Category Archives: do what you love

Magic happens when you commit to the dreams you have hidden.

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Do you have a little dream inside you?
Is there something you long to do, but actually doing it makes you feel too way vulnerable?

For me, one of the many little dreams I kept hidden was very simple… to make art on a regular basis, free from fear. I did a little, now and then, here and there, but it never felt very serious; I never thought I was any good; it always felt half-hearted.

Commitment is a powerful thing.

In this book The Scottish Himalaya Expedition, 1951, W. H. Murray writes,

‘Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness concerning all acts of initiative and creation. There is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans; that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too.

All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen events, meetings and material assistance which no one could have dreamed would have come their way.

I have learned a deep respect for one of Goethe’s couplets: “Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.
Begin it now!”‘

I have found this to be so true! On May 1, 2012, I finally committed to what was important to me: my art. Since then, everything has changed. Opportunities have presented themselves; I have met some of the most amazing people who have supported, inspired and been supported and inspired by my projects and I have made countless connections with so many creative souls who I would never had encountered had I not made the commitment to my creativity.

If you are a regular visitor to this site, you will have heard me tell the story time and again, but all that you see here… all of my creative adventures, from my own art to the art clubs and workshops and courses I am now running to encourage others to follow their creative hearts… all of these things are a result of committing to my own little dream. All of the things I have learned along the way I am now sharing with others and supporting them as they follow their own creative paths. And I love it!

Now, I am proud to say that I follow my heart, create art and make money from my passions. The more ideas I play out, the more ideas flow and the more I learn. It’s an ongoing journey. That’s not to say that it’s all easy, but then I like to be challenged and so I push my own boundaries and continue the cycle of following my heart, making my art, sharing what I learn, reflecting, adapting and playing it all out again, with a twist.

On June 1, I will be part of the team supporting over 200 people who are committing to their own little dreams and playing out the ideas that have been hidden for too long. John Williams, bestselling author of Screw Work Let’s Play, and my very own mentor and business guru, Judith Morgan, will be leading the next 30 Day Challenge, sharing a wealth of knowledge gained from years of experience as entrepreneurs themselves. I mention this to you because, for me, this was the catalyst. 30DC was the point at which I truly committed to my little dream and not only re-discovered the creative freedom I felt in my teens, but also found a way to turn my passion into profit. You can do it too! Sign up for the 30DC with the link below and you too could find a way to make money doing something you love. https://fo124.infusionsoft.com/go/30DC/Julia/
Speaking from experience, I totally believe in this process.

So go on… take a look and take the leap. Then come back here and tell me all about that little dream you have kept hidden, but are ready to commit to. Come on in… find your tribe. I’ve got your back… I did it and I know you can too.

With love,
Julia x

Setting intentions and doing what makes you come alive

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My play map

As I work my way through the Screw Work Let’s Play Ignition programme, I find myself diving into Play Mapping. With additional coaching from Selina Barker, I am getting clearer on how I would like my working life to be and taking a step closer to that every day. I am fairly happy with my life as it is, but hey, there is always room for improvement and I could do with more work and income when small boy starts school in just 12 weeks time… I want to be sure that I love what I am doing and getting paid to play. Play Mapping involves dreaming big. It means creating a vision of what you really, really want and this involves getting to the very heart of the experiences you desire in your life. So, I have been dreaming big, but also getting very practical about the little steps I can take right now to get closer to that dream life on a day to day basis.

To the sea

As expressed in my play map, I felt the need for wide open skies and sea air this weekend, so I took my best friend Laura, her youngest daughter and my boys on a day trip to Hastings. We had fish & chips, rode the rollercoaster (not in that order) and played hide and seek amongst the gorse bushes in Hastings Country Park. These are the things that make me come alive. I returned home with salty, tangled hair and a good feeling about things to come. The restorative effects of this day of play are still with me and the trip got Laura sketching again.

One of the most important things to me is sharing and connecting with like minded people. I have long known that in order to create a successful, sustainable business, it is necessary to grow my tribe, but this week I acknowledged that fact and started to take steps towards the goal of reaching out and connecting with more people. On Wednesday, I set the intention of finding a blog for which I could provide a guest post. I mentioned this to a few people and sent this desire out into the universe. Within 24 hours, my call was answered from the most unexpected of directions. I stumbled upon Paula, a like-minded blogger in Buenos Aires who was seeking guest posts and, as luck would have it, someone had dropped out leaving a spot for me right away. As Paula so sweetly put it, “The Universe was playing mix and match with us”. By Friday… less than 48 hours after setting my intention, my first guest blog post was up! You can read it here.

On Monday, I was Paula’s guest illustrator of the week and another of my images was being shared. Whilst I have been letting go of outcome in my art, the power of setting small, but clear intentions with a bigger goal in mind has been such a great lesson for me this week. My desire to connect led to another contact closer to home… the delightful Hatti of Parent Tribe. Parent Tribe is a new online magazine and website which aims to inspire and support parents to find ways to be together with their children more, living creative, holistic and fulfilling lives. I am so thrilled that some of my photographs will be used in the next issue and I am looking forward to connecting with other creative parents online.

And so, as the week progresses, I will be doing more of what makes me come alive. I will be going back to my play map and fitting more of these things into my daily life. I will be setting more intentions as well. Starting with the bigger dream, I will consider the next step I need to take in order to get closer to that bigger dream… I will set my intention and take the leap.

Have you tried Play Mapping?

How have you used the power of intentions to get closer to your big dream?