Sad times at the Creative Dream Factory.

By Andrea Schroeder / February 8, 2018

So I've been sharing the story as it's been unfolding but I know not everyone is on Facebook. On Monday we lost Starfish.

(We're going to print + frame this photo and put it up in our new bedroom when we move in spring/summer)

A few weeks ago I took him to the vet for a check-up since he was an older cat and we'd had him for a year, though he seemed healthy. The vet saw something and tried to intervene but it was too late. It was so strange, the vet was saying Starfish was so sick and yet he was still running around being his happy loving self. Until he wasn't, of course. He took a really sharp turn on Sunday and by Monday he was gone. I'm so glad he was still enjoying his life right until the end.

Monday was brutal.

It was the day the Focus Pocus Creative Support Group started. I had been so excited to start this group and we had a live call happening at 1:00 my time. I thought about canceling - but everyone was ready to start! That seemed sucky. I thought about just pretending - doing the call as my happy self. That seemed wrong. I thought about how life is always happening for us, not to us. And that is this was all happening on the same day then it was all happening on the same day and I could be with all of it. The more I thought about it the more it felt ok, like we're exploring how to stay focused no matter what so - let's do this then, let's figure out how to make space for all of it. So I got on the call and told the truth. I talked about how ironic it was, since I am usually such a focused person, and we were starting the focus group on a day when I was TOTALLY unfocused. And I talked about how it doesn't matter - we're not here to do things perfectly, we're here to keep showing up for our dreams in the midst of the mess of every day life. And everyone offered me love and support. And we started the focus group and it was perfect.

Not that I think Starfish had to die for me to have this lesson to share, of course.

But I thought - maybe a part of me did know something was up and that is the part of me who picked the start date for Focus Pocus? I don't know. At the end of our call, my husband came home. I thought he was just stopping in to check up on Starfish, but he was there to do a ceremony for Starfish, to call on the spirits to meet him, help him not be scared, help send him on to the other side and give him strength for the journey. So we spent those last few hours with Starfish praying for him, thanking him for all the gifts he brought us, telling him how much we love him. And we gathered the medicines into a bundle.

My husband explained that ideally Starfish would be wrapped in this bundle to be cremated, so he would be burned with the medicines so he could use them on the other side. So when we Starfish back to the vet we brought the bundle too, just in case. Starfish actually likes car rides, so for his last ride we didn't put him in his carrier. He went up into the back window and you could see he was wanted to be there look around at the world, while also in a great deal of pain. I guess I want to add - of course I spoke to the vet about all possible solutions. I was hoping we could give him surgery or at least painkillers and he could at least live out his natural life without crying in pain all the time. But since the issue is that he couldn't breath and wasn't eating there just wasn't a way to keep him going. It was his time. We were both in tears at the vet, and Starfish was put to sleep quickly while we petted and kissed him. After, the vet did allow us to wrap him up in his bundle, in four different cloths in the colours of the four directions, and send him off right. We always talked about how we wanted to send him off like that, so that everyone on the other side can see right away that this is a special cat and should be treated like a king. It's been a few days and my husband and I both can't feel Starfish's presence in the house at all. We think that means he went right over. My husband said "Wow that means he can be our spirit guide now"

Nothing makes the grief less painful, we just have to feel our way through it.

But having the Focus Pocus Creative Support Group has really helped me feel like I won't lose the plot in the rest of my life. I am learning to make space for all of it - the shitty things that happen that I have to deal with and the day-to-day details of life AND my dreams. There IS room for everything to co-exist. I always used to worry about this kind of thing as a self-employed person. Like one bad happening could throw me off track so much I could lose my livelihood. I don't worry so much about it anymore, I trust myself to handle life as it happens and make space for everything I need to make space for AND everything I WANT to make space for.

These past few days without Starfish in the house have been so weird and sad.

I'm working out of coffee shops more and more since it's so uncomfortable to be at home without him. I'm always looking for him and re-remembering that he's gone. In the evenings my husband and I look at photos and videos of Starfish and talk about him and cry a lot. I am so grateful that my husband loves Starfish as much as I do, and that I have someone to share my grief with. I just figured out how to use that "live" thing in iPhone photos. I didn't really know what it was but was SO happy to see it means there are a few seconds of video on each photo. So amazing to see Starfish purr and move around on my phone. And looking at those few seconds of video reminded me of a Starfish story I'd forgotten, about one of my favourite photos of him:
When he was lying in bed I would often gather him up and hug him like this, and he would let me do it for a few minutes, then he would get himself free. He was pretty independent and didn't like being held, he liked to sit on people and be petted and always be free to walk away whenever he wanted to. But on this particular day, I was really sick (this is when I had the flu in December). I was lying in bed binge-watching The Vampire Diaries and Starfish snuggled in and stayed there, watching along with me. Such a sweet little thing.

This week I started knitting a Starfish.

I want to make a few of them and leave them in his favourite spots. Little memorials. Weirdly (?) I've also had some amazing creative breakthroughs this week. I have big plans for what I want to do with my work this year and I've been in that fuzzy/messy/unknown stage of the creative process for so long, it's amazing to start to come out of that with clarity and new direction. Maybe Starfish is on the other side, sending these amazing ideas to me.

Sad times at the Creative Dream Factory. Read More »

Getting angry is a part of your dream path too

By Andrea Schroeder / November 13, 2017

My husband and I are getting winter tires put on our car. (Yes - I got rid of my car and became a cyclist 4 years ago. Then when I got married my husband and I bought a car together - he uses it most of the time.)

