Being Splintered & Having My Focus Divided
Aired Live on October 4, 2023, Episode 450.
This week I we had a little change of plans. Matt Wood will be on next week. So I will do a rapid recharge this week about some stuff I am wrestling with.
Maybe you are like me and have lots of interests and you feel like your time is splintered and your focus is divided.
Maybe you like it this way. But parts aren’t working for you. These are some of the issues I am wrestling with.
Being splintered, having multiple interests and having your focus is divided creates tension from what I am hearing from most of the people I follow, books I have read, and even things I have said. Honestly for the most part I agree we can’t walk one step in multiple directions and get very far fast. But maybe there is another way.
I don’t have answers but wanted to do a quick show today to tell you about what I am learning.
Join us LIVE on Wednesday,Oct 4 at 11:30am PT / 2:30pm ET / 7:30pm BST / 8:30am in Hawaii
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Spread Your Ideas Like a Horny Rabbit Workshop
https://gettingworktowork.com/workshops/
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Transcript
[00:00:00] diane gibbs: Hey, everybody, welcome to another, I was about to say addition. It’s not an addition. It’s an episode of Des or hmm. It’s an episode of Creatives Ignite. Used to be called Design Recharge. I don’t call it that anymore, and I’ve taken it off the Google calendar. If you notice, today was the first day I did it as just Creatives Ignite.
[00:00:22] Not maybe that you notice, but I did a funny thing in, in the email [00:00:30] that I sent like a I don’t know, 1230 or something, or I don’t know when I sent it earlier, and it was a picture of the temperature and stuff here in Mobile, and then there was a picture of Matt Wood underneath it. Does anybody know what?
[00:00:49] The answer was, without reading it, it was like a little visual pun. And people who are here maybe know. And if you’re watching on YouTube, you’re like, what? Maybe we’ll just stick a little [00:01:00] graphic in there, Chris. Um, I’ll send it to you. Anybody have any idea? You’re like, we didn’t read the email. What?
[00:01:07] Anyway, so, um, I had to read the answer. So it was weather. It was, you know, like a picture of your weather, like from, let me show you the picture. It was this picture, which you can’t see. Anyway, it’s a picture of the weather for Mobile, and then underneath was a picture of Matt, because Matt’s [00:01:30] under the weather.
[00:01:31] I thought it was funny. Anyway, um, probably not so funny. Denise is like, oh gosh, this is terrible. I’m never coming back. Anyway, so today I wanted to talk about something. So Matt was under the weather, so I kind of had to pull something. Um, I was just jealous because it was 32 degrees Fahrenheit and snowing.
[00:01:50] Yes. Well, you’re like near Santa. Um, yeah, it’s really warm. It’s hot, actually. I don’t know what it is. Probably in the [00:02:00] 90s right now. But, um, I’m glad, uh, that we can be appreciative of our weather at different times. But one of the things I wanted to talk about was something that kind of, um, started coming up and for me, I have been participating in, um, a weathered wood.
[00:02:21] Oh, that was good. Amy Lyons. Um, I’ve been doing, um, power station, which if you don’t know, it’s like a mastermind group [00:02:30] where you set a goal and then I help with other people hold you accountable. You present on how far you are and how much you’re good. Uh, getting done and I decided to participate this time in the day group and it was really difficult.
[00:02:43] It was difficult to do it and all the other things and, uh, Paul said it well. Paul was like, it’s hard to make your business a priority. It’s hard to make if you work for someone else. It’s hard to make that side project a priority. It’s hard [00:03:00] to make the stuff. Um, that makes us better to get us to the next job or to the next, the different kind of client.
[00:03:09] It’s hard, it’s hard to fit that in and maybe you know, maybe you don’t know, but my mom died in March and so I did an extension on our taxes. So my husband has a business and I have a business and then I teach at a university. So it’s kind of a, it’s busy at tax season, you know, like I’m trying to do a lot of [00:03:30] things and I didn’t have a good system.
[00:03:32] Well now I’m like a notion. I’m a newbie, newbie to Notion, but it’s how I’m doing my taxes. I mean, there’s not like a tax form or anything. It’s just what my accountant needs. I’m putting in, I’m tallying the stuff. And I actually feel like finally I’m going to be able to do it. Um, because I’m already sitting at my computer and I’m already doing things.
