Taking pictures with a super-talented photographer in a Los Angeles alley is definitely not the key to changing everyone’s life for the better. But, as I produced this shoot (a few outtakes are here!) — one of many that are for the new blog and so so much new that’s coming– I couldn’t help but dig into art (the street art here is so fresh), color (it’s everywhere), nature, fashion (this Prabal Gurung dress has a life of its own!) and every other way that I connect to life in sensory ways. Sunshine, rainbows, laughter, adventure, collaboration, synergy, racing against time as storefronts opened…
All that richness was a big part of the process if art directing myself and it was as energizing as 12 cups of coffee (! — in a positive way!) every day as it came together.
It pulled my focus off of anything else that was capturing my attention and got me deep into a connection with creative fire I was so ready to mine!
When you’re deeply invested in what you’re doing, that creative fire is undeniable. It’s a level of power and potency that feels like magic.
In a sense, it is magic.
Deeply connecting to your life and becoming so invested that you can’t be pulled off of your course, distracted by drains or tempted by self-criticism to waver is a kind of fierceness that can’t be denied.
Let’s get some more of that magic cooking right now!
All things are served well by clearing the clutter first.
What’s really worth your energy? Do you have habits, distractions, extra projects, needless steps, unnecessary worries or anything else standing in your way?
Take a look at this first, because we can’t fill up a leaky vase to keep the flowers watered. If you’re leaking energy out of your life, investing in expansion will only give you more energy to let drain out of your days.
If you find a few drains, decide– even if it will take a longer time to get them accomplished– that you will get them shored up.
How can you connect more to what you are doing?
I’ll give you an example. This photo shoot was extremely “invested” for me because I did it the way that a pro would do it– scouting locations, art direction, light tests, colors, and the right collaborator taking photos to bring it all together. My first life in fashion and art taught me a lot that was enriching to tap into.
I could have just grabbed some dresses and shown up and decided that whatever we found was good enough. I have done that before and it was OK. But, it was not really invested.
OK is not what anyone is really aiming for, right?
So, how can you forge a stronger connection to what you’re doing right now?
Here are a few potent ways I’ve found to do this with ease:
- fill your environment with sensory richness that makes you feel inspired (scents, sights, colors– all of it!)
- mine your life experiences and passions to find a way to bring them into what you’re doing right now.
- immerse yourself in what you’re doing joyfully, and take a break when it doesn’t feel like joy.
All of it, ideally, is FUN!
Keep on setting your sights on new ways to create and contribute.
We can get so focused on wanting one thing, we can neglect the fact that we want many things. We can get so into one part of life that the others become a bit ignored.
Set your sights on lots of ways to innovate, create and contribute.
Give yourself time to dream, brainstorm, experiment…
Let those ideas seep into your days.
My whole career and creative universe started on a three minute whim to set up a Tumblr blog many many years ago with a friend. You never know where this can lead!
And while you may not know where it ultimately leads right now, all this gathering of ideas keeps you in creative momentum. It keeps you, as Abraham Hicks says, “on the leading edge.” It keeps the energy flowing. It keeps you in abundance.
These are a starting place, of course, wherever they can be of service. The main point–
Where you invest your energy, life will grow.
Investing in all that you love in very practical ways can be real magic!
xoxo!!! Dana
P.S.: The Cash Camp is coming soon, so perfectly in tune with the Lunar New Year and a fresh start in power!
Eight weeks of fortune- building feng shui to get your money in order & your wealth growing starts in March.
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