I have been blessed with a highly developed mental capacity. What this means is that my mind is usually working overtime and I can juggle a myriad of things all at once. I suppose this can be good, but it is also quite tiring at times and I just want my mind to shut down, take a nap or go on vacation. Funny that some of the best ideas and inspirations actually come from a whole different source, my intuition.  A friend recently told me that he thought my greatest  skill was my intuition. I was surprised and yet when I “think” about it, it’s true!

Ok- so today I am leaving for a vacation into the mountains and will have five glorious days sitting by a lovely lake in the forest. No internet access, no phone lines and a perfect environment to nurture my intuitive side. I am sure I will come back with all kinds of new  inspirations for my business.

What do you do to nurture your intuitive side and how does that help your business?

It’s summer time here in Oregon finally. Like most Oregonians I crave the sun and when it finally arrives I just want to be at the river. Forget work, networking, writing etc. Just enjoy summer. Nice fantasy. I own a business however, and my business needs to run during the summer regardless of the sun. Recently I attended a really fun networking group and we met at a lovely park at a picnic table. In fact there is another one planned for next month. If you are in Portland maybe you can join us.  What a great solution to wanting to be outside and still focus on marketing.  Marketing is one of those things that has to be done consistently in order to keep the money coming in. Rain or shine you need to toe the line! So look for creative, outdoorsy ways to do  marketing. Here are two things I have been doing that has helped. I have been taking my lap top outside where I can still tap into the internet and enjoy the shade of the trees. I have been waking up earlier and starting work at 6:00. This means that by 4:00 I can go to the outdoor pool to do my lap swim. Not the same as the river but it feels great!

I keep seeing notices about classes on time management. For some reason they never appeal to me. Just the phrase ‘ time management’ feels heavy and dense. Time is really energy. It exists in the spiritual realm. Clocks and calendars are man’s invention to attempt to make it more concrete but it isn’t a concrete physical thing that one can touch or harness. The word ‘management’ refers to control, directing or supervising. Is it possible to direct or control time? I don’t think so.

What I can do is control myself, what I choose to do when and how I prioritize. The busier my business gets, the more important is this kind of organization and prioritizing. This has nothing to do with time though. It has to do with my own focus and clarity about my business and how to build it. Thinking about what I cam doing in regards to time doesn’t really work. It does work to prioritize and have goals. Does this make sense or am I in lala land?

For the largest part of my adult life I thought that money ( which meant responsibility to me) and creativity ( which meant free spiritedness) were separate and lived in two totally different planets.  I saw my dad trudge off to work into the business world,  to the same job for 40 years, in his white shirts and ties and it seemed uninspiring. He did travel some and that part seemed fun, but the other part loomed much bigger.

My childlike mind decided I wanted none of that. I wanted to be creative and to feel inspired so I did that really well. I was self-employed  and thought that gave me freedom  which was a huge value for me. Thirty years later I discovered I knew nothing about money and barely had two nickels to rub together. For the next ten years I decided to learn everything I could about money and how to turn my self-employment into a business.

And what do you know, I realized that my whole belief system was flawed and incorrect!  Money, responsibility, creativity and free-spiritedness actually can co-exist in the same planet.  It was a shock to discover that my whole life had been based on an incorrect idea.  Instead of being angry or upset with myself, I am rejoicing in the immense freedom it has brought to me.  My business allows me to be creative in ways I could not comprehend twenty years ago.

I woke up one day last week and had an “aha”moment. Sometimes I am baffled at how this whole process works of “waking up.” How do you know what you don’t know and how can you find out what you don’t know if you don’t know you don’t know it?

It is a real conundrum. For years, in fact all of my adult life until recently I have been focused on “me,” and what I need, what I want, how I can be of service, how I can feel fulfilled and on and on. It has been all about me and what the world can give to me. I think this is a normal developmental response to individuation so its ok. Whew!

But just last week I realized that this perspective has changed for me. Now it is all about, “what does the world need from me?” The focus is on the world. It is a subtle but powerful difference because now my unique contribution is drawn from me and I just have to show up and be present. Wow, the world really needs something distinctive from me that is special. I think it has been a gradual shift but I just fully realized it.

It is a relief as it eliminates competition, comparison and judgment in one fell swoop. It eliminates the need to try to be something I am not.  I guess I have been operating this way for awhile but didn’t know it. The awareness  makes all the difference.

My Business Design workshop takes on a whole new meaning.