Comments for Jenna Avery

Comment on Intriguing side effects of getting up at o’ dark hundred by Jenna Avery

Jenna Avery — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:37:39 +0000

No, it’s waaaaaaaaay easier to work while 1/2 awake.

I have historically been a night person, I had actually weaned myself off using an alarm clock altogether and would just wake up naturally. Left to my own devices, I stay up until 11 or 12 and get up at 8:30 or 9.

BUT, by the time I would then get to my writing (or whatever “hard” thing that was on my agenda for the day) my resistance levels were so high that I’d then go straight into full on procrastination mode.

When I get up at 6, I just get right to it. There’s nothing else for it. The fear and doubt are a lot quieter. The rest of my day goes more smoothly. It’s just better all around. Oh, plus, I was wasting a bunch of time at night doing inane things. All in all, now my time feels much better used.
Jenna Avery recently posted..The deep vulnerability of being seen creatively

Comment on Intriguing side effects of getting up at o’ dark hundred by Kris

Kris — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:32:45 +0000

Jenna,
Thanks for the insight. Do you find it harder to work 1/2 asleep? I’m also curious if you’ve historically been a morning or night person and how this has affected your decision and new routine.
Kris

Comment on Why it requires courage to write by Elizabeth

Elizabeth — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 04:16:14 +0000

I started on a writing project 5 years ago which is becoming the size of Mt Everest. I have no problems whatsoever with inspiration, discipline or creative blocks!!! The work has come to crisis point many times where I threaten to delete the thing off my computer once and for all – and then a solution comes and I’m off again. It’s become part of me.
My problem is that I am a sensitive person who has more fears and blocks about Real Life than about by internal creative world. Writing/Life balance is an issue. I am trying to get ideas as to how to start earning $ from my writing/art rather than from jobs that bore me silly.
I’m trying to find some mentorship for getting projects out into the competitive $$$ world – navigating this scary, competitive, money driven world – finding someone who won’t be cruel to my work – really relate to the feeling that I’m birthing a baby!! I’m in love with this baby, I want to see it born – but to continue I need the feedback. How to find the courage for other people to READ the thing … before I get too deep in it, then release it into the world and find out it’s all just a load of crap! …
Basically I’m not obeying Rule 1. “Start Small.”!!!!

Comment on Is there a link between sensitivity and creativity? by Jenna

Jenna — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 17:13:24 +0000

Dalisay, beautiful thoughts on creativity and sensitivity. Thank you for sharing them!
Jenna recently posted..Only you can kill your dream

Comment on Is there a link between sensitivity and creativity? by Dalisay

Dalisay — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 05:12:05 +0000

Jenna,
I have never come across a creative person that is not sensitive & I was told many times that I am a very sensitive & creative person myself. As I hear you making that connection makes it more clearer to me that it has to be that way. A creative person has to have
a great sense to feel & see what is about to come in the field that they have the calling. As a fashion designer I needed that when I travel to see how colors & style comes across each season. By looking at all the colours that are coming I was able to form a design that
will complement each color I pick from one another & form the design I am trying to make. Every style that we put together
has a coordinating colour that tells a story. It continued to play in history as I look back on all the fashion history. Fabric itself goes
many yrs. back are way ahead because the reflection of light in colours effect the style that comes to ones mind. Event in our life also dictates the style comes out of colours as blending of hue & strength of it dictates how we can splice the pattern to create the design we are trying to project. All this process have emotional connection not just to our personal life but also to what is happening around us & in our world. The Universe works in one big harmony. It applies to the creation of Music because the reflection of our emotion is what makes our music in harmony to how we feel. Colours has a powerfull effect on all of us . In the event of total darkness we feel helpless because of the absence of colours around us. The presence of colour gives life to all living
things . You may ask what does blind people do in the absence of colour in their life. The answear I got from one was in spite of the blindness that we think they cannot see, there are rays of light that they feel & see the difference between night & day. Try to close your eyes at night outside & compare to do same thing during day time. The rays of colours are just like light that we see the hue & density from each other.

