Blast O' Joy

American Idol Update

OK, friends, time now for my annual guilty confession that I am a total American Idol fan. My 12 year old son and I can't get enough of this blasted show -- and yeah, I mean it when I say it's the only thing I watch. (Hey, we didn't even HAVE a TV for 12 years.) But still, I'm glad we do.

I think this is the only show on TV that lets you see just how much it takes to get up and blow people away -- something stars do all the time, so we take it for granted. ENough philosophizing. Here are my favorites for the 2007 season so far. (And those of you who read this here last year, remember that at the top 12 point, I DID predict that Taylor Hicks would win 2006!)

My faves are Melinda Doolittle, the incredible jazz/blues singer who came out of back-up singer obscurity to own the stage this week. (LOVE this woman!) And two really offbeat, original, real guys who sing R&B/Blues -- Chris Sligh (a large man with curly hair who is just too cool) and Sundance Head ('the guy with the wierd beard') -- these two also own the stage and totally rock.

OK, enough about me... who do you guys like?

Can You Smell the Joy?

If your dream had a smell, what would it be? 

Think of your ultimate vision for your life.  A life of pure joy.  Now using all your senses, what fragrance can you call up to go along with what you see? What taste? What colors?

If people could smell a corporate culture, I wonder...what would Microsoft smell like?  the Trump organization?  How about Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream or....Starbucks?

I know, it's not fair; the latter two examples are of food companies, so it's easy for them to evoke a smell in our minds.  But I'm actually serious here, I think we (individuals, artists, dreamers and big companies) overlook our senses a lot in our pursuit of joy and meaning...would you agree?

In the course of your day, do you notice your sense of smell?  How does today smell to you, for example?  Like your favorite bouquet of flowers or has it been a dank-alleyway-near-the-fish-market kind of day?  We all have those.

For me, the smell of my business when it's going well, and the smell of joy, is somehow tied to lemons.  That's a regular everyday kind of smell that I associate with my work.  And it's the smell I hope subtly, and not so subtly (as when I write about it like this) gets communicated when someone visits my website or reads one of my books. 

Tangy, thoughtful, awake and energized.

On a really great day, or when I'm blissed out and basking in the bloom of full creative flow, lemons get bumped up to peaches...but lemon is still in the background.  Yum.

Here's my favorite Lemon Yogurt Cake recipe based on one from Ina Gartner, the Barefoot Contessa. It's easy, good for you and delicious.  Exactly the way I want my life and my business to be.

Andrea's Favorite Lemon Yogurt Cake

Mix together:

1 and 1/2 cup flour, 2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt

In a separate bowl mix:

3 eggs, 1 cup plain yogurt, 1 tsp vanilla and the zest of 1 lemon and 2 teaspoons juice from the lemon.  This makes it really lemony.

Then add the dry mixture to the wet mixture until just mixed (not too much.)  Add 1/2 cup of vegetable oil and blend together.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes or until golden.  A loaf pan is best but I like it when Mike makes it in a round bundt tin too.  It stays really nice and moist through the week - perfect for lunch in the middle of a lemony day.

Enjoy! 

Recommended: A trip to the favorite sections in your most glorious grocery store or market.  Leave your grocery list alone for a moment and let your senses be your guide. 

Ask: What attracts you?  Where do you find yourself most wanting to linger?

After you leave, how might you recreate the energy you feel when connected to your sense of smell? 

How Do You Sing Out Your Stress?

Did you know that song is one of the more common ways people get rid of stress? Think about it. When you're really beginning to relax, you may begin to hum along with the radio or sing a song that's on your mind without even realizing it.

In fact, a singing teacher I used to have, often spoke of how we sing the songs in these moment that really reflect what's going on in our subconscious. For instance, I always found myself humming the Beatle's 'I'm So Tired" when I was an exhausted, under-rested teenager with too much fun stuff to do.

Now a song coach, Linda Dessau, has an interesting offer. She writes:

I want to know how YOU sing out your stress! I'm compiling a list of the most inspirational, encouraging, relaxing and enjoyable songs - who knows, your choice could make the Top 10 list AND it might even make it's way into a Sing Out Your Stress lesson! Enter your song title to receive the list once it's complete. You'll also receive periodic updates about the Sing Out Your Stress program, and access to a FREE video lesson when the program launches.

Sounds like a plan!

Technorati Tags: Stress reduction, singing in the shower

What Is the 'Job' of Art?

A Latino writer whose name I can no longer recall said (paraphrasing here) 'It's the job of the artist to infect the public." This is a sentiment that I clipped out of the paper and carried in my wallet for years until it finally disintegrated.

I think I felt this was a truth to live by. Yes, we want to stir things up - get people excited and motivated - get them talking, and most of all doing. A LOT of art has done exactly that to great effect, from controversial Michael Moore films about politics to paintings by Thomas Eakins in which anatomy professors dissect the human body in class.

Yes, those who operate in such a highly charged realm can expect to take some hits. And to create so much buzz they naturally rise to the top of their field. This is the value of taking a stand - not just to stand out, but precisely because you stir people up, get them thinking … you 'infect' them.

This came to mind because of a recent article I read in The New York Times about an artist, Doug Auld, who paints people badly disfigured by fires. (The body of work is called State of Grace.) He found these subjects unexpected, the canvases of their faces beautiful in their grim reality - and the outlook of these fire survivors amazingly frank and empowering.

The article about Auld's work also noted that a number of people had accused Auld of exploiting his subjects. But I say he's opening up a conversation - using his art to question social mores and help us get to know people who we might ordinarily shun or shy away from. That's a powerful, direct conversation; not for everyone, but remarkable for those who embrace it.

What do you think? What is the job of art?

Technorati Tags: Artist mission, artists statement, job of art

Are you willing to become known for your dream?

OK… let me ask it again: are you really willing to become known for your dream? It's a question that seems to have an obvious answer ("Yes! Of course!") Yet, when you look at it, you may notice you have a tad of resistance. Or possibly even a LOT of resistance.

What many of us really want is to simply do the dream work. Dealing with a public around it - or even finding that public- is usually an afterthought, and for some of us, an inconvenient one.

This is precisely why I began my work helping creative souls build platform. For you can't be authentic to your dream if you're unwilling to become known by people. How will you ultimately get the job done if no one shows up to participate?

Instead, you have to approach your mission with at least a willingness to engage your public. That would include marketing your dream work, finding your audience, and developing that relationship. (Note, you don't have to be passionate about marketing - just willing for it to take place.) And you do have to be passionate about helping your audience.

In the final session of my recent section of the Get Known Now Blast Off, I tossed out all of my helpful tips on marketing systems and riffed for a solid hour on how to push past that innate resistance to getting known so many of us have. I really felt it was what my clients needed most

Many come to me openly needing help - but still resisting it all the same. It's as if they can't help it; they're wired to want to hide, despite their best intentions.

