April is for Art!

​Let’s talk about motivation. We all know what that is, right? According to dictionary.com, motivation (noun) is: “1. the act or an instance of motivating, or providing with a reason to act a certain way. 2. the state or condition of being motivated or having a strong reason to act or accomplish something.” Okay, so what does that mean to you? How do you feel about the word? And do you feel negative when you perceive yourself as not being motivated? I know I can fall into that trap more often than I care to admit. Just today I was feeling awful because I was procrastinating writing this post, feeling far less than motivated. Unsure of what I was going to say, or if it would make sense, I sat at my computer and went through old emails instead of allowing my motivation to carry me into my writing. But Jen, you say, here you are! Yes, here I am. But I could have bailed. In my own fear (see last month’s post) and worry, I almost made myself small. I procrastinated much of the morning. Well, if I can be all the way honest with you for a second, I spent much of the last month procrastinating. I made the commitment to write a monthly blog, yet it took 3 weeks for me to sit down and put pen to paper. Or fingers to keyboard. I made every excuse I could think of. I needed to do laundry. Vacuum. Dust. And I absolutely despise dusting! One of my wintered-over plants needed re-potting. Just one more chapter of my book. And it all stemmed from fear. Fear, not that I wouldn’t be good enough. Not this time. Fear that I might be great. That my blog will take off and become popular. That my name would get out there and people would actually WANT to work with me. I promise you, I am just like you. But, again, here I am. It may have taken 3 weeks to sit down, but I am proud I did. It just took my realizing how I was using all those things as distractions to keep me from becoming more authentically myself. When I finally sat down and reminded myself WHY I am doing this, that’s when the words started to flow. That’s when I really saw consciously just how my motivation shows up. You see, motivation isn’t all about getting up at 5 AM and running on overdrive all day in the pursuit of accomplishment. Not that there is anything wrong with that. As it is I am up at 7 just about every day, so no judgments here. It’s just that, I mean, motivation, in reality, can look as simple as taking baby steps every single day, then looking back and seeing how they all added up. Sometimes it looks like just showing up and remembering your WHY for whatever it is that you are doing. Sometimes it even looks like taking a nap. That nap may be motivated by a deep soulful need to rest. To me, motivation is less about the actions you take, but the intentions behind them. My motivation for writing this blog post is to honor my commitment to myself and my fledgling business. To do something I have loved my whole life and never really given a chance – writing. To have a chance to connect with all of you and maybe, just maybe, make some connections, help some people, and shine my light. To show my children anything is possible. That solid, dedicated work really does pay off. That you can be and do anything you can dream of. That’s my motivation. And these baby steps I’m taking every day? The small posts to social media, the sitting down to write even when my brain yells at me to do ANYTHING else, the small but priceless changes to my own mindset? Well, those baby steps sure are piling up. Looking back just 2 years ago, when I was just beginning my journey at SWIHA, and seeing just how far I’ve come… I can hardly recognize that girl. I was motivated to do more. What that more was, I didn’t know at the time, and it really didn’t matter. All that mattered was that something inside of me was pulling and pushing me to reach for more. To be more than I ever thought possible. To do things I had only wished and dreamed of in secret. All of that was motivation enough to get started on those baby steps. Two years later, I have a business started, one I am still unsure of its direction, but it’s mine nonetheless. I have graduated from SWIHA with several certificates in different modalities under my belt along with my Integrative Healing Arts Program degree. So...motivation. What does it look like to you? Can you look back and see how all your baby steps have carried you to where you are? And how more baby steps can carry you even farther? What motivates you? What is your why? Is it a better future for yourself and your family? A new car? A new home? Love? No WHY can be too big or too small to be an inspiring motivator for anyone. As long as the WHY is yours, it is perfect. So, let’s talk about motivation. I can’t wait to hear from you. To work with you. To coach you and be your cheerleader. To honor you and your why. I’ll be here when you’re ready.