[00:03:55] So there was like this huge relief that I got it done. [00:04:00] But now it’s like, Oh, it’s not as hard as what I’ve been doing for however, 20 years or something. And so it was huge relief in knowing that I can just do this. If I schedule it in, it gets done. Kind of like what Paul was saying with when, whether it’s marketing or whether it’s working on a goal, if you don’t schedule it in, it doesn’t get done.
[00:04:22] You often, if you’re with me, if you have a hard time putting, um, your [00:04:30] stuff. Before somebody else’s, or before a paying, uh, gig, or before, maybe before you go to work, or before you do, um, you have a client that’s coming with an emergency, or just a client that, a new client, do you do that, or do you make time, because you set time in your schedule for.
[00:04:50] So, for, So many years, I’ve set about 10 hours a week for design recharge. Now that Chris does my editing, I don’t have to do as much. But I do, [00:05:00] um, still look and research and I’m finding people and I’m seeing what I’m doing. But I’ve, the other thing that I’ve tried to do this year is, um, work on my YouTube channel.
[00:05:12] And I haven’t done a really good job at working on it, but I posted some things and I’ve worked on some things and what I realized as I was looking back at the 12 weeks of power station, I realized there I did more than I thought, because I kind of use it as like a little journal entry and I where I was too [00:05:30] hard on myself.
[00:05:30] But how often are we? Logging these things, you know, if you’re, um, just doing this on your own, you have a goal and you want to do something. What are your markers of growth? Like, when are you going to check back and look back at the stuff that you’ve been trying to accomplish? Like, when are you going to…
[00:05:50] You know, put everything out on the table and see, have you gotten better? And I think when you have a group, it’s helpful. Amy Lyons is [00:06:00] doing all these different kinds of styles of illustrations and trying things that she normally wouldn’t try. And she felt safe enough to do that and safe enough. When I’m doing something, I’m just kind of copying something.
[00:06:15] I’m not saying that it’s mine. I’m just copying, but then it’s that muscle memory. But we have to. Do it in small chunks. And I think that what I felt like there was a we did a workshop on Monday. And, [00:06:30] um, and I talked to a friend of mine a couple weeks ago. And, um, he was like, Dan, you’re just really You know, it’s spread too thin.
[00:06:39] You’re doing too many things. If you could just focus on one thing and I don’t know why, but this really is difficult for me. And I have a lot of resistance. And sometimes when I have resistance, I’m like, God’s trying to teach me something. And sometimes I’m like, that doesn’t, I don’t fit in a box that I just.
[00:06:56] I don’t have an answer. So today, if you were looking for the answer, uh, it is [00:07:00] not here today. I’m just telling you what I’m going through and I’ll tell you about my journey. But I don’t know if anybody feels like this, but sometimes I feel like, okay, you have to have one thing that you do because it makes it easy for people.
[00:07:14] to know how to get in touch with you. I totally believe that. I totally believe that. If I’m trying to get design work, I do say I’m a web designer and I focus in, um, spaces. So interior design, [00:07:30] real estate photography, um, Things that are like a photographer that has to do, you know, photographing interior design places, or I’ve worked with a builder that’s doing custom, um, homes.
[00:07:47] Um, not like real estate, like MLS. I’m not, not doing that, but like interior designers or photographers or architects or something. Those would be people that I would really [00:08:00] like. Now I’m, I got to turn my heater off. Those are people that I think, okay, I get it. You know, if I’m trying to be designer, I can do anything and everything.
[00:08:09] I know it’s a little bright. That is like my color’s all off, but anyway, um, but now I’m warm. So I have to take my jacket off. So I understand this. I understand that you people have to know if you say you do anything, then they’re not going to know to put you in this. To call on you. Like if I was a dentist [00:08:30] and I worked specifically on root canals, and that’s what I did.
[00:08:34] Like maybe I did some cleanings, but, but mainly I told people I did root canals. Then people would come to me when they had some weird root canal problem. I don’t know why I always use a dentist. I really don’t like going to the dentist. I don’t know why. Anyway, but I feel splintered. So I don’t, I do understand The purpose.
[00:08:52] I understand when my friend was like, Hey, you’re just spread too thin. You can’t, you can’t make any traction because you [00:09:00] are, you’re putting your energy in so many places. But I also think that’s, that’s what I am. That’s who I am. And yesterday we did an exercise, um, that was tell me three to five words or phrases about whoever it was.