In the end, no marketing techniques are going to amount to a hill of beans if the client in question doesn't really want to find their audience - deep in their soul. So I ask you: are you willing to honestly get known? Are you willing to do what it takes to find your people?

Only you know the answer … and I hope it's a resounding Yes!

Technorati Tags: Motivation for artists, living the artist's life

How to Make the Most of Your Lunch Hour, Part II

On the other hand, it may just be plain hard to create in your fluorescent office environment with phones ringing and interruptions galore. You may be afraid to close your door while you work, or you may not even have a door. That's when it pays to walk over to the public library, a friend's office conference room, a park or nearby office lobby with a public space in it -- or anywhere where you can reasonably sit and do your work for a while.

I discovered this option when I worked in Times Square and began to hang around in the Starbucks on Eighth Avenue and 43d Street. A remarkable number of people from my office drifted in there at lunch hour, and there we'd sit, steadfastly ignoring each other, each of us bent over pieces of writing, or business plans, or sketches we were working on. The remarkable thing was that even though this was 'work', its very essence was as refreshing as taking a long, cool walk. Inevitably, I'd come back to work with renewed vigor, ready to face the day.

So what about lunch?

Bring it. That's the only way this particular plan works, because you have to watch the clock when you do this midday work-fest. An hour goes by fast when you're deep in your dream, so you don't want any of it wasted waiting in line for a tuna fish sandwich. Better to get yourself some sort of lunch box, stock it, and stow it in the company fridge each day. (Enough companies have microwaves that you might even score a hot lunch this way.) Then eat it as your desk before, after or as you tackle your dream.

At any rate, do remember: it's your lunch hour. You earned it, and you get to use it. Don't ever let anyone persuade you otherwise. Furthermore, you'll be more productive the rest of the day by properly taking care of yourself in the first place. Finally, if the concept of using any lunch hours at all for your dream seems impossible, then you are probably working too hard. That's when it's time to reevaluate your job -- not your dream.

You may even find that once you begin to have your dream for lunch on a regular basis, other assorted dreamers may seek you out and offer support and encouragement. You might even want to start an unofficial group, like a Lunchtime Joy Group, meeting every few weeks to check in on each other's progress and offer encouragement.

Take your dream to lunch and see what happens. If nothing else, balance may miraculously return to your life.

Technorati Tags: Time management, creativity coaching, living your dreams

Can You Really Have What You Want? Part II

More on yesterday's topic about making the commitment to get what you want in life:

Often we don't focus on getting what we want because somewhere along the way, we decided we don't deserve that much happiness and fulfillment.

I trace my own inclination to think that way back to a pivotal lunch with my mother back in my senior year in high school, when she asked me what I wanted to do with my life. As I was about to answer, 'Be a singer or a writer,' she pointed a finger at me and announced triumphantly, 'Communications! You're going to be GREAT in communications!" At that point in my life I was all about pleasing my elders.

So I promptly burst into tears, and went on to spend 18 years in advertising, 'communicating' and hating myself all the while.

Seeds get planted that shouldn't be allowed to grow; ideas get listened to that should have been ignored. We cast about looking for anyone else but ourselves to give us direction -- and yet, WE are the only ones who can give us the permission to really, truly, honestly create what we want in life.

(And believe me - we really DO know what it is that we want, even when we're convinced we don't.)

We can do what we want with our lives, but only if we are brave enough to seize the initiative -- even if that means not listening to Mom and going it alone.

The urge not to provide ourselves with what we need in life is a sort of Creative Anorexia, deprivation that is all about a distorted picture of who we think we are and deserve. The real irony is that seldom do the contingency plans and hedged bets work out.

During my entire career in advertising I never made half the salary that my other, more eager co-workers made. The simple fact was that I didn't want to be there, nor should I have been.

Perhaps the road to what you want won't be easy or lined with gold, but it will be one hundred percent honest. And that provides riches you can't even begin to count. So get out there, make a plan you can stick to, and begin to do what you want.

I'm here to say that you do, indeed, deserve it.

Technorati Tags: Career coaching, self esteem, living your dreams

Can You Really Have What You Want? Part I

As you read this, I'm taking an actual vacation. (Yes!! That's right folks … she actually put away the computer!) So I've taken the liberty of posting some favorite entries from my ezine, The Joy Letter. Hope they give you food for thought. And do drop by and sign up if you feel you want a tad more joy in your life. You'll get our cool 'Make a Dream Binder' freebie as a gift.

Do you really believe you can have what you want? Or do you tend to operate with your feet in two camps -- one that says, 'I'm going out there and pursue my dream' and another that says, 'I'll also hedge my bets by doing something I don't love that much, just in case the dream thing doesn't work out.' This is what a life coach I worked with, Persephone Zill, would call "indirectness".

I am here to say, indirectness doesn't work.

I spent a lot of time in life hedging my bets under the mistaken illusion that this was mature, business-like behavior. The real irony is that seldom have these supposedly businesslike ideas ever produced income or other results that I thought for sure they would.

The urge to hedge your bets often runs contrary to everything your gut instincts scream at you to do.

Your instinct says 'Quit the job! Go get licensed! Be a teacher kids never forget!" Meanwhile, you hedge your bets by continuing to do work that doesn't feed your soul, and taking a course here and there that never really moves you any closer to the dream.

You justify your lack of action by insisting you can't afford to quit your job, or deciding you don't want to change your lifestyle and live on a teacher's salary. 

And yet ... what do you want? Do you want a life that's half-way, but never all the way, to the dream? Do you want the excuses, or do you want the results? For a lot of us, the excuses, and the half-baked life are all we think we deserve.

I'll post more on this topic tomorrow. How about you? Where are you hedging your own bets?

Technorati Tags: Career coaching, self esteem, living your dreams

What are your favorite creative blogs or public discussion groups?

I only have six lonely entries on my Blog Buddies list - and I'd sure like more. What's your favorite source for creative stimulation? Surely there are juicy, creative, inspiring blogs you love to hang at, and I'd like to drop by and get a little juice myself. So share your resources if you would, and I'd be grateful.

Please feel free to leave a comment here with your favorite creativity themed blog, or public discussion group. Thanks for sharing!

Technorati Tags: Creativity, artist resources

More Ideas on Where to Find Creative Stimulation

Here's a thoughtful post I got from a reader (with a cool blog) named Inspirational Sheila in response to my request, 'what do you do to find creative stimulation'. Her suggestion is a great one, whether you are a photographer or not. Seeing things differently in any way can stimulate all kinds of ideas!

She wrote:

"I take my camera for a walk and "Through the Lens" all kinds of magical discoveries, in addition to peace and joy, occur. Some of the photos become sources of inspiration for others when they become featured in Picture to Ponder my twice-weekly photo ezine. Recently some of those photos have sourced the expansion of my own writing onto my new Picture Pondering blog. Nature is my biggest source for that creative stimulation. The comments of others who have responded to my work is another."