My husband needs the car for his job as a social worker, so we called around to find someone who could book an appointment in advance, first thing in the morning, so he could just come into work 1 hour late and then skip lunch. The car guy said for sure he could be done in an hour. But when he got to the shop they said they didn't have an appointment, and that the car would be in the shop all day.

I was up super early that morning and was at Starbucks. I'd already done some really great brainstorming/planning, and was just chatting with a friend about some work stuff and getting ready to crack open my laptop and get caught up on some admin work. That's when my husband called to let me know that the shop was saying we didn't have an appointment so it would take them all day to do the tires. So I agreed to bring my husband my mom's car (my parents are away right now) so he could get to work.

Then I sat there, in a huff.

I mean this is hardly the end of the world, but it did put a wrench in my plans and I was frustrated. Of course it's not a big deal, so I tried to just blow it off. But as I kept talking with my friend I noticed I was feeling more and more uncomfortable. I was angry. Not so much about my schedule getting a little messed up but more about how this person did not honour the agreement we made - that's a trigger for me.

It's ok to be angry when you're angry.

I mean it's ok to not be angry too. But if you are angry then it's ok to feel angry - to not brush it off, but to be with it and listen to it.

So I admitted to my friend that I still felt angry about the mechanic.

This gave my anger some space and legitimacy. And almost instantly I knew - I needed to stand up for myself.

So I phoned the car guy and let him know I had made the appointment in advance and that I expected it to be honoured. The mechanic agreed, at that point he couldn't still get the tires finished by the time that was originally promised, but he said he could have it done by 10am.

I hung up the phone, took a deep breath, and felt much better. The anger was gone.

The anger was there as a sign that I needed to stand up for myself. That I couldn't allow the car guy to break a deal with me without saying anything.

Anger is often a sign/message that comes with a burst of energy that allows us to act on the message.

When we use anger in that way - it's very helpful! One of the most helpful emotions!

But people rarely use it this way.

Often, when you think you're acting out of anger what you're really doing is acting out of your own resistance to feeling angry. That's when you fly off the handle - the anger that comes up is so uncomfortable for you that you try to throw it onto something/someone else. You're just trying to get rid of the uncomfortable feeling you're having.

But what you end up doing - lashing out just to try to get rid of the feeling inside you - is just making things worse. Then ager gets blamed!

But it wasn't anger that made you lash out like that - it was your resistance to feeling your feelings.

When you can simply feel your feelings then you can get the message/meaning in your feeling. Then you can find the gift in it. THEN you have the power to act differently - and that changes everything.

Notice how my husband was not angry about the car thing. He was irritated, but let it go once we had a solution.

I was angry.

This is what it means to be triggered. Being triggered means your inner wounds have been activated. Maybe my husband wasn't triggered because he wasn't the one who made the appointment. Maybe it was because he doesn't care if some car guys keeps his promises or not.

He would say that he has bigger things to worry about.

I was triggered. It means a great deal to me that people keep their agreements with me, so this is the kind of thing that triggers me.

The thing about being triggered is that it's a gift. There is always something in it that you can use for your own healing and growth.

Of course it never feels that way in the moment.

The example I'm sharing is a pretty small trigger. I was feeling angry and in a huff but it wasn't out of control or anything. Sometimes we are so triggered that we can't handle our feelings and it takes everything we've got to not fly off the handle, and go into that reactive mode where we do things we later regret.

Those triggers are where we find the BIG gifts.

We're doing a group coaching call on What To Do When You're Triggered in the Creative Dream Circle on November 20, 2017.

I want to go speak in depth about handling large and small triggers and how to find the gifts in them. This is an important topic because when you can handle your triggers you can find the gifts in them - which always serve your healing and personal growth. So I'll have more to share on the call, but we'll have plenty of space for people in attendance to ask questions.

While it's great to be on the call live, I think the recording of this one will be a real gift - to be able to come to it as a source of healing and support for when you're right in the discomfort of being triggered.

*This call was GREAT! And you get access to it, along with ALL of my other courses, when you join Dream Book.

Getting angry is a part of your dream path too Read More »

What if thinking about your dream makes you feel hopeless?

By Andrea Schroeder / August 31, 2017

what if thinking about your dream makes you feel hopeless?

(This is a page from the Dream Lab playbook (Dream Lab: Explore The Miracle of your Dream is one of the classes you get in Dream Book.)

Today my dream shows up as a bird in a cage.

The cage feels heavy and rough, like I could cut myself just trying to touch it.

My dream is small and sad, trapped inside.

Or is it that I'm sad, seeing my dream trapped in there?

Well I feel hopeless about it. Like there is no way to get that bird out of that cage. The lock is rusted over and I don't have the key anyway.

So this is depressing.

Sometimes you meet with your dream and this is what it feels like. And it's easy to think you're doing it wrong or that this process is stupid and pointless.

But none of that is true. It's just that I feel hopeless about this right now.

We all feel hopeless about our dreams sometimes. Just like we all feel happy, excited, terrified, confident and totally un-sure about our dreams sometimes.

Feelings are fluid.

When we try to control our feelings, when we judge some feelings as good and others as bad - then we close ourselves off from the power and wisdom in our feelings.

We close ourselves off from our own inner wisdom. And so that's why a big part of this work is to explore how you feel when you meet your dream.

You'll find there is usually a gift, healing or lesson in those explorations.

Why do I feel hopeless about my dream today? Where is the gift in my hopelessness?

When I look more closely at the hopelessness, it shows up as a sad looking rag doll, just hanging there.

Hmmm. Hanging there, really?

