Tag: challenge

writing

Writers Wednesdays – Choosing a Topic

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Hi everyone! Last week, I mentioned that I had something special coming . . . And here it is!

I’m doing a writing challenge (so far, I’m the only participant!) for the next few months. Since one of my New Year goals is to publish 5 books in this year, I knew that I’d need to make writing a more permanent part of my routine. Going forward, each Wednesday will be Writers Wednesday, where I will discuss a different topic related to the book that I’m working on at that time.

This week, I’m discussing the importance of choosing a topic- or, rather, letting a topic choose YOU. It’s funny: whenever I decide to write a book, I am careful to allow inspiration to take me to the topic that I should develop. Whenever I try to overstep inspiration and “force” a book idea, I end up giving up before I can finish. I need the initial fire of inspiration to help me identify topics that will hold my interest from start to finish.

If you find it hard to finish a book that you’re writing, it may be helpful to examine whether the topic truly interests you and feels inspired, or if it’s a topic that you chose because it seemed logical (for instance, writing a book about cooking because you’re a chef). Sometimes, “logical” topics are uninspired and end up taking a lot longer to complete than topics that somehow “find you”: these subjects aren’t necessarily your current area of expertise, but you still feel compelled to write about them. When you rely on your emotions moreso than your reasoning mind, you’re probably operating from inspiration.

Now, don’t get me wrong: it’s possible to choose a book topic using logic and feel inspired while writing it. But if you find that you’re losing interest before you can complete your manuscript, you’re probably “forcing” your writing, which takes the joy out of the process. Learn to listen to inspiration so that you can enjoy your writing as you complete your book.

I selected my topic for my current book, and I will start writing today. I’m excited to see where this process leads me! I’ll give you all more details next week, but until then, take care.

art

Find a New Artist to Love!

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Happy Friday, friends! We made it through another week. And for those that are reading this that in the areas where the polar vortex touched  down, congratulations on surviving the extreme cold!

Today is February 1st and I am so excited to share what’s happening on my Instagram. Every day this month, I’ll be highlighting a new artist for you all to check out. My goal is to bring more exposure to some of the creatives that I personally enjoy.

_Even if love is full of thorns, I'd still embrace it for I know that in between those thorns, there is a rose that's worth all the pain._

Because it’s a short month, I want to give myself a personal challenge as well as a social media challenge. I hope you all enjoy the artist that I introduced to you and please give them your support either by purchasing their work if you love it or sharing them with in your networks so that they can get some exposure and perhaps a few new customers.

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Kicking off this month of #artistshoutouts with a video of @emboldenedexpressions in the creative zone. You know how I feel about art: the studio is hallowed ground, and watching an artist create is to witness an act of divinity. #art #artist #artlover #artlover🎨 #creative #painting #thebronzebutterfly #thebronzedbutterfly #bronzebutterfli . . . . #Repost @emboldenedexpressions with @get_repost ・・・ Rollin’ into #2019 like… . . Harvesting #Reciprocity and #Abundance 🍯🐝 . . . #LiveArtist #RawArtist #UrbanArt #LA #SF #NY #Oakland #Melbourne #SaatchiArtist #AbstractArt #ModernArt #ContemporaryArt #Consciousness ✨ . . . #EmboldenedExpressions ⚜️#Patreon #LinkinBio 🔝 . . Featured 🎶 “Cracks” by Freestylers . .

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My first artist to be featured this month: @emboldenedexpressions

The post is going to be super short today, because I have started my latest 21 day challenge and I need to direct as much energy to that as possible. Again, remember to check out the artist that I’ll be sharing with you all month, and I will talk to you all on Monday. Enjoy your weekend!

life curation

February Challenge: Write a Book!

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Hi friends! I’m so excited to do this post, because this relates to a post I shared a few weeks ago ago about the book Get It Done by Michael Mackintosh. I selected a project for February that should put me significantly closer to my overarching dream, while allowing me to practice and perfect the goal setting routine that I’ll use going forward.

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The goal I’ve selected for February is to finish one of my books. This is a book I began working on last year, and while I’ve made significant progress, I could stand to do more as far as moving this project along. Just for clarity, this is not my NaNoWriMo project (that’s going on the backburner for a bit). I’m still working out a few details related to accountability as I write, as well as chunking down the work so that I can easily accomplish the most necessary tasks. That being said, I’m looking forward to finishing my manuscript by February 21st.

