It’s been over a month since I’ve felt the push to write here, and this is VERY good news!!

When I was first learning to clear up some space in life, I’d come here to complain.

Like, how was I supposed to turn this ship around??

When I was first learning to get used to the space, I’d come here to vent.

Dang, it was difficult to start a new way of living!!!

Now I’m onto my first celebratory post!!!!

Success #1

I’ve been turning down A LOT of things that currently feel heavy to me, and it’s getting easier to do. So I cancelled my appearance at the Beaux Arts Fair this weekend because, truthfully, art shows take up a lot of time and preparation. That’s not where I wanted my energy to go at the moment.

Success #2

I’m learning to lose the guilt. As I shared my decision with the other members of the fair committee, I felt bad going back on my word, but I also felt something else.

RELIEF

My body immediately thanked me for choosing to leave this particular stressor behind.

Success #3

I’ve made time for things I love! You guys, this is the best part! I wrote a list of all the things that are important to me and then used the Structured app to build my week.

NOTE: I am not naturally a structured person. I think many creatives can relate. :)
Drop a comment if that’s you. I need to hear it.

Last week, I read somewhere (I’ve forgotten where, or I’d link it here) that a lot of stress is created by not having a plan for the day. As an entrepreneur, I’m pretty much in charge of my day, so it’s far too easy to skip around from task to task, only to wish I’d gotten something totally different accomplished.

Anyway, the article stated that there is a constant wondering of what we should do next and for how long until we do the next thing, and what will that next thing be, and should we do that or something different. That was a weird sentence, but I hope you followed. The wondering goes on and on, leaving the body in a constant state of anxiety and uncertainty. That’s a lot of stress on the body!!

So ya, I first made a list of what’s important to me:

family
friends
painting
animals
music
teaching
collaboration
landscaping
reading
learning
my business
creating
moving
home aesthetics
outdoors
blogging
quiet time
and others I might be forgetting at the moment

Then, from this list, I built my week, knowing that there are bound to be many times when I’ll ditch the plan in order to babysit my grandson or ride horses with a friend. But still, I have a general plan that allows my weeks to be filled with things that matter most to me.

That’s what I’ve learned so far.

I have to DO the things I’ve been wanting to do and BE who I know I am.

I have to go beyond wishing I had time and actually DO these things I love.

What have I been doing? (Or as my friend Jade Eby over at The Creative Empowerment Community asked herself, “What cool shit am I doing?”

Reading, learning, decorating the house, babysitting, planning a wedding, illustrating a kids’ book, teaching watercolor classes, stretching, spending time with family, running a small business, playing with animals, All the while, business is good and I’m feeling happy.