Comment on Is there a dark side to accountability? by Terri Fedonczak

Terri Fedonczak — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 14:15:07 +0000

Right on the money, Jenna! I find that some success towards a big goal flips me into the same, “gotta do it right now” place. It’s ironic, because the tiny little steps forward is what got me to success in the first place; why would “do it all now” magically work better now in success mode than it did it overwhelm mode? Your post is making me re-think the way I’m structuring my day, and I already feel freer. Thanks, Jenna…you rock!

Comment on Is there a dark side to accountability? by Giulietta Nardone

Giulietta Nardone — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:18:37 +0000

Hi Jenna,

Sometimes stating a big dream works as a motivator. Sometimes it works as a deterrent. It depends on a person’s underlying fears. The fears of achieving the big thing are often the culprit. What happens if I write that book? Then I have to go on a book tour, etc, etc. I’m a big advocate for those with big dream anxiety to warm up with small dreams … It can lessen the fears of the big dream. Break the big dream into smaller dreams so it doesn’t feel so overwhelming.

Good article! G.
Giulietta Nardone recently posted..The Devil’s Den, Community and Perspective

Comment on What about doing things just for the joy of it? by Molly Yarrington

Molly Yarrington — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 19:36:57 +0000

Love this post Jenna as it is a great reminder to those of us who may not have always connected to doing things “just because they are fun” since childhood…. Heck, just for the fun of it, I decided this year to make a list of things I used to love to do before I started doing things “to be the best.” I couldn’t remember that far back. Seems striving “to be the best” at everything I do is well engrained in me.
So, I decided to change it to what do I love “being the best I can be” at doing, simply put, what do I love “the process” of doing? Yep, that helped. My short list: loving, riding horses, writing, taking photos/capturing/recording/acknowledging beauty in all its forms, in the world around us, singing, dancing, rowing, coaching, learning, exploring, traveling, realizing and growing my potential, inspiring others to realize and grow their own potential, and connecting with others on creative, soul-filled paths.
I’ve begun with the loving and riding horses, and yes, I am still writing….daily….thanks to the inspiration & habit formation spurred by your Writer’s Circle this past fall…
Thanks for sharing your journey with us!
Molly Yarrington recently posted..Come What May

Comment on What about doing things just for the joy of it? by Mark C.

Mark C. — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 16:59:50 +0000

This is something I’ve danced with (albeit quite awkwardly at times) for much of my life. I am absolutely passionate about nature, and photographing and writing about it brings me profound joy. I always have had a ‘regular’ job that I relied on to support myself so that when I had the resources to do so, I could pursue my passion…
Ironically (or serendipitously, depending on how one chooses to look at it!) my ‘regular’ work as a landscape contractor has dried up. I live in a place where winter is sometimes 6 months long. This generally means that I need to make my annual income in a maximum of 7 months. When the economy is good, that’s not too daunting a task, but in the current economy it’s virtually impossible. I’ve had a lot of time to pursue my passion, and I have been tapping into a reservoir of joy and satisfaction that before I never knew even existed…
It’s challenging, especially when I reflect on the position I’m in at the moment, what with quite a bit of debt piling up. To an outsider it probably would look like I’m completely off my rocker, but look me in the eyes, and that will tell you that I am so alive and invigorated from living my dream. I like what is happening to my greater self. I am nourished in ways that give my life so much more of a sense of purpose! At times I still feel the inclination to berate myself for not ‘working for a living’, but that doesn’t hold a candle to the joy I’m familiar with now, and besides, I lived like a zombie for way too long. And as soon as a book contract comes along that affirms for me that my new direction is the one my soul has been yearning for, I’m taking all of the naysayers in my life out to dinner at a really good restaurant!
The fruits of my labor are culminating in my first book which will be done in the spring. And if you’d like to help me get a few steps closer, You’re more than welcome to jump on my bandwagon:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/562019977/nature-photographer-and-writer-seeking-underwriter

Comment on What about doing things just for the joy of it? by Jenna

Jenna — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 19:41:33 +0000

Fabulous, Alice!! I can see this spinning into so many different possibilities — acting being at the top of the list. Costuming, creating theatrical experiences for people, who knows? Wonderful ideas!
Jenna recently posted..What about doing things just for the joy of it?