In Your Success Zone Blog

How Will You Shine in '09?

You're invited to our next 

CREATE YOUR SUCCESS STUDIO

held on telephone conference call on 

Thursday, January 15, 2009

12 noon Eastern US Time

Duration: 35 minutes

Led by Adele Michal, Business Coach for Creative Entrepreneurs

Register at no cost here: http://tinyurl.com/89qxch

Are you planning for this SHINY new year?

Want some assistance in getting clear on what’s possible for you this year?

If so, use this teleclass to get more specific about what you intend to create in 2009.

You will learn

• How to make a creative representation of your desires for this year
• How to make your list of intentions for 2009
• How to let your Creative Mind help bring you the opportunities and resources to let you shine in ’09!

Register here for the Fr*ee Teleclass: http://tinyurl.com/89qxch

Creating from Nothing

A Man Named Pearl is a documentary film about Pearl Fryar of Bishopsville, SC. For 15 years he has been growing a garden of plants discarded by the local nursery and shaping them into topiary that attract visitors from all over the world.

When he began, Pearl was not a gardener, horticulturist, or trained in topiary sculpture, yet this is what he has become through his vision and his passion for his garden.

Pearl came from humble beginnings. He is African-American and the son of sharecroppers. He wanted his garden to be awarded "Garden of the Month" by the local garden club. No black gardener had ever won "Garden of the Month" in Bishopville before. 

That didn't stop Pearl. He worked tirelessly after work every night to train and clip his shrubbery and trees into beautiful sculptural shapes. It took 2 years before one bush had grown enough to be shaped into his first topiary. Today his 3 acres is a lush, peaceful garden of sculptured plants born from his creative imagination. 

Bus tours and school groups come to visit Pearl and his garden. He has been in national magazines and on 60 Minutes, the SC Museum of Art owns one of his topiaries, and the town of Bishopville has planted the downtown traffic median with 8 of his topiary to draw more tourists to the small town. Horticulurists wonder at what he has accomplished because they have never seen anything like Pearl's garden before. 

Pearl continues creating his living sculptures and remembers where he came from. He is particularly committed to encouraging young people to believe in themselves and live into their dreams. He has seen what a vision and committed action has done in his garden. That's what he shares with the world. To learn more visit his website HERE.

Can Pearl Fryar inspire you? What will you are envisioning for 2009? What can you "create from nothing" this year? 

Resolutions or Intentions to Create?

 

It's that time again! Making up the list of Resolutions for the New Year is as much a part of the holiday  season as parties, gifts, and reconnecting with family and friends.

Well, I'm not doing it. I'm not making a Resolutions list any more - it's too durn much like going on a diet - which is almost always on everyone's Resolutions list and gets shuttled by the end of January. 

Nope, I'm making a "What I Intend to Create in 2009" list. It just is more fun and inviting. And I know I will actually do what is on that list.

As I look back on my Intentions to Create list from 2008, I find I have achieved everyone of my intentions. On my (very short on purpose) list were

1. I write daily
2. I love myself and others 
3. I actively engage in my life  

I didn't know how these intentions would show up or what I would have to do to become the person that does these things. But this year Life has offered my opportunities to grow in each of the areas listed. And I have found ways to respond so that I am writing, loving, and engaging more now than a year ago.

So I'm upping the ante for 2009 and going bigger. Here's my list of what I Intend to Create in 2009:

1. I am powerful and prosperous 
2. I create and contribute 
3. I love life fully  

Yep, it'll be a stretch, but I know that Life and I will work it out.

How about you? What do you intend to create in 2009? 

Habits that Promote Creativity: Fun Exercise

Every Saturday afternoon about 20 women and men hop in the pool at the UNC Wellness Center to get bossed around for an hour by the diminutive Noriko Brantley in her weekly Advanced Aqua Aerobics Class. We are devoted fans of her rigorous exhortations to "Do More" and "Go Faster".

Noriko's class is a habit that promotes my creativity. It gives me a chance to get "out of my head" and off my rear and move! Today I found myself easily sorting out some ideas about my business while doing kicks in the water. I left the class happily energized.

