I am treasure-mapping my way to growing my business, and sharing the honest actual story, AS IT HAPPENS, as I fumble along this path with creativity, heart and soul.

This is part seven.? The last part.

What is the treasure?? Feeling good (and creative and inspired and elegant) about how I promote my work.

The funny thing about a journey like this:

Being where I am now, it’s hard to remember where I was when I started.

The things I discovered along the way are so OBVIOUS now it’s hard to remember not knowing them, which is a sign of transformation.

I know I wanted to bring more of my creativity and authenticity into how I promote my work, and step up my game a bit.? For so long my focus in my work has been on creating transformative products and I wanted to shift my focus to promoting my work.

But not, like, you know – promoting promoting..

Promotion in a really authentic, creative, inspired and elegant way.

Promotion as a thing of light in itself.? So people can get something useful and inspiring out of it without ever even becoming a client of mine.

What I’ve come up with is Dreamtastic Creative Journals.

It’s a 2 prong (free!) e-course, with material that gets you started using your creative journal as a tool for creating amazing things in your life, and an ongoing creative journaling project to support you in cultivating and sustaining your unique creative dream journal practice.

On a personal level, this helps me make a deeper commitment to my own practice, and to sharing my practice, which is good for me.

On a professional level, this can get more people engaged with my work which may lead to more brave Creative Dreamers joining me in the Circle or purchasing my premium dream-growing journaling kits.

Biggest gift in all of this:

I’ve developed a real appreciation for where I am.? When I started this journey I was looking ahead, like I usually am.? Focused on everything I still want to do instead of at everything I’ve already done.

As a creative person I am ALWAYS going to be looking at what I want to create next, that’s normal.

But it’s ALWAYS better to do that from a space of being over-the-moon happy with where you are right now and what you have already created.

My life is amazing.? I have so much freedom and spaciousness.? I get to dream and create and inspire as my job.? I get to work with amazing inspiring people from all around the world.

And I am leading a Creative Genius Playtime Retreat in San Francisco in 2 months with one of my creative heroes!

I have a lot to be grateful for and I feel kind of ridiculous that I wasn’t being actively grateful before.

These days I am grateful to be actively grateful for where I am.? And grateful to my Treasure Mapping Journey for showing me the way.

Area of Ongoing Confusion:

Creating a free course that kind of overlaps with two of my paid courses is a little confusing at times.

I don’t want the free course to feel like a free course.? I want it to be full and whole and inspiring and totally beautiful on its own.

I also don’t want to re-create the materials that are in my paid courses, and give them away for free.

A few weeks ago, I sent out an email asking for people’s questions about creative journaling, so that I can make sure to tailor this new course to what people want.? Over 50% of the replies were asking for things that are what I already sell.

I’m not sure what to do with that right now – but I am sure there is an elegant, creative solution.

There is a way to do Dreamtastic so that it’s a valuable and gorgeous resource – for my clients and for non-clients and potential clients.? So I imagine that it kind of sort of plugs into my other work for people who want to go deeper with it, but also works on its own.

My creative process is more of a journey than a straight line.

That is something that consistently got me into trouble in design school, as we had hand in sketches and idea boards that showed the natural progression of our idea and my progression bounced and boogied all over the place before arriving at a surprising destination.

Twenty years later, I’m still bouncing and boogieing around, working on something that I can’t quite see just yet, but I can feel it.

Last week in my post about how your dreams make you cranky when you don’t give them what they need, I shared that I was committing to spending 2 hours/day writing about creative journaling in support of this course.

Of course, not all of this writing is making it into the course – I want the course to be simple simple simple.? I’m focusing on creating the EASIEST possible way to help you get started.

But spending 2 hours/day writing (sometimes on my laptop, sometimes in a journal) is helping me remember everything I know about creative journaling.

I have been teaching creative dream journaling for 6 years!

I’m thinking back to my first class and smiling on the inside.? Even though in 6 years I have done a lot to refine my approach – the magic was still all there in that first class.

Creative journaling is magic because it connects you to your inner magic.? It makes your soul smile.

Creative DREAM journaling is even more magic because it directs your inner magic to help you bring your dreams to life.

I can’t wait.

As I said earlier,? the things I discovered along the way are so OBVIOUS now it’s ridiculous.

OF COURSE I should be putting more free Creative Dream Journaling resources out there!? OF COURSE this is the perfect way to promote myself and get my message out to more people.

So I am feeling really, really good.

And I’m feeling complete with this Treasure Map.

creative journaling, treasure map — The finished treasure map!

I am declaring this journey a SMASHING SUCCESS.

Thanks to this journey, I feel more aligned, more sure, more energized, more inspired and more clear.

I am BEAMING with joy about Dreamtastic Creative Journals.

Which means I am BEAMING with JOY about how I am going to promote myself from now until the end of the year – how amazing is that?(!)

Treasure Mapping is the BEST way (for me!) to run my business.