Are you satisfied with your efforts?

It’s easy to be encouraging and compassionate to a friend who says: “Here is my art. But it’s not good enough.” Maybe you remind them that they should celebrate the completion of a project. Or that others appreciate their efforts, including past sales or accolades.

Do you do this for yourself? Or are you dissatisfied because you haven’t made your millions yet?

I came across an excellent article on learning to love yourself and was struck by the difference between healthy and unhealthy behaviours towards your goals and accomplishments.

Healthy – You set goals for yourself that encourage you to grow and stretch. You accept and love yourself as you are but know that you can always be better.
Unhealthy – You are constantly beating yourself up because you believe that you need to overwork or punish yourself for not being “good enough”. You believe you have to achieve these unrealistic goals to be “worthy”.

From Learning to Love Yourself Again by Cindy Sense.

Do you acknowledge what you’ve accomplished so far in your life? When do you allow yourself to celebrate? When you’ve had a once in a lifetime experience? Do you ever celebrate the small steps you had to take to get to where you are now?

If you have low self-esteem, the unhealthy behaviours from above can skew your perceptions and make it seem that you’re worthless and haven’t accomplished anything. Here’s an exercise that might help you gain a more balanced view of your daily accomplishments and successes:

Exercise: A “What I Have Accomplished Today” Journal

Years ago, on a now unfortunately defunct organization forum, I came across this deceptively simple exercise. The “What I Have Accomplished Today” journal is exactly what it sounds. All you have to do at the end of each day is record what you’ve done. Use either an electronic format or a paper journal, but make sure it’s something that you can refer to, especially as each day adds up. My preference for this is a paper journal, and each page represents one day of accomplishments, because I find it helps you to really see what you’re doing. You can also decide if it should just include your creative endeavours, or if you’re feeling particularly self-loathing, you may want to include everything from getting out of bed to eating to going to work.

I’ve used one of these journals off and on for years, and pull it out when I’m feeling particularly insecure about my value and self-worth. And while my self-worth shouldn’t be connected to my levels of productivity, the reminder the journal provides assures me that I can’t allow a blanket self-assessment of being a failure guide my thoughts, which unfortunately on really bad days is what sometimes happens. The journal provides evidence of accomplishments and that every 100 words I write for a story or blog post contributes to my goals and is worthy of celebration.

And this is exactly what I tell my friends and clients who are struggling to believe in themselves.

Will you celebrate your achievements with me?

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Are your creative projects a priority for you?

With work, friends and family demands, it can be difficult to carve out time to make creative projects a priority. But it’s not enough to just say that you want your creativity to be a priority, your day to day life needs to reflect that it’s actually a priority.

Here’s an exercise that I’ve found helpful when I need to tweak my daily activities or if I need to determine what’s eating up my time.

Step 1
Write down what you would like your priorities to be or what you think they are. Include things like your family, pets, household chores, work, volunteering, etc., but don’t forget to include your creative projects.

Step 2
Next to each item from step 1, list 2-4 actions that reinforce these as a priority.
For example, one of the items on my list are my two dogs, Chloe and Basil. Next to them, I list things like feeding them and taking them out for daily walks.

Step 3
Write down your typical daily activities, as they occur. Be honest with yourself, and include things like eating, sleeping, work, tv, video games, reading blogs and newspapers, meeting friends for coffee, going to the bar, etc. This list should reflect not just your best days, but your least productive days as well.

What does this list tell you about what your priorities really are? Are they where you expected them to be? Were you surprised by anything on the lists?

Over the next few weeks I’ll explore different options for aligning your life with your goals, including techniques for carving out more time for your creative projects and looking at procrastination.

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Then the next day, you’re just not sure you’re up to it. You stare at the blank screen and nothing happens. Or when you start drawing, none of it looks right. Maybe you have a headache or feel the start of a cold, or a chronic illness has picked today to smack you back down.

There will never be a perfect day to start on a new creative project, but on some days, it can seem more difficult than on others. Creativity won’t always follow the schedule you’ve outlined for yourself, but there are a few more things you can try before giving up.

