There is no doubt in my mind that nature photography is a key part of who I want to be professionally but you wouldn’t always know it by my actions.   It’s something that has always delighted me from the first picture when my dad held the weight of the old Polaroid with my mom as the reluctant model.

Like anything artistic there’s no guarantee that hard work alone will have the desired results but it’s a certainty that doing nothing at all will not get you there either. I have tried some things that really haven’t panned out which I take as lessons steering me in the right direction but only excuses explain why  I’m not moving forward on the remainder. Specifically to take new pictures on a regular basis (weekly), compile photographs from my grand road trip into a book of some sort and to more actively participate in the market by submitting for artist calls of all sorts.

Here are just some of the excuses I know I’ve used in the last year:

• I don’t know what to do (or where to start) so I do nothing
• I must not be good enough (even though I’ve gotten plenty of positive feedback)
• I don’t have the right equipment (there’s this other lens… and I don’t have Adobe InDesign…)
• I’m not in the mood (here’s the kicker – mood is the primary distinction between a career and a hobby)
• It has never happened before (did you notice I’m not famous yet?)
• I can’t afford it (framing costs a lot)
• I have too many other projects (if I know it will take a long time to see a profit, I let more immediate things take precedence)

Working through the individual excuses over the last several months has let me recognize them in myself more clearly but hasn’t eradicated them entirely. I’ve lessened the impact of some and made some progress on this goal. But there’s still work to do!

Next week: what I plan to do to get this goal back on track

Technorati Tags: common excuses, crafting a creative life

I don’t know why trips take even longer to prepare for than the days actually traveling but there it is.  This week has been largely about that with some side notes.  I spent Saturday working in the gallery and setting up their website, which I managed to get the bulk of done in that day; along side I found myself sending out a mass email with bullet points; shades of my corporate personality!  But I am a take charge kind of person for better or worse. I’ve found when I’ve tried to subdue that side of me things don’t go well. The higher up in an organization I’ve been, the more I felt accepted although that didn’t make me enjoy the politics anymore.  So I was a little surprised to see that side again but art is business too and some things are universal.

I also got a follow-up request from the art for health-care people that I submitted photographs to a few weeks ago. If I read between the lines, I’ve made it past the first cut, which means absolutely nothing except that my ego is thrilled and I think I’ve learned a lot about what they look for.  I’m curious to see what happens next.

Otherwise, I’ve been getting ready for my trip, some packing some sewing, and practicing metal detecting which yielded a large pile of nails, bottle caps and one slotted kitchen spoon (stainless).  I’m thinking of creating found art sculpture for no other reason than that I can. When I get back, assuming I haven’t found $1 million in Spanish gold, I will have to put some serious effort into finding a short-term or part-time job to tide things over until the artistic side of things starts paying for itself.  I’ve already updated my resume and while I’ve looked around a bit, I haven’t made a serious effort.  I’m not looking forward to that but it’s a necessary step towards achieving what I’m working on.

Technorati Tags: crafting a creative life, living your passion, Personal Growth, solopreneur, the way to happiness

The simple answer is to have an overwhelming need combined with no easily accessible solution – bored kids or broke adults can be some of the most creative people out there if they let themselves.

As I’ve been getting ready for my upcoming trip to Florida (today) there were two things I truly need for the trip that I don’t have the money or time to order; a loose sieve for metal detecting on the beach to separate the sand  from the treasure quickly and a sun hat that will fit my head that consistently proves that one size does not fit all.  I’ve no idea if what I came up with will actually work, and it does require a serious commitment to looking a little strange on the beach but I really enjoyed the process of solving these two problems.

For the sieve, I spent $4 at the hardware store for some plastic gutter netting and then stitched it together with some plastic cord I already had and used the rim of a large cottage cheese carton to reinforce the top – it looks like a really funky fishing basket but I think it will do the trick.  For the hat, I simply went through my stockpile of fabric and found the lightest possible one I was willing to part with which turned out to be pale pink and used the only hat pattern I had that had a brim – so it looks like a confection for race day but it didn’t cost me any money and it’s ready to go in the suitcase.

I didn’t have prior skills here, I just trusted that it was possible to solve the problem within the parameters I had set.  It was a lot more fun than buying either item ready made, although I agree that would use less of my time, but there’s no creativity in letting someone else always solve things for you.

Technorati Tags: crafting a creative life, feeling uninspired

I try not to overload but some purely entertaining TV or a good chick-lit novel is something I consider essential to my well being and personal development. If you defer all gratification, you’ll lose momentum! Now that the Fall TV season is about to start I’m noticing my viewing habits have changed in the last year. I’ve cleaned house on my entertainment schedule and I think I’ll be reading and doing more instead. I thought it would be fun to share what I’ll be watching this Fall:

What’s in:

• Lie to me – love those moments when they show real-life images of people demonstrating facial cues
• Bones – a little gruesome but I identify with the hyper-academic who’s utterly clueless about relationships
• Royal Pains – I confess to having a fondness for foreign men who know more than they say so I watch this one for the character Boris- I’m hoping they don’t write him off…
• Sporadic viewing of Project Runway – not worth staying up for but sometimes I catch the reruns while doing laundry

What’s out:

• Mad Men – it’s down to where everyone is unhappy and no hope in sight. Life neither was nor is  ever quite that bad
• Biggest Loser – I’m bored with the campy product placement and really irritated with the phrase ‘if I were thin, I’d have a boyfriend’
• So You Think You Can Dance – they’ve gotten too good, there’s less drama now

On the fence:

• Glee – could go either way, we’ll just have to see
• Drop Dead Diva  – cute so far but could get old fast
• Cash & Treasures – if they move back into the realm of the possible I’ll be an avid fan but I’m unlikely to go emerald hunting on Colombia
• Real Housewives Atlanta – I don’t know why I started watching and why it was this one but there it is – I may break the habit shortly…

Technorati Tags: crafting a creative life, going with the flow

I’ve deliberately given myself a bit of a break this week so I can evaluate what’s next.  I wish I could say that the garden is now in shape as a result, but I can say that 35% of it is and that I’ve given in and started using insect repellent because it’s a known fact that effective entrepreneurs are not constantly itching! I’ve given myself some time in the afternoons to just sit and read a good book and that’s valuable time too.  It can be easy to get so caught up in the to-do list that you forget to have some of the life you’re working so hard to achieve.

I’m in something of a dilemma when it comes to my bread-baking business idea – it has not taken off. I haven’t done everything that I possible could, but… it’s not my passion either. It began as an interesting idea and I’ve investigated it enough by trying it to see that it either is not the right time, price, or product.  The feedback I got was positive, but not with orders. There are a couple of things I still want to try around foreclosure maintenance but it may well be one of those good ideas that isn’t profitable.  They happen; the trick is to not lose heart in my other efforts which are where my heart, ego, and soul are invested.  That’s next week’s focus – get the beach glass jewelry site up and running. People can’t buy what isn’t for sale…

It’s amazing how fast time goes by – I blink and it’s a month later.

Technorati Tags: crafting a creative life, dealing with failure, living your passion, Personal Growth, solopreneur, starting a new business, the way to happiness