Joy Facilitator's Discover the Joy of 'Letting It Rip'

There's a wonderful wave of energy these days on our Joy Facilitator's yahoo group. (That's where people who've taken my Joy Facilitator's Training can confer, offer support, ideas, etceteras about the process of setting up their own creativity workshop.)

Recently, a Facilitator wrote about how she 'let it rip' while leading her first workshop - and more specifically, about facing the great white canvas of the unknown and both how liberating and how scary that is.

It's my humble opinion that nothing truly great can happen without a starting point of blankness or unknown. It's as if we have to set the creative ergometer back to zero and just start with literally nothing … nada … zip. No preconceptions of what our ultimate creation will be, nor any idea of where it will lead us or even if it will fulfill our dreams and hopes.

If we can actually let go enough to do that, we're left with fertile stuff - sort of like an old weed bed that's entirely dug up and cleaned out, and fertilized with just enough manure, compost and peat moss to create an entirely new garden of possibilities.

Yet, we're afraid to know nothing and let go. We think we'll lose something valuable. In fact, all we're losing is our preconceptions of how our projects will turn out, and even how we'll be perceived.

I invite you back to that fertile place of blankness. Dig in! The growing's great.

Technorati Tags: Creativity, creative process, artist's life

Where do you get your creative stimulation?

OK … maybe this is too much information, but you multi-taskers out there will appreciate it. I'm married to a bathroom reader who tends to leave a lot of great stuff sitting around near the 'commode' as they delicately called it in the old days.

And lately, I've discovered this prime reading time for myself. Strictly off limits: my heavier, book-style stuff like Thomas Friedman's 'The World Is Flat', catalogs (too fluffy), work-related reading (that's what I'm doing in my office half the time!), letters, em's and correspondence.

Instead, I read extra little cool things I'd never ordinarily make time for. Today I picked up a section of the Friday New York Times titled Escapes (hubby just returned from Manhattan, paper under his arm.) There I read a great story about The Wedge, a surfer's paradise in Baja California with some very unique waves. And yesterday, I read about a fixer upper in Block Island, RI. And the day before that I read an Adirondack Life article about bobcats.

What's any of this have to do with my work? Everything! This is the stuff that keeps my brain humming smoothly, and my creative juices engaged.

All work, 24-7, is the kiss of creative death; so I bust up the routine with random breaks in bathroom reading, cooking, a touch of cleaning and piano playing (I'm learning how!)

What's your favorite source of creative stimulation?

Technorati Tags: Creativity, bathroom reading, good books

Two spots open for writer's spa

As usually happens with our wonderful writer's spa, no sooner do we fill that baby up than someone drops out unexpectedly. And every year that means someone else gets to suddenly sit up and ask, 'What if…?'

Then, as if a Pheonix rising from the ashes, they suddenly find themselves striding towards their computer, credit card in hand --  signing up, buying a plane ticket, and deciding just how they're going to nurture their soul and their writing by joining us. And boy … are they glad they did!

"Because of The Writer's Spa and your coaching, I completed writing my ebook and published it on my website, something I had been trying to do since 1998."
- Johanna Vandepol
www.johannavanderpol.com

Would that be you this year? We just learned we have two unexpected spots that opened up (both double rooms), and we'd love to have you!

If you'd like to learn more about this wonderful week in Taos at the Mabel Dodge Luhan house, in the company of 23 other excellent women, drop by our Writer's Spa page. (I lead this with the always brilliant, usually hilarious Jennifer Louden.)

How's Your Abundance Quotient?

Imagine if a whole room full of business gurus, success masters and cutting-edge thought leaders sat down at the same table to discuss the nature of Abundance and how it is changing and shaping the way business and life will look in the near future. What could you do with that sort of insider information? And what would you have to pay to hear what they had to say?

How about NOTHING!

Because that's my friend Kim George's offer to you - to sit at the table and listen in during this once-in-a-lifetime mastermind event, the Abundance Summit, as these giants of progressive thinking offer their insights, opinions and predictions about Abundance and how it will change the face of the future.

(And they really are giants - Jack Canfield, Andrea Lee, Ivan Misner … it's a real A list of thinkers, folks.)

You must check out her book, Coaching Into Greatness, BTW, and get it today… she's got a really amazing promo going on, but it's only today, June 13. Bonuses and thinking pundits galore!

Technorati Tags: Life coaching, abundance, prosperity

Those Busy Joy Facilitator's Create Their Own Super-Joy Group!

Leave enough coaches with some good ideas alone in a group long enough, and what do they do? Start a support group!

Now a group of my Joy Facilitators who jumped on board when I launched my Joy Facilitator's Training LITE version this winter have a great idea. They've started a teleclass-based support group in which they get together and support each other to get the job done, setting up workshops and leading them.

(My Joy Facilitator's Training teaches anyone how to create, book, fill and lead their own creativity workshop.)

And the feedback from their first support group meeting is awesome! And the action intense - more than 115 messages on the Yahoo group were exchanged in May. I'm so proud of my Facilitators I could just bust… they're taking this work out in the world, and using each other's support to make it real. More on asking for support and starting your own groups tomorrow.

Learn more about the Joy Facilitator's Training LITE.

Tags: Support groups, Yahoo groups, creativity training

Making a Comeback

A few years ago, a wildfire tore through 500 acres of field and forest at the edge of our small town on Lake Champlain. A spark from a passing Amtrak train ignited grass, dry from a three-week drought.

In the twelve hours that followed, volunteer firemen and just about any other able body who saw the smoke and showed up fought back thirty foot walls of flames, carrying metal tanks of anti-inflammitant on their backs. Two neighboring farms were spared, though in some places the fire moved right up within a few feet of farmhouses and barns.

In the end, all that was left behind was scorched earth, and stands of dead trees and bushes. The normally verdant spring landscape, one of wildflower meadows, soaring blackbirds, and purple mountains in the distance, looked like a war zone. As far as the wildlife was concerned, it probably was one.

Yet, amazingly enough, this story does not end badly.

One week after the fire, I forced myself to ride my bike past the scene of the fire -- a place I'd been avoiding because it had looked so very bleak and lifeless. Yet, I was amazed to see green, admittedly small bits of it, but signs of life nonetheless. The fields were already making a comeback.

In the ensuing months, the fields returned, quickly moving from a sea of black with sprigs of green to lush fields in full summer bloom. Here and there, burned, dead brush sticks up, a reminder, like nothing more than scars on a child's knee. The comeback of this acreage is nothing less than miraculous; it teaches us a lesson about ourselves.

How often have you suffered through a devastation, convinced that some significant part of your life was now over and you would never, ever be healed? And then, through the miracle of time, you did heal.