Keep at it
Do you have trouble sitting still for any length of time? If you’ve been staring at a blank canvas, a few more minutes won’t hurt. Set a timer for 5 minutes and keep at it. If after the timer goes off you still don’t have anything, then pack it in for the day without feeling guilty. Some days really aren’t meant for creativity. Don’t give up though. Tomorrow you can try again. But if you’ve started before the 5 minutes are up, then ignore the clock and keep going! Sometimes all you need to do is to take the pressure off. By saying to yourself that you’ll only try for another 5 minutes and that’s it, you might find that instead of worrying about producing something, you’ll allow yourself to just be. A minor variation on this is to keep setting it for another 15 minutes (or whatever length of time works best for you) as a way to keep the pressure off. Over time, you might find that you’re able to work for longer periods of time.

And if today didn’t work, don’t be discouraged. Set the timer the next day for at least 5 minutes and try again.

Try something different
I find that this method works best for me. Sometimes the right words just aren’t coming to me on a given story or with particular characters, and switching to a different story can help. Other times, switching to a different activity works much better, such as modifying my website, researching future posts, organizing my crafting supplies, etc. After I’ve worked on these activities, I go back to the post or story and most of the time I find I’m able to get into it. Even if it doesn’t work and today didn’t work out exactly how I planned, I know that I can go back to it tomorrow.

Give yourself permission to goof off for a bit
This method definitely isn’t for everyone, but sometimes you just need to blow off some steam, especially if you have numerous commitments. It may seem counter-intuitive, but if you’re working a full-time job, have a family member you’re caring for or small children, and generally have a lot of things on the go, you may be too demanding on yourself. If you’d planned on working on your art for 2 hours each night, spend half of your time doing something that is easy and relaxing, even if it’s reading about drawing, and then spend the other half on your project. A timer can help here too, so that you don’t end up spending more than you intended. This one can be a bit risky though if you have a tendency to lose yourself and don’t have great follow through. Just like with any technique, pay attention to what works best for you, and don’t be afraid to try things if you’re not sure. If it doesn’t help, you can always try again the next day.

Get physical
There are some days where I’m incredibly wired, and my thoughts and plans and outlines are just spinning around in my head, but none of it is making it down on paper. At this point, I’ll pull out Dance Dance Revolution Universe 3 and workout for an hour. Or, depending on the weather I’ll take my dogs out for a long walk. I know others who go to the gym, go running, meditate, or hit a yoga class to clear their head. After physical activity, I feel much more grounded, the spinning has stopped, and I can focus on what I want to do instead.

In the end, it’s one day. Don’t beat yourself up over it. Don’t listen to the voices that tell you you’ll never amount to anything. I guarantee that you’ve accomplished plenty of things in your life, and with practice, your creative projects will be completed too.

*Post title is from “Mama Said” by the Shirelles (link goes to youtube).

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Read Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 first

In the corporate world and in academia, your work experience and expertise depends on other people.

For example, I’m a pretty decent project manager. I’m detail-oriented and goal-oriented, and I’m good at keeping my team on track to get the project done. The big money is in IT project management, but there’s no way that I’ll ever get a job as an IT PM. Why? Because my experience is in the training industry and in operations. It doesn’t matter that I have a diploma in computer programming. It doesn’t matter that I’m tech savvy or that I can speak to coders and translate to the business. It doesn’t even matter that I’ve worked on projects involving software, such as building a wiki for a large department. To a recruiter and to a hiring manager I’m too much of a risk because I’ve never worked in IT.

For an artist, a portfolio is equivalent to job experience and a resume, and you don’t need to rely on others to build it up.

What it does require is your time and your attention. You can add school projects to your portfolio. You can imagine that you’re decorating a room for a client, even if it’s just for you, and treat it like a professional job. You can commit to writing a short story a month and submit it to various e-zines. When you’re first starting out, no one is expecting you to have landed a million-dollar commission or that you’ve already had a hard-cover series printed. But by having a body of work to back up your effort, you’re able to show what you’re capable of, which will help you land paid work.

The benefit of working for yourself in a creative industry is that you won’t be held back from working on projects that interest you because of politics, seniority, etc. You and you alone are responsible for putting together your portfolio. I’ve already posted about the “bucket principle” and referenced it a number of times, partly because I’m trying to internalize it myself, but mostly because the people who are successful are the ones who’ve worked on their portfolios over time rather than the night before meeting with their first prospective client. By building up your creative platform over time, you (i) develop strong habits of productivity, (ii) are able to get a good feel for your strengths and weaknesses, and (iii) are able to put forward examples of your best work. All three of these things will help carry you forward towards a sustainable creative career and personal success.