In addition to having fun in the water and gaining more business clarity, I am inspired by Noriko. Today is her 52nd birthday, and she looks fabulous. She was a body builder and now is a personal trainer and health and fitness educator. Since she was 40, her birthday wish is to look and feel better every year. She says that for the past 5 years, she's in the best shape ever. 

Noriko is my personal Dara Torres and a weekly inspiration. Happy Birthday, Noriko!

Do You Have to Be in Crisis to Be Creative and Productive?

I spoke recently with a client who says she does her best work in a crisis. And she's generated some in her life:

• a major illness (from which she has recovered :),
• an office she reports is so full of books and papers that it distracts her from her work, and 
• avoidance of some business activities that would bring her more income and give her a greater sense of security.

She is not alone in responding mightily to crisis. For myself and many Creative Entrepreneurs I talk with, I find that the drama of crisis can be a great motivator when dreams and aspirations alone cannot. I operated this way for many years, so much so that I often felt I was "running on empty" energetically and emotionally. I'm sure I wasn't always doing my best work.

As I have begun to dismantle FEAR as a primary driver of my actions, I find that certain habits helpful in enhancing my feeling of calm and encouraging my creativity:

• I schedule Laundry Day, Grocery Day, and Exercise Days throughout my week so that my health is taken care of, and I have the strength and stamina to work.I have begun to think of these activities as part of my work instead of distractions I can put off. If I don't feel good, I don't work well. 
• I schedule a time to talk to my Virtual Assistant & Technology Savant weekly so that I keep going on my work on projects and don't let them languish. 
• I schedule in some fun and inspiration every week. Again, I see this as part of my work to manage my energy so I can do and give my best.
• I play with "Time Zones" during my day so that I write, work with clients, respond to email, and attend to business when my energy is most appropriate for each of these tasks. 
• I have said "no" to some activities that I enjoy but have were distracting me from more important things. I know that I can add them back in when my priorities shift.
• I try to do something on my projects, even if it is a small action, every day. This keeps me moving and sometimes helps me get started when the "mountain" of a project seems to big to begin climbing. I am amazed how an action a day adds up!

I admit that managing time and energy as a Creative is a work in progress. I'm often distracted by the next "shiny object" as I love learning and exploring. I do respond to crisis. I let FEAR drive me.

But I'm learning that habits, structured time, and calm can be wonderful foundations for productive creativity. 

How about you? How are you managing your time and energy to serve your creativity?

It's Not about the Money

Have you seen T. Boone Pickens's ads about energy independence? He has recently spent millions to talk to Americans about how to give up our dependency on foreign oil. More here.

He's for wind and natural gas. And yes, he owns natural gas fields and is building a huge wind farm.

But it's not about the money.

Pickens is the chairman and CEO of BP Capital and has been a billionaire for several years now. He's 80 years old and probably could not spend all his money even if he tried really hard.

It's about being alive while he's alive, contributing, and leaving a legacy. Now that's inspiring!

From Oppression to Passion

Oppression Card VoyagerTarot.com

Change Card VoyagerTarot.com

Art Card VoyagerTarot.com

This morning I drew the Oppression card from the Voyager Tarot for a sneak peek into what is going on with my work. [Picking a Voyager card is my morning ritual. You can pick your own Voyager card for the day on-line here.] Oppression is the principle of being snagged spiritually. It tells me to finish a spiritual lesson to get free and fired up again. Frankly, I was surprised that Oppression showed up today as I have been feeling more expressive in my work lately. So I asked "What do I need to do to free myself from Oppression in my work?" I drew Change which tells me to change my daily routine in small incremental steps for more balance. Change most certainly means - not staying up until 1 am to watch Olympics, political conventions, or movies so that I get rest and feel refreshed the next day at work, - eating what I know will agree with my system so I have stamina and feel good, and - getting to the gym more than once a week so that I am strong and energized. I get it that taking care of my physical plant (body) will help me feel more energized and spiritually connected. But I thought there was more and wanted to know, "How do I do that - really?" I pulled the Art card which tells me to - take a broader perspective, - connect with my passion, - hatch a plan with strategies that I can execute, - see a promising future for my work, and - communicate, communicate, communicate! Now I know what I need to do to get free and flying again, and I'm on it. Here's a question for you Creative Entrepreneurs: How do you work out of being bogged down and reconnect with your creative energy and business drive? I would love to hear what works for you!

