When it comes to artistic talent I am naturally good at playing music and writing but definitely not painting. I went to my first wine and painting at Whimsy Paint and Sip and with high spirits and a floppy hand, my canvas picture actually turned out okay! I don't know about you, but I am sure that I am my own worst enemy when it comes to doing new things like art projects. I doubt my abilities and overthink my actions and soon it becomes impossible to meet my own expectations. This uncertainty can be true in business situations like your first presentation to senior executives. You know the basic skills (holding a paint brush vs talking, mouse clicking) but putting those skills together in a new way can make you choke. What are some ways to overcome your own second-guessing and come out on the other side with a finished product?
  1. Break it down
    • The painting teacher separated our artwork into 5 easy steps but even that was difficult to know where to start. She made it sound so easy "just dab here like this". But no matter what I did, mine did not turn out like I intended (oh no I messed up, try to fix this, oh no, now fix that, oh no...etc.). My advice? Start small and stay small. Make a mark and just go with it. Never try to guess where you are going because it will change as you work. Your reflexes and true abilities will shine through as long as you don't look at the big picture all at once.
  2. Ignore others
    • Like the "imagine your audience in their underwear" when public speaking, a good tactic is to ignore the people around you. If you are comparing yourself to others it will do nothing to your confidence when you are brand new to something. Put your head down and focus on your own work. Even during breaks or dealing with curious onlookers, be positive and just focus on your masterpiece.
  3. Know when to stop
    • Learning the lesson of "good enough" is tough. When correcting things or perfecting things, you can keep going forever and then you will never have a finished product! When you reach a point in which you are happy with it, just STOP! Put the pencil down and walk away. Don't come back in 10 minutes or tomorrow for edits because I can guarantee you will make changes. Don't worry about it. Take pride in your work and what you accomplished as a beginner. Your peers and managers will understand. Afterwards, after your finished product, then you can receive further coaching... but apply it to the next time!
Here is my robin, the best piece of my acrylic artwork. What new skill have you tried lately? Did you worry throughout it? Did you finish it? Are you proud of it? Tell me about your experience (or just share your wine and paint art piece)!

