doing the work ... why working IN our business and not on our business is what really matters - intro

pillaging and plundering is so 10th century - cork bracelet

The world used to operate within some sort of pecking order - top dog / underdog space - where we ran in packs, sat in cliques and without even thinking about it instinctively knew our place.

That is the world that is falling apart.

The numbers have just gotten too big and the whole thing is collapsing.

A pecking order can only hold so many chickens.

The hens who didn't get the memo are still thrashing around trying to get someone to pay attention to them while the rest of the brood are busy forming smaller tribes based on their common passions and some are even ignoring what everyone else is doing altogether.

The sun in Virgo is the perfect time to talk about what this means to us - this new world that is too large for pecking orders - the space for chickens who have outgrown their coops.

This new world that is about the work; the kind of work that doesn't wait for someone to notice it. It doesn't wait for permission or attention or things to be just right or perfect. It doesn't wait for inspiration. It isn't done for applause. It's never seen on Facebook.

(and of course there is really nothing new about it)

Let's talk about that. (part 1 next - the invisible)

pencils by thebigharumph

New Moon in Virgo today - separating the wheat from the chaff ....

butterfly ring - uncorked

The astrology wheel is the hero's journey
(just like the fool's journey in tarot) of self discovery.

When the sun moves into Virgo in late August, it is the hero's first encounters with service.

Although Virgo is the loner sign (along with Aries although Aries doesn't choose it, Aries just embodies it) - she is the conscientious loner.

The hero is learning when to help and when helping isn't really helping. Virgo is the modest healer with the critical eye that takes care of the details.

Every sign has something to learn from the sign that follows it. Leo learns from Virgo (and we all have Leo in our charts somewhere - its placement will affect how this activates in your own journey) - to do the work. Virgo teaches Leo to let go of the need for the spotlight and recognition and to just focus on the work.

(next the hero moves into Libra and learns that those carefully attended details she has manifested into physical form in Virgo need balance)

It is no coincidence that Virgo comes in autumn; the time of the harvest - the time to separate the wheat from the chaff. What is needed to be nurtured and what needs to be discarded is more easily seen and felt now. Mercury is not connected to any other planet for the next 9 days so we can be really objective about what we want right now (then Mercury moves into connection with Jupiter, Pluto and Uranus allowing us to see the bigger picture).

Our soul's purpose, which has been built through many lifetimes, is exactly what is needed to meet the challenges of these times. Our previous lives fit together within us like a puzzle and each of us forms a bigger puzzle (which is really the same puzzle) together. 

We each have it in us to do what we are called to do and we are the only one who can do it. When our belief becomes that we are here to serve the world, that is exactly the space that will open up for us.

A Virgo new moon is the perfect time to focus on Virgo areas such as : health (diet and exercise; the maintenance of our health), work/job, creating order, relaxing perfectionism and helping others.

Examples of some affirmations:

1. I am easily attracted to foods that are healthy for my body. I establish routines that create total health for me. I easily swallow vitamins (ugh).

2. I easily complete tasks with minimal stress and maximum efficiency. I create routines that give me time to relax. All tendencies to postpone necessary tasks and errands are totally lifted from me. I create financial abundance for myself while adding value to the lives of others.

3. I restore my work space to order on a daily basis. Any resistance to 'cleaning up the mess' is lifted from me. I create order in my home.

4. I am free of critical judgements of myself and others. The compulsion to 'be right' is easily lifted from me. I use positive language.

5. I consciously feel satisfaction from being of service to others in my work.

AFFIRMATION TIPS: get into a happy frame of mind - always make affirmations from a  positive place - write your affirmations down by hand, speak them out loud - I always write my affirmations on strips of paper and put them into a bowl of rice so I can mix them around every now and then with my fingers if things get stagnant - then release your attention from them knowing that your intention is known. Know these things are already yours. xo

5 questions to ask ourselves when launching a new thingamajig

lori portka's bracelet by polarity

You may have noticed by now I love the word thingamajig.

I especially love that it covers just about every thing makers could possibly make and I love that Google and Websters think it's a real word, too.

(maybe it actually is)

Anyhoo, I am about to launch a new thingamajig and thought I would share a little bit of my thinking that went into this process.

5 questions to ask ourselves:

1. why are we making this?

"Why" is a really important question. I truly, truly believe that it is the passion in people that draws us to them and draws us to the things they have created - our energy seeking out energy that makes us feel good - that makes us feel more alive.

The answer to why we do what we do will never be about the money because there are many things we can do to make money, many more sure-fire things, like those that involve paychecks and 401Ks - why are we making this and why should anyone care? Artists can't make art for the money - we will lose our hearts and not make any money that sticks anyway.

2. who is this for and why will they want it?

Our market is much more important than our marketing. It is no fun to make something we really love making and then have to spend all our time trying to figure out how to sell it. Take the time to think about who is going to buy and why they would want to first. Stand in our customer's shoes -

(luckily for me my customers are not so much into 5 inch spikes and if yours are, then yes, you will have some sore arches, but you will have to do this anyway)

who will buy our thingamajig and how will buying our thingamajig make them feel? Is this how they want to feel?

3. what are other makers doing? how is our thingamajig better and different?

When I started fabricating magnetic jewelry I googled and searched to make sure no one was doing anything similar (they weren't ... ah, the good old days) - since we are looking for a need to be filled, it is important to take a look around and make sure there actually is a need.

We are not competing with who it looks like we are competing with. I do not compete with other cork jewelry makers with my cork jewelry because it is not like people are waking up and saying to themselves "I must have some cork jewelry!" - I still can't understand why this doesn't happen, but cork jewelry is not a vanilla latte folks - sniffle. 

I do not compete with jewelry makers with my magnetic jewelry because no one has my story and my passion and my originality - no one can do what I do. No one can do what you do either. 

What we are really competing with are the gazillions of distractions that vie for our customer's attention. 

We have to be worth their time.

I once developed a whole line of plexiglass jewelry and, right before I launched, an artist wrote a new book called Plexi is Sexy (which I can't find now in a google search, wth) - with such similar and such better stuff, I shelved my launch and gave the stuff away for Xmas. Now, I google and search first. Don't create the same old, same old. And don't do something someone else is already doing better than you are.

(and by 'don't do what someone else is doing better' I am talking about your thingamajig here not your skill set, obviously there will always be someone with a better skill set which is probably ok, because different is better than better anyway)

4. how will we sell it? I do not believe that we have to make art that we intend to sell, but here we are talking about a thingamajig we intend to sell.

If we want to make money with our thingamajig we need to put some thought into strategy - where is our customer looking? How will we be where they are looking? How will what they see when they look at us make them feel? How can we make what they see reflect our 'why' so they connect with us?

Let's say we create a very popular thingamajig and people become rabid, loyal fans (yes, we want them foaming at the mouth and drooling - an ugly customer is a happy customer folks).

What will those rabid, loyal fans tell themselves about themselves by being our loyal, rabid fans?

5. what is our goal with this thing? This is different for everyone. And it is perfectly ok to update this from time to time, but we need little end zones so we can pivot when things go wrong and when things go well we can make time for happy dances around the studio, high fives with our peeps (in my case Olive, whose high fives are more like 'give me your paw', but I know what she is thinking with this) and chances to haul out the good liquor.

(please send me your corks)

happy labor day weekend all ...

enjoy your Labor Day - and remember not to labor

 

I guess this was before some genius invented beach towels