My aunt, a life long fine artist, looks out the window while making her morning espresso and see shapes and figures in the tree branches of the burr oak in her garden. The tree people as she calls them, inspire a new body of work.
I see fashion possibilities everywhere. A flower petal dress, a tea pot hat, tree bark trousers.
My friend Roxie sees a face formed by the bubbles in her freshly poured apple juice.
We all see things things differently. How we see effects what we see and what we see through our unique lens has the power to inspire, captivate and awaken others and ourselves. Start by taking a deep breath, let go of the chatter in your mind and as holly hobbie used to say, take time to smell the flowers.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Who does she think she is?
Do you have an ever-present voice that reminds you of just how difficult, unusual or nonsensical something is? Is it loudest when you encounter the thoughts, plans, or things that your dreams are made of? If so, you are not alone. In fact you are in good company as most intelligent, creative, innovative individuals do.
It’s our inner critic at work. Telling us about ourselves, making sure we don’t get carried away from our comfort zone. Because after all, change and risk should be approached with extreme caution – if at all – according to the inner critic.
Here’s what I have discovered recently about my inner critic. She is very negative, dis-empowering and a total scary cat. I mean, I love her to death, because I know she means well, but at times she can really be a buzz kill. An example of my inner critic hard at work as a showstopper, literally, was during a recent work assignment. I volunteered to chair an employee day event and the task the committee accepted was to develop and execute a memorable, interactive day of fun for local employees. A part of that activity included a flash mob, and the time to pull it off, dwindled to two short weeks (partly my fault, y’all know I procrastinate from time to time…I’m a work in progress). As excited as we all were about the idea, there was a part of me and I’m sure many others, that thought the timing, communication, coordination, etc was not quite right and/or enough for it to actually work. There were times that I was pretty certain that it would be an epic fail. But I stayed committed and focused, even despite the lack of commitment from others. We ended up with several dozen participants and all who were in attendance enjoyed it. Yes, there were naysayers, but I took the risk, saw it through and no one can take the accomplishment and confidence away from me. I was elated and my inner critic and in some respects my external critics were deflated.
Now don’t get me wrong. I’ve taken my inner critic’s lead many times in the past. At times it has really felt like the responsible, safe thing to do. But, truth be told, over time I have allowed her to rob me of my confidence. So as I get to know her better, I am learning to give her, her due. Patiently and respectfully, hearing her out and with all the strength I can muster, declining her invitation (and sometimes insistence) to do nothing or travel the road of least resistance. Another coach recently shared the following advice on differentiating between the voice of the inner critic and the good old solid analytical skills: the inner critic rarely offers solutions or productive rationale; the inner critic’s job is to keep us operating in our all too familiar comfort zone. No risk, little to no reward.
How often do you encounter/engage your inner critic?
What is that special something, that your inner critic is afraid to see you bring forth?
Tamika Bowen
It’s our inner critic at work. Telling us about ourselves, making sure we don’t get carried away from our comfort zone. Because after all, change and risk should be approached with extreme caution – if at all – according to the inner critic.
Here’s what I have discovered recently about my inner critic. She is very negative, dis-empowering and a total scary cat. I mean, I love her to death, because I know she means well, but at times she can really be a buzz kill. An example of my inner critic hard at work as a showstopper, literally, was during a recent work assignment. I volunteered to chair an employee day event and the task the committee accepted was to develop and execute a memorable, interactive day of fun for local employees. A part of that activity included a flash mob, and the time to pull it off, dwindled to two short weeks (partly my fault, y’all know I procrastinate from time to time…I’m a work in progress). As excited as we all were about the idea, there was a part of me and I’m sure many others, that thought the timing, communication, coordination, etc was not quite right and/or enough for it to actually work. There were times that I was pretty certain that it would be an epic fail. But I stayed committed and focused, even despite the lack of commitment from others. We ended up with several dozen participants and all who were in attendance enjoyed it. Yes, there were naysayers, but I took the risk, saw it through and no one can take the accomplishment and confidence away from me. I was elated and my inner critic and in some respects my external critics were deflated.
Now don’t get me wrong. I’ve taken my inner critic’s lead many times in the past. At times it has really felt like the responsible, safe thing to do. But, truth be told, over time I have allowed her to rob me of my confidence. So as I get to know her better, I am learning to give her, her due. Patiently and respectfully, hearing her out and with all the strength I can muster, declining her invitation (and sometimes insistence) to do nothing or travel the road of least resistance. Another coach recently shared the following advice on differentiating between the voice of the inner critic and the good old solid analytical skills: the inner critic rarely offers solutions or productive rationale; the inner critic’s job is to keep us operating in our all too familiar comfort zone. No risk, little to no reward.
How often do you encounter/engage your inner critic?
What is that special something, that your inner critic is afraid to see you bring forth?
Tamika Bowen
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Explore - The real adventure starts closer to home
When I was growing up National Geographic magazine symbolized adventure. Adventure was traveling to exotic unpronounceable places, eating things with eyeballs and hiring guides to take you where few people had been before. Flash forward to today where travelling extensively is much more commonplace and the National Geograpic Channel offers us the opportunity to visit foreign lands and exotic cultures anytime we choose. Leaving me to wonder: If travel isn't adventure anymore, than what is? Perhaps it's time to redefine adventure as less about where we live and more about how we live. For me, this means being open to new experiences even if there is an element of the unknown and unexpected. For example, I recently moved from a traditional corporate environment to an entrepreneural environment that by its very definition has no roadmap. Sure, the path less travelled is challenging but it's also rewarding too. I've already grown a lot. Not all adventures need to be so dramatic. Taking a new route to work can be an adventure. So can taking a dance class. Relationships can be adventures, too. All of them will show you something new (no pith helmet required).
Is there something in your life that you'd like to try but haven't yet? Have you recently begun something new? How did it feel? What did you learn? We invite you to share your experiences and stories with us and our readers. Afterall, we're all fellow travelers in this grand adventure called life!
(C) Ruth Yasko
Guest contributor Ruth Yasko is an award-winning writer, creative director, producer and accomplished fine-art photographer. Ruth has a gift for inspiring others and menors up-and-coming creative professionals and entrepreneurs. A life-long explorer and creator, Ruth's greatest adventure began six months ago with the birth of her daughter, Seren.
Is there something in your life that you'd like to try but haven't yet? Have you recently begun something new? How did it feel? What did you learn? We invite you to share your experiences and stories with us and our readers. Afterall, we're all fellow travelers in this grand adventure called life!
(C) Ruth Yasko
Guest contributor Ruth Yasko is an award-winning writer, creative director, producer and accomplished fine-art photographer. Ruth has a gift for inspiring others and menors up-and-coming creative professionals and entrepreneurs. A life-long explorer and creator, Ruth's greatest adventure began six months ago with the birth of her daughter, Seren.
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