Someday – is Today

Someday — when the kids are grown, when work lightens up, when I win the lottery — I am going to start that business, become a yoga teacher, write that book, develop that app, paint that picture, finish my degree, pick up that musical instrument.

There’s a Japanese proverb: “The day you decide to do it is your lucky day.”

But how do we make the decision to actually start and complete creative things?

This is the question that author and nationally acclaimed storyteller Matthew Dicks explores in his new book, Someday Is Today: 22 Simple, Actionable Ways to Propel Your Creative Life – published by New World Library.

I’ve invited Matthew to join me on my blog today to talk about the concept of “someday” – and how creative people can embrace someday as today.

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It’s Never Too Late to Be What You Might Have Been

Over the past year, as we’ve navigated through the pandemic, I’ve had many discussions with clients, colleagues, and friends who are at a major crossroad in their life, both personally and professionally, which is resulting in an intense period of reflection. They’re feeling stuck, confused, unmotivated, and unable to connect with what might be ahead of them on their life’s journey.

There’s a feeling of being “a late arrival” to their own life – to a degree that causes them to wonder if they’ve missed an opportunity.

Many are pondering an array of questions, such as:

  • How did I get here – in this place of darkness, confusion, and wonder?
  • I see nothing ahead of me, so is this it?
  • What does this stuckness mean – and how do I sort through it?
  • How do I make sense of my life and the journey I’ve traveled?
  • What do I do with all the lessons I’ve learned and the gifts I’ve received – and what do I let go of?
  • Where do I go from here?

For all of these individuals, the most interesting thing about this crossroad is what has brought them to it. In some way, shape, or form – they’re all facing a major life transition. And it has come to them at a time that many would call “middle age.”

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Need an Author’s Checklist?

As a certified creativity coach, I work a lot with authors and writers, many of whom are looking to publish their work with a traditional publisher. A question that comes up often is, “Do I need an agent?”

I invited Elizabeth Kracht, author of the book, The Author’s Checklist: An Agent’s Guide to Developing and Editing Your Manuscript – published by New World Library, to join me for a dialogue on my blog today about her role as a literary agent and what advice she has for aspiring authors. 

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Wrapping up the Year with Full Moon Dreaming

Here we are – the last full moon of 2020. 🌝
 
What gift does our lunar goddess have for us as we bring closure to a year full of surprises and disappointments, unexpected twists and mysterious turns, revelations that we didn’t see coming?
 
For many centuries, the moon has inspired thousands of beautiful stories, songs, dances, paintings, and poems. Through her many phases, she has served as a muse in a variety of ways.
 
What is it about the moon that stirs our innermost thoughts and inspires our deepest creativity?
 
What is it about her that unleashes the magic of our dreams?
 
The full moon brings a time of high energy and great sensitivity. It’s also a period of extraordinary creativity. Dreams (both day and night) are at their height during this phase – with the potential to activate possibilities that you never thought were possible.

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Tapping into Blue Moon Energy

Did you know that tomorrow brings a blue moon? It’s the second full moon in the month of October – and when that occurs, once every couple of years or so, it’s classified as a blue moon.
 
Blue moons are really special. It’s why people say “once in a blue moon.” It’s a phrase that’s used to describe the rarity of an event – or to refer to something that is considered “unusual” or “unique.”
 
One of the gifts that the blue moon gives us is an overwhelming desire to come alive. Whether that’s bringing a passion front and center or finally making the decision to take a giant leap forward in a new direction that is fully aligned with our creative purpose.
 
Imagine driving through a fast food window and placing an order – only this time the menu lists the one thing that you’ve been contemplating for quite some time.
 
Perhaps it’s that life-changing book you’ve been working on for eons, but keep finding yourself facing one creative block after another. Or maybe it’s that passion-filled business that you’ve been wanting to start, but you haven’t yet gotten the courage to just go for it. Or it could be the nonprofit organization you’ve been pondering, the one that’s destined to change the world.
 
Whatever it is – it’s on the menu right now. And the clerk (who happens to be representing the positive energies of the universe) says, “What can I get for you today?”
 
This is your moment! Will you order it? Will you tell the universe, “Yes, this is the right time for me. I’ll take it.”
 
And then the clerk says, “Would you like to super-size that?”
 
What would it take for you to say, “Heck yeah!”?

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What Masks Are You Wearing?

As we approach one of my favorite times of the year, Halloween – I’m reminded of all the costumes and masks people wear to celebrate this festive occasion.

It triggered my thinking about the many masks we have all worn in our lives – and may still be wearing.

How many of these masks serve as an authentic extension of who we are? And how many of these masks are a cover-up for drowning out our own inner voices?

Have you ever stopped to think about the many labels that you wear in life – maybe you’re a spouse, a parent, a grandparent, a teacher, a loyal employee, a neighbor – and the different masks that are required to show up in these roles?

For some of us, these labels are true extensions of who we are – therefore, there are no masks required. We just show up authentically and shine our inner light in a different direction.

But for many of us, these labels serve as expressions of obligations or beliefs that were imposed on us, by self or others.

On an evening walk two weeks ago, I couldn’t help but take in the beauty of our lunar goddess as she began to make her way out of her new moon darkness and into her first sliver of light. It was a glorious sight!

It was just enough light to see the definition of the moon in the night sky, bringing her out of complete darkness – but not quite enough light for the waxing crescent phase.

It reminded me of those many times in my life, when I would peek my head out of that place of “not knowing” into the light of possibility – with a vulnerability and a curiosity about what life might be like if I stepped out without my masks?

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