Love this, and it was so inspiring! I was also the kid who did all the creative things as a child, free from fear. I miss that feeling!
After having an idea bubbling in my head for a novel for multiple years, I decided to go for it this summer and started plotting/dreaming/researching/writing. It's equal parts exciting and overwhelming and I am similarly reminding myself that I don't need to prove anything yet. I was telling my friend, it feels like half the creative process is just having the audacity to go for it, instead of listening to all the self-doubt. Similar to your process, I'm currently writing a lot in my journal-- I feel like the ideas come easier with pen and paper, but then polish as I put it into digital form. Love the phrase "hope looks like a plan."
Anyways, thanks for sharing this today, it came right on time for me. Love following along with you on here and excited for your new business! Yeehaw for creativity!
This is so perfectly timed! The summer camp notebook/avoiding perfectionism has also been super helpful for me when it comes to giving my ideas space to breathe. Recently I offered to help a friend design some flyers and a logo for her new yoga studio and have tried to just listen to the ideas and her dreams for the studio vs. the little voice that reminds me I don’t have formal training, not good enough, etc.
Also!! “Often, hope looks like a plan.” Wowwwweeee. That one felt very life-affirming haha. Thank you for always pulling together the perfect balance of inspiration and practical advice/how to apply things.
This year, a dream that (thanks to some old notes I found) is actually 10 years in the making is coming to fruition. I will be launching a consulting business, and writing will be a big component of that.
I used to write a lot, and in recent years it fell away. You're inspiring me to go back to my "where Angie's good ideas go to die" (I need a little sass to keep me going) file.
Thanks for your posts. And for the color schemes! Your color combos delight me!
I can so relate to this! When I was a kid, I would get an idea and have it done within hours. And I was so creative, too! Now I overthink everything. Thanks for the reminder! I need to get back to just taking quick action and see how things go. It was always so much more fun that way too!
My Substack is my current creative idea, and the 15 year old version of me would've been so excited about this! I'm having so much fun with it, but I do overthink every Note and Article until I don't feel like posting them anymore. I'm going to try to apply some of these tips and see if I can get back to that carefree creativity! 🩷
How fun! I use the Apple notes app a lot and I love how it syncs between my phone and iPad because I often get ideas when I'm not near my iPad/computer and I honestly like having my phone handy for that. I also love obsidian as an app on my Linux-MacBook. I also have many physical notebooks, a shopping list/meal plan one, a substack one, an everything else one... My current creative projects are painting my laundry room pink 💕 and scanning physical media for digital collage elements :)
I am working on filling out a mini vintage wooden photo album I thrifted with photos from 7 weeks of traveling we did with our 10 week old. It was mostly visiting family, but there was also a European vacation in the middle.
I also have picked up a daily pocket notebook habit. So far 2 weeks strong! Thanks to @MarkRagland among other inspiration!
Jenna I love everything you put out into the world, it's beautiful and inspiring! I would love to be considered for a gifted paid subscription <3 truly inspired! And loved this article on going back to the childlike ways we would come up with ideas and just execute them! I used to publish a printed Family Times newspaper weekly of all the things we did as a family and Substack is my way of going back to those simpler times!
Hi Jenna. I have so many ideas, all typed out and (roughly) organized in my notes app. But sometimes when it comes down to fleshing out an idea for a Substack article (or maybe a piece of art), I tend to lose steam. Not entirely sure whether it’s coming from comparison, self-doubt, or laziness?? Maybe a combination of all 3 to varying degrees. 🤦🏻♀️ any advice for moving past that?
This is a real kick-in-the-rear read for me! Love hearing about your process and seeing other’s ideas here too!
I turn 40 in 6 months and have been mulling over how great it would be to launch one of the two (or both?!) big project ideas I’ve been dabble-nurturing for too long to commemorate the milestone. One💡is dedicated to actionable advice for home owners and renters to make the most of their environment (my husband and I are both architects so it would be a fun passion project for both of us!) and the other is freer-form mid-life fodder from a mom/corporate professional/creative (this one maybe adds to noise for ppl, who knows…) I’ll take any feedback or advice from fellow commenters too! 🙇♀️
I have So.Many.Ideas! and most of them have never moved out of ideation limbo. I finally sat down recently and articulated this process for myself and realized just how necessary it is to delineate each step. Especially protecting step 1 from any judgement or logistics, which is only really possible (for me), when I know that has its own time and place. It seems so obvious, but like you pointed out, so much of our creativity is based on what and how we did it as kids and we just never update our process after that.
Love this, and it was so inspiring! I was also the kid who did all the creative things as a child, free from fear. I miss that feeling!