Things slowly began to go right again; wounds were licked. Life began chugging along again in third gear. And over time, the remaining bumps and scars became part of your lore -- the essential truths that define who you are. 

Think of this the next time your dream lets you down (and it will, sooner or later, for dreams usually do as they unfold.) Remember that this, too, is part of your cycle of growth. Just as a field reseeds itself and gives way to the grasses of summer once again, so can you.

If nothing else, the crisis has left you stronger, more capable of knowing just what you can do, ready for tremendous growth.

Tags: Creativity, artist's life, motivation

Diagram of a Passionate Dream Business, Part II

Back to Kelly and Karen's Kindred Spirit in Key West (see last post) ….

The instant healing I felt in their store comes from what I think of as "the essence". It's an immutable standard for your work that comes from pure passion - and it takes lots of joyful, effortless work. And the minute you get around a place or a person or even a service that's really passionate and hooked into 'the essence' you can sense it immediately.

Working  under the aegis of 'the essence' isn't easy of course. In stead, it's an experience in being driven.

When I met Karen and Kelly, they were coming off of weeks of 12-hour days putting the finishing touches on their store and holding their first event. It's this slightly insane, but critically important vision you get that pushes you forward, and forward, and forward, until you do create exactly what you want.

And please note that such work is not just a string of non-stop, blissed-out moments of creative bliss. There are many moments when you want to go home and go to bed. There are just as many when you lie awake worrying.

Still, there is something sacred and holy that pushes you forward, whether it be the 'essence' or your own hands-on interpretation of God. And you'll always be happy at the end of your life, that you went down that particular road … even if the results aren't exactly what you expect.

So back to my book talk at Kindred Spirit. It was easily the highlight of my 15-city tour that veered wildly from incredibly crowded, excited events that were great for selling books … to two people napping in the back while I tried to drag in browsers in Barnes & Noble's.
Not surprisingly, all of Key West turned out for my talk at Kindred Spirit; the event was electric! All, I say, because people wanted that healing at the heart of Karen and Kelly's hard work. We all simply wanted to be there and tell our friends about it.

May be you as moved as I've been by the healing work of all creators, great, small, famous and unknown, who are driven by nothing more than their desire to deliver what they feel. And may you discover the same within yourself.

Know a business, person, or service that conveys the essence'?

Visit the Kindred Spirit Website.

Tags: set up your own business, run a retail business, follow your bliss

Diagram of a Passionate Dream Business, Part I

Recently I've been thinking about all the touring I did for the release of How Much Joy Can You Stand? when it came out in 2000. It was an amazing time of growth, and I got a lot of insights along the way.

(I'm probably thinking this way because I've just gotten the rights back to the maiden Joy book, now officially 'out of print'. So I'm about to re-release it myself in a totally free, viral e-book version… Stay tuned!)

Specifically, I'm thinking about a New Age bookstore/tea salon in Key West, FL I spoke at called Kindred Spirit. This wasn't a 'must do' stop on the circuit of major bookstores for Authors On Their Way Up. The business was brand new and unknown. In fact, when the owners invited me to speak, they didn't even have a location yet for their store. Still, I had a feeling that this was a place where I had to speak.

There was something about Kelly and Karen, the owners, that resonated with me when I met them at a conference. They had a certain intensity, the air of women on a mission. It was clear that their lack of a lease at that moment was pretty irrelevant -- they would have exactly the space they wanted, and it would be great.

When I got to Key West, my hunch was confirmed. Here was a beautiful old two-story clapboard house, with a gracious front porch, waving palms, and those cool dark green shutters that are so much a part of the Key West landscape.

Every inch of this store held things that were beautiful and unique, each artfully arranged. Karen had hand-painted fresh, original calligraphy on the walls, and they had composed their space so you could wander at will, finding treasures at every turn. There was even a tiny antechamber, beautifully decorated, where you could have a reading with a remarkable psychic. Lace-covered tea tables here and there waited for you to sit down, relax, and have superb cup of tea. The effect of being in Kindred Spirit was that my travel-jagged soul was immediately soothed. This store had the ability to heal people.

…. Stay tuned! More tomorrow ….
Visit the Kindred Spirit Website.

Tags: set up your own business, run a retail business, follow your bliss

A Parable about Asking for What You want

Some years ago, when I was promoting the Ballantine edition of my book, How Much Joy Can You Stand?, I had a fantastic crisis. It was fantastic because it reminded me of a truth as old as the hills: when all seems lost, just ask.

Basically, the worst thing that can possibly happen to an author (and a publicist) happened. I actually forgot an interview. It was just one of those mornings when I had a houseful of guests. In fact, I was busy serving blueberry pancakes when it struck me that something was wrong ... something was very wrong.

Just like Miss Clavel in the children's book, Madeline, I ran fast and faster towards my office, trying to figure out the disaster. When I got there, I fumbled through my file and saw that I'd been scheduled for an interview on a Colorado radio station at 9:05 AM, and it was now 10:05 AM! I could feel the bottom of my stomach drop out.

How was I going to face Joanne, my beloved, trusted publicist who had worked so hard to schedule the interview? And how was I going to face the folks at Ballantine who were counting on me to show up and do my part? I just stood there, doing my best to curse quietly so the children, and houseguests, wouldn't hear me.

For a good twenty minutes, I hung around my office avoiding calling Joanne. Blueberry pancakes and my houseguests were totally forgotten. Instead, my mind was full of excuses, which The Big G (my friendly name for God) kept patiently answering. The conversation went like this:

ME: It was only 7AM on the West Coast. I can't call NOW.

THE BIG G: Joanne would be at work already, as she has to be on East Coast time often to do her job.

ME: I've already blown it, right? So why bother calling anyone? 

THE BIG G: You never know, Suzanne.

ME: I just can't tell her... I can't. She'll kill me.

THE BIG G: Joanne will not kill you. She'll help you.

ME: But remember the other time -- when the station gave my publicist the wrong time? Remember how mad the DJ was when I got him on the phone? That guy yelled at me!

THE BIG G: Everyone's different, dear.

Finally, I called. Joanne was not mad and certainly did not try to leap through the phone and kill me. In fact, she was the essence of grace under pressure and said, quite sanely, "The host is a really nice guy. Call him up. He'll probably put you on."

So I girded my loins again, dialed, and explained to the man why I was an hour and twenty minutes late. "Can you hold on?" he asked, and two minutes later I was doing the interview, marveling at the fact that all I had to do was ask.

So often we assume we 'know' how it's all going to turn out. We're completely certain of future results, and base our information on previous circumstances that have little to do with the here and now.

I'm here to say that we don't necessarily know a thing -- all we can do is ask and try, ask and try, no matter how scary it seems. Otherwise, the only certainty is that we've once again caved into our fear and stayed stuck, instead of moving forward.

Or, as the sign a friend has above her desk says, "Just Ask".

After my interview, I called Joanne back and told her how it all turned out. "This is so great!" I gushed, "I can write about it in the Joy Letter."