[00:09:16] Um, that we were lifting up, you know, I mean, they were good things. We weren’t like, you’re mean. They weren’t, we weren’t saying that these are the end of power station. We would just, I tried a new, um. Little [00:09:30] exercise that we do in class all the time. Anyway, so it was really neat and it was I think it’s something you don’t realize how you come across, right?
[00:09:40] So somebody in the group is so calming There’s a couple people and I’m like man, no one has ever said I was calming I am NOT working on trying to be calm, I guess And that’s okay. Like again, that’s his lane He has it. I don’t even, not that I’m not trying to be like, I don’t want to be [00:10:00] all crazy, but I have a lot of energy.
[00:10:03] And so I don’t think anybody would describe me as calm. And I’m okay with that. Like there are certain things I’m okay with. Not doing in my business. So I don’t really want to do logos. That’s not my, I like the other part of branding, you know, like putting it in and making systems, but I don’t really, it’s a lot of pressure.
[00:10:24] I just, I don’t know, stressed me out to make the logo sometime. I do it. I still [00:10:30] do it. I often do it, but it’s not my favorite. So I would rather farm that out with somebody who does love it and they just really enjoy doing that. That’s, those are like, I’m okay giving them, them that work. Um, there are certain things that John Ingalls always does for me because he does a really good job and I just don’t really like, I don’t really like to do some of those things.
[00:10:53] And if he’s okay doing it and he likes what I pay, then, then he is somebody who I go for, for some of those [00:11:00] things. I don’t feel like we have to do everything. So I, I get that. And I understand in my business, it’s helpful to say that I’m doing one thing, but this is what I’m talking about with the splintered.
[00:11:14] This kind of looks like my eyes are crooked today. Anyway, just a little side thought that I thought you’d be in my brain. Um, I don’t know why I had to say that out loud. I’m sure my mom would have been like, what’s up with your hair today? Anyway, this is why [00:11:30] I try not to do rapid recharges alone. Okay. I have notes, so I’m going to read my notes.
[00:11:36] When I’m splintered, meaning I have all these things I’m interested in, I like doing things with people and community and building people up and helping people have somebody to walk on their journey with them. I’m really passionate about them. I don’t want to stop doing that, but I don’t want that to be all I do.
[00:11:53] Um, I would feel like I was leaving some [00:12:00] things That were really precious to me away and that is really hard. I mean, it even gets me kind of teary. I don’t want to leave that. I don’t, I don’t think that has to be the way. So I have had resistance. Um, but this is something that I’m like, no, I’m supposed to figure this out.
[00:12:21] Because I don’t think we all have to just do one thing. And as I look at other people who maybe they did one thing and then they’ve kind of [00:12:30] spread and they start doing this another thing, but then they’ll come back and they’ll try something else. And I’m like, see, they’re doing it. Why can’t I? I think for my, for different audiences, I am doing different things.
[00:12:42] For people who know me and are my friends, they see that I’m doing a lot of things. But some people are only going to see me doing one or two things, right? Probably one thing. How many of you didn’t know I design websites? Um, so I keep thinking, how can I make this work? How can I make this work? How can I make this [00:13:00] work?
[00:13:00] And, uh, at our, uh, workshop, um, somebody was talking about, well, tell me one, Um, industry you work for and I think with this one person, they don’t just do one industry. What they’re really good is doing a, a particular, they can reach a customer. They know how to design for that customer and they know how to, um, intrigue them.
[00:13:27] And then they’re a higher end. So it’s [00:13:30] like really they could go to any company that. this avatar, this, um, person is, is in. And I’m like that, that sounds more like something, it doesn’t sound like something I’ve heard, but it sounds like very doable. Now, I don’t know how to pitch that to new customers or new, um, new clients that would be if it was, if it was me doing that, but I can see it working because if you know this person really well, then.
[00:13:59] [00:14:00] Anything this person buys, you could be a designer if you wanted to, right? It, it obviously needs to kind of have, aesthetically, it would be something that they were attracted to. Again, I don’t know what I’m doing right now. I’m just trying to figure it out and I’m just telling you what it is because Matt was under the weather, right?