So over this upcoming weekend, I’ll be outlining the tasks to be completed in preparation for February 1st. And then, on the 1st, I’ll begin the challenge. I am so looking forward to sharing with you all how things progress as I accomplish this huge goal for my year.

That’s it for today and I will be back on Monday. I hope you all enjoy your weekend. Take care!

life curation

January’s Organization Challenge: Mid-Month Updates

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You all may remember a few weeks ago when I stated that I was going to start a January organizational challenge. I use the outline provided on a website that I visited, All Things Mikita. This post is just a brief update of how that organization challenge is going.

Well, I stopped the challenge. What I found was that I had to substitute too many of the items outlined in the challenge. For instance, Day 9 of the challenge called to get rid of nine skirts or dresses. However, since I have made it a habit to regularly streamline my wardrobe, I didn’t have any items that I wanted to get rid of. I wear skirts regularly so removing them from my wardrobe would have left huge gaps. Day 15 of the challenge calls for getting rid of old jewelry, but most of my jewelry is high-quality so getting rid of 15 pieces did not appeal to me at all. Day 20 calls for getting rid of 20 pajama pants, but I don’t even own 5 pajama pants!

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I’m envisioning organized spaces, like this

This challenge is excellent for a few reasons,  especially for someone who is attempting to upgrade their wardrobe and get rid of many excess clothing items. But in my case, I realized I did not have an abundance of the items mentioned for the challenge. This is a good cautionary  example for me, because it’s important to look carefully over a challenge before committing. Next time I do an organization challenge, I will be sure to note whether I can complete the tasks as listed. And, if I can’t complete the tasks listed, I need to prepare myself in advance of the challenge start date to substitute appropriately.

I’m sure I’ll do more challenges in the upcoming months, but this one fell flat. I wish I had some good results for you, but I stopped after I got a few days in. It just didn’t fit in my life at this point. The next challenge I select will be a better fit for me and my lifestyle.

Enjoy your Thursday, friends! I’ll talk to you all tomorrow.

reading list

Book Review: Get It Done by Michael Mackintosh

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Happy Friday, friends! Here’s the review I’ve been promising: it’s a good one, and I wanted to make sure that I did it justice.

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It’s been a while since I posted a book review, but trust me: I’ve been reading

I received a copy of Get It Done: The 21-Day Mind Hack System to Double Your Productivity and Finish What You Start by Michael Mackintosh from TCK Publishing a couple of months ago. One of the publisher’s author support specialists, Maria, was kind enough to provide me a copy after seeing my review of The War of Art. Maria’s assessment of my book preferences was spot on: Get It Done is the exactly the kind of book I enjoy reading. Thanks again, Maria and TCK Publishing!

Get It Done takes readers from being stuck, sluggish and uninspired to motivated, focused and unstoppable. If you’re suffering from any sort of delay in creating the life that you want, this book will help you knock through those challenges and achieve what you desire. It really is the “missing piece” of the puzzle for creatives.

The book is broken into three parts: Part 1 addresses the mental hacks that are needed before embarking on your creative venture; Part 2 explains the process of achieving your goal in 21 days; and Part 3 offers templates and support tools for accomplishing your goals. These three sections work harmoniously to support readers through their creative journey.

My favorite chapter was Chapter 10: Do It Now. This chapter really emphasized the urgency of doing our work right now, instead of waiting for tomorrow. Truly, tomorrow isn’t promised to us: the longer we wait, the more we risk never seeing our dreams materialized.

In Chapter 10, Mackintosh wrote, “In short, sooner or later, you’ll lose your chance to get your message out and share your gifts.” Ouch. I don’t want a life where I didn’t share my gifts or where I regret never connecting with the people that I was meant to help. The fact that I have been procrastinating is a hard pill to swallow but it’s what I needed to hear to give me the sense of urgency I need to get started on my projects now.

Mackintosh’s program outlined in Part 2 leaves no stone unturned: it gives clear guidance on how to set up a 21-day goal challenge that is guaranteed to succeed. I was really impressed with the strategies provided in this section. I’ve read a lot of great self-help, motivation, and goal-setting books, and I can honestly say that I learned some brand new ways to create accountability structures that work. I’m excited to start a 21 day challenge in January (yes, I’ll be writing about it on this blog!)

