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June 13, 2009

Mission: Get Out of the Rat Race

Doing Work at StarbucksBeing the entrepreneur that I am, my mind is non-stop when it comes to business ideas.  I also have friends who are realizing the skills that I have and are asking me to help them with their businesses. 

Yes, people are beginning to feel the power of the internet and social networking.  What used to be thought of as frivolous activities (i.e. blogging or hanging out on Twitter and Facebook) have become opportunities to make money. 

My friend told me the other day, "If I had listened to you three years ago and started my own blog, I would probably be making alot of money right now and spending more time with my kids!"

Well, it's definitely not too late to make money on the internet!  If you've come across this blog looking for tips and ideas on starting an internet business, check out my online business blog

I read about people who are losing their jobs due to the economy and it's motivating me to get my ebook finished.  I know that there many people waking up to this idea of having their own internet business.  If I could help even one person get away from the rat race, I will be happy.  People have to stop relying on a 9-5 job for their income and start taking charge of their abundance!

Continue reading "Mission: Get Out of the Rat Race" »

May 17, 2009

The Power of Flowers

As an artist with a great deal of creative energy, I often have moments when I'm focused on my writing...then I'll switch to making jewelry or greeting cards.  Recently I've started to feel a little burned out from blogging and writing, so to mix it up I've started making greeting cards again. 

I took inventory of all the cards I have and realized that many of them were never added to my online greeting card shop, so I spent most of the weekend uploading cards and making new ones as well. 

Artful Flowers - Handmade Greeting CardI still have one of the first greeting cards that ever made.  I've titled it, "The Power of Flowers"... 

Flowers are one of my favorite themes.  Flowers really do have a great deal of power.  They teach me that there is beauty in everything...and flowers bring so much happiness to people. 

As the famous painter Claude Monet once said, "I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers." 

April 09, 2009

Less Work, More Play (And Money!)

A Day at the ParkThat's been my mantra since the beginning of the year.  I've set the intention that I'm going to work on my business versus working in my business.  I'm referring to my blog network, Studio 747.

I want to take Studio 747 to the next level...and in order for me to do that, I'm going to have to get help.  I love writing and blogging, but having to write on 10+ blogs does take a great deal of time!  I have taken one step towards my goals and outsourced a small portion of my blog writing. 

Today I came across Leo Babauta's post, Don't Have Time For Your Goals?  Simplify Your CommitmentsOf course, it was a timely post as I have been thinking of ways that I can cut the things that I feel obligated to.  (Really?  I don't have to post to my blogs every week?)  I've noticed that I've been watching more TV and spending more time on Twitter than usual, so I'm going to work on spending less time on unproductive activities.  Not to say that Twitter is unproductive because I think connecting with others is beneficial to my business.  I'll spend 30 minutes on Twitter from now on versus 1 or 2 hours.

Continue reading "Less Work, More Play (And Money!)" »

March 29, 2009

Making a Mark

Yesterday I celebrated my 35th birthday!  For some women turning one year older is just horrible.  They start checking out their face for wrinkles and lines...

Sure, it was a special day, but for me the "Big 35" is just another year.  My life philosophy has always been to celebrate each day like it's a birthday!

The fiance treated me out to lunch and afterwards we headed to beautiful Balboa Park to check out the Museum of Man and enjoy the absolutely gorgeous weather we are currently having in San Diego.  It's hard not to have a good day when you live in a city like San Diego ;) 

As I was looking at the exhibits in the Museum of Man, I was awestruck by the fact that many of these pieces survived thousands of years buried underground before they were discovered by archaeologists.  Just think, one day thousands of years from now people will be looking at our computers, digital cameras, and works of art as if they are foreign objects! 

Incan Figurines


I started to think about the mark I wanted to make in the world.  What could I leave behind that would tell people from the future about this day and age? 

In the Museum of Man

March 19, 2009

Artists Are From Another Planet

full-moon.jpg

Artists are from another planet.  That's the conclusion that I've come to. 