I zoom out a bit and see that the rag doll is hanging from the hand of a sad younger me.

I offer my inner child love and comfort. I see how sad and hopeless she feels about this dream. It feels soothing to offer her love and comfort.

But how does this help me with my dream?

And then the girl whispers to me "I don't think you should go after this because of how much it would hurt if you fail" I give the girl a hug and suddenly I really feel different.

In my wish to comfort her of course I put myself into the position of trusting my dream and trusting myself. "Oh sweetie. We don't want to live that life where we cower afraid of our own dreams! We want to be brave! We want to take risks and trust ourselves to handle whatever happens."

I mean there isn't a way to control what happens in life anyway. We can only control how we show up in our lives.

And I want to be the person who shows up and takes their dreams seriously.

Isn't that funny?

In exploring hopelessness I ended up activating trust and inspiration. And then I was able to stop feeling hopeless and just get back to work on my dream.

That's always the end goal with this inner work - to put yourself into a position where you can get to work on your dream.

What if thinking about your dream makes you feel hopeless? Read More »

A Conversation With The Voice That Says I’m Not Doing Enough

By Andrea Schroeder / August 8, 2017

Where is it uncomfortable and what does this tell you?
This is a page from the Dream Lab: Explore The Miracle Of Your Dream Playbook (which you can get as a part of Dream Book)

Exploring what feels uncomfortable about your dream is tricky work so I thought I would share my process today in exploring that voice that says that I AM NOT DOING ENOUGH.

This voice has been getting louder lately. And I have been assuming it's because I am in this big creative expansion and I don't really know where this process is leading me to.

I just have so many ideas I want to do them all at once.

This part of the creative process is always confusing for me. I have been assuming this voice comes from my creative process. But I just remembered - hey! Fears are TRICKY! They like to dress up as reasonable responses and ideas.

They know when they show up as fears they are treated differently than when they show up as reasonable voices. Oh shit I fell for it.

This voice isn't a part of this creative expansion I am in. This voice is a fear that is coming up in response to the creative expansion I am in.

So, ummm, hello voice? Can we talk?

Voice shows up as a GIANT rainbow caterpillar, about 6 feet long, floating about 3 feet in the air, cool as a cucumber and says "Oh sure we can talk" I stand there for a few minutes, just getting used to being here with the caterpillar.

And I notice that the caterpillar isn't real. It's a costume.

There is a person standing there wearing a caterpillar tied around their waist.

"So could you take off the costume?"

The caterpillar is furious. They rip off the costume. Now it's a very angry person.

I shift my weight around a bit, feeling very uncomfortable all of a sudden.

"You want to know why I'm angry?"

"Yes"

You work so hard for so little.
You're sharing your heart out there, day after day and people ignore it.
You take the work so seriously and no one else takes you seriously.
You are not properly seen or understood.

I am feeling bowled over by the intensity of the anger, which I had not noticed was there!

"This is why I have been pushing you to share more do more be more. To get the recognition that you deserve."

Oh wow. I struggle to find a balance between acknowledging the voice of anger and also wanting to rush in and remind it of all the good.... that I am not wealthy but have a good life and there are people who listen and take me and my work seriously and that I love my students and my work.

But I know I need to give this anger space.

It doesn't need to be right it needs to be heard.

So I sit down and let my anger know I'll sit and listen for as long as it wants to talk. Anger mumbles "Yeah I know actually we have it really good. We have amazing people in the Circle. We have a fantastic life with enough money to enjoy it."

Then anger asks "But still, can't I just be pissed about how hard this is sometimes?"

"Oh of course. How can I help?"

"Well I was thinking if you would just work harder at doing the right things then everything would be easier and I wouldn't be upset anymore, but now I can see that that's not right."

So I say "Right. You're upset and you need to be heard and respected. Once you have enough space then we'll know what to do about this."

OK something is really shifting in my heart. I'm not sure what it is, but this feels like a good spot to stop our meeting and give this a chance to marinate. T

his is the mess of exploring the uncomfortable parts!

You just don't know where it's going to lead. But right now I am feeling immense relief to have seen the anger for what it is and have given it some space.

A Conversation With The Voice That Says I’m Not Doing Enough Read More »

Journal Prompts for Finding Your Soulmate (Or Even Just a Date for Saturday Night)

By Andrea Schroeder / May 15, 2017 / Journal Prompts

Journal prompts for finding your soulmate

Finding love - if you want a long-term monogamous commitment or just a great date this weekend - can be tricky.

Often people think their dream of finding someone is not, like, a real dream. Like a real dream is something concrete that you can work towards: a solo show in an art gallery, a novel written, a trip around the world. A real dream is a thing where you can take steps, work hard, and get there eventually.

Finding the right person seems to be a lot more about luck and just waiting for the right time and maybe going on a lot of shitty first dates.

But finding your soulmate IS a dream you can work on.

Your journal is your best tool for making any dream real, including finding your soulmate.

Your journal is where you work shit out and create space to be able to listen to your own inner voice - who is the only knows who knows how to navigate your unique path to love.

(I have an AMAZING journaling + meditation class for creative people who are ready for a breakthrough - right here)

Journal your way to your soulmate!

You don't have to answer each prompt perfectly. Use the prompts as little diving boards to dive off into other things to explore – the most important part of journaling is following your creative impulse – that’s where the magic is.

Even when you’re not sure about your answers – stay in the process. The best answers aren't right on the surface, it takes time to get to them.