Spring robin bird

This past week has been an emotional roller-coaster for me a bit. The job market is still tough even in January which is beginning to make the job search a bit wearisome for me. Overall though, I am surprising myself by my upbeat attitude towards it all. Is my positive attitude attributed to staying busy by learning German, studying for my PMP, walking the dog, preparing for a Toastmasters competition, and writing a book? No, I don't think so. I think the root cause is that I am getting lots of sleep. I love my sleep and it makes me a happier and more productive person. What is your key to success that just keeps you from crashing?
  1. Food
    • I think this is a popular switch. A hungry person can become a twitchy, angry, and unfocused person (ever witnessed a Snickers commercial IRL?). Eating too much can put you in a food coma which can be equally detrimental to your work. Does food affect your productivity the most? A hunger state or a specific food can be the trigger. Coffee? Gluten-free breakfast or 3pm snack? Maybe something specific gets the creative juices flowing for you and you can't work without it.
  2. Shelter
    • Your surroundings can have a big impact on your ability to get work done. There are many great posts that explain the importance of home office decor and I don't think it is a lie. Do you work better in a busy and loud coffee shop? Do you like the peace and quiet of a distraction-free office cube? Or are you "au naturale" and find it motivational to work outdoors? Knowing what space calms you down so you can focus can make all the difference.
  3. Clothing
    • I'm not going to lie, wearing heels makes me feel more important. Whether your office is strict or you dress casually working from home, what you wear can influence your mindset on how much you have to get done that day. Does wearing a suit jacket make you sit up straighter and feel like a boss or does the scratchy material make you count the seconds to get out of it?
It seems silly that something as simple as a granola bar, a lamp, or lipstick can make us energetic and cheerful. What is your secret factor that, if it's not right you can't get anything done right? What can you not do without?
My holiday vacation this year was delayed and on a tight budget, but that didn't stop us from having fun! Instead of going somewhere exotic, we went up to Winter Park, CO and did some relaxing in the snow. We had a wonderful time snowshoeing, night skiing, finding local breweries, soaking in the hot tub, and enjoying the all-around beautiful scenery. My boyfriend, however, admitted to "not being very good at doing nothing" and I think that is true for most of us today with all of our electronics and over-worked lifestyles. What can you do to get your brain to relax?
  1. Don't do the ordinary
    • When you have time to recharge after a long day, what do you usually do? Grab a drink for a chemical way to loosen up? Turn on the TV to have noise as a distraction? We seem to gravitate to these and other means without even thinking. On vacation, days (rather than hours) can slip by without notice so be aware of your automatic tendencies and do anything to simply NOT do those things.
  2. Revel in the boredom
    • Being unplugged and on vacation means we are without the constant hum of electronics, the *ping* of new social and email notifications, and nagging pets, kids, or coworkers. There isn't something or someone begging for our attention and we aren't trying to multitask during every minute. This silence may feel, well, unnatural after only a few minutes! Learn to embrace it and just sit and stare at the fire flickering or the waves crashing.
  3. Use all of your senses 
    • Vacation is meant to relax your mind and your body. Make sure every sense gets to do something it doesn't do on a regular basis. Try a new food or splurge on the calorie-killing cheeseburger. Do a sport like night skiing or snowmobiling for the muscles you never knew you had. See and smell something new or even sex up something old in a new way. Why not?
In reality, on our mountain vacation we were less than 2 hours away from home, with cell service the whole time, and even stayed current (even ahead of our Tivo friends) by watching the playoffs live. I think we had a healthy mixture of playing and relaxing in the short weekend. How was your last vacation? Where did you go and what did you do to relax?
I try a new recipe every now and then and I would say 1/3 of the time it is nothing special worth repeating, 1/3 of the time it is so good that it goes in the book, and the other 1/3 of the time it turns out so badly that we have to order pizza. Well, last week I made a chili for the first time (football playoffs, oh yeah!) with cornbread muffins which was delicious! Yum yum yum... Then, yesterday, I was feeling adventurous and attempted to make chile rellenos and wow, did I crash and burn or what!? Sorry there is no picture but to give you an idea, the ratios were all off, it was oil soaked, and inedible because I melted a spatula into it. Always one to never let a bad experience get me down, this is perfect inspiration for this week's blog post!

What do you do when you carefully prepare, take the advice of others, and and yet still everything falls apart? It seems that the same secret to success sometimes works and sometimes doesn't, without a reason why or why not. What can you do to keep from feeling down about the outcome of something you put 100% effort into?
  1. Have a Plan B (or Plan C, or Plan D)
    • Sometimes a failure simple means your first idea wasn't the best one. I am a fairly risk averse person in that when I make a decision, I want to be sure about it and see it from many different angles. However, don't let a backup plan get out of hand. It shouldn't be enough of a plan to dissuade you from moving on the initial idea; there is a difference between "going all in cautiously" and "planning for failure".
  2. Learn only one lesson
    • The thing about mistakes is that we can learn a lot from them but I think what holds us back sometimes is when we try to learn too much from them. We replay the situation over and over again in our heads and it causes us to get stuck on the past. Limit yourself to learning one, just one, thing and then move on and apply that lesson to the next thing.
  3. Remember the "tried and true" methods
    • To set your mind at ease after a fall it may be useful to go back to what you know and do something where the outcome is more certain. Boost that confidence and gain back your drive to be adventurous. For me, I know that practicing music relaxes me even though I've tried many other things (tai chi, glass of wine, running) but simply doing one thing that is familiar can reset me upright so I can face the next challenge head on.
A few other examples of good intention that have gone wrong? Plans for an extended family dinner, a social media marketing campaign, or great vacation ideas after you get a sunburn are a few that come to mind. What about you?

About Me



So if you want to be happy at work like I am, then thanks for being a reader! I am a consultant that travels constantly and is always working with new people. I love what I do! I'm formally trained with an MBA and BS Engineering. At home and in my free time, I like to drink beer, travel, garden, read, hike with my dog, and play board games.

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