had to learn to change my mindset Now I know that the shame from my mistakes sting far less when I focus on the fact that I now know better. It seems simple but the truth is we all make mistakes. Another truth is that many people stay safe in fear of making mistakes. That fear creates self-limiting behaviors.

When I was young I was scared of everything. I barely talked. I barely tried new things. I didn’t really start living until I became mama. Nothing was more scary in my life than having a baby. That’s when my mindset first began to change. The writing rough drafts and learning to get critical feedback sealed the deal.

Now that I’m brave enough to mess up, life is far more enjoyable. I’m able to add brand new experiences and perspectives to my world in a more rewarding way.

Whoa, Slow Down

I’m wiped out. I gotta figure out how much energy I really want to put into my workouts. Too much, and I’m down for the count. Thing is I tend to push myself pretty hard in the gym because I love the challenge buuut I can’t push myself so hard that don’t wanna do anything when I get home. I am the type of person that needs to be constantly reminded to pace myself (here’s a post about it). We’re trying to avoid burn out over here! That requires intentionally limiting myself from over-working. It’s hard!!

Anyone else out there an over worker who has to intentionally slow themselves down?

Experience

Having a new experience doesn’t require having fun. The point is being able to see the world from a new perspective. It’s to add on to what you’ve already acquired throughout your lifetime. Of course we planners visualize these perfect moments with joy and laughter and silly little family games. But those things are bonuses along with the new experience. Paulo Coelho says,

Be brave. Take risks. Nothing can substitute experience.

It’s important when you’re experiencing new things that you welcome all moods and levels of enjoyment and engagement. The experience is still going to happen whether everyone is enjoying it or not. It’s all about trying new things, going on new adventures, and figuring out what doesn’t work. You may even ask what would work better next time. Or you never know what connections you might make in the future from what you thought was an experience that everyone hated.

Have you had any new experiences lately?

We went out as a family to try one of those fancy drinks that have dry ice and gummies in them! It was quite the experience.

A Spider in Your Palm

You’ve showed up. You’ve said yes.
You’ve stood at the door
and knocked
asking for answers
Looking for a way to rise above
the person you were last year.
You’ve done your work in secret
and shared what you had with the world.
Now, the healing comes.
Rolling hills
The eyes that switch and shift in darkness
only few can see
a cross to bare
a soul to free
and my eyes on the flames
that rage inside you


Peace is Good

It isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.

Eleanor Roosevelt

I like that these days peace follows me. It hasn’t always been like that but I cleaned up my group of friends and realized the chaos was coming from me trying to please the people I hung around. At that point in my life, I didn’t believe that I could thrive in peace. I thought I was built to thrive only in chaos. Now that I know me better, I can thrive in both chaos and peace. Finally I asked myself, if I can be successful in peaceful environments why would I want anything else? Besides, peace has many benefits.

What’s great is peaceful environments while they do take some proactivity, are less detrimental to our health. Thriving on anxiety and last minute pressures increases cortisol which wreaks havoc on our entire system. Peace is the healthier option.

Is peace something you strive for?

Merry Christmas

What is Christmas? It is the tenderness of the past, courage for the present, and hope for the future.

Agnes M. Pahro

What a wonderful time it is to reflect and grow into the new year. I have always enjoyed internal work. I do it year round but this month I like to zoom in and out to prepare for the new year. If my goals aren’t clear my life won’t be. Every second of life doesn’t need to be goal. Goals help with long term planning and developing healthy habits. This time of reflection helps you refine your goals.

What are you planning to bring into 2023?

The Job For You

Those who continue to work at a job they hate for the money alone are more likely to be stressed, and very unhappy… They live for their vacations and weekends. Unfortunately, they are sadly missing out on the happiness of everyday life.

Catherine Pulsifer

I stand by this. Some people find joy in jobs that others could never understand. At the same time, there are jobs that have the appearance of bringing all sorts of joy and satisfaction and they don’t bring much of either. What they do bring is burn out, and that’s never a good thing.

What’s important to me is that I work for a mission and purpose that resonates with me. I have a hard time at jobs that bring little or no value to the world. The world is filled with jobs that lead no where and help no one but the businessman who’s benefiting more than both the customer and employee combined. I can’t imagine why you’d find me at a job like that.

How bout you?Are you feeling the happiness of everyday life? Do you work for the money alone?