Creative Journal Prompts for Finding Your Soulmate (Or Even Just a Date for Saturday Night):

Ideally, my love life would look like:

If I had that I would feel:

If I had my ideal love life then other parts of my life would change and be more:

My love life doesn't look like I want it to right now because:

But if I am really honest with myself, the answer to the last question is:

Brainstorm a list of everything you could do about it:

Go through your list and pick out one, small, do-able thing that you could try in the next week.

The thing I am most afraid of when it comes to relationships is:

Some ways I could help make that be less scary are:

The thing I am most excited about when it comes to a relationship is:

Some ways I could invite that kind of energy/feeling into my life right now:

Take your time with this. Really explore each question and notice where your thoughts lead you to.

Then explore your answers to see what they are telling you about what action to take.

Your path to love is going to be unique to you and the best way to navigate it is by listening to your own inner wisdom about how to move forward.

This is delicate work.

Love is vulnerable and terrifying.

Navigating the path to finding love is going to mean navigating a lot of uncomfortable and confusing feelings.

If you’re feeling apprehensive about exploring this – you’re not alone. We’re all scared sometimes!

But fears don’t bother coming up unless you’re onto something, so if you’re feeling afraid of exploring this, that is a good sign.

If some fears do come up for you – you can check out my Creative Journaling Prompts for Overcoming Fear.

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Journal Prompts for Finding Your Soulmate (Or Even Just a Date for Saturday Night) Read More »

[VIDEO] Tour of my Creative Journal

By Andrea Schroeder / March 3, 2017

The Year of Dreams is now Dream Book.

[VIDEO] Tour of my Creative Journal Read More »

The “anti-plan” plan. How to get things done when you can’t make a plan (or just don’t want to)

By Andrea Schroeder / January 24, 2017 / creative entrepreneur

how to plan when you don't want to plan
Last week I wrote about how I tend to make detailed plans.

Detailed plans are usually necessary for me, since I have so many projects on the go at once, plus I have all of the regular tasks of running a business by myself. Having a thoughtful and organised plan helps me get more done with less effort - every time I sit down to work I don't waste time figuring out where I'm at and what really needs to be done, because it's all right there in my project management software.

But some projects don't need that kind of planning.

Some projects have so many unknowns that making a plan is kind of ridiculous. And sometimes you just don't feel like planning. But you still want to do move forward with your creative projects!

Introducing the anti-plan creative project plan.

This is the planning approach I use when I'm doing something I've never done before and have no clue how to make it happen so really can't make a plan.

First you ask yourself how much time you can devote to your project. An hour a week? Ten minutes a day? A day a month? Two evenings a week?

Doesn't matter how much or how little, just write down how much time you can (and will!) devote to your project.

If you use a daytimer then schedule this "creative project time" into it. If you don't use a daytimer write this down on a sheet of paper and leave it where you'll see it, to remind yourself of your commitment.

Or set up reminders on your phone - whatever is going to work for you so you don't forget that you're doing this.

Then: spend time with your project.

When you get to this time in your schedule while you have allocated to your creative project, work on your project:

If you're inspired to do something specific - do that. Don't worry about the finished project and how all the different parts will need to come together - just create forward movement by doing what you are inspired to do in the moment.

If you have a bunch of ideas of what you could do and aren't sure what to do to - list them then do the one that feels the easiest or most fun to start in the time you have allotted to it.

ALL that matters is that you're doing something.

But what if you're stuck?

Well, the aim is to spend time with your project.

Actually working on it is usually the ideal way to spend time with your project - but not always.

There are lots of other fun ways to spend time with your project, like:

Writing a love letter to it.
Creating a vision board (or page in your journal) of your completed project.
Writing about why you want to do this project and what you hope will change once you've done it.
Writing out all of the questions you have about the project.
Doing the practice that I teach in my free class to connect with the essence of your project or just meditating on your project
Visualize your completed project and really get into how you're going to feel while you're creating it.
Research! Find out how other people have made similar things happen. Explore what all of your options are.

Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

Your devotion to your project will turn into creative momentum if you keep showing up and hanging out with it. Spending time with your project, even when it's not "productive work time", is vital.

Working on a creative project is the same as any creative dream - there is this invisible process happening that is much larger and more important than the "real life physical work" part.

By spending time connecting with your project you keep yourself in this process.

It's through this invisible process that you stretch and grow into your project. You become the person who can make this happen through this process - you don't start out already as that person.

And you certainly can't WAIT to become that person first!

If you feel inspired to do something that means you're ready to begin this process NOW. You're ready. Go hang out with your project and see what happens...

And if you want to explore more about making your creative projects HAPPEN?

dream plan kit

I've got a full Dream Plan Kit including a 2 hour Creative Planning + Project Management class in the Creative Dream Circle.

The “anti-plan” plan. How to get things done when you can’t make a plan (or just don’t want to) Read More »

How to plan so you actually follow through – even on those days when you don’t feel like working.

By Andrea Schroeder / January 17, 2017 / creative entrepreneur

How to plan so you actually follow through

Do any of these sound familiar?

I want to write a book, but I'm not sure where to start. Get an agent? Get a book deal? Write the thing? I don't know, and it makes me uncomfortable so I don't do anything.

(Books get written when writers write.)

I have a business plan for my creative business but, I don't know, I haven't done anything yet. I guess I'm not sure I know where to start, so I don't start.

(No one will find your creative work if you don't put it out there. Starting anywhere is better than not starting at all.)

I have this idea for a series of paintings I am CRAZY inspired about, but I can't seem to, like, get to work. I don't know, I just don't have time. How do you fit a really big creative project into your schedule anyway?

