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Post-it Notes #2: Write lists every day
Brainstorm.
Come up with hundreds of ideas.
Then execute on the best idea/s.
I aim to write several lists each day before anything else:
Blog post ideas
New ideas for apps
Post it drawings ideas
Solutions to a specific problem
Gift ideas for friends
New book ideas
Writing lists has been the best way for me to filter down into better ideas.
And better ideas lead to better results when executed on.
The more ideas, the more associations are made in my head and the more creative I get.
—
Does this idea make sense to you? If you have 12.7 seconds, I'd love to read your comment below.
What makes you feel alive?
Originally published at alexmathers.net on August 3, 2018.
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The nourishing energy found in loving everything
It can hurt when stress curls its knotted fingers around our necks.
But boy does it get easier when we see that those hands on our throats are our own.
Instead of it being the things that happen to us that create stress, it is our very resistance to those things that set it in motion.
Unnecessary and prolonged anxiety; frustration; anger, fear and mental anguish. They are here coursing through us because of us.
We permit it to be this way.
We are our very resistance.
Life, in this way, is not hard. It is our resistance that makes it hard.
When I ruminate and stew over an upcoming social gathering I don't want to go to, I suffer because I think in circles. The event and the people within it have no impact on my suffering at all.
It is the thought I hold in my head about how hard the event will be that makes it hard. The thought alone sets off a reaction involving nerves and chemicals that makes me feel stress.
My emotional experience is a product of the dancing and provocative pictures in my mind.
That's not to say we can't switch off our emotional reaction to stimuli, but it does mean that we can manage it and see irrational fears and stresses diminish.
It would make sense, then, that to navigate our lives with more ease and flow, requires us to let go of the thoughts that create resistance in us.
We need to let go of ourselves.
What will serve us is to find the courage to turn away from trying to control our reality via thought, towards conscious awareness of reality as it really is.
I've talked about our need to redirect attention away from ourselves through turning our attention to others.
If you're suffering, get out of your mind and stop making it about you. You are completely insignificant...
...And yet at the same time, you are entirely significant...when you put yourself to good use.
One of those uses is in giving and finding ways to continually improve the lives of the people who matter to you.
This has brought me tremendous relief.
It's why I create and serve and coach as much as I do.
Instead of getting wrapped up in fixing ourselves, we need to spend more of our time in the service of others; not in the sense of us being in subservient neediness operating from lack, but in acknowledging our infinite value that we are thrilled to share.
We give to nourish our expanding networks, which we know will, in turn, sustain us. As connected creatures, we see that this is the order of nature and things.
We set an example as a leader who inspires others with a willingness to let go of the obsession with themselves.
In addition to using service as a means to distract ourselves from ourselves, we can use a related and powerful mode of being that brings passion and aliveness in me when I remember to do it. It allows me to transcend resistance to life with more consistency.
That is to direct a lovingness towards...
Everything and everyone.
Everything?
Well. Yes.
This is the art of meeting resistance, self-sabotage, anxiety or fear with a lightness, a friendliness, a letting go into acceptance - all variations of love.
And this can happen with the really bad stuff too. That's not to say you agree with evil acts. It's to approach these things, and everything, without the propensity to react in a whirlwind of emotion.
In this way we are in a much better state of being to act when action is required.
We must allow our hearts to open; to create pathways for energy to run through us, instead of closing up to moments that remind us of stuff we hate.
We are full of blocked energy from our past to which we hold on tightly as protection. All we need to do is open up and direct love at resistance and what feels like fear, and we can be free of those blocks.
To experience more joy, we must be capable of accepting and loving it all.
We can see everything as a teacher; as a source of wisdom, and we can be thankful for it all.
If we close ourselves to things, Michael A. Singer says in his book 'The Untethered Soul,' we create resistance and energy blocks, that make us suffer.
We don't want this. It's an idea that takes courage, but we can be open and friendly to it all. Not to encourage bad things, but to let it pass through you. This is the very essence of the phrase: 'going with the flow.'
With a simple letting go, and a willingness NOT to close, we allow innate energy from within to rush through us, aiding in our creativity, and allowing us to experience life on an entirely new plane that most of us will ever know.
I know, you might be thinking that this is all unrealistic and silly, and over the top.
But I encourage you to try.
I am speaking as much to myself here because whenever I have let go of closing, amazing things have happened.
When I don't resist life, well - I don't feel much resistance at all.
I always thought that resistance and stress were out of my control and inevitable parts of existence.