Stay tuned for Part 5 in this series, where I’ll examine networking.

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It always strikes me as a waste that people engage in attention-seeking behaviour that doesn’t lead to anything other than a moment of instant gratification. I understand the desire – it’s something I’ve always struggled with, but I know that if I want to be successful, then I need to learn new behaviours and see the benefit in waiting.

Here’s a personal example of what I mean. When I first started writing again (after a 5-year hiatus in my early twenties), I quickly filled 3 notebooks with story ideas. It felt good getting them all out of my head. It felt productive. But none of those are real stories because I didn’t have the patience or follow-through to complete any of them. My muse was always taking me in a new direction and it was fun imagining all the possibilities.

Since those early days, my goals have changed. It’s no longer about seeing where a story will end up, but instead my goal is to be published. There are a million reasons why I may never achieve my goals including the quality of my writing, luck, timing, etc. I’m ok with the fact that I may never see my name on the cover of a printed novel if there are legitimate reasons. But if it’s because I lacked focus? Or because I was distracted by a new video game?

This brings me back to the man who honked at me today. Sure, it may not take more than a second to press on the car horn. There may not even be a decision involved and the man may have just acted on impulse. But if I lead my life based on instant gratification, I won’t achieve my goals, and I’m no longer ok with that. Are you?

—

EDIT: I came across a blog post today about Elizabeth Gilbert’s incredibly inspiring speech (which I originally posted here).  The post describes how much work she put into appearing so relaxed and casual – well worth it! Read the entry “Sprezzatura” by Derek Sivers here.

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Building an online presence

This past weekend I went to Fan Expo. My favourite part of this con is walking through Artists’ Alley and being surrounded by creativity and talent.

I’m in the process of creating a “geeky and creative” post, profiling the different people I met, but as I’ve been visiting everyone’s websites and etsy stores, I was struck by how different everyone’s online presence is, ranging from nonexistent to professional.

If you’re just starting out, it isn’t necessary to have a flash website that is professionally made, but there are a few things you can easily do.

1. Build a web presence

Others have written about this before, but it’s really easy to create a free blog on any number of journaling sites (wordpress, blogger, livejournal, dreamwidth), even if you’re not very tech savvy. Get in the habit of posting your work on a regular basis (even if it’s just monthly to start), and slowly increase the frequency to at least weekly.

If you’re handing out business cards of your work at a con, you need a website. I saw so many different artists and artisans, and I honestly can’t remember who is who. I need a visual reminder of your work, otherwise I won’t know why I took your card at the time and why I would want to follow up. If all you’ve provided is an email address, I’m going to recycle your card. This may seem unduly harsh, but I’m not likely to email you just to ask “what was it you were doing again?”.

2. Mention the con you just attended.

You don’t need to do a fancy write-up. All you need to do is mention somewhere on your site or etsy store that you’re in Toronto for Fan Expo for the weekend. I’ve noticed that the artists who took the time to update their readers, are the ones that generally have more content up on their sites. Even if you’re just starting out, it’s nice to give people context for what you’re doing. Artists were running out of business cards on the first day of a two-day con, which means that at least some of the people attending will visit your website. Tell us what you’re up to or that you’ll have new merchandise up after premiering it at the con. I’m pretty sure at least one person had a lot more items at their booth than show up at their etsy store, and I wasn’t that impressed with their current online selection. By giving an update (even just one line) you’ve given me a reason to check back.

I can already hear the protests of “but the product itself should be enough of a reason to go back”. Well, yes and no.
If you’ve spent any time on free online fiction websites, you’ll find that most of the writers who post stories will have a multi-chaptered work in progress. 80-90% of those never get finished, so I’ve become wary of those who don’t give me a reason to check back. Every artist has good intentions, but not everyone can follow-through with what they’ve started. If your website doesn’t seem like it’s updated frequently, then I’m going to assume that it isn’t. I’d rather spend my time on someone who provides steady content than on someone who has great ideas but they never make down on paper or online.