(You do the work by doing the work. There really is no way around that. If all you have is ten minutes a day - then do ten minutes a day. That will certainly get you there faster than waiting for your "ideal conditions fantasy" which is never going to come true)

What's going on?

First: there is this creative tension between planning for what you want to create in the future and being present in your creative energy in the moment.

You want to direct where you are going by having clear intentions. But you don't want to become a slave to your to-do list.

I mean you're an artist! You want to be free and creative.

This creative tension is why so many creative types resist planning, but on some level I think we all know that when you resist structure, you sabotage your dream (follow the link for a video I did on that).

Second: your creative project is likely connected to a creative dream of yours. So all the normal "OMG I HAVE A DREAM" stuff tends to come up, like: inner critics, limiting belief systems, comfort zones that are impossible to get out of, etc.

Whatever your personal issue with planning is - it's likely more about those two things than it is about planning itself.

Planning is simple. It seems complicated when something else is tangled up.

Usually facing that something else is so uncomfortable that we just say "Oh planning doesn't work for me, I'm too creative" and in doing that we shut the whole thing down.

So then you don't have to face the uncomfortable thing.

But you also don't get to move forward with your project. If you're willing to get uncomfortable in order to bring your creative projects to life, read on.

Here is how I handle it:

First, the completed project is my guiding light, the plan is NOT my guiding light. My plan is a map I draw of what I think the path to my completed project looks like.

But I keep in mind that I could be wrong.

Each time I take a step - my perspective changes and I know more about this project and what it needs. So the steps that I map out before I even begin the work are just guesses.

I need to make these guesses to give myself some kind of idea of where I'm going and how to get there but I have to be willing and able to change the plan as I move along that path. So I stay VERY flexible.

To keep my completed project as my guiding light, I connect with the essence of my project every day and find out what it needs.

This is similar to what I teach in my free class about learning how to connect with the essence of your dream. That process, done for 5-10 minutes a day, keeps the flow of inspiration, motivation and magic moving strong.

It's not a substitute for doing the work of course, but it helps make the work more possible on days when it feels impossible. That process is also how I get the intuitive ideas and information about what next steps to take to move my project forward. - and then I adjust my plan accordingly.

Staying flexible and able to adjust the plan is easier to do when you are super organised.

To organise my tasks, I group my work by different types.

For example, this is what is involved in most of my current projects: brainstorming planning writing: rough writing: editing/final copies admin prep: website, shopping cart, back-end stuff drawing/creating

(You will have different categories depending on the kind of creative work you do and how you like to group tasks together)

So when I talk about planning out the project, it means I have written out what needs to happen for each stage.

First I list everything I need to do. This includes writing out questions like "figure out how to do ____" and "research what is the best tool for _____".

Don't let "not knowing" stop you! There is no reason to already know everything before you start - you learn as you go.

And then I give each task a deadline. Some tasks have to follow other tasks. Some tasks have natural deadlines. Some tasks I have to pick deadlines for (if I put a task without a deadline into my planning system that means I’ll never do it).

If it’s complicated I draw out a flowchart first to help me see how it will all fit together, then I put everything into Asana (I like Asana but use whatever you like!) with sub-tasks and due dates.

This part of creative planning is boring and annoying.

I do it anyway because when all of the details are scheduled I can relax.

And when I can relax, I make space for my creative genius to come out to play.

Some people can be totally relaxed without being organsised. That's great - except that those people tend to get stressed out at the next step - when they start dropping balls because they're not organised enough to move the project forward.

So - get organised.

It's MUCH more annoying and time consuming the first few times you do this. Once you get used to organising your projects in this way it gets much faster to dump all of the details into some kind of project management software.

And be practical about how much work you can actually do.

I give myself lots of white space in my schedule. I set deadlines that don’t feel tight. I say no to a lot of opportunities in order to have lots of space for my own creative projects.

I put some of my projects on hold to give my attention to other projects. I do what I need to do to protect that white space.

I've also been working in this business full time for years so I have a good sense now of how long things will take me to do. When I started out I did NOT have that sense, and I consistently planned to finish work much faster than I was actually able to and then trying to keep up with my plans was a bit of a nightmare.

So I recommend being generous with your timing.

If your deadlines are too tight and something comes along and derails you (as life has a tendency to do) it's a lot harder to get back on track. Shit's going to happen, be committed to keep working the best you can anyway. It's the only way to get your project done.

One really cool thing about being super organised: you get to be super picky.

When I am uber-organised like this, that means I can pick and choose what I do on any given day. See, the deadlines are there to let me know when a task really needs to be done by, but, with lots of white space in my schedule, I tend to complete my tasks at least a few weeks before that.

This means I am free to choose each day what kind of task I want to do - so I get to work with where my creative energy actually is on my given day!

This is how you get more work done with less effort. This is also how you get to feel free and creative while staying organised and on track.

Some days I’m just in more of a brainstorming kind of space, I just want to drink lattes and explore in my journal.
Some days I feel like I am swimming in ideas and I want to organize them into groups.
Some days I want to take all the brainstorming and rough writing and put it together and edit it into something useful.
Some days I just want to drink tea and draw.

It really depends on where I’m at. Forcing myself to be somewhere I am not has never worked for me.

When my daily routine gives me lots of space to focus on the kind of work I want to do on a particular day - I don’t rebel against the tasks that I don’t like so much, like the admin stuff.

I do it cheerfully because I see how it’s supporting the rest of my work.