[00:14:20] The weather picture. I thought it was funny. Clearly nobody else did, but okay, so I do people. That sounded bad. I like to [00:14:30] do things with people or community, then I like to build websites. That’s where I probably make the most of my money. Um, I do like publications and I’m not gonna not do those for the clients that I have, but I’m not seeking out publication design magazines and things like that, but I’ve done a ton of it.
[00:14:49] So I like it, but it’s very similar to web to me. Um, and then I like to do illustrations. Have I gotten paid for illustrations? Very [00:15:00] tiny ly about. Well, is there a potential? What isn’t just this splintering, just different buckets of income? Is it, is it that different? Um, maybe it’s not just for one audience.
[00:15:14] But maybe that’s okay. You know, maybe have landing pages. That’s what I’m thinking. Why can’t I just have a different landing page? You know, why do I have to um, Why does it have to be so?
[00:15:29] [00:15:30] Tight for everybody and you know, I’ve really been thinking about like, oh, I can’t go far enough down this road If I don’t put all my energy in it, but if I did, I feel like I would be not the person that I am, my, it would be, if I was just a teacher, oh my gosh, I’d probably be pulling my hair out or I don’t know, I might just be frustrated.
[00:15:58] I do love the kids. I [00:16:00] love seeing them learn, but there is something that really grounds me in being a working designer. I think it’s better for them that I’m a working designer. Um, But then I thought about, okay, well, aren’t we all splintered? We have to do marketing, we have to do admin, and we have to do the creative work.
[00:16:19] And then there’s all these other things. We still need to be, find motivation. We still need to learn. But what if you’re learning something that is outside? [00:16:30] So say I focus on gardening. That’s kind of another area that I’m learning. I think about, um, D’English, she does, she planted all these flowers.
[00:16:40] There’s so many things, there’s analogies that I can use when I’m working with clients or when I’m working with students or when I’m working with other entrepreneurs are coming, that are using that gardening analogy. It doesn’t mean that I’m a gardener, that I’m a farmer, that I’m, It, but it’s [00:17:00] just one thing that I’m pouring in.
[00:17:02] And sometimes I think we pour in, in small buckets, you know, like, uh, we’re just getting information. We’re curious and we’re learning about different things. It could be history, it could be knitting, I, gardening, whatever, cooking. It’s not gonna be cooking for me, but. Maybe for you. Um, and I just thought okay.
[00:17:23] Well, why is that so bad? You know, then that’s like having hobbies Okay. Well, so I’m just trying to think about it [00:17:30] and see about it. Um My sister’s texting me. I think she forgets that I do this thing like the last 11 and a half years, but whatever My husband has texted me and my sister but whatever and then she’ll text me later and be like, oh you on your show um, so I thought maybe you can write this in the chat or if you’re Um, no, Chris is texting me.
[00:17:55] Um, writing in the chatter. If you’re watching on YouTube, write it in the [00:18:00] comments down below. What is something that you are practicing? You don’t know if you want to do this yet. This is what I think. I think about design. If we just stay totally just doing exactly what we always do and never learn, our industry is going to leave us in the dust because they’re going to move on and we’re not.
[00:18:19] We’re not going to know how to do certain things. We’re not going to know how new programs work or how marketing works or how, I mean, all kinds of things [00:18:30] we have to continually learn. So if you could write in the chat, if you’re here live, um, what are you practicing? Um, that you are not willing to get rid of.
[00:18:40] Now, this isn’t something that maybe a bucket of income yet, but it’s just something that you’re practicing currently right now. Maybe somebody will type something. Okay. There we go. Digital art, Maya. Yeah. So Maya has done tons of, um, It like traditional art and then she’s got an [00:19:00] iPad and she’s working in procreate and doing digital art Um, josh gucci says motion design amy lion’s drawing illustration working out characters John ingalls recording 360 videos chris martin and me.
[00:19:16] Hey chris. I didn’t know we could be notion buddies newbie notion buddies Um, he’s learning notion if we are not continually learning Then we are going to get left, left at the [00:19:30] wayside, right? Um, Denise says painting and online painting tutorials. Perfect. Love that. Me too. I do a lot of those as well. Um, Hey Raxa, it’s good to see you.
[00:19:41] Um, doodling with a pencil and paper. Love it. So some things are going to be things that we actually are going to take over. and become a bucket of income. It could be a, for Raxa, it could be a, um, he could do a workshop that’s about like [00:20:00] relieving stress and it’s through this doodling and just getting back to pen and paper, pencil, paper.