Running Down the Path of Fear

If you are a creative person, you may be a very good worrier - busily imagining a myriad of bad consequences and getting tangled up in them instead of experiencing what you really want.

I once read that creative people worry more than people who are not so imaginative. Makes sense to me. If you are creative, you are always coming up with ideas, trying new things, going here and there in your imagination. A by-product of being creative can be the penchant to run down the path of fear. I confess to being a very good worrier. If there were a "Dream Up Really Stunning Negative Consequences" event at the Olympics, I would have been a contendor.

In 1996 I was introduced to Abraham,  a group of non-physical beings who speak through Esther Hicks about the Law of Attraction (like attracts like). You may have seen Esther Hicks in The Secret (Original Edition) or read her excellent book Ask and It Is Given: Learning to Manifest Your Desires.

Listening to Abraham talk about the Law of Attraction, I realized that by imagining the worst case scenario, I was directing my energy in the direction of what I don't want! I then noticed that directing my attention to what I do want was tricky because the bad stuff seemed so compelling and "real" - it just demanded my attention!

With clients, I notice the same thing. It takes deliberate effort to get off the subject of "What's Wrong" and on to the subject of "What I Really Want". Part of the difficulty has to do with our wiring for survival. It's more important for species viability to realize that there is sabertooth tiger lurking in the grass and run (awareness of danger) than blissfully consider a dandelion and get eaten by said tiger (lack of awareness and severe negative consequence).

Now that sabertooth tigers pose a minimal threat, this run to the negative consequence also has to do with choice and feeling able to make a difference in how your life goes. An excellent practice to develop when you find yourself mid-sprint on the path of fear is to ask yourself, "Is this what I really want?" If yes, keep running. If not, stop and consider what you do want and begin to meander down that path instead.

A break in the pattern may not be easy (I'm still practicing!), but it opens up new opportunities for you - ones that you may like much better than what's at the end of the path of fear. Now that's a creative act!

Alicia Sacramone's Comeback

Earlier today I wondered what Alicia Sacramone of the US Women's Gymnastics Team would chose for herself after her disappointing performance in the team finals. In her interview with Chris Collinsworth on NBC, Alicia called her falls on the beam and the floor event "uncharacteristic mistakes". And that's when I knew that Alicia has decided she is a winner.

Tonight she competed in the Women's Individual Vault event, put in a good performance, and finished 4th. No medal, but Alicia is a champion.

And she is getting a lot of hits on Facebook where she is considered hot. So all in all, a good Olympics for Alicia. Brava!

Michael Phelps's Intention List

Michael Phelps and his coach, Bob Bowman, talked with Bob Costas on NBC tonight about Michael's amazing Olympic experience, winning 8 gold medals in 8 swimming events. If you have been watching the Olympic coverage, you've seen Michael everywhere.

Michael and Bob Bowman said that Michael accomplished pretty much everything on his Intention List for the Olympics. They created it together and went for it.

More than once this past week, Michael Phelps has said that the key to his success has been to "dream big and use my imagination". Tonight I heard Bob Bowman confirm that dreaming big and using his imagination brought Michael to this amazing level of success.

Of course hours in the pool, great physical gifts and skills, top-level coaching, and a myriad of other factors that have colluded on Michael Phelps's behalf.

And that's just the point. By dreaming big and using his imagination, Michael Phelps has allowed the Universe, the fates, the Olympic gods to bring him to the pinnacle of athletic success.

I am duly impressed. I am creating my "Dream Big and Use My Imagination" Intention List.

How about you?