After having an idea bubbling in my head for a novel for multiple years, I decided to go for it this summer and started plotting/dreaming/researching/writing. It's equal parts exciting and overwhelming and I am similarly reminding myself that I don't need to prove anything yet. I was telling my friend, it feels like half the creative process is just having the audacity to go for it, instead of listening to all the self-doubt. Similar to your process, I'm currently writing a lot in my journal-- I feel like the ideas come easier with pen and paper, but then polish as I put it into digital form. Love the phrase "hope looks like a plan."
Anyways, thanks for sharing this today, it came right on time for me. Love following along with you on here and excited for your new business! Yeehaw for creativity!
This is so perfectly timed! The summer camp notebook/avoiding perfectionism has also been super helpful for me when it comes to giving my ideas space to breathe. Recently I offered to help a friend design some flyers and a logo for her new yoga studio and have tried to just listen to the ideas and her dreams for the studio vs. the little voice that reminds me I don’t have formal training, not good enough, etc.
Also!! “Often, hope looks like a plan.” Wowwwweeee. That one felt very life-affirming haha. Thank you for always pulling together the perfect balance of inspiration and practical advice/how to apply things.
This year, a dream that (thanks to some old notes I found) is actually 10 years in the making is coming to fruition. I will be launching a consulting business, and writing will be a big component of that.
I used to write a lot, and in recent years it fell away. You're inspiring me to go back to my "where Angie's good ideas go to die" (I need a little sass to keep me going) file.
Thanks for your posts. And for the color schemes! Your color combos delight me!
Making a safe home for ideas before asking them to prove anything is such a useful distinction.
I can so relate to this! When I was a kid, I would get an idea and have it done within hours. And I was so creative, too! Now I overthink everything. Thanks for the reminder! I need to get back to just taking quick action and see how things go. It was always so much more fun that way too!
My Substack is my current creative idea, and the 15 year old version of me would've been so excited about this! I'm having so much fun with it, but I do overthink every Note and Article until I don't feel like posting them anymore. I'm going to try to apply some of these tips and see if I can get back to that carefree creativity! 🩷
Love all your ideas!! I do a lot in excel, your palettes are amazing! Going to use one tomorrow!! Thank you!! ❤️
A personal curriculum for cultivating hope and chasing new possibilities in midlife!
How fun! I use the Apple notes app a lot and I love how it syncs between my phone and iPad because I often get ideas when I'm not near my iPad/computer and I honestly like having my phone handy for that. I also love obsidian as an app on my Linux-MacBook. I also have many physical notebooks, a shopping list/meal plan one, a substack one, an everything else one... My current creative projects are painting my laundry room pink 💕 and scanning physical media for digital collage elements :)
I’m wanting to start a magazine too! I want mine to be mainly print though which everyone is trying to deter me
I am working on filling out a mini vintage wooden photo album I thrifted with photos from 7 weeks of traveling we did with our 10 week old. It was mostly visiting family, but there was also a European vacation in the middle.
I also have picked up a daily pocket notebook habit. So far 2 weeks strong! Thanks to @MarkRagland among other inspiration!
Jenna I love everything you put out into the world, it's beautiful and inspiring! I would love to be considered for a gifted paid subscription <3 truly inspired! And loved this article on going back to the childlike ways we would come up with ideas and just execute them! I used to publish a printed Family Times newspaper weekly of all the things we did as a family and Substack is my way of going back to those simpler times!
Hi Jenna. I have so many ideas, all typed out and (roughly) organized in my notes app. But sometimes when it comes down to fleshing out an idea for a Substack article (or maybe a piece of art), I tend to lose steam. Not entirely sure whether it’s coming from comparison, self-doubt, or laziness?? Maybe a combination of all 3 to varying degrees. 🤦🏻♀️ any advice for moving past that?
This is absolutely fantastic! Thank you for breaking it down! Also congrats on the sponsorship! That's bigtime!
This is a real kick-in-the-rear read for me! Love hearing about your process and seeing other’s ideas here too!
I turn 40 in 6 months and have been mulling over how great it would be to launch one of the two (or both?!) big project ideas I’ve been dabble-nurturing for too long to commemorate the milestone. One💡is dedicated to actionable advice for home owners and renters to make the most of their environment (my husband and I are both architects so it would be a fun passion project for both of us!) and the other is freer-form mid-life fodder from a mom/corporate professional/creative (this one maybe adds to noise for ppl, who knows…) I’ll take any feedback or advice from fellow commenters too! 🙇♀️
This came to my inbox at the perfect moment. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
I have So.Many.Ideas! and most of them have never moved out of ideation limbo. I finally sat down recently and articulated this process for myself and realized just how necessary it is to delineate each step. Especially protecting step 1 from any judgement or logistics, which is only really possible (for me), when I know that has its own time and place. It seems so obvious, but like you pointed out, so much of our creativity is based on what and how we did it as kids and we just never update our process after that.