Radically transform your life, a little bit at a time

Last week I wrote about aligning your day job with your creative destiny and there were a few objections about the practicality of such things in this day and age.

So I want to be clear.

  • I’m not suggesting that you up and quit your current job that doesn’t work for you without having something new lined up.
  • I’m not suggesting that work for peanuts and stress yourself financially in order to pursue your creative work.
  • I’m not suggesting that the only way to have a more aligned day job is to work part time or fewer hours (though that may be part of your solution).

I am suggesting that:

  1. If pursuing your creative destiny is important to you and you believe it is your true source of life satisfaction and ultimate success, you must make it a priority.
  2. In order to make it a priority, you may want to reevaluate the current things you are doing and consider changing them to be better aligned with your creative work.
  3. Many people mistakenly assume there is no other solution to their current circumstances, and/or they are unwilling to challenges the choices in their lives that keep them stuck.
  4. Many people resist making changes because it feels overwhelming.

IF you want to make a change in your current life or job situation, rather than doing it in one fell swoop, I encourage you to tackle it a little bit at a time.

  • Begin thinking of yourself in a new way (e.g “What would it look like to put my writing first?”).
  • Take a look at what’s working and what’s not.
  • Get creative about new ways to approach what’s not working. What could you try that you’ve never tried before? (Getting up early to pursue your art?)
  • Brainstorm what your ideal scenario would look like.
  • Resist deciding there are no alternatives that might work better until you’ve thoroughly explored the options.
  • Open your eyes, heart, and mind to new possibilities and solutions.
  • Take a active role in pursuing those solutions.
  • Start making changes a little bit at a time.
  • If something big falls into place, go for it!

For a long time, I believed that running my busy coaching business meant I couldn’t write. As I wrote last week, I had to shift what I was thinking and believing first, and then shift what I was doing to make a change in my life. And now it’s happening, bit by bit.

The mistake I kept making was not believing it was possible, so I kept waiting for something to happen to make it possible, rather than making it possible myself.

Your Turn

What about you? What’s the first small adjustment you can make to bring your creative work to the forefront of your life? Let us know in the comments.

 Jenna

Coming Attractions

~> Ongoing. My Protection & Grounding Jewelry is on close-out. Only a few items are left. Find them here.

~> December 26th, 2011. The next session of my Writer’s Circle starts — come rain, come shine, come holidays! Sign up here. Get my Free Writing Tips series too, and receive a coupon for a savings on your first 4 week session.

~> February 2, 2012. Start the new year fresh with your life purpose clear in your mind. My next life purpose breakthrough group session in on February 2. Details. Registration deadline: January 5.

 

What I'm Up To

~> Ongoing. Writing in the ProSeries class at ScreenwritingU.

~> Daily and especially Fridays. Sacred writing time. The Do Not Disturb sign is up.

~> Getting ready for some time off with my family over the holidays.

Align your day job with your creative destiny

Being trapped between a “day job” and your true creative destiny can be awkward.

It doesn’t have to be.

All too often, having a “day job” or “support job” looks like doing work you don’t enjoy in the name of paying the bills, while you pursue your true creative calling on the side.

In a more optimal scenario it looks like doing work you enjoy, ideally closely akin to your creative work.

For a long time, I’ve wanted to be a “real” writer. You probably know that already. *grin*

And for a while it felt like my coaching business was preventing me from doing that.

What I’ve since learned is that I was the only one stopping myself from pursuing my creative writing, and I had to make a few adjustments to change my relationship with my business to make my writing life a priority.

Inner & Outer Adjustments

Here’s what I mean:

  1. I had to start seeing myself as a writer and believing that my creative destiny and future success lies in that direction.
  2. I had to reorganize the structure of my days and life around my writing.
  3. I had to start thinking of my coaching business as my day job — luckily one that I like very much, and fully intend to keep doing — but one that is not the only center of my universe.
  4. I had redesign my business model to be more in alignment with my writing so it didn’t feel like such a departure from my own creative work (hence my Writer’s Circle and my focus on creativity over sensitivity, though that’s still part of the mix).

Ideal Support Job Alignment Checklist

Some things to take into consideration:

  • Make sure your support job pays well. Support jobs are Good Things, because they give you breathing room, usually financially, so you can pursue your creative destiny free from needing to rely on it to keep a roof over your head. (Not setting it up this way = a recipe for feeling creatively blocked if I ever heard one. I made this mistake when I first started my coaching business.)
  • Make sure your support job leaves enough time and energy that you feel like you have the bandwidth left to pursue your creative work. Support jobs are Good Things only when they work for you, so check to make sure your “day job” is truly supporting your creative work. If it is draining and deadening you, it’s time for a recalibration. Having a good support job that feels good to you can make all the difference in the energy, spirit, and passion you’re able to bring to your creative work.
  • Ideally, make sure your support job is aligned with your creative work. In an ideal world, your support job will match or resonate with your creative work. If it’s not, can you make any adjustments? Your spirit will be so much happier.

Your Turn

What about you? If you have a “day job,” is it working for you? How well is it aligned with your creative destiny? Are you inspired to anything shift about it? Let us know in the comments.

 Jenna

Coming Attractions

~> December 26th, 2011. The next session of my Writer’s Circle starts — come rain, come shine, come holidays! Sign up here. Get my Free Writing Tips series too, and receive a coupon for a savings on your first 4 week session.

~> January 26th, 2012. Start the new year fresh with your life purpose clear in your mind. My next life purpose breakthrough group session in on January 26th, time of day TBA. Details. Registration deadline: December 29th.

 

What I'm Up To

~> Ongoing. Writing in the ProSeries class at ScreenwritingU. Still critiquing (and learning tons!)

~> Daily and especially Fridays. Sacred writing time. The Do Not Disturb sign is up.