"Fine," Joanne replied. "But don't miss anymore interviews, okay? Even for your newsletter."

Tags: publicity, self promotion, radio interviews

Interview with a successful dreamer, Part II

Here's more on my interview with Sally Faith Coombs, a milliner who discovered and successfully leads a dream career. 

How have you managed to keep the faith?
When you have bills sitting there and the phone's not ringing, sometimes it's really hard to hold on to that magic. Recently I did a gallery opening, and I got burnt out doing a lot of hours of work for it. I made a joke that I'd sell my sewing machine in the yard for 2 bucks. But then I was looking at one of the styrofoam heads with blobs of fabric and ribbon pinned on it, and all of the sudden I went over to it and touched the fabric. And before I knew it, I was fiddling around with it, and I'd come up with three or four more designs. I'd gotten back in touch with that creative part. Just by looking at that styrofoam head sitting there.

That's why it's so important to keep creating. I reached out for the hat and there it was, like it was waiting for me.

How did you sell your first hats?
I don't even know what ever gave me the courage or possessed me to think I could walk into the finest gallery on Cape Cod and say, "Hi I've got some hats I'd like you to look at." The owner was totally captivated by the hats, we did a consignment deal, and the hats were sitting on these little pedestals. The actress Julie Harris then became a regular customer of the hats, and that was a big boost. Lots of places have shown them since, and lot of people have bought them.

How has your business grown?
In the second year, 98-99, I was up to double from what I did the first year. We cut the cleaning business in half. I follow any lead anyone anywhere gives me. What I find is there's a real relationship that comes with the hats -- store owners and gallery owners sell them and have fun with them, or they don't.  I really believe the hats will end up in the shops they're supposed to with the people who are supposed to sell them. Otherwise we're all wasting our time. Sometimes we have a hat party -- and that's a great event! There's something in these hats that just moves people. There's this energy to them, and it brings something out in people that they find really fun and enjoyable. They seem so surprised to see they have those feelings and energy, and it's so fun to watch it all spring forth.

Tags: Creativity, creative careers, career change, living your dreams, millinery

Interview with a Successful Dreamer

Sally Faith Coombs, 35, is a milliner who didn't start out that way. After spending several years cleaning houses, she got a Continuing Ed degree at Wellesley College in psychology and women's studies. Sally left Wellesley convinced her purpose was to empower women to move past the media's stereotypes about beauty and body image. Yet, it was while researching a possible documentary on the subject that she discovered making hats. Then Sally stumbled on an interesting truth: by making hats, she could use her creativity to fulfill her purpose -- that women don't have to be a perfect size 8 to feel beautiful in a great hat.

Not long after that, Sally started Maggie Mae Designs and began selling the hats, one at a time, to craft galleries. Now, several years later, her hats have been featured in Victoria Magazine and on Oxygen TV. This is how she's made it work.

How did you get started?
The name of the business hit me before I'd ever made a hat ... one night, I woke up at 2 AM and I saw the name, Maggie Mae Designs. My cat, Maggie Mae, was sitting on the bed with me.

Sometimes cats have this smug look on their face. She looked smug. I wasn't designing anything at that time, except a way to get out of cleaning toilets.

Then, a little later, my mother handed me this knitting pattern for a felted hat, which I took to humor her. So I knitted up this hat -- it was huge sack of woolen matter. I put it in my washer and let it boil, and in about fifteen minutes, it shrank into this really cool hat. I started rummaging through all the stuff I've collected all my life, and I started attaching things to my hat. And before I knew it, I'd made three or four of them and I was hooked.

How have you worked the money thing?
My boyfriend is a painter, and throughout the year our expenses are minimal. We live above my mom's house, our rent is really low and we clean houses for cash. As Tom puts it, it's life "on a shoestring but the shoestring broke a long time ago."

I often have the thought -- what was I thinking when I did this? I know nothing about business, or the world of retail. I don't even know how we do what we do. A hat order will come in... one... and will just pay for the bean and rice soup. We really do live very simply.

Yet, there is something magical about that work. The thing that keeps me going is the joy of it. When someone tells me what a hat I made meant to them... those are the moments I'm doing it for.
Also, I get to be part of an educational process, letting women know there are other options beside feeling you have to be a size four. I just encourage them to play, and they do! When I'm not sitting there groaning about rent and food, if I can just keep playing with the hats and all the reasons why I'm doing it, then I can keep going.

Tags: Creativity, creative careers, career change, living your dreams, millinery

Victor's Green Energy Trick

Yesterday, I posted about my late friend Victor Philips (he died almost twenty years ago, amazingly.) Victor taught me his ultimate energy focusing tool, which I've reproduced here for you.

Pick a soul project you've been wanting to get to, and carve out some time to work on it. Then, when you're alone with your work, try this brief visualization technique. Unplug phones, keep the kids/spouse/neighbors at bay for a while, and close the door.

Stand in front of your work with your arms at your side. Give a small prayer of thanks for the presence of this work in your life, and ask God to help you clear yourself for the task. Close your eyes and imagine green light entering your body, sweeping it clean of all distracting thoughts and unnecessary concerns. Know that in this light is healing from all the stress of your everyday life. Let the light bathe you, sweeping you clean and free and ready to work.

Then, when you are ready, sit down to the task at hand, knowing you are fully present and ready to focus. Now, get to work and savor the joy!

Tags: Writing, publishing, the writer's life, creativity coaching

How to Hang On To Your Focus

For me, focus as often been an issue. Just when the wheels are rolling, results are happening, and my juices are flowing buckets, I'm inclined to pull back and distract myself with some assorted piece of trivia. I suspect I've done this not out of necessity -- for who really needs to dawdle in junk when you're in the creative flow? It's done out of fear of standing up for myself, and truly extending my power in the world.

I once had a friend, Victor Phillips, who taught me all about the value of focus. Victor was an interior designer and psychic healer who also had tremendous talent as a painter. So it came as something of a shock when we both attended an acting seminar in New York City one weekend, and I watched Victor stand up and perform a monologue.

Victor stood on the stage for several moments with his eyes closed in concentration. Then, when he opened his eyes and started to deliver his speech, he was a transformed person. He was his character, quite literally. People in the audience were crying at the end of his work -- and the most incredible part was that Victor had never acted in his life.

Naturally, on the next break I went straight to Victor and gushed about his talent. "But it wasn't talent," he said. "It was focus. I stood there for a moment centering myself. I pulled up every ounce of energy I had. And then I just did it."

"But you were incredible! You could be a great actor! Will you?" I asked.

Victor looked non-plussed. "Probably not," he said. "I was just seeing where my focus could take me."

