Now that we have all gotten accustomed to the worldwide Pandemic and its constricting measures; I have come to reflect on some regrets about my artistic practice.  Looking back, I wish I would have tried a little more, and learned a lot more. I can’t place too much blame on my past self, because hindsight is 2020. Regardless of whatever year this still is, here are my…

5 Regrets about my artistic practice

1. Not embracing my passion early enough
   
   It took the threat of the world coming to an end before I decided to leave the things behind that were making me unhappy. For many years I felt stuck in a dead end job. I always stayed cheery, but each day took a toll. I wanted someone to come and save me, but I realized after a long time that no one was ever going to come. I had to save myself.
   
   The passion I have always felt for creativity was the signal beacon all along. My journey led me to the signs, but I had to change my mindset to properly interpret the signs. Now that I have embraced who I really am, I am also embracing my passions and pursuing them daily.
   
   
   
2. Never taking art seriously in high school
   
   Ok, this one is not so much my “fault” as it is one of those things a person looks back on when they reach a more mature state of mind.
   
   In high school I was interested in art, but never signed up for it. I thought all art classes were just a boring process to rob you of your creativity. I wanted to have less structure in my creative pursuits. All of the students I knew who took art classes seemed pretty moody and miserable, so I never felt drawn to learn in that way. I took drama class, which fed my desire to create, but looking back I would have benefited from a few weeks of studying a colour wheel!
   
   
   
3. Not investing in art history knowledge.
   
   Similar to my studies in high school, I regret not learning more about art history while in University.  I could have taken a more varied course load that would have brought me to art galleries and exhibitions (which I frequent all the time now). Perhaps I would have grown tired of them, but I could have saved myself a lot of time if I had taken an interest back then.
   
   
   
4. Not networking with more artists pre-pandemic.
   
   My first exhibition was in December of 2018 at an exhibition space on St. Clair in Toronto. I was so nervous to be around other artists. I thought that they all must have had degrees in Fine Arts, and that they would immediately see me as an outsider. As I gained experience in exhibiting my work, I have learned that the best way to immerse oneself in a room of like-minded people is to smile and let the warmth radiate from your soul.
   
   I have been able to network with the few artists I met before the lock down via Instagram; but I am looking forward to more in the future, now that I have a better idea of what I have to offer.
   
   
   
5. Skipping exhibitions because they asked for entrance fees
   
   At one point, after returning back to work from my maternity leave, I stopped entering my work for exhibitions. I saw the entrance fees as a good enough reason to stop applying to those shows, and only applied to the RARE show that did not charge a fee.
   
   I was lucky to find a few good opportunities, like my 2 year run of exhibiting my work in the Legislative Assembly Building at Queen’s Park in Toronto; however my regret is that I may have missed out on life changing opportunities because of minimal cost savings and overall cheapness.

Do you have any regrets stemming from a big change in your life? I would definitely like to hear about them! Leave your comments in the section below, and thanks for stopping by.

Stephanie

Depending on where you are in your journey, you may have started to notice signs that seem to appear to you on a daily basis. As you pursue your passions and go toward living a life that is purposeful, and what you have always wanted, you will see these signs over and over again.

Living your best life is not the easiest thing to do, as it requires you to be brave and to humble yourself in the face of who you used to be. Once you start, however, you will likely be confronted with one of these…

5 Signs That Appear when you are Living Your Best Life

1. You keep running into, or finding reminders of positive influences in your life. This can happen when you keep seeing the same person’s name in your various social media posts, or you heard an interesting story about that person from a friend. You are picking up on this person’s vibration for a reason- likely because it is matching with your own.
2. You see opportunities everywhere. Now that you are living your best life, you are confident. You believe in yourself and your abilities. Therefore, the world is becoming your oyster. You see opportunities in everything and everywhere. You are becoming a magnet of success because you have opened yourself up to it.
3. Your attention focuses on solutions, rather than the problems that stand in your way. I had an experience where I realized I had out grown my previous corporate job in a situation like this.