[00:20:07] Um, for Denise, she’s, Working as a designer, maybe at a university. I can’t remember Denise. I’m sorry, um, but she’s doing this and then she’s doing this online painting or doing painting, um, and she’s seeing that she sees things. She’s actually working on her visual and what she’s able to see and notice because she’s having to [00:20:30] paint or she’s trying different things.
[00:20:32] She’s like, I’m going to make the sky purple or whatever. Red or whatever it is, and she’s going to emphasize different things, but we do bring them into our work I don’t think it’s bad for us to, um, you know, find different ways. I guess I’m just so getting, I so get people telling me I’m doing too many things and I’m not able to be successful, [00:21:00] um, because I’m so splintered or I have a divided focus.
[00:21:05] And Chris says, ignore them. I’m with it. So I, I am at that point. That’s how I’m sort of feeling. I feel like I’ve tried to see, I’ve tried to actually do it. Um, and it doesn’t work. Like when I think about doing full time, just teaching, I would want to cry full time, just doing, um, like mastermind groups. I would want to cry like I’ve got to [00:21:30] have the other things in but in the same way I don’t want to get rid of those things because I like those things, right?
[00:21:36] So, um, what are you known for? Doing one thing gets boring Maya says and I got to do me and you got to do you too, right? So Amy says This is, these are the things that I’m thinking about. So, when we did this exercise yesterday, and Amy kind of talked about a little bit in the chat, I’m scooting back. [00:22:00] She said it was really nice.
[00:22:01] People used words to describe me that she, that she wouldn’t have used to describe herself. Nice things. Do it. It was nice to hear that people see me that way. And I think, you know, this is at the end of 12 weeks or 11 weeks that we’ve been together. So, we know But how she has come across on an online presence and some people know her in person as well.
[00:22:27] So I think that it’s, you know, you’re going to have people that know [00:22:30] you in different ways, but here’s how you came across. And in 12 weeks, it’s kind of hard to fake it all the time. You know, you can kind of, I guess, but why, why are we faking it? And so I just feel like I don’t fit in this. I don’t fit in this one lane.
[00:22:45] I don’t know the answer. I, it seemed to be working okay for me. Maybe I’m not like a millionaire, but success is not just money to me. Success is happiness. I do need, we all need enough, you [00:23:00] know, so that we’re not like ramen noodling it and worried. You know, about, and stress, just, can I pay the power bill, there is, I’m not talking about that, it’s past, you’ve, you’ve gotten past the worrying about your eating and your, where you sleep and, um, whatever, your housing, but, you know what, I’m gonna try to make this work, I bring things in to my students, that are analogies that are coming from [00:23:30] painting, that are coming from other things, I’m gonna do a bird.
[00:23:35] Maya’s been after me. I need to, uh, get on to this, uh, bird. Um, I did a hundred faces, you know? Um, what did I learn? I have a whole video on it, just about what I learned on my YouTube channel. Now I think I would want to go deeper. So kind of like what Amy Lyons is doing, she’s going really deep. She’s working on just noses, and then she’s working on, um, really just faces from different [00:24:00] angles, or…
[00:24:01] Really diving in, but I, I took it really wide. Um, and now it’s like, I want to do birds and it’s another wide approach. I don’t know what this will come up with, but it’s a wide approach. Um, and then what really matters to you? What is success to you? I always ask that question. And I think about for me, I don’t.
[00:24:22] want to let some things go. So if I was thinking about the four things that I do, web for that particular group [00:24:30] of people is where my focus is. That’s what I would want customers, my customers to know me for. But y’all are within the creative industry. You don’t know me for that. You don’t know me for making websites.
[00:24:46] You’re not calling me to make a website for you. You know me. I don’t know exactly, but you know me about this, bringing people, learning, sharing what I’m learning and, um, [00:25:00] moving forward in being creative, staying creative and trying new things. And then I would love to know, um, really matters to you. So for me, when I feel like.
[00:25:15] I have to stay on this one road. I don’t think that I’m going to draw birds, only birds for the rest of my life. Like I feel like my friend Jodi, she’s like, I don’t want to draw flowers for the rest of my life, but flowers is selling now. So she’s drawing flowers, but knows [00:25:30] that flowers may be where she makes a lot of her money, like web designs, where I make a lot of my money.
