Secret #12: Planning to Achieve Your Goals

12 weeks dedicated to your creativity - Congratulations!
Every step you took, whatever the size, was a gift to your creative spirit.
(I'm sure she's creating a thank you card for you right now!)

We have one more secret to cover and I'm jumping to the end of the chapter and inviting you to celebrate! I hope you'll join us on the Celebration Call and mark being a part of this magnificent, creative, sensitive, courageous group of remarkable women. Just add your name to the sign-up box above. And if you can't, I hope that next Friday at 2:00 EST you will take a moment to celebrate the group, your muses and yourself as a creative being. Give yourself a gold star. Smile at the sky. Take yourself out for coffee. Call up a friend and celebrate how amazing you both are! And stop by here later in the day. I'm going to record the call and will post it as soon as its available. (There's also going to be a special offer on Your Creative Spark, the collection of interviews, so you'll want to check that out)

Now to the first part of the secret - planning to achieve your goals. I love how Gail starts out the chapter with asking us to develop our own creative creed. It feels like such a wonderful culmination, a chance for us to come up with a collection of our own secrets as highly creative women. This whole journey, we have been doing that. You have shared your wisdom, experience, fears, humour, vulnerability, creativity and courage - and it has been extraordinary. Thank you for so generously sharing yourselves.

The video I'm sharing with you today is one of the ways that I plan. It holds my vision for this year and reminds me each day to stay focused on my goals and my dreams. I wonder what creative goals you will set for yourself. I hope you will share them not only this week but in the weeks to come, that we will stay connected and continue to grow together, making the world a brighter place by being the stars we are.

With love and deep appreciation,
Jamie

Secret #11: Subtracting Serenity Stealers

"The first step in starting an enterprise is to clear the space for it or till the ground."
Barrie Dolnick, Simple Spells for Success

I love that this particular secret is coming up just in time for spring! Let's make way for yumminess to bloom into our lives. This week Gail's encouraging us to "get rid of everything you neither need or want in your life." What disturbs your serenity?

Some places to look:

• clutter
• toxic people
• toxic situations
• limiting beliefs
• activities you dread
• over-committing
• over-scheduling
  
• over-stimulation
  
• perfectionism
• the outdated
• the "undone"
• habits that aren't serving you
  

In service of your joy, your art, your heart, your body, your serenity, your dreams and your spirit, pick one stealer this week make the cut. You can do it!

Secret #10: Living in Abundance with Positive Priorities

This week's secret is full of deliciousness. We consider our personal definition of abundance and what it means to live according to our own unique spirit. Gail points us to the role that gratitude plays in prosperity. She encourages us to identify our scarcity thinking so that we can move beyond it. We're to pay attention to our self-care and identify what lights us up and energizes our spirits. Yes! What if we did this every week?

Are you looking forward to this one? I hope this will give you even more to look forward to: an official invitation to the first ever The Next Chapter Celebration Call. It will be a time for us to acknowledge ourselves and each other for all that we've accomplished and enjoyed during our time together.

You are invited to... The Next Chapter: 12 Secrets Celebration Call

Date: Friday April 3
Time: 2:00 EST
Special Guests: Jennifer Lee, Melba McMullin, Jessie Marianiello, Suzie Ridler, Darlene Kreutzer, Sunny Schlenger, Leah Piken Kolidas and Andrea Scher!
RSVP:


When you sign up, you will receive an email with the all the call-in details. The call is free but your long-distance charges apply.

During the call I'm going to share a special offer for those of you who want to purchase the collection of amazing interviews with highly creative bloggers. Plus, I'll be announcing the winner of the survey draw. Plus, I'll be announcing our next book! I wish I could give out cupcakes too but I haven't quite figured out how to transport them through the phone line.

In this week of living in abundance and positive priorities, take the time to celebrate all that you have and all that you are. We'll celebrate together soon!

Secret #9: Transcending Rejection and Roadblocks

I'm so glad we spent the last 2 weeks looking at our guides and alliances before heading into rejection and roadblock territory. One message seems clear in the blogosphere - the tough stuff is easier when you know you're not alone.

And I want to acknowledge those of you who have been feeling alone. Thank you for showing up and being here even when it's been tough. Thank you for your vulnerability and your courage. Know that whether you have 50 people visit your blog or 5 or none, you are not alone. Your energy is a part of this group. Sometimes things as simple as not posting a direct link can impact whether people find your post. So keep knocking on doors until the right ones open and in between knocks, be gentle with precious you.

And for everyone, as we journey through the last leg of this particular adventure, here's what I'd love each and every one of you to do:

Create!

Let's remember why this creativity stuff is important in the first place. Over the remaining 3 weeks, spend time doing your art or exploring a new one or creatively playing. This week, as we talk about roadblocks and rejection, let's plug into the juice of what brings us alive and makes it worthwhile to get to the other side!

Dance with abandon. Write a poem. Scribble. Play your music and sing along - loud. Buy a colouring book. Get some Playdoh. Go on a photo adventure. Read a sonnet out loud to your honey. Make up a recipe. Call that ally you posted about and make a playdate. Write the first sentence. Play the piano - badly. Bead a necklace to celebrate the season. Scrapbook this moment. Make a card and send it to a new friend. Create the most beautiful day you ever had.