   A big event was about to start that involved senior counsel, and the youngest one was tasked with setting up the TV screens, projectors, and other computer devices for their presentation. When the youngest counsel began having difficulty setting up the equipment, myself and my colleague took two different approaches to solving the connectivity problem.

   My colleague began to make jokes about the situation. She did not take his plight seriously, and even suggested that the event may need to be rescheduled because she “wasn’t really in the mood to work that day”.

   My approach was to investigate the connectivity problem, and to suggest solutions like replacing some of the equipment with other available devices, and to rewire the connections with different cables. My solutions were also ridiculed by my colleague, but in the end, I was confident that I was the more competent person between us. I was also immediately hit with a sense of disappointment, that although I was well on my way toward living my best life, my workplace was not conducive to the growth that I was projecting for myself.

4. You keep seeing your spirit animal in nature. This does not really count if you believe your spirit animal is a Pomeranian and you also happen to have that cuddly creature as your pet. What I mean is that you continuously see your animal unexpectedly, and in places that you may not have ever noticed seeing them before you began your journey toward living your best life.

   My spirit animal is a field rabbit- the little brown ones that you see near wooded areas. Rabbits have had an odd way of darting across roads, appearing in my path while on walks, or even stopping by my garden to nibble on plants. What makes these appearances odd, is that they usually occur when I am dealing with difficult decisions, or new experiences.

5. You see numbers repeating everywhere. Similar to seeing your spirit animal; seeing number repetition is often described as being a sign from a guardian angel that corresponds to the situation you are facing or thinking about in that moment.

   I often see 11:11, 11:22 (just now omg), 5:55 etc. I take these sightings as a sign that whatever I am doing in that moment is leading me closer to the life I have always wanted. When these numbers appear to me, it is always as a result of an unexpected glance at the clock, and never a timed action resulting from a manipulation.  Seeing repeating numbers is sign that you are living your best life now, and that things will only get better from here onward.

Are you living your best life? Do you have other signs that you have noticed before you arrived at this gorgeous plateau of enlightenment? Leave your comments in the section below, and thanks for stopping by.

Stephanie Konu

As a freelancer, I am always trying to learn new ways to stay productive. It can be difficult to push through the mindless distractions that arise everyday. These distractions are the worst when you know you need to start a project, but keep finding yourself in the kitchen eating something else…again.

Here are my 5 WORST Procrastination Habits

1. Bringing too much work to bed.
   
   Sometimes we overestimate how much we can get done in a few minutes. We may try to cram too many tasks into a short block of time- leaving it impossible to completely finish any single item on your “to-do” list.
   
   My night time routine involves: emails, writing a blog post, checking stats and then sleep. That seems like a lot because it is. I procrastinate giving myself a good night’s sleep by overloading myself with pre-bedtime tasks. I am not doing myself too many favors, because every other area of my life suffers when I am too tired the following day.
   
   
2. Bringing must-do tasks with me into an impossible situation.
   
   Similar to the last point, a form of procrastination is to over-lap important tasks that equally need your attention. This can be something like leaving the task of signing up for that new web service until you are sitting in the waiting room for your dental appointment. Except that the room is too noisy, and you aren’t able to get a good WiFi signal, so the whole mission gets aborted because you just are not up to it. The task gets put on the back burner, and your mind is more likely to become anxious about its “in progress” status.
   
   
   
3. Relying too much on my memory.
   
   We often rely too much on our memories. There are volumes of scientific research that prove how fickle the memory of a human is; and so, if you REALLY want to remember that person’s name, or the date of your Niece’s school recital, you should write it down. Telling yourself that you will “just remember” to do something, is a surefire recipe for disaster. Why not use technology to set reminders, flag things for follow up, and create to-do lists? You will remember what is required better if you give yourself a prompt by keeping track of it in a written form.
   