And because I’m spending most of the day doing what I feel like doing, so it’s no big deal to spend an hour doing something kind of tedious. And because I am still connected with the essence of my project every day, and deeply committed to getting the project done - I tend to gravitate towards wanting to do the things that most need doing.

(This is one of the magical side-effects of connecting with the essence of your project) Again - the key is being VERY organised while also staying VERY connected to the essence of your project.

I know - it's more complicated than this!

For one thing - your inner critics and (mostly unconscious) limiting patterns are going to influence both how you plan and how you implement your plans.

So doing the inner work is also necessary to keep your project moving forward.

And some projects have so many "unknowns" that there just isn't a way to make a plan.

I'm going to write about that in my next post - how to make a simple "anti-plan" that gets you moving forward anyway.

I mean - creative planning is SUCH a big topic.

If you want to explore this with me in more depth - get my DREAM PLAN KIT by joining Dream Book!

This includes a two hour class on creative planning + project management and a full dream plan kit for every part of the process - taking you from vague idea to final steps.

How to plan so you actually follow through – even on those days when you don’t feel like working. Read More »

Creative Planning: Why is it so hard sometimes?

By Andrea Schroeder / January 11, 2017 / creative entrepreneur

Creative Planning: Why is it so hard sometimes?

You want a plan that makes you excited to bounce out of bed in the morning and get to work.

Or at the very least, you want to feel like you know what you’re doing. Which is a pretty small dream to have so why is it so illusive sometimes?

We tend to think if we can just get our shit together and come up with a good plan - then we can make our creative dreams real. But it's a lot more complicated than that.

Planning is where the invisible ethereal essence and vision of your dream coalesce with outer-world action and work and transform into a real, live, fully birthed creative project.

I mean that's kind of a big deal.

So even thought we've all failed at creative planning I think we should pat ourselves on the back just for stepping onto the field and giving it a shot.

This is brave work. And over the next few weeks I'm going to be blogging about creative planning in hopes of offering some insight and ideas to help you brave the many pitfalls of the creative planning process.

Starting at the beginning: Before you can make a workable plan you have to know WHY you want a plan. I mean I know this seems obvious, but give this a chance - really give this some thought.

I want to feel sure about how to make this happen.
I want to feel organized.
I want to feel confident that I know what to do.

Then, once you have some answers that feel true - dig deeper.

I want to feel sure about how to make this happen BECAUSE: I’m worried that it’s not going to work out. I need to see it all planned out in black and white before I am going to believe that I can really do this.
I want to feel organized BECAUSE: I feel so disorganized and like I just don’t know what to do or how to do it. When I think about this I feel chaotic and frustrated.
I want to feel confident that I know what to do BECAUSE: I don’t trust myself to follow through. I have tried and given up so many times before.

You need to work with the uncomfortable feeling that gets triggered when you dig deeper, otherwise those feelings will take over and sabotage your planning process without you even noticing.

You want to create a plan that is supportive of you, your creative process and the result you are looking for. To get there you need to do your planning from a place of deep alignment with your inner wisdom, your creative genius and the heart and soul of your creative project. Because otherwise you are unconsciously planning from your inner critics, un-helpful patterns and limiting beliefs. So you start by clearing out those feelings, first by naming them. Everyone wants to skip this step but it’s the most important step.

So - go do it.

Now. Ask yourself WHY you want to plan. And then dig deeper into your answers. And, as I said, I'll be writing about creative planning for the next few weeks so we can keep exploring this together.

Then, on Feb 7, 2017 I'm offering a special Creative Dream Coaching Circle on Creative Planning and Project Management.

Crystal clear clarity on where planning mishaps come from and what to do about them.

This class is now a part of my library of resources that you get in Dream Book.

Creative Planning: Why is it so hard sometimes? Read More »

25 Ways To Hold Space for Yourself (and your Dreams)

By Andrea Schroeder / June 29, 2016

25 ways to hold space for yourself and your dreams

Holding space for yourself means giving yourself space to be who and how you want to be.

It can be as small as giving yourself 10 minutes of quiet before rushing off and doing everything that everyone else expects of you.

Or it can be as big as not letting let the world come in and tell you who to be and what to do - which means you give yourself the space to create your life the way YOU want it to be.

Or it can be anything in between.

Learning how to hold space for yourself is one of those foundational things you need to be doing in order to be able to live your best life.

There are two different parts of this: creating space and holding space. You've got to be doing both for this to work.

You create space by doing things that mark out the boundary of the space you are giving yourself.

You hold space by doing what it takes to guard that boundary.

As a small example: In 2016 I stopped doing my free live coaching videos on Tuesday mornings.

This was a way of CREATING more space for myself to work on the Year of Dreams 2017.

I announced it, and did one last one. After that I did have people ask if I could do it just one more time, because they missed the last one.

And that's where I chose to HOLD the space by saying NO.

It's really not enough to create the space, holding the space is where the real work comes into play.

This is where people tend to fail with holding space and having boundaries: You expect other people to hold them for you.

They won't.

HOLDING the boundary is YOUR job.

HOLDING the space is YOUR job.

You can't just make the decision, state what you are doing, and be done. You need to be ACTIVELY HOLDING space.

Think about the ways that you'd like to create and hold space for yourself.

And then design a boundary that preserves the space you are creating for yourself.

But also think about the other people who will be disappointed by this or ask you to do what they want you to do.

And think about how they are likely to react.

And be ready to respond in a way that HOLDS your boundary.

Integrity will help you hold space for yourself.

I made no promises about the free live coaching videos going on forever.

I did give notice that they were stopping and did one last video.

I know that I ended those videos with as much grace and integrity as I could.

