CREATIVE BIZ MARATHON

Last week  I shared  an epiphany that came to me:  Your future is only as big as you dare to dream. If you have big dreams for your future (I know you do!), have you taken a careful look at your words/thoughts/actions to make sure they are in line with what you are dreaming about? As I was reviewing my Facebook apps, I came across an app called “ Top 10 Words of 2010 ”.  I remembered installing it several months ago.    I thought it would be neat to review my Top 10 Words in 2010 one more time, to see if they in any way helped shape where I am in 2011.  While we may not be able to control everything that comes our way, we can control our attitude.  I have found many trials I have faced have helped shape me into the person that I am today. It’s difficult to feel grateful and hopeful when we are in the midst of a painful situation, which is why I think it’s so important to recite positive words/phrases and be gentle to ourselves as we ...

ONE of the items on my list was to research the world of self pubishing. Doing something like this really helps you to assess whether or not what you are producing is what you TRULY BELIEVE IN. Are you willing to invest in yourself? Are you willing to do the marketing? Wait it out? Produce it and then keep moving forward despite the results? For me, I am so very happy that I did it and Lulu Publishing is PHENOMENAL.

I just read a blog post from iHanna, which some of you may already know.  iHanna does a lot of fun things, one of which is art journaling.  Her post was about a class in Amsterdam by the author of The Creative Entrepreneur, Lisa Sonora Beam!   I'm not anywhere near Amsterdam, but if any of you are, I would recommend registering for her class!  I know it would be totally awesome and inspiring, and put you on the road to getting your business plan lined up. The Creative Entrepreneur is business strategy designed especially for creative thinkers. Read more: http://www.creativeentrepreneur.biz/about_the_book.html#ixzz1ES40UODc I wanted to share this information with you, just in case you were anywhere near to this class.  I would definitely take this if I could! Hope you all are well and journaling your way to fulfilling your creative business goals!! ~Kelly

I just downloaded my Right-Brain Business Plan Goddies ...  after registering for The Right- Brainers in Business Video Summit (it's FREE)  and Lisa is in the line-up of creative   entrepreneurs  shareN secrets! There's so many! The summit is February 28th - March 11th and Jennifer Lee has even created a day by day schedule for us. So, grab your  book today! ... oh it's  ... The Right-Brain Business Plan book by Jennifer Lee . The goodies from  Jennifer include some awesome PDF's and spreadsheets. Since I already had my spreadsheet ready, I just moved my BIG numbers from my sheet to hers. A bit of a head start, would you not say! Yay, it feels like it's still my birthday! The photos in this post are of the last page of my Creative Biz journal (the GAME board)  ... which folds out to revel all the steps of my game for this new year. inspired by Lisa and her book ... The Creative Entrepreneur  .

Fingerless Gloves back in the Shoppe... You would think that as many creative business books I have read in the past year, I would reach a point where I have a solid formula in place.  Alas, this past week I again came to some realizations about how I am spending my time.  I will admit it.  My prices in my shop for my items have not been in line with the reality of how much time and care I take to give each individual who chooses to purchase an incredibly special connection.  So what tends to happen is I rush around with my mind all over the place because there are not enough hours in the day for the way I run my shop and the way I price my goods.  Does that make sense?   I am still at the place where I am justifying TO MYSELF the value of the work I offer to the world.  And I have had enough of it.  A worker IS WORTH her wages.  If I do not believe it, no one else will...

"Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it." Buddha

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My voice is a bit shaky and the video is a bit one sided but this is my first EVER ... please forgive :)

    The formula for a day of rest: QUIET + PAINT = GO DEEPER When I woke up yesterday, I could feel the ingredients coming to together for a recipe of a different kind of day.  I have a new project that I am working on with a dear friend and fellow Christian yoga instructor that is vibrant and exciting but also stretching and terrifying... But here I was with an open heart and an open schedule... And I am so very pleased by the results on the page as well as in my heart.  I will share more soon on the continuation of My Creative Peace   I know without a doubt that the list making I implemented while organizing my business plan, the decluttering I performed a little over a week ago and the willingness to hear a new idea that I haden't thought to pursue before prepared me to sit and receive from my muse ... and move forward.