Victor died of AIDS several years ago, but I will never forget the amazing lesson he taught me that day. Because what I saw was not that Victor, alone, was this supremely talented man. Instead, I realized how powerful our focus can be when we train its laser beam on what we want to create. And that goes for ALL of us. So we can truly achieve greatness, if we're willing to use the tremendous tool of focusing, and be the powerful force we were given to be in this life.

Tags: Focus, creativity, artist's life, working with energy, Spirit

Why Now Is the Very Best Time of All to Sign up for The Writer's Spa

The Writer's Spa single rooms are all gone … so now the real fun begins. Those who register from here on in will have twice as remarkable experience. (And I can say this based on 4 years of prior experience leading the Spa.) Here's why:

1. No one has EVER come to me requesting a roommate change.

2. Most who share their room with a relative stranger leave with a friend for life.

3. I personally match people with their roommates based on several factors: age, sleep habits, personal preferences and any quirks I know about, and whatever I can tell about people from their writing. This is actually my favorite part of getting ready for the spa … and how I know I'm probably best employed as a Cub Scout Den Mother or maybe a dorm RA

4. Having a roommate makes it possible for you to process your experience with someone else as you go through it … kind of an out-loud analysis that can be a help to some with the tougher pieces

5. You will probably laugh more. (Jennifer and I certainly do!)

6. You will probably stay in touch after the Spa, and so keep the Spa experience alive for yourself for years to come

That, I'm proud to say, is a typical experience at our Taos Writer's Spa - Join us July 29- August 4. It's been sold out for five years running - and it's heading that way this year, too. If you think you want to come, don't he.sitate. Jump in - ready or not! Registration ends May 15

Tags: Writing, publishing, the writer's life, creativity coaching

Create a Dream Binder for Someone You Love or Yourself, Part II

So … now are you ready to set up your own Dream Binder? (See yesterday's post to learn what that is.) It's easy and extremely fun - and it can be as elaborate as you want, or as simple as time will allow. Here's what you'll need:

You'll need a binder with a clear sleeve on the front for inserting cover art, dividers, 3-hole punched paper, loose leaf or filler paper, and access to the Internet.

Just to make it really easy for you, I've also put together a free download of Dream Binder workbook pages you can print out and use in your binders. They include exercises, questionnaires, and some helpful general articles on dream pursuit. (When you download it, you'll also get access to my free, award-winning ezine, The Joy Letter.)

Then print them out on 3-hole paper and pop them in the binder. The cover art I created is only a suggestion - feel fr.ee to make your own very personal image for the recipient.)

How to Make It:

When you sit down to make your Dream Binder, take a blank piece of paper and ask yourself just what your friend's dream should have in it. Let your mind wander deliciously, and capture all the inspirations that come up. Then get on the Web and start surfing - I promise you all the information you're looking for is out there.

You can make your Dream Binder as simple or as complicated as you like. Divide it up into sections that seem most useful for the recipient.

Include web sites, product or site reviews, free software URL's, and just about anything else you can think of. You can even give them gift certificates to helpful subscription services or retailers who sell dream-related products, if you want to add monetary value to this gift

Also look for
" Inspirational biographies
" Stories of others who've succeeded in the field your friend wishes to go into
" Helpful contacts
" Could be names/addresses/etc. from anyone you can find in their dream field who might serve as mentor, or even cold contacts you don't personally know.
" Notes or messages from supportive friends/family
" Free articles
" Great books/programs/tools

Are there helpful books that have good reviews that might somehow assist them? Think not only of technical books from experts in their field, but general dream books like my own, Living Your Joy.

Give the gift that really DOES keep on giving? Let someone you love (yes, that can include yourself) know that their dream matters and that you believe in them completely. You'll be so very glad you did.

Let the dreams begin!

Create a Dream Binder for Someone You Love or Yourself, Part I

Recently, I came up with a big idea: creating a binder of goodies that supports the dream of someone you love. I'm all for homemade gifts… and letting a friend or family member know their dream is supported is just about the best gift anyone can give. (Think Graduation, Mother's Day, birthday … or just make one for that other best friend - yourself!)

Here's an example.

My daughter Teal has a big dream of being a country singer. Teal has a great voice and has been performing pretty much non-stop since she was about 6. And she spends a considerable amount of time every day simply singing … sometimes for hours at a time. So for her 15th birthday, I made her a Dream Binder.

A Dream Binder is a great big book of support for any dream. Teal's Binder included photos of her favorite country singers and stories of how they got discovered. Plus I included information on contests, contacts at local radio stations, inspirational quotes for down days, helpful Web resources, and worksheets on things like keeping track of key contacts and planning next steps.

Her Dad, her brother, her godmother, her friends and I also added fun, mushy letters of support for her dream. And they also added more elements of their own, so the Dream Binder became a family effort.

What's really great about these Binders is that you only start them. The recipient then takes the binder and can keep on adding lots of support pieces as his or her dream builds steam. (Hence the need for loose leaf in the back.)

So who do you know whose dream needs a boost… beginning with you? I invite you to make lots of dream binders and share them with your fellow dreamers. They're easy and truly fun to make.

I'll post more tomorrow on just what the dream binder should include. If you'd like a template to work with, drop by my website and pick up your own copy of my Create Your Own Dream Binder kit. (You'll also get my excellent ezine, The Joy Letter, too.) It's all free … and it's all good.

Are you a worrier?

I am. When I was in fourth grade, my teacher wrote on my report card: 'Worries entirely too much!'. But hey … I felt my worry was essential to getting the work of the world done. Just like my continuing urge to fly airplanes from my passenger seat - as if I can think the plane towards its destination and a safe landing.

I recently spoke to a reader named Doris, who wisely said, "If I don't worry, I don't feel like I'm getting my job done." Touche!

That's how we all feel when we're worriers, or 'thinkers' as in the case of my friend Trisha. And I often wonder if this is the domain of sensitive, creative people. Trisha, a photographer, feels she can better understand her world by thinking it out in elaborate detail. I, on the other hand, must worry it out in elaborate detail. That's my coping device.

SO what's all this worry get me? Not much beyond some occasional belly aches. None of my worry has been proven to affect a single outcome, no matter how hard I try.

And I do want to acknowledge that I'm much less of a worrier than I used to be. Somewhere around forty, I woke up one morning and decided all that worrying was just way too much work. But I still do enjoy a good worry once in a while - just to keep my hand in.

How about you?

Homage to Mandisa

OK, American Idol may just be over for me. My favorite, the gospel singer Mandisa, was voted out after 'country night'…. America - what were you thinking?

This is when I secretly entertain thoughts of moving to Sweden.

I mean, come on! Mandisa is one of the greatest singers they've ever had on that show. (Even Simon says so.)

For weeks now, I was thinking this gal was going to win it. And so win one for being a gospel singer who goes mainstream pop. (Alright!) And win one for being a big woman who defies the thin, white, minx stereotype that perpetuates the pop industry.