I actually find it a bit heartbreaking when I’m working with a client who has so many fantastic ideas, but there’s never any evidence of it, other than the conversation we’re having. I feel privileged that I can listen to a story unfold, but it’s a shame that others can’t share in this experience as well. At Fan Expo, there was so much talent, and with Valley of the Muse I’d love to showcase everyone that I talked to and give examples of how awesome they are. But if they don’t have an online presence, then I can’t do that, because I have nothing to link to, and I doubt anyone would listen to me if I said “trust me they’re fantastic!” without saying why.

If you’re starting out, you need to take that first step before you and your work can be discovered and that means don’t just work on your portfolio in the dark corners of your room until you’re ready to unveil your epic. Build relationships with people who are going to be excited for you and supportive of all your endeavors, even the earliest ones.

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There are as many reasons to procrastinate as there are projects and artists, and tinkering with the equipment or software you’re using can make you feel like you’re being productive, especially compared to things like playing several hundred games of solitaire. And while a certain amount of attention needs to be spent on the software or equipment itself, it will never be perfectly calibrated. It also won’t create your work for you.

I recently moved my blog from wordpress.com to a self-hosted blog here at www.valleyofthemuse.com, and I’ve had to focus some of my time on researching plugins and modifying the code of the theme I’m using. I’m not 100% happy with it, but after a week, I had to make a conscious decision to stop working on it and get back to the content.

It was (and is) hard to keep my goals in perspective. Whenever I visit the blog, I see the things that bother me, the things that I want to change. But while I can work with html, I’ve never used php before, and trying to decipher lines of code just isn’t a good use of my time right now.

This can be particularly difficult for detail-oriented personalities, who can easily lose sight of the big picture. I get bogged down by the size of the spacing between the paragraphs and by the font that I’m using. Ultimately, I can design the perfect-looking site or blog, but without new content and without readers, there’s no reason for me to be here.

I’m also a perfectionist, and used to spend all of my time perfecting systems of organization, so that one day I would have the perfect filing system or the perfectly organized and colour-coded wardrobe. Over the past decade, I’ve learned that even with the perfect system, stuff happens. I might not put the clothes away for a few weeks and live out of a laundry basket until I have time to put it all away, which means that my perfect system is thrown out the window because all that matters at that point is that the mountain of clothing just get put away.

This applies to any project. Channel your perfectionism and ability to be detailed and nuanced into your art, because a publisher or critic won’t care if you used a pencil or a text editor, or if you found a flashy new novel-writing software. If the software helps you accomplish your goal, that’s fantastic, but don’t spend more than a token amount of time with the set-up. Get it to the point where you can function and then start creating.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to figure out how to add the date and time next to each post title.

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Shortly after discovering online fiction archives, I posted my very first short story. I received some lovely comments, but it wasn’t the smash hit I had hoped it would be. Nobody knew who I was, and although the story was decent, it wasn’t blow-you-out-of-the-water-fantastic. This kind of experience is shared by many new authors, and I began to notice the people who had the most success had worked on building up a creative platform. What this means is that the more creative work you produce, the more people are going to have access to your work and are going to be supportive of future projects. It also means that you’re going to have more practise and experience, and ultimately, will have a more professional end result.

Building a platform is going to take time, but unlike dreaming about the day your career will take off, it will have a direct impact on your life and will help you achieve your dreams.

In part 2, I’ll post some concrete techniques for internalizing this concept and give you the push you need to stop dreaming and start creating.

Continue to Part 2

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Here are three easy-to-follow tips:

1.  Plan

What are you going to wear? Don’t just think about what’s the newest or cleanest item of clothing in your closet. Think about past photos where you liked how you look, and notice what they have in common. Is there a particular colour you look fabulous in? Or should avoid? Is there a particular neckline that makes you look wider than you really are? Is there a shirt that just makes you feel fantastic? Once you’ve thought about all of these things, lay out your outfit, and add accessories, shoes, and even how you’re going to do your make-up and/or hair. A few days before your photo shoot, make sure the items are clean and ready to go.

A second thing to think about is location. What is the backdrop going to be? White wall? Your garden? Visit the location in advance if possible, and critically look at whether there is something that might ruin the shot, like a weathered garden shed or an uneven patch of wall.

2.  Take Your Time

The day of the shoot, take your time getting ready. A lot of people dread having their picture taken, but it can be a fun experience. Do something that will help you relax, maybe treat yourself to your favourite meal or tea, take a bubble bath, or play a few rounds of Team Fortress II.

