art + open mindedness

I wrote an email to my consulting newsletter list this past Sunday giving an overdue update on what I have been up to in the business world. I have spent the past almost five years (hard to wrap my head around!) finding ways to show up efficiently as an off site CEO on a company in a way that matched my hands on, messy, in the moment approach to work. Now that things have streamlined (for now- 2020 really has taught me you can’t take a too big of a breath of any lasting “normalcy”), I have started consulting to help other entrepreneurs do the same. Yes, you read that right, I use the time I have saved from streamlining work flows, utilizing tech, and delegation to spend it to teach others to do the same. It doesn’t make the most sense to me either but it also doesn’t feel like a second of work and so I am rolling with it. In my email, I said how I have been helping people streamline and future plan in their businesses the good ole fashioned way. In person (and sometimes digitally in person but it feels close enough) one on one and group talks. Which probably hasn’t been the most efficient way to talk about efficiency. The internet says I need digital downloads and courses and freebies. But I just love one on one work so much. I pride myself on being a good listener- which is something technology has helped me with tremendously, I record my meetings and get AI to make summaries and to do lists from the talks so I don’t have to be worried about forgetting something and can be fully in the moment. I love the energy of really feeling someone’s perspective. Seeing how they view their business- the good, the painful, the annoying, the exciting, from more than just the one dimensional view of their websites and socials and questionnaire answers. To see the the way their faces change, the way they light up on the wins and future dreams or clam up with pain points paints such a beautiful picture. It helps me see their goals the way they see them. To fully get into their line of view. It is one of the most treasured ways to spend my time.

My sweet little Elizabeth years ago doing a drop with me to with one of Diana’s pieces.

Which brings us to today’s subject line.

I am blessed with the lack of ability to create anything of beauty with my hands. That statement is not self depreciation. I am very confident in the skills I do have but making pretty tangible things from scratch just isn’t one. Those feelings people express when looking at art of “I could do that” have never crossed my mind. So I get to fully relax and just enjoy it. I get to see it from the place of awe and wonder. I have this fantastic Suzy Lindow piece in my entry way I got as a Christmas gift from my husband a few years back (aka I sent him one single picture and said this is the only single thing I want for the foreseeable future.) My daughter and I would sit and stare at it for the first few months and pick out our favorite elements. She would highlight things I had never even noticed were on there (her: palm tree, roller skate; me: skeleton and witches hat. tracks). Being able to see the piece from her perspective in a collaborative way opened up a totally new view for me.

My treasured Suzy Lindow

Getting into the minds of clients helps me shake off my “this is how I would do it” to “this is what will work best for them.” It helps me grow in empathy and also get some really cool second hand perspectives and creativity in the process. Those are the fuels I need to keep going in my old fashioned approach to a very new future.

There’s no shortage of content and coaches online all about scaling and growing and monetizing. (Which is great and I have done and continue to do! I believe in the power of money as energy and want as many openhearted and creative people to have the most of it as possible.) But I also love to be there for the moments that aren’t necessarily outward growth. The sacred pauses as the woo world loves to say. To use my client of 36 years, my sister Diana, as an example: She has a blooming art career. She is so intentional about the work she produces and we have scaled her career with people that match that. But this past year, reality made us reconfigure. She has a child with a rare genetic disorder who was enrolled in a wonderfully amazing drug trial to help with his metabolic disregulation (modern medicine is a marvel, y’all) that requires extensive travel to Wisconsin. On top of that ,she’s also going through a house renovation that required a move out. There was no way to produce the quantity and quality she had been over the past few years. Knowing her, I knew she wouldn’t skimp on the quality so we had to draw up a new plan that would deal with the shift in quantity. Pivots like this are never without fear. Will the hype go away? Will people forget about me? Will I lose my groove? We let the galleries know what was happening. We planned for one big show/ release for the year. And you know what? It all worked beautifully. The pause gave her time to grow and the work she is currently producing is her best ever. She’s reinvigorated. The relationships with her work partners feels even stronger because they showed up as true allies and were so lovely and flexible to work with. Would this be viewed as a huge win to be touted on socials? “I scaled down this client so she could mindfully pivot!!!” “It didn’t make her millions but kept her sanity!!” Absolutely not. But does it reaffirm why I do this and one of my proudest business wins to date? Yep.

One of my favorite early pieces of my sisters

My word of the year is steward. The internet loosely defines it as someone who manages and organizes. “the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one's care.” Its the energy I am bringing into all of my projects this year. Client work. My day job. And adding a new project to that mix- a limited podcast/ newsletter series where I interview people who are doing things I find wildly fascinating. Digging in deeper to the stories that make you think “I wonder how they ended up there” but never get to ask. We have 8 guests ranging from a stay at home mom turned working psychic to a business owner who’s personal story went insanely viral on tiktok. I have recorded a few so far and they have been so fun and special. I love being a steward for their stories. I can’t wait to share more!

That was a long and windy road but I hope my thoughts came across and you feel a little more inspired to approach your conversations with more open-mindedness. Oh and to buy more original art :)

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