But with a gentle lovingness directed at all things, especially those things that previously brought me angst, I can see that I create every aspect of my reality.
You might find - in fact, I know you'll find - things that once phased you, suddenly lose their hold on you, allowing you to experience a tremendous sense of relief, and even bliss.
Start today.
Love what is by being present. Notice all the details. Allow yourself to open your heart to everything and everyone even if it smarts initially.
Drop your shoulders for a minute and take a breath.
Approach the things that often stress you with a welcoming smile.
It starts with you.
—
If these ideas stirred something in you, I'd love to read your comment below. I read them all.
To learn more about what I do, subscribe to special extra content, and to speak with me, connect here.
Alex
Originally published at https://www.redlemonclub.com on January 16, 2020.
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Why we make self-promotion hard when it is not
If you really knew how many times I didn't take action out of fear in my life, you'd laugh.
Whether in business or personal, so much behind why we fail to act to do things that will make us seen or further our business - is down to fear.
But what do I mean by fear?
I mean fear this way:
We get scared by the thinking we have around someone's rejection.
We scare ourselves.
Really take that in for a moment.
Other people and what they say do not make us fearful.
We do.
(I nearly put a Gary V-style 'fucking' in there for emphasis but decided against it because it's not really my style).
Our thoughts make us fearful.
When it comes to self-promotion, putting ourselves out there, and asking for things, we often create excuses that lead to inaction.
But the promotion itself is the easy part.
We make excuses because we're scared of our OWN self-judgements.
'You're not enough.'
Lie.
'You are an imposter, buddy. Stop.'
Lie.
'If they reject me, I will lose my confidence.'
Lie.
All the above are thoughts that give meaning to the interaction and make it seem like a big deal when it is not.
Most notably, we often attach emotional meaning to someone telling us 'no.'
All this really means is that they said no. That's it. There's nothing more to it than that.
When we can start detaching from what it might mean to be told no, we can move more freely.
When I understood this part of my life (and trust me, I'm still working on it), I genuinely found my fear around rejection diminishing.
With this block reduced, I found it a lot easier to take action...
...And get myself in front of the people that were MEANT to have me and my dedication and my passion in THEIR life.
Go.
— -
Follow my Instagram for daily shares around being a successful creative entrepreneur in a busy world.
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Twelve Reasons to Join an Online Chat Community of Creative Minds
It can be lonely being a creative professional.
I know that for a fact. Sometimes an entire week goes by and, in my rush to finish a client project, I realise the only person I've spoken to all week is the cheerful cashier at Seven-Eleven.
I know I could be more sociable. I know I could go to more events and conferences and get-togethers.
I agree with all that. However, sometimes, I could use the sense of connection with others, without the long commutes, the alcohol, the expense, and the time spent away from doing my thing.
That's where an online forum can be valuable.
"A community is a group of people who agree to grow together." ~Simon Sinek
I'm not saying never to leave your house, and I am saying that being sociable occasionally is essential, but I am saying that forums can bridge that gap when you need it.
Here's how:
Gain useful industry insights from others outside of your creative sphere.
If you're an illustrator, you can engage with other designers to see what they need and where the current trends are emerging. Perhaps there are ideas there that give you an idea of what artwork is in demand and what clients are looking for, and who those clients are.
Promote yourself
Let others find out what you're working on. Start developing your voice and nurture your personal brand within a community by contributing, sharing and helping.
The more you help and the more value you present, the better this is for the attention you attract to your brand and products. A great place to do this is on a chat forum that people return to again and again.
Sense of connection
Build relationships and make friends in a way that can lead to tighter bonds than is the norm on social media.
It is psychologically uplifting to know you are better, more intimately connected with people you can check in with over and over again in a way that is win-win.
The beauty of forums is that people are there to talk. So you don't have to bang on closed doors. People are there to hear you out, and allow you to add your voice.
Gaining from the quality of the people there.
Users need to apply to our Red Lemon Club Slack community through a questionnaire. In this way, those who participate in the forums have been vetted, and have shown themselves to possess something they can contribute, no matter how far on along their journey they are; they are not tire-kickers or only lurkers.
As a moderator for my own forum, I also continually reach out to - and add - influential, experienced and interesting people with interesting stories to tell, and plenty of value to share.
Those who do not contribute after a few weeks are reminded to join in, or they may be dropped (at least, I am considering this). In this way, the community is always awake and breathing and active.
You can also benefit from the smaller community that exists here, compared to the noisy communities that you'll find on social media platforms.
