I’ve made some serious progress this week, and made even longer lists for the near future. My goal of ten sea-glass jewelry pieces was met and they are sitting in their boxes waiting for my meeting this afternoon.  And now I’ve committed to doing my first craft show so that will mean even more that need to be done in the next few months along with getting a credit card processing account and displays etc.

Which brings me to the major rethink I’ve been doing – when I was in college I helped my mother set up at outdoor art festivals and grew to dread it, getting up at 4 a.m. hauling heavy stuff, no good food, uncomfortable weather etc. I’ve resisted doing them myself because of those experiences.  Now I’m rethinking that. First, I’ve been reading about others’ experiences and while it’s not a life of roses there are ways to be a lot more comfortable  – like getting a hotel room the night before, putting things on wheels and making sure you’re targeting the shows with bigger crowds, even if that means traveling further. So I’m seriously looking at this, both for income and as a way to increase visibility and customer interaction.  I think it could actually be fun!  I’ll learn a lot by doing some local inside shows this winter and I’m starting the list and looking for equipment now.  Part of my dilemma now is whether or when to focus on jewelry or photography.  I think I’ll end up switching off…

I’ve also managed to schedule both plumbers to come in and give an estimate -this is my basement project that the city has offered to pay for (how rare is that?) but it means I have to jump through a lot of hoops to make it happen. I’ll be glad when it’s done and I don’t have to keep it on the list.  Next is to get the estimates actually in my hands.

My volunteer case wrapped up this week and now I’ll get to pick a new kid or kids to champion next week. I don’t know how much of a difference I’ve made but I know I’ve made some and that always feels good. I’ve even managed some yard work  done too, getting the ancient iris bed dug up and separated and re-potting the blueberry bush.  Maybe next spring things will come back to life.

In the interests of full disclosure, I might have gotten a bit more done if I hadn’t got caught up in the new online Monopoly game, (www.monopolycitystreets.com) which has had some bugs and server issues but I’ve loved Monopoly with a passion since I was about four -  I was always the cowboy because it was the only piece I could pick up with little fingers without moving everyone else on the board!

Next week I’ll have to make some decisions about part-time jobs and what kind of schedule I’m trying to preserve (like weekends for art shows) and get busy with marketing again. I’ve been letting it slide which is never a good thing. Time to write some adds and start posting in forums and other blogs!

Technorati Tags: Health and Happiness, living your passion, solopreneur, the way to happiness, trying new things

I saw on a list of holidays that September is considered Self Improvement Month – probably made up by bloggers in an attempt to have something to say since most of us are either yearly adopters or don’t bother at all.  In any event it got me thinking about Fall and the start of the school year.  Autumn usually gets categorized as a time of slowing down, dying leaves, and colder weather moving people back inside.  Because I always loved going back to school, I’ve always felt like it is a time of new beginnings – not the homework part, but the chance to meet new people, take a class in a brand new subject, or explore a new part of the country (I changed schools a lot.)

Even though it’s been years since I was pursuing any kind of degree that feeling has never left.  There’s a feeling of anticipation in the air, of things about to happen…

Technorati Tags: change in perspective, trying new things

If there was a theme for this week, determination was it. I woke up Monday morning determined, some might even say it edged over into stubborn. Determined to find some other way to get by than return to a cubicle, determined to keep pressing ahead with what my intuition says to do even if the numbers are not encouraging, and determined to let the fear go. That last one is an ongoing challenge – every time I think I’ve vanquished it, it crops up again.

All of this led to a weekly to-do list that was two notebook pages long instead of the usual one. No, it’s not all done yet but I think I’ll make 80% by tomorrow. I’ve tried things and found web pages I wouldn’t have explored otherwise and started the romance short story I was nervous about even trying; but there’s a magazine that pays well for that and so it’s worth a try. A part of me is afraid I might be good at it, which has more to do with other people’s opinions than my own. Even if the magazine doesn’t like it, it’s time to see if I can do it! Basically my determination has led me to be a lot more open to things that I was either hesitant about or doubted my ability. Many are likely not to pay off at all but I’m confident that the overall effort is my true path.

Technorati Tags: intuition, trying new things

I know what it means to feel like you need to be good before starting  something so that you can improve to excellent.  My high school gymnasium had banners for Olympic medals in addition to the state and regional wins.  I didn’t dare try out for anything; ‘just for fun’ wasn’t part of the curriculum. But it should be.  So if you find the Nike ads a bit intimidating, maybe this clip will motivate you to try something that you aren’t sure you’ll be good at. Because you just never know:-)

Technorati Tags: challenges, encouragement, facing fear, Importance of Motivation, taking risks, trying new things