   
4. Setting goals that require resources beyond my current reach.
   
   Sure I would love to re design my office. Sure that $4000 work space would look great underneath all of my work. These are amazing ideas, if I have $4,000 to spend on new decor. Unfortunately, if I don’t have $4000 then that goal is going to have to be changed to suit my resource level in the here and now.
   
   To quote Kevin Hart: stay in your lane!
   
   
5. Not setting important meetings for early in the day.
   
   I hate 4:00 pm meetings. I think that only the least functional team leaders set meetings for this time of day. Firstly, by 4:00 pm my ability to sort information is heavily in decline as my best hours for sorting is within 3-4 hours of waking up.
   
   Secondly, 4:00 p.m. is the hour of the day when people can be very irritable. I remember that 4:00 p.m. was always around the time when parent-teacher meetings took place when I was a child in school…and I would invariably get in some sort of trouble at those meetings.
   
   In my mind: very few positive things happen at 4:00 p.m.

What do you use as procrastination methods? Do you find that procrastination eventually leads to productivity? Leave a comment in the section below, and thanks so much for stopping by.

Stephanie

Planning a memorable birthday event for someone you love can be a daunting task. Depending on who the loved one is, you may have limited options for what you can choose. When your loved one is an artist, you will likely need to think outside of the box to come up with a good plan.

As an artist, I am often bubbling with creative ideas for parties. I have always enjoyed hosting events at my home, and I like to think that I am skilled at being a great hostess. If you are planning a birthday for an artistic friend and you are looking for ideas, look no further because here are my…

6 Ways to Celebrate an Artist’s Birthday

1. Axe Throwing

   I love the environment of an axe throwing hall. The smell of freshly cut wood, and the sounds of a metal axe hitting a target in the midst of conversation and laughter is an inviting prospect. Axe throwing allows for an unconventional gathering of friends and family where skill and accuracy are required to win; perfect for your artist who thrives on such challenges.

2. Visit an aquarium, then close off the night with drinks at a Jazz club.

   If you live near Toronto, Canada, there is a fantastic aquarium located near Union Station called Ripley’s Aquarium (part of the Ripley’s Believe It Or Not brand). Aquariums are a great place for an artist to visit on special occasions because it can help to encourage creativity. Being exposed to graceful fish and undersea creatures can encourage mental connections that lead to greater thought development.

   To make the night extra memorable, close off your trip to the aquarium with a visit to a venue that plays live jazz music. The vibrant environment of a jazz club is one that cannot be missed, as jazz music is scientifically proven to encourage productivity and mood. These are two benefits that will have your Artist over the moon and looking forward to diving in to their passions when the next opportunity arises.

3. Plan a board game night.

   Although board games often get a bad reputation; your artist will enjoy a planned tournament style birthday filled with ultra-competitive games that are easy to play. Now when I say easy, I’m talking snakes and ladders, or the card game “Speed” (my personal favourite). Any games that are low on complexity, can be extremely entertaining with the right people. With the right amount of skill, you will have your Artist happier than chips and dip!

4. Host a small gathering at a park that culminates in a scavenger hunt.

   This one is pretty self explanatory, but you can easily add a theme, costumes, or anything else you can think of to customize this idea for your Artist’s birthday event.

5. Rent a boat

   I have always wanted to do this: rent a boat, go fishing with 3 good friends, and record home-movie style video of the excursion while out on the water. The openness of water allows the party to feel unrestricted and a level of honesty is visited upon the group. If you like deep conversations with close friends on a retrospective occasion (like a birthday), this is definitely the way to do it.

6. Host a private paint night

   What better way to please your Artist by organizing a private paint night complete with a painting instructor? Drinks can be served, and at the end of the night, everyone goes home with their own finished work as a keepsake. What a great way to create memories!

I hope you enjoyed my 6 ways to celebrate an artist’s birthday- do you have unique ideas for birthdays that you have tried? Leave your comments in the section below, and thanks for stopping by.