Accountability for goals and challenges you set with others.
Connect with like-minded and ambitious people who set goals and benefit from each other's accountability and support, so that you hit your targets.
You can use a forum to gain support and ideas as you move towards your goals or habits, but you can also find people to act as accountability partners too.
Get questions answered quickly from people with different skillsets.
Gather a positive reputation, credibility, and fans through the value you share.
Gain feedback on your work and brand from others who enjoy providing feedback.
People in a closer-knit community environment are often keen to help. You can also receive more private and potentially more brutally honest criticism if you request it in your private messaging (DM) channel on the Red Lemon Club Slack forum.
Find others to form smaller mastermind groups with.
Napoleon Hill spoke of the value in creating such groups for accelerating growth in mind and wealth.
Online forums are great places to find other like-minded creatives interested in setting up something similar.
Get inspired by the work and real experiences of people willing to share their stories.
In this way, these communities act as a kind of crowd-sourced mentorship.
Alternatively, you can use these places to find individual mentors and coaches to help take you to the next level of your business and life.
Pick up work opportunities.
Users are often happy to share job opportunities that they might be passing on, or offer collaborative opportunities that involve working for other clients.
"I wouldn't want to belong to a club that would have me as a member" ~Groucho Marx
Real-world meetups.
As users get to know each other more online, these often lead to initiatives to do real-world meetups in various cities and places around the world.
Find people to collaborate with on projects for extra clout, and efficiency, and marketing power with your work.
The beauty of bringing together people from a wide range of creative industries and skillsets, means there are plenty of opportunities for fascinating collaborations.
Think of the skills of the kinds of people that your creative work may benefit from merging with.
—
If you are interested in joining an online forum to chat business, motivation and creativity, I set up a Slack channel for my Red Lemon Club blog followers.
The cool thing is that it attracts a wide range of creative minds from designers, writers, and coders, to illustrators, film-makers, and sculptors to entrepreneurs, blockchain enthusiasts, and technology nerds.
You can focus on individual, niche channels, or hear from others in other channels, so you are stretching beyond your usual bubble in an environment that is encouraging and pragmatic.
The group is currently open for applications here.
I'm keeping it small, so it won't be open forever.
We look forward to seeing you there.
Alex
—
Subscribe to my newsletter today to stay updated on what I'm working on. Join over 21,000 subscribers, and you will receive my latest book: Joining the Dots, for free.
🎙️👂Pssst. You can now listen to my podcast: The Red Lemon Show, where I discuss productivity, marketing and confidence for creative minds.👂🎙️
Originally published at www.redlemonclub.com on September 2, 2018.
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New Podcast for Creative Minds: 'The Red Lemon Show'
Listen in for ideas on motivation, productivity, confidence, and making art.
There is too much content on the web.
So much of what you want to read; to listen to; to watch, that it would take several lifetimes to enjoy it.
I've thought this for a very long time.
BUT, occasionally something does come along that makes me re-think how I use my time, and where I spend my attention.
Attention can shift and be reborn elsewhere.
To cut to the chase, I just started a podcast.
It's called the Red Lemon Show, and it's up on Anchor.fm right now, but it will be available on all the other channels like iTunes, Stitcher and Spotify (gradually, as they are accepted).
Anchor is interesting because it sends out the podcast to a range of other podcasting channels, and it allows for interaction with listeners in the form of voice messages.
Could the Red Lemon Show be where you shift your attention?
Give it a try.
I've been nervous about starting this for months, if not years, and surprised myself at how enjoyable it has been so far.
I talk about how to be a motivated, productive and happy creative person. I cover marketing and making money. I talk about how to get clients, and how to earn fans.
I share my experiences in running a blog, building a creative business as a digital illustrator, being a coach to hundreds of creative professionals, overcoming anxiety, and crafting an online business.
I will also bring on guests from all corners, including outside of the creative bubble.
Listen to the show here:
I have a huge favour to ask.
Do subscribe to - and share this podcast with those you know, if you enjoyed it. It's a lot easier to be motivated to make these when I know it is reaching a growing audience.
Let me know what you think.
Be brutal, and feel free to use the call-in feature in Anchor to send me voice messages that I may use in upcoming shows :).
Thank you!
Alex
—
Keen to follow Alex's work?
Subscribe to the Red Lemon Club newsletter today for updates you won't get anywhere else. Join over 21,000 subscribers, and you will receive my latest book: Joining the Dots, for free.
Originally published at www.redlemonclub.com on August 24, 2018.
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