Once you’re in front of the camera, it’s critical that you take things easy. Before the picture-taking starts, even before you smile, relax the muscles in your face and take a few deep breaths, because it will make a huge impact on how you look.

Once you’re comfortable, spend at least an hour (25-50 photos) to get 1-2 photos that you can use.

3.  Experiment with Expressions and Poses

During your hour of modelling, experiment with different poses and expressions. Try some where you’re serious, others where you’re just about to start laughing. Look at the camera. Then tilt your head up, without moving your eyes. Look away. Look the other way. Change the angle of your neck. Put your shoulders back. Keep your body in the same position but move your eyes. Go through a range of poses, each time modifying one small thing for each picture. When you look through the final versions you might be surprised at how the most nuanced movement can make a huge impact on how you look.

When it comes to selecting a photographer, you have two choices – either go with a professional, or with a trusted friend/family member. If you choose a professional, make sure you feel comfortable with them, and talk to them about what you’re trying to achieve. Try to get a sense of whether they’re going to be open to you taking your time or if they’re going to rush you through a series of photos to get you out the door as fast as you can. Don’t forget to look through their portfolio and decide if you like the way they take pictures of average people.

If you go with a friend, make sure it’s someone you trust and feel comfortable with, and who will get into the exercise with you. Don’t pick someone who will be impatient or critical, but someone who makes you feel good when you’re around them.

Once you have your profile photos done, share them! Post them on facebook or linkedin, upload it to your company directory, add it to your blog. And if the first set of photos don’t work for you, identify what went wrong (camera? outfit?) and try it again until you’ve got photos of yourself that you can be proud of.

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That isn’t to say that you should go out and buy the most expensive gadget or art supplies. Or that you need to own every single tool before you can get creative. But the tools that you use greatly impact creativity and can even impede it.

A few months ago, my husband bought a new camera – the Canon T1i. Our old camera was fine – it was considered pretty high end for a non-pro camera, but I was never happy with the pictures that I took with it, so I rarely used it except on vacation. I would see something that I wanted to capture, but then when I would try to take a picture of it, it would look nothing like how I’d want it to. I remember when I received my very first camera when I was about 10 years old, and how extremely disappointed I was when the film was developed. To this day I’m sad about the quality of those photos and how they made my vacation look so dull and lacklustre.

I always thought that the crappy photos was because I had no photographic talent. Then I played around a bit with our new camera. My husband Jeff and I were at a national park with our two dogs, and we were just sitting around after a full day of hiking and a late lunch, enjoying the view of the lake. I picked up the camera sitting next to me and I took a picture where the dog closest to me was in focus, and the dog next her (further away from me) was blurred as part of the background. Then I reversed the focal points so that dog #2 was in focus and dog #1 (closest to me) was blurred.

Both pictures looked great, and I was amazed.

The new camera didn’t suddenly turn me into a pro, but for the first time in my life, I had a camera that did what I wanted it to do. Ever since then, I’ve been taking random pictures, including the ones posted here. Having the right tool for taking images I’m not embarrassed by is one of the main reasons I finally started a blog for creativity and personal development. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for years, but I always held back, and was never quite sure why it never seemed to come together until recently.

I’ve had similar experiences in other areas, ranging from cake decorating, making jewellery, and even make-up application! I remember in high school saving up money for what looked like a vibrant eyeshadow, only to find that when applied, it looked washed out and barely there. Since then, I’ve invested in good quality brushes and I stick to brands that have strong pigmentation. They’re a bit pricier, but I personally find it worthwhile (although I’ve also found no-name brands over the years that are just as fantastic).

Personal Development Tip

Is there a project that you’ve always wanted to embark on but never really got going? If you’re not sure why you just can’t seem to get it off the ground, it’s worth considering you’re being obstructed by the tools you’re using. One way to test out the idea is to embark on a test run. Go through the steps, create a prototype, and then assess the final product. If the result falls short of your expectations and hopes, it’s very likely that the tools you’re using just aren’t giving you what you need.

If on the other hand you can’t complete or start even the rough version, then all the tools in the world won’t be able to change the situation, and you’re going to have to resolve other issues such as creative block, procrastination, etc., which I’ll be addressing in future blog posts.

But, just think about it – if it really is about the tools you’re using, then that’s fantastic, because it can be such an easy thing to resolve!

What have been your experiences with tools? I’d love to hear your experiences with this!

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