Mandisa has the unique ability to walk out on stage and totally own it. She exudes energy, she knows how to take any song into a whole new place and thrillingly cut loose - something not all these kids can do. And, in the words of no one less than Stevie Wonder (!), "Mandisa can sing anything."

Wow. I'm still in shock that she's off … and Kelly Pickler is still on? Vocal chord for vocal chord there's no comparison. (Though I do think Kelly would make a hilarious and wonderful talk show hostess.)

My two cents. What do you think?

The Impact of Your Parents on Your Dream, Part II

Having the courage to live up to your own ideals is truly refreshing. When you move from thinking about your dream to actually doing it, you are amazed by the flow and the ease with which you can suddenly operate. You may also be struck by how long you waited to finally get on with the real joy in life.

Getting there, however, can be the hard part, because it all begins with awareness. Often those voices in our heads, whether they belong to parents, well-meaning friends, former bosses, spouses, or even nosy neighbors, may have been playing so long and so loudly we can't even hear them.

Emme, one of the world's top plus-size models, grew up listening to the abusive voice of the man her mother married when she was 5. At age 12, he instructed her to strip down to her underwear, then circled in indelible magic marker all the places on her body where she needed to lose weight. Even though she'd tried to scrub them off, her next trip to the local pool was a humiliating nightmare. "After that," she told an interviewer, "I didn't allow myself to feel ... Finally I went into therapy and said, 'I'm angry. I need to find out why."

Emme's work with a therapist gave her a fuller understanding of the influences she'd been spending a lifetime silently wrestling with -- voices she has since moved beyond in her work as a model, and role model for plus size women everywhere.

Ultimately, unplugging all those inner know-it-alls rests on nothing more than your desire to be who you were always intended to be in the first place. Are you willing to rise above everyone else's agenda for you, and carve out the niche that is rightfully yours? Are you willing to let go of what others will think, and honor your greater self instead? Are you willing to be known as the tremendous, quirky soul that you are?

Your niche is your creative imprint; your own wonderful gift to give the world. Perhaps it was fostered by your parents, or perhaps it's something you cooked up all by yourself.

Another great example of this is Roger the Jester, a wonderful, original performer based near Great Barrington, Massachusetts. After unsuccessful stabs at psychology and photojournalism, Roger landed on jesting by asking himself what he wanted to spend the rest of his life doing.

"What I really liked was making people laugh, and goofing off. Once I got booked for a show and they told me, 'We'd just like you to carry on.' Well, that's what my mother used to yell at me -- 'Will you stop carrying on?' And now, here I was, carrying on and getting paid for it."

Take a look … what influence are you silently listening to that needs to be reexamined? Who's in charge of YOUR dream?

The Impact of Your Parents on Your Dream, Part I

Have you ever felt like the life you are living is not the one you originally had in mind? Back when you were a kid, there might have been other things you thought you were going to be, like a Broadway diva or a country doc. That was before so-called reality hit, back when the only voice you listened to was your own.

Fast forward to today.

If you're like most of us, you lost track of those dreams and ideas some time ago. Other factors came into play, like earning a living, the impossibility of going back to school, or the queasy fear of looking stupid. You might have even heard your parents in the background, quietly chanting. "Get a good job, honey. You need the security." "You expect too much from life!!" "Who said work was supposed to be fun?"

In her excellent book, Losing Your Parents, Finding Your Self (Hyperion), Victoria Secunda interviewed 94 men and women who had lost at least one parent about the impact their parents' death had on their lives. What she found was that after that parent's death, 50% of the respondents changed their career -- and 69% of that group did so as a direct result of the death. The reason? Respondents no longer had to worry about pleasing or displeasing that parent. "The credit, or blame, for their success and failures fell almost entirely on their own shoulders," says Secunda.

I know when I lost my own father, I eventually gave up doing what I thought I 'should' be doing and began the work of my heart. And not, as you'd think, because he wasn't supportive. As a professional artist, my father knew just what to say to help launch me on my own creative path … which he dearly wanted to see. But I was so afraid I'd fail, and consequently disappoint him, that I never even seriously tried in his lifetime. Now that I'm a parent, I understand that fathers and mothers are not always disappointed by their children's failures, but more often by their reluctance to live the life they want.

When we begin to listen to our own voice, and throw off all those other helpful ones in our head, life really starts to make sense. Not only do the wheels of progress finally turn in the direction we want, but we begin to put more and more credence in that small, lesser known part of ourselves that is the seat of both our vulnerability and our power. This is the place where our creativity, our imagination, and our own unique 'I-ness' really lives. It's also the place we operate from when we're truly connecting with others.

Dealing with the Cosmic Splat, Part 2

Regarding your 'cosmic splat' and all those helpful signs of the universe (see my last post) … here are a few more thoughts.

So what's the other side of this? Yes, there are often signs that those obstacles you think you're running into are only your mind, doing it's ol' Dance of Resistance. Here are some obvious clues.

1. The problem is familiar. It may be that you suddenly run out of money for your project, or you find yourself getting sick. Somehow, this is what always happens when you aim for the exciting unknown. I used to get sore throats before I performed all the time … mainly because I hadn't yet given myself permission to be a big, gutsy, great singer. This 'same-old-same-old' would NOT qualify as a sign from the Universe to change course.

2. There's a sense of straining or uncertainty to the signal. You get a signal, but it's just not clear somehow. Instead, it's mushy and uncertain. It could be a signal … but somehow, it's not. Notice that this 'signal' seems to mesh nicely with your rampant fear at moving forward, or your innate aversion to taking risks. Not a sign … just a wave of fear.

3. You're missing key pieces of dream infrastructure. You need the essentials first: support, organization tools, a balanced financial set up, regular dream time. Remember that without these key pieces, no dream can move on as scheduled. First, put your house in order … then build the dream.

4. The obstacle is around a particular weakness of yours. Could be this is just one of those good old growth opportunities; so instead of running, embrace it, baby! We all have our Achilles Heel, and there isn't a dream out there that doesn't occasionally demand better of you. Carpe Diem!

Want to reprint this article? Drop my VA Lorraine Carol a line at lorraine@howmuchjoy.com for permission. (All I ask is that you run it with a bio box at the end which she will provide.)

Dealing with the Cosmic Splat, Part 1

I've often harped in my work about how guided our dreams are, and how all you have to do is tune in to 'get the message' on what to do next. That said, what do you do when the Universe seems to be sending you mixed signals … i.e. things don't go exactly as you'd planned, or fiascoes happen. Should you abandon your project or change it significantly?

Just when ARE you getting a signal from the Universe - and when are you only hearing from your own internal demons? How do you know which is which?

Lately I've run up against a few of these cosmic splats. Here's what I've determined are sure signs of a Universal signal telling you to change course:

1. The signal is big and dramatic. Back when I was a freelance copywriter yearning to be a real writer, the Universe arranged for my copy portfolio to be stolen and all of my work to dry up overnight. Suddenly I had all the time in the world to finish my first novel … and get it picked up by a major publisher within just a few months.