My overall review is that this is an excellent read that does a great job of addressing the reasons why we delay in accomplishing our goals, helps us to break through those barriers, and provides an effective structure for accomplishing goals in record time. I can’t recommend it enough! Make sure you get your copy of Get It Done, and watch your dreams start coming true! If you’d like more information about TCK Publishing, please click here. If you have problems with clicking the link, then type the following into your browser: https://www.tckpublishing.com/.

life curation

Making Space Challenge: Final Update for 2018

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Hey friends! I hope today finds you well and I also hope that you all are still basking in the joy of the season.

I’ve had a good run with the Making Space Challenge (I’ll be adding more photos using the hashtags #MakingSpace and #MakingSpaceChallenge) and it’s something I plan to keep doing in the upcoming year. I didn’t get rid of as many items as I’d hoped but so long as I keep working on it (and not adding to the piles of stuff!), I’ll reach my goal. I did notice that the more I cleared away clutter, the more “clear-headed” I felt. Funny how that works . . .

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I’ll be prepping some donation bags this weekend

Since there is a big move in my not-so-distant future, downsizing is a must. The Making Space Challenge was a good “push” in the right direction. However, I need a focused structure to get through my “stuff” because getting overwhelmed can happen to the best of us. I found this great organization challenge on All Things Mikita’s website. Her organizational challenge for January seems pretty easy to follow, not to mention the fact that it can be customized to you and your clutter. I’ll be using it next month so that I can make some more strides with reducing my possessions.

That’s all for this Thursday. I hope you all have a great evening, and I’ll chat with you tomorrow!

 

life curation

Making Space Challenge Updates

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It’s been a few weeks since my last update on my Making Space challenge. So, here ya go!

I’m continuing to pare down my belongings and make room. I have a mini-project ahead of me that I’ll be working on for the next week or so. I have to store my porcelain doll collection to clear out my living room and make space for new decor. I’ll be boxing up my dolls (after I clean them and wrap them in acid free paper) and that will take a bit of time to do properly. I’ve already gotten my wrapping paper and I’ll be ordering my compressed air (for blowing out the dust that may have settled on the dolls) later today. I’m aiming to pack two dolls a day starting on Monday. That should translate to me being done in a little under 3 weeks.

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Not my doll, but isn’t she cute?

I also switched my wardrobe over from summer clothes to winter clothes a couple of weeks ago. Now that all of those clothes are hanging or folded in my dresser drawers, I can look at the items, one by one, and see which items fit my current style preferences. When I first switched the clothes over, I only saw one or two pieces that I felt needed to be retired (those went promptly into a charity giveaway bag). However, I can apply a more critical eye over the next few weeks, especially during my long holiday weekends (since I have a few coming up).

As far as “making space” internally, I’ve been happily saying “no” to anything that doesn’t bring me delight. This has been surprising for people in my life that are used to me saying “yes” without question, but by opting out of different obligations, I’ve had more time to care for myself and reserve my energy for the things that really matter. That has done a world of good for improving my low mood over the past few weeks.

Intentionally making space has been a good idea for another reason: I have to upgrade some things in my life and by getting rid of the things that don’t serve me, I have more time and other resources to devote to getting the things that will serve me best right now. This has been a great decision: I’m glad I did it! I love the changes that have come from choosing to #makespace!

life curation

NaNoWriMo Week 2 – Updates

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Happy Thursday, friends! I’ve completed my first two weeks of NaNoWriMo and I’m excited that I’ve been writing (basically) every day since the challenge started.

I’m at 15,000 words now, which means I have only 15 days to write another 35,000 words (whew, I’m tired just thinking about it!) But I’m committed to seeing this challenge through. I’ve got a few more days off during the next two weeks and I’ll focus on doing large chunks of writing during those days. My story is moving along nicely, though I’m not taking much time to reread – and not time to revise – as I write.

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I’ve found it helpful to write without doing any editing. You end up losing a lot of time because your brain “shifts gears” and you lose your momentum if you try to write and edit simultaneously. Unfortunately, the finished product ends up being quite “rough”, but it is a rough draft, after all. If it doesn’t come out as clean as you’d like, you can always edit, edit, edit it until it’s perfect. That’s what I always end up doing, and that’s what will happen with this book, as well.