[00:25:35] But the, the other stuff, the adventure and the exploring she’s doing is really important because it does feed back into her flowers. It does feed back into my websites. It feeds back into all the things that I’m doing and it makes us a richer, uh, person. Um, I wrote, I don’t fit. I guess I’m a misfit and why can’t it work?
[00:25:58] Not like, why can’t [00:26:00] it work? Why can’t it work? Like, I think it could work. So I wanted to show you. So at least you have a little visual. So I brought these books in because I did a, who am I to my class? Um, cause I feel like at this point in the semester, it’s week seven of 16. They kind of need to know. So I, um, some of you may know this.
[00:26:22] Um, but I took a pattern or surface pattern design class in March, and this was one of the things that really, [00:26:30] I’m so thankful I did it, um, because when I was doing all the stuff, like dealing with all the stuff with my mom. I still did my homework and it was like teaching you Illustrator. I already know Illustrator.
[00:26:44] That’s what I thought. I was like, well, I’ll just watch them. But I learned new things because I was open to just seeing what I could learn. I learned all kinds of new things. But you know what I did instead of coming up with new art? So thankful. This was like the game [00:27:00] changer for me. I just went through old sketchbooks.
[00:27:03] This was from 2019, I think, trying to find the date, but I have some ones. I usually date things.
[00:27:15] Can’t find a date. Still can’t find a date. Um, still can’t find it. Look at the, well, I’ll show you in a second. Anyway, um, let’s see if I can just, I think it’s 2019. Oh, there’s [00:27:30] Veronica. I’ll show you her too. Anyway, so I did, I should have included her. Let’s see, um, sometimes I, when I take notes, I write them.
[00:27:40] Adam Barnes came and talked to my class about LinkedIn. Still don’t have a date. I try, we should date things, I think. Um, I mean, like there are some weird things in this, but that’s what sketchbooks are for. Anyway, clearly can’t. Oh, this is at [00:28:00] church, but I didn’t write a date. I just wrote who was talking.
[00:28:03] Oh, three, six, 19. So somewhere in the beginning of 2019. So I did these, I did robots. This lady has a robot head. And if you’re familiar with Andrew Hockraddle, he’s the MC for Creative South. That’s, this is like a Roomba, but it’s like an Andrew Roomba. So I did that one. And then this one friend of mine, she has.
[00:28:26] I asked her what, how she, did she name her? Now [00:28:30] it’s too dark. You see that? So then, do you see Veronica? Veronica loves phone cords, drumsticks, and rugs. So she likes to eat her Roomba. I mean, I have a D bot. It’s not even a Roomba, you know, but likes to eat. Um, and so I was just using a pen and a water brush, you know, and then I did, so these are all the little robots.
[00:28:51] Look, I tried to do one with a beard, clearly. He didn’t make the cut. Um, but then I did these little guys. I mean this is like [00:29:00] on a sheet that has other things. These are my, where I started the art rocks. And then I ended up doing another one. But there’s those little guys. But here’s what I did. So I took this Bonnie Christine class.
[00:29:10] Surface pattern design class. I relearned, got re educated about Illustrator. And then I got taught about a lot of surface pattern. So then, I took those, and I made, Paul thinks this looks like um, like a field, like a football field, but there’s Andrew! And I don’t have [00:29:30] Veronica, I should have probably put her in, but here are some of the other little ones.
[00:29:34] These are the two little ones. And, um, I just think it’s fun. So I took ones, things that I drew in 2019. So can you imagine, I have tons of these, right? You probably have tons of these. Aren’t we just sitting on, oh, they would be good boxers. I’m gonna have to write that down. Paul, send me a text to tell me that so I can write that down.
[00:29:56] Um, maybe I can go off your boxer companies. That sounds a [00:30:00] little creepy that I said go after, but you know what I mean. But y’all don’t need to know that I’m doing that, but I could still do that. Doesn’t mean that I can’t put all my time and effort into that thing. That’s what it means is I’m not going to have all my time and effort into that, but I’m going to put some time into that.
[00:30:20] And so what I ended up doing. What you could do maybe if you’re using Sketchbooks like I am. I see, look I made, I think these would be good [00:30:30] as scrubs or It’s gray and then um, and then look at the inside. These are screws It’s hard to see. I know the color just got weird I don’t know why it’s not focusing.
