Yesterday I got to thinking about the uniqueness of my days and how breathtaking it is to step back and observe the exquisite colors I paint my life with. I felt deeply blessed to be living with utter commitment to my true path, fueled by a profound sense of faith. It takes a great deal of courage and strength to live this way, to abandon the roles and rules society and those around you seemingly inflict upon you from birth, to leave behind a high paying job and total security, to silence out the naysayers who shout their doubts at you as you hurl past them on your unbeaten path. But, it is all worth it. I simply feel incredibly aware of the preciousness of life. Why would I live my life sitting on the sidelines, why would I not attempt to live the life of my dreams, why would I keep my gifts to myself instead of bestow them upon this beautiful world? What do I have to loose? The fact is I have nothing to loose, and everything to gain...and now I gain something I've always wanted every day.
As one of my favorite inspirational authors (Tama Kieves) says: "Never let the fear of others determine the path that you are meant to take. It is never too late to start dreaming about what you want to be when you grow up...Prudence and conservatism have not advanced our culture. It took the voices on the outskirts to make a noise that changed the world...So dare the ridicule of the narrow-minded and dim-sighted. Dare to still believe. Dare to feel. Dare to trust your guiding light. Dare to ignore gravity and take flight. Dare to be a hero. Dare to be a fool."
So, are you wondering what one of these days of glory looks like for a self-employed artist? I'll give you a glimpse. Here is a day living as a fool in love with life:
6:30 a.m. Rise and shine. I'm woken up by kisses all over my face from my fiance...just like every sweet morning of my life.
7:00 Eat homemade goji berry, flax & maca oatmeal with my love.
7:30 Drop my love off at work. We share a car to conserve resources and cut our impact on the environment in half. We also get an extra 1/2 hour together each day by sharing the commute.
8:00 Check emails. Convo a few fellow Etsy sellers thanking them for promoting my art work...love the free advertising! Send off my rejection of the counter proposal I received for a possible photo project. Feel elated to be able to pick and choose my terms, hours and pay (and say no when they aren't met!).
8:30 Short morning yoga routine
9:00 Run 3 miles
10:30 Post a new blog
11:00 Hear from the yoga & wellness center that would like to meet with me. Rejoice at the possibility of working a few hours a week in the type of environment that would cause my heart and soul to expand in never ending waves of happiness, peace and inspiration....not to mention, give me a space to put my art up on public walls (for sale!).
11:30 Hear back from the PR rep whose offer I rejected earlier. He now wants to give me everything I asked for and a lot more! Giggle at the mention of being given 1-2 staff of my own for the day of the photo shoot. Feel victorious and proud of my business skills. Accept the offer.
12:00 Eat the homemade tofu spinach lasagna my amazing fiance baked for me.
12:30 Work on printing and pricing a 4 foot wide photograph I'm going to print on canvas to sell to an interested buyer. Email the buyer an update.
1:00 Add new pictures to my fan page. Check my website stats (yay Google Analytics!) for the past week and compare them with my promotional efforts to see what's working and what is not. Work on my Etsy shop. Research international shipping to add this service to my shop. Browse other shops to include in my next promotion. Read a few entries of my favorite small business and art blogs, and make comments to insert myself into the conversation and increase my internet presence. Work on new ideas for my own blogs. Make a list of current business to-do's.
3:30 Take a walk. Snap some pictures.
4:00 Afternoon yoga practice
5:00 Pick my sweetie up from work. Talk about our moments of triumph on the way home.
6:00 Cook dinner with my sweetie.
7:00 Check my emails, etsy and websites one final time. Edit some pictures. Get an email from a friend wanting me to photograph her family. Smile.
8:00 Take a bath. Veg with my honey until bedtime.
10:00 Zzzzzz
Ooooh...did I make the blog? Am I the 12:30 entry? :)
ReplyDeleteAnd I am very jealous of your life right now! I need to absorb some of your super powers that let you live your dreams.
Yes, you are my 12:30 entry! :)
ReplyDeleteAnd Kristin, I've always had this sense that you would do something inspiring....ever since we had a conversation about beings writers and changing the world. I have some great book recommendations if you need some inspiration to follow your dreams (and you can always read my blog for a little dose of "it's possible").