So I’ll be putting my head down and focusing on getting all of my writing done over the next several days. Can I reach 50,000 words by November 30th? I think so. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

life curation

90 Days to the New Year and a New Challenge!

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Can you all believe that we are only 90 days away from the New Year?! 2018 has been so much fun and I’m looking forward to all sorts of delight and magic in the upcoming year.

I mentioned in yesterday’s post that I have several mini-goals to reach over the next few months. However, with the end of the year coming, I wanted to add in one more goal that would really help me feel like I did something meaningful during this last quarter.

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Looking forward to a fabulous October, November, December and beyond!

I’m proposing a brand new challenge for myself. This one is about making space for 2019. The Making Space Challenge (#MakingSpaceChallenge) is simple enough:

  • Every day, take one action that “makes space” for all of the amazing things I intend in 2019.
  • The daily action should take no more than 5 minutes per day.
  • I’ll keep a journal of my “making space” actions so that I can report to you all periodically what actions I’ve taken to make space.

Aside from making space for next year’s adventures and goodness, this challenge will help me to align with the version of myself that I want to experience in the future. Many of my favorite LOA teachers and coaches advise that we start living the life that we envision NOW, so that we can quickly and easily bring that dream into our reality. So, I’m going to do that by clearing away what doesn’t align with my best self and instilling habits that reflect my future best self.

I started the challenge yesterday, October 1st, by going through my perfume samplers and trial sizes. The ones that suit me are still in my collection: the ones that didn’t delight me are now in my aunt’s possession. Today, I’m printing out 3 months of banking and credit card statements so that I can begin reviewing and determining which expenses I can trim. Tomorrow, I’ll be bagging up a few items to deliver to my local thrift store . . . You get my drift: brief, daily actions that “open up” space in my life.

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This is a little bag that I’ve wanted to use for a long time. I have some beauty goodies that I’m giving away as part of a personal challenge that I’m starting today and will continue to do until the end of the year. Every day isn’t a giveaway but I’m taking little actions daily that will make room for the #abundance I’m intending in 2019. Check out the blog at bronzebutterfly.blog on Oct 2nd for details on the #makingspacechallenge . I’ll be posting what I’m doing for the challenge pretty much every day until December 31st. I hope you all join me in making space for all of the goodness 2019 has in store for us! #challenge #makingspace #makingspacechallenge #livingwell #intentionalliving #thebronzebutterfly #thebronzedbutterfly #bronzebutterfli

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The “space” I’m opening can be literal, physical spaces (such as clearing out beauty products and dresser drawers), emotional space (discarding items given to me by toxic individuals), financial space (stopping unnecessary subscriptions and other monetary “leaks), and even mental space (practicing meditation).

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I’ll give meditation a go while I do the #MakingSpaceChallenge

Little actions leading up to big results. I’m looking forward to seeing the actions accumulate and being able to share not only how much space I’ve made for the upcoming year, but also how clearing space impacts me right now. I’d love some company while I do this challenge, so if you’re interested, feel free to indulge every day – or even just a few days – in the challenge, and use the #MakingSpaceChallenge hashtag so I can see you and give you a shout out on my Instagram. I look forward to seeing all the creative ways that you all #makespace over the next few months!

fitness · life curation

A July Fitness Challenge? Let’s Do It!

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I’m a little more than a month away from my birthday (August baby checking in!) and I realized that I wanted a major change. I used to be slimmer some years back, but now I’m a little “cuddlier” than I’d prefer. I would love to be more toned and healthier. So I figured I’d try to get back into some sort of fitness routine by trying a fitness challenge.

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Ab goals!

Almost two years ago, I purchased one of Brittne Babe’s 21 Day online fitness packages and, while I tried my hand at the meal planning and exercising, I hadn’t committed fully. So I figured that now would be a good time to kick my fitness goals into gear. I will start my training on July 1st, and I’ll post a final pic on August 1st. Keep your  fingers crossed for me: I love cake LOL! It’s going to take some discipline to remain committed to getting toned and feeling healthy and strong. But I’m eager to see some great results, so I’ll do the challenge! If you want to know more about Brittne Babe’s 21 Day challenge, click here.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BkGyjPfhYpH/?taken-by=brittnebabe

Brittne, looking perfect

Look out for fitness updates over the next few weeks!