In general, people who give advice on productivity always tell you that it's better to get up early...blah...blah...blah.  Sure, this may work for other people, but the creative people I know are night owls who work into the wee hours of the morning.  They're idea of waking up "early" is 10-11 a.m. 

There's something about working in the very early morning...say, 1-3 a.m.  Except for the occasional dog barking, the earth is very silent.  No birds chirping and no rooster crowing. (I have a neighbor with chickens!)  Absolutely silent...and during those hours I'm able to just be inside my head.  There's no oohing and ahhing at how beautiful the sunshine is outside.  I'm focused on the task at hand (Usually I'm writing). 

Continue reading "Artists Are From Another Planet" »

March 05, 2009

Focused on Being Happy

 

happiness.jpg
Photo Credit: Dheepak Ra

As someone with a great deal of creative energy flowing through me, I often find it a challenge to stay focused.  Many people have told me that I should focus on one thing, but for me that's hard because I have so many interests.  I love writing, but I also like to make jewelry and greeting cards...and I've built businesses around these interests. 

Perhaps, yes, my jewelry business would be much bigger now had I focused solely on that.  Or maybe I would have finished that ebook I've been working on for the past year had I focused just on my writing.  However, focusing on just one thing just isn't me.  I'm moody like that.  My creative moods are different from day to day. 

Continue reading "Focused on Being Happy" »

February 26, 2009

The Abundance Mentality

Abundance of Roma Tomatoes

"The Abundance Mentality...flows out of a deep inner sense of personal worth and security.  It is the paradigm that there is plenty out there and enough to spare for everybody.  It results in sharing of prestige, of recognition, of profits, of decision making.  It opens possibilities, options, alternatives, and creativity." -- Stephen R. Covey

The quote above comes from Covey's bestselling book, "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People ".
I thought it would be a great quote to share - especially during this time when so much focus has been on the stock market and the economy.

I invite you to read my blog, The Good Life, to learn more about how to create an abundance mentality for yourself!

February 02, 2009

Productive At Being Unproductive

Did I ever mention that I am an overachiever?

Well, if you've been reading this blog for some time now, you know that I am.  What other kind of person would manage and write for 10+ blogs (seriously, I've lost count) while working on a jewelry and handcrafted cards businesses?  Well, as I stated before, I've cut out those two businesses...but interestingly enough I started getting more jewelry orders after I said that I was just going to focus on my blogging. 

So this year I have made the intention to slow things down a bit - especially after I came down with the flu last week.  I hardly ever get sick, so that was a sign that it was time to just refocus and enjoy life.  I think I was turning into one of those people that was addicted to being busy when in actuality I wasn't really accomplishing anything.

 

Continue reading "Productive At Being Unproductive" »

January 23, 2009

Lessons From Rick DiBiasio, "The Affluent Artist"

As I continue my quest to do something different each day, I thought I'd visit other blogs that I've never read before. 

Being that I am an artist, I wanted to discover other artists who blog and I came across The Affluent Artist Blog which is written by Rick DiBiasio.

I like this post, Too Busy to Get Anything Done, in which Rick talks about how many of us need to "declutter" our life to make room for the important things.  Here is a video clip of Rick expanding on that thought...

Continue reading "Lessons From Rick DiBiasio, "The Affluent Artist"" »

January 18, 2009

How To Have a Relaxing Vacation in Las Vegas

Paris Hotel at NightI finally took a vacation!  Well, actually it was a mini-vacation (4 days) in Las Vegas.  I've come back refreshed and ready to go on another blogging marathon ;)

Most people would think that it would be impossible to have a relaxing vacation in Las Vegas, but I'm here to tell you that it's possible.  The energy of Vegas dictates that you should always be on the go or you should be partying your ass off, but if you've been to Vegas as many times as I have, you get to the point where you're just over it. 

Continue reading "How To Have a Relaxing Vacation in Las Vegas" »

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