2. Clues may start piling up. Just recently, I put together a small cabaret trio to perform locally. I thought it would be a great way to keep my vocal chops up while developing a bigger, more long-term project for myself. Yet within one 24 hour span, one partner pulled out, the other decided she wasn't sure she wanted to stick with it, and the borrowed piano we'd been rehearsing with got loaned elsewhere. I got the message.

3. Your instinct will confirm the signs around you. As I was rehearsing with the ill-fated trio, collecting music, and lugging borrowed pianos around, I had this vague background sense that I should really put that energy into the piece I'm writing. Still I chose to ignore it. Meanwhile, the Universe saw me busying myself with the wrong long-term project and let me know it. You'll get a great sense of relief when you follow the signal. I did, and so did my partners.

Our Natural Tendency to Be Shy

One thing I noticed in my coaching today is how naturally shy people are to toot their own horn. How I wish they weren't, for it makes it ever so much harder for their people to find them.

An example: I was coaching a client who is a therapist about her bio for a possible media page. When I asked for her credentials, she told me she had a masters in psychotherapy. Which sounds educated, but somehow not very accomplished in the field. On further probing, I found that she's been working in the field with people for fifteen years … that she had, in fact, helped hundreds of people in her practice.

Now THAT sounds accomplished.

Another client was concerned about a competitor who'd recently entered her field of coaching. "I'm far more established," she fretted, "but nobody really knows it." We remedied this by doing a little math. In the prior 8 years, through the publication of a book, a magazine, and the getting of much media, we figured she's helped more than 250,000 people with her work. So that immediately got posted on her website, and in her media materials.

It's interesting how much bigger your platform can become if you stop looking at your credentials on paper, and really tally up who you've helped or how long you've been in practice. That's what people really care about anyway!

What can your bigger platform claim be?

Mandisa rules!

Last week us American Idol fans (I know, I know - enough with the prime time TV, right? Actually, this is highly informative stuff for creative souls!) … we all got to watch an absolutely KICK-ASS performance by the AI artist known as Mandisa. This woman rocks the house 100%!

So I've been thinking about why … what did she have in that performance of a Chaka Khan tune that set her so far above and beyond her peers?

a) Complete confidence. Mandisa - a large woman who definitely doesn't fit into the conventional vanilla US definition of beauty - is beautiful because she totally owns who she is. The song she sang, rightly, was 'I am Everywoman' … and man, she WAS everywoman! Mandisa loves her differentness.

b) Maturity. This is probably the natural advantage of her and Taylor Hicks ('the gray haired guy') who are both listed on the AI site as aged 29. I'm guessing that may not be totally accurate, but who cares! They have the wisdom of going out there, having triumphs and disasters, and living life for a while. No matter how talented the young fry are, they simply can't compare.

c) Groundedness. This is really more of the maturity message, I think. Mandisa knows she's worked for this all these years - she's already a professional performer. AND, she knows she deserves everything she gets. Her public forgiveness of Simon (just before the final cut) for his abusive remarks regarding her weight were a pure example of this.

d) Spiritual connection. Mandisa has publicly thanked Jesus a few times on her web page, and acknowledged her spiritual guidance. I'm not saying you have to be a holy roller OR even remotely spiritually inclined to be a great artist. Not at all! I'm just saying this is totally working for her - she obviously find great strength here, so good for her for owning it, sharing it, and living it.

If you have a chance, tune in. American Idol is Tuesday at 8/7central (a 2 hour special) and 9/8 central on Fox.

How to Get Publicity with Seminars & Workshops

All week long my very best-selling product – which was removed from the market for a year – has been in pre-launch sale mode. That would be the Joy Facilitator’s Training LITE. It’s basically a license that allows anyone to create, book, fill and lead their own creativity workshop.

(Have I ever mentioned that speaking and leading group events like workshops can be an excellent way to build platform? Even if you just get a business card from half your audience, that’s the way to build a really responsive list.)

Anyway, the phone’s been ringing off the hook! The response is twice what it’s ever been before, and that tells me that more people than ever really want this work … and want to get up in front of audiences.

There’s simply no better way to deliver your work, and gain immediate audience trust. AND the added perc is that events like workshops and seminars naturally attract publicity.

It’s a lot easier to get a local or regional TV news reporter, for instance, to cover what you’re doing if it’s live than if it’s not. That’s why so many authors love to arrange book appearances – because it’s something you can actually offer the media that’s happening. And is therefore newsworthy.

The very first time I ever led this workshop for the general public (long before I ever began licensing others to lead it), I casually called up the Features Editor at the Burlington Free Press in VT near my home. They ran the story on the front page of their Friday Living section – I was amazed. They even sent a photographer who shot pictures of all the cool things people made.

As a result, I began to get requests for the workshop … and led more and more … and the rest is my own small version of history.

See the power of going public with your work?

What I Learned from ‘American Idol’

First of all, let’s just get this out on the table – my favorite ‘American Idol’ singers are Taylor Hicks (the gray-haired, blues-singing guy) and Paris Bennett, the very incredible 17-year-old African-American singer from Georgia.

Now … let’s analyze why I like them.

I’m a newbie to American Idol – it’s something my kids have gotten me into, but boy … a LOT can be learned here about the creative process and the art of passing muster. Not only are you dealing with Simon Cowell’s scowling countenance all the time … only those who are self-possessed, fairly real and really relaxed seem to make it into the final rounds.

These are the people who ‘have it going on’ – they know their job, they know they’re good, and they’re not waiting for the judges to validate them. Best of all, they’re having fun. And that all springs from passion for your craft.

I love these two singers because they’re genuinely passionate about what they do. When Taylor Hicks came in to see the judges to find out if he made it onto the show, he was playing his harmonica. Just for love of being there, and taking the long stroll down to their table, he played the blues all the way. This guy is full of joy whether he makes it to the final round or not … and he’s certainly not going to stop, regardless of whether he wins. Frankly, if I was an A&R person with a major label, I’d already be talking to this guy about signing. He’s just got that unique, amazing … something. (I love that he says on his page that he’ll go back to being a ‘broke performer’ after the AI whirl ends.)

Same for the fabulous Paris Bennett. This girl is just 100% about delivering her gift. Her ritual (according to the American Idol site) is to ‘Pray and ask God to be my words and let Him use me!’. How cool is that? Paris is connected to the music, down to the core of her soul, and it makes us love her.

I’m not forgetting what she did when she passed her original AI audition and got the ‘golden ticket’ to spend the week auditioning in Hollywood (essentially round 2 of the process.) She dropped to her knees in the doorway as she exited, and just began to sob with joy. She’s feeling it … and so can we.

If you haven’t ever checked American Idol out, do … it’s a great lesson in life as a working artist. Who’s your favorite contestant?