This is what makes it easier for me to hold space for myself and for what I want next.

By handling the situations with honesty and as much grace and respect for all involved as I can, I fill my part of the boundary with honesty, grace and respect.

I can't control how others will react but I can do my best to set things up to be as gentle as possible through how I treat people.

Of course - sometimes people do react poorly and then it's up to me to hold my own boundaries there.

Sometimes you have to talk to people about changing your agreements in order to create the space for yourself that you need. Again, approaching these conversations with compassion and respect brings as much grace as possible to these negotiations (though they're not always going to be easy).

Creating and holding space for yourself is delicate work.

It's really about creating and maintaining boundaries.

But "normal" boundary work is about dealing with unacceptable behaviour and creating boundaries around it.

This is NEXT LEVEL boundary work. This is how you use boundaries to create the space you need to become who you want to be.

It's holding space for your healing and growth.

Of course, people who haven't given themselves permission to really pursue their dreams are not likely to be super supportive of you setting boundaries with them so you can pursue yours.

But are you going to let that stop you? No.

Here are 25 ways to hold space for yourself and your dreams:

Remind yourself that you matter and your dreams matter, like all the time - put notes about this in your daytimer.
Be super intentional about your time management.
Explore what it would mean to be loyal to your joy.
Be more committed to your dreams - do the things that scare you. (GET SUPPORT to do this if need be - I can help you here)
Say no to things that don't help you move towards where you want to be. Start with small things and work your way up to the big things.
Think very carefully about whether or not something truly serves you before you say yes it.
Turn down the volume on social media.
Turn up the volume on your own intuition. (hint: it speaks more loudly when you listen and follow through on it's guidance)
Put yourself first. If you're not used to doing it, then start in really small ways and work your way up.
Learn to leave others to their consequences of their actions without trying to rescue them. This is uncomfortable at first but ultimately liberating for all parties.
Keep your eyes on your own work. Comparison will not get you to where you want to be.
But be genuinely happy for other people's successes.
Face your fears. Avoiding uncomfortable feelings means they are controlling you.
Go to therapy or a woman's circle or join a community of kindred spirit Dreamers or something like this for support.
Plan a weekly journal-coffee date with yourself and your dreams.
Say no some more.
Unsubscribe from anything that isn't helping.
Write love letters to your dream.
Get rid of your TV.
Examine your beliefs about what you think is possible for you. Find ways to stretch your possibilities.
Know how you want to feel and how to help yourself feel that way (it's easier than it sounds).
Meditate.
Don't answer the phone.
Spend more time outside.
Spend less money. Really! A lot of our spending is actually driven by un-helpful unconscious patterns so when we slow down it can help us see our patterns better.

And a bonus: sign up for my free courses:

You have a LOT of magic in you.

And I’ve got a lot of tools, tips and practices to help you use it more effectively as FUEL for your CREATIVE DREAMS.

Do you see a pattern here? Holding space for yourself is about being wildly committed to living your truest life.

Learning to hold space for yourself and your dreams changes everything.

You have the power to create and maintain these kinds of helpful and nourishing boundaries I'm talking about - you just have to learn how to harness and use it.

I mean this is what creative dreaming is all about.

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Holistic Creative Chat with Hali Karla

By Andrea Schroeder / April 4, 2016

Last week I got to have a Skype date with Hali Karla as a part of her Holistic Creative Circle series, which you can watch below.

I’m teaching in Hali’s Spectrum 2016 Holistic Creative journal (and more!) workshop this year (it starts on May 2),.

Spectrum 2016 is an online multi-media workshop & community, with weekly inspiration and exclusive classes for your creative practice & holistic awareness, including mixed-media art lessons, writing prompts and holistic-centered perspectives & activities from 45 contributors (including me).

I am really happy to be a part of this. ?Hali and I have a really beautiful kindred connection – you can see it in the video. ?It’s such a gift to connect with like-minded (and hearted!) people and create together!

My class in Spectrum 2016 is called Heartbeat.

Heartbeat is?one of my favourite/most used Creative Soul Alchemy techniques that I use in my creative practice. ?I lead you through how to use it and talk about ways to play around with it and adjust it so it fits your practice.

Then I made a special Heartbeat guided journal and coloring book for it.

But the real magic of Spectrum is that you get lessons from 45 different teachers, so you’re exposed to 45 different styles of working holistically with creative practice – where the focus in on the inner/healing aspect and not on what the art looks like. ?There is a lot of magic to be found in approaching creativity in this way.

Click here to read more about Spectrum 2016.

Holistic Creative Chat with Hali Karla Read More »

Why you can’t separate money from creativity, spirituality and dreams

By Andrea Schroeder / April 1, 2016 / healing

You use money every?day.

Money is real life. ?Grounded. Physical. Solid.

I mean, like real life it’s in a constant state of flux and can transform in any instant. ?But still you don’t get much real-er than cash. ?It has?universally-recognized value.

Just like if you’re walking through the park and you see a bench and you know that the bench is real, if you’ve got money in your pocket you know it’s real.

Which is?not always the case with?dreams, creativity and spirituality, which?tend to be more ethereal.

But having our dreams, creativity and spirituality be more real and grounded IS the dream.

Having a?spiritual practice that’s so solid it can hold you when things get hard.

Cultivating your creative gifts to the point where they can support you.

Turning?the dream into reality.

This is the point.

And money is one of the portals.

Money as a portal.

You have money in your life before the dream and you’ll have money in your life after the dream.

It may come from different sources. ?It may be flowed in different directions. ?But it’s still the same money.