Let's fill March with creative joy and finish The Next Chapter off with delight.

Secret #8: Selecting Empowering Partnerships and Alliances

This week's secret is Selecting Empowering Partnerships & Alliances.

There are some powerful words in this secret. One of them is 'selecting.' We get to be selective about who we are going to trust with our precious creative dreams. Many of us have had and have shared our experiences of being hurt by a thoughtless remark, shutdown by an insensitive teacher or discouraged by feeling unseen at all. Maybe we couldn't choose who are grade 8 art teacher was but we can choose now. Who do you want to connect with, to be amidst, to partner with?

Realizing that you are at choice in your relationships is empowering in and of itself, and even more so when you start to consciously cultivate partnerships and alliances that support and encourage you. We are each unique and it's important to know what you, yourself, find empowering. Does it inspire you to be challenged by others or do you work better with encouraging words? Does it depend on the stage of the game? Does working with people with similar ideas get you excited and raring to create together or are you stimulated by entirely different viewpoints?

What's an empowering partnership look like to you? If you were to make a list of 'characteristics of the dream support team' what would be on it?

Secret #7: Consulting with Guides

This week's secret is Consulting with Guides. I just love when it's a secret that I know we're already rocking out! As we listen to each of the interviews with Highly Creative Bloggers, we are consulting with guides. As we visit each other's blogs and take inspiration, we are consulting with guides. Let's expand our reach even further by sharing with one another guides that have helped us along the way - books, singers, websites, writers, poems, coaches, maps, videos. Let's spread the love.

And know that every time you post to your blog, you are being a guide. Trust that. Know that. When you shine your light, the path is lit for others as well as yourself. Shine, beautiful you. Shine.

Secret #6: Conquering Saboteurs

How fascinating that after committing to self-focus, we prepare to deal with saboteurs. As you take time for your self and your work, are they starting to show up? What do yours sound like? I have some personal favourites. Let me introduce you to the "Who the Hell do You Think You Are?" gremlin and his cousin, the "You Are SO not Ready for That!" gremlin. Oh, and then there's the ever-articulate "You Suck" gremlin. Are they friends of yours too? Maybe we can throw them all a gremlin social in the vault this week!

This chapter offers some strategies for dealing with these pesky critters and I hope you'll share your own. Andrea Scher has some awesome gremlin-busting tips in this week's interview. By next Friday you are going to be well-set to outplay, outwit and outlast these opponents!

One thing is for sure: saboteurs are a part of pursuing your aspirations. In fact, their appearance is a brilliant clue that you are in the territory of your dreams. They don't waste their time on the piddly stuff. So if they're starting to show up, celebrate the fact that you are stepping towards something magnificent.

Secret #5: Committing to Self-Focus

As I read this chapter about self-focus, I found myself engaged in intellectual debates with various assertions, vigorously nodding my head along with others. I rolled the word "self-focus" over my tongue several times to see how it tasted. I revisited my personal history with balancing intimacy and independence. There's a lot in here to explore. I look forward to seeing what catches you about self-focus and what you're inspired to share.

And I'd love to celebrate with you that we are already taking on the final exercise of this chapter. Gail challenges us to help other women commit to their creativity. And here we are, doing just that! We're in this together, and it makes a difference. Sharing your story matters. Every encouraging word, shared experience, shed tear, heartfelt smile is a part of what we are creating here, together.

And since we've got one challenge down already, I hope you won't mind if I sneak in one extra. This week I invite you to not just think about self-focus but to experience it. Commit to some time for your self. Put on the answering machine. Ask a friend to babysit. Wake up a half hour early. Say no to washing dishes. Show up at the page. Take time to dance. Chisel out some precious space and time for your self and your creative explorations. Experience self-focus.

Enjoy!

Interview with Christine Mason Miller

This week Christine is here to inspire us. You can hear the interview here.

Secret #4: Surrendering to Creative Cycles

Before moving on to Secret 4, I want to send out some special Secret 3 love to everyone. A lot got stirred up last week. Fear, vulnerability, courage, hesitation, recognition, awareness and many more such companions made their appearance. So take a breath and a moment and acknowledge yourself. Whatever showed up, whatever you felt, whatever you did or did not do, acknowledge yourself for being on this journey with all its ups and downs.

Really do it. Deep Breath. Acknowledge you.

Namaste.

We've already experienced some hills and valleys. Let's use this week's look at cycles to discover more about this aspect of our creative adventure. The book offers some questions about the darker times, the void. I'd also love to know how you manage the bright spots, the peaks. Do you celebrate? Get on with what's next? Get overwhelmed? Pat yourself on the back? Tell everyone? Tell no one?

One of the joys of working through this book together is that we may see stories that powerfully reflect our own and we may also experience viewpoints that offer an entirely different view. When it comes to creative cycles, do you relate to how the book explores the question? If yes, where does it lead you? If not, what's your take? What are your questions? Fill in stories that may have been left out. Don't hesitate to respond in your own unique way. Your view is a gift.

Interview with Leah Piken Kolidas

This week Leah shares her wisdom, including the way she has come to love her creative cycles. You can hear the interview here.