So working with money now helps open it up and turn it into a portal that your dreams can come through.

Specifically – working with money as a part of your creative spiritual?practice.

You probably already know how you can combine your creative practice and your spiritual practice and how cool this can be.??(If you’re not sure what this means, I teach a simple creative spiritual practice for making dreams real in my free class Give Your Dream Wings)

Well imagine now bringing the magic of money into the mix.

Money takes all this stuff we dream about and makes it REAL.

So money tends to be scary because it’s so powerful.

If you had all the money you needed to make your dream real – then where would you hide?

Hiding inside of “I don’t have enough money” can feel like safety. ?Like it’s a giant relief that you won’t have to stretch and grow and be vulnerable and take risks to make your dream happen.

Because it’s so powerful we tend to make up all sorts of stories about it.

Figuring out how to have the money you need to do what you really want is just too hard (as though living with less is somehow easy?).
Wanting money means you sold out (as though there is something wrong with wanting to provide for yourself and your family).
Spiritual people don’t care about money (as though meditation will feed, clothe and shelter you).
Real artists don’t care about money (as though art supplies don’t cost money)
Happiness is more important that money (as though?you have to choose!)

These stories are bullshit but we do tend to live our lives by them.

Bringing the soul of money into your creative spiritual practice helps you see the bullshit more clearly, and then clear it away.

It doesn’t mean you become “money hungry” or anything like that, it means you see money as the powerful tool for creating your life that it is, and treat it accordingly.

It means seeing yourself as powerful enough to use this tool with creativity and soul and meaning.

Because yes, a lot of our money systems in this world are broken.

That doesn’t mean you can’t rise above them and use money in ways that nurture all the things that matter to you.

And I promise that doing this is closer than you think.

This is the work/play/healing we’ll be doing in the Creative With Money class, happening on April 21.

As a creative person – you can learn how to bring your creativity into how you manage your inner relationship with money.

And that will change everything.

Click here to read more and to join us.?

Why you can’t separate money from creativity, spirituality and dreams Read More »

Registration opens today for my next class: Creative With Money

By Andrea Schroeder / March 29, 2016

As you may have guessed, this is NOT your average money class – Creative With Money is a deep-dive healing session combined with a creative playdate.

To quote Creative With Money participant Angel Sullivan:

?HOLY MOLY, woman! ?Creative With Money ?is *so* full of brilliant I?m still seeing stars and glitter, hours later!

I signed up for because I have had this ?thing? with money for as long as I can remember? and frankly I?m over it and ready to work with it!

I did get what I wanted from it. I had some really spectacular experiences with the work? ?My relationship with money has begun to evolve, on a really deep level (which is the only way there can be any lasting change), and has led me to being able to actually have?a relationship with money rather than just constant fear around anything money related. That fear and tension is not a fun way to live, especially as it relates to something that has such an impact on life as we?re currently living it!

Thank you for all of this!!

I’m so excited to share this one with you.

Click here to read more about Creative With Money.

Registration opens today for my next class: Creative With Money Read More »

What I love right now

By Andrea Schroeder / March 29, 2016

Spring is here and I’m riding my bike everywhere.

(Photo from early March – we don’t have snow anymore)

These Molotow refillable paint pens in my journal.

Making dream altars and burning candles + incense at them every day. Calming, grounding?and magical.

Feeling more creatively free ever since spending a week at Chris Zydel‘s amazing intuitive painting studio.

Being more structured in how I approach my weekly planning and goal setting and S T R E T C H I N G myself with my dreams. ?I’ve been doing this since January 1 and though it’s only been 3 months it feels like a long time. ?I’m feeling stretched and uncomfortable sometimes but also loving how committed I am to my own dreams right now.

My bedroom. ?I got new sheets in shades of turquoise and it still makes me swoon.

Hanging out with this guy. Being in a relationship is another thing that is really STRETCHING me right now, in a really good way.

Working on the Year of Dreams Epic Playbook: Guided Journal + Coloring Book for Healing, Transformation and Making Your Dreams real. ?Three months in still pinching myself that this is my JOB. (This is available inside the Creative Dream Circle)

Also:?Kiehl’s ultra moisturizer is keeping my skin from freaking out during the change of seasons like it usually does, picnic, beach + camping season is just around the corner and I just booked a trip to Mexico for the end of the year.

I was feeling a little overwhelmed, then I wrote this post of things I love for Andrea Sher‘s Brave Blogging class (and I got to meet Andrea while I was in California – that’s another thing I love, being able to connect with creatives from around the world) and now I feel calm and inspired.

Gratitude is magic.

What I love right now Read More »

Resistance Rx:?Magic Mojo For Mucho Creative Momentum is happening tomorrow. Come play!

By Andrea Schroeder / March 21, 2016

We have an holy-hella amazing group of people gathered.

We are so excited to share this with you.

This is going to be hugely transformational, healing and magical.

(Probably in exactly the ways you least expect, which is what?tends to happen in these things)

Click here to sign up!

And do it soon so that you’ll get all the details and have everything you need?to start with us tomorrow morning at 11:00am (Pacific).

Even if you can’t be there live and want to work with the?recordings, it’s best to get into the group now while everyone’s all excited to get going – that energy is contagious.

Registration will close after we’re done tomorrow.

We might be offering the recording for sale later on but we’re not quite sure about that part yet. ??So if you’re interested – now is the time!

Can’t wait to explore this with you,

Andrea

Resistance Rx:?Magic Mojo For Mucho Creative Momentum is happening tomorrow. Come play! Read More »

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