[00:30:42] Oh, there we go. Look at how fun! Just little screws and a fun pattern. I have them in all different ones. Now the color. Um, and then my little girl. I did her in church a long time ago. And I made a sticker out of her. I really liked her. She’s like a vacuum. You see? [00:31:00] See how she’s like a vacuum? Anyway, and then this is another pattern, but I ended up changing it because it was, it’s like the robot squiggles.
[00:31:09] So. But what are we sitting on? Why can’t that be something that makes us money? It doesn’t have to be the only thing we do. I think in design and in creative, um, pursuits, if we do, if I do only one thing, I am [00:31:30] boring Betty. I always hate, it’s always a girl, it’s negative. Boring But I guess I’m a girl, so whatever.
[00:31:37] Anyway, I, I think To me, just being able to say out loud, Hey, you know what? I don’t want to do it just one way. That doesn’t fit me, and I’m going to be okay spending Mondays working on patterns, and Tuesdays, and Wednesdays, and Thursdays working on, um, [00:32:00] web stuff. And then Thursday and Friday working on community things and Saturday and Sunday doing the other thing, the admin and the, um, marketing stuff, you know, maybe, maybe it can work, right?
[00:32:16] I don’t know. I don’t know if it will, but I know that I’ve found some things that are working for me. The patterns are really fun. And it’s you, what it felt [00:32:30] like was all this that I’ve been doing. I mean, I have so many sketchbooks. So many. Just even right here, but I have tons of these. These are my favorites.
[00:32:39] These are called Illo’s. Illo? Is it Illo’s sketchbook? Look, there’s a Save the Bees smiley graphic. Look, there’s a Getting Work to Work. Um, but the Illo’s are, my favorites because they can take water. Oh, this is the other one I wanted to show. So, you know, in, um, [00:33:00] in February, I do Love on Designers, which I guess it could be Love on Creatives, but I don’t feel like changing that one because I already own Love on Designers.
[00:33:08] So I’m just going to keep it. So I have all these things and I used to, um, starting in December, January, I would start doing all these designs that were based on love or something, right? And so I did. Prayed over I did love on the rocks. That one could be [00:33:30] something. I don’t know why the oven may be Baked in love.
[00:33:34] I don’t know But then I did these on off switches and I’ll show you what I was doing with that Let’s see if I can find it. Oh, here it is. So I was really gonna do this one I thought this would be a fun sticker or a fun card But it was love on someone, I was going to be loved and I crossed it out. So love, it’s on, [00:34:00] and then someone, and see that the O was the screw, I thought that was, it’s not centered.
[00:34:06] I know, I could work on that, but this is just a first sketch. But then I was figuring out how to do the ons, you know, I don’t even drink coffee, but I did make. I think I made something with this, um, I think I ended up using this keep art in your heart. I used something with heart. I took that text, but it’s like, let’s just have some fun, [00:34:30] you know, and like have something that I do certain amount of time of the year.
[00:34:35] Or like I’m going to do these birds and, oh, there’s Bruce. There’s the first Bruce, mine, that one didn’t make the cut anyway, but like what, what could I iterate on from here? And then maybe it ends up in patterns or maybe it ends up in a, uh, uh, pattern in a website, you know, or, or maybe it just ends up as a [00:35:00] sticker for me.
[00:35:00] But if I don’t have those little things to do those that are splintering, I I actually don’t think I would be. You, you know, so anyway, I don’t, this, there was nothing. I just feel splintered. I feel forced, feel like we are told to do one thing. And I do think for our clients, we need to tell people if I’m trying to get work as a web designer, that’s in that space of, um, real [00:35:30] estate or.
[00:35:31] Real estate photography or interior design, then I need to tell people, I want people when they see interior designer and the interior designer is asking, do you know anybody who does websites? I want you to be like, oh yeah, Diane Gibbs, she does those and that’s really important. But then if you’re not doing some of these other things, these other things could make money.
[00:35:51] These could be buckets. Um, I hope that my. designs will make money, even if it’s just me putting it on [00:36:00] Spoonflower and selling it there, or just having it for sale. Really, success is just finishing it and putting it. I’m going to try. That’s my next thing is I’m trying to get three collections complete. I have 12 patterns in that one in two colorways.
[00:36:17] The blue and pink is one, and then I have a green and purple, but I haven’t done the copyright yet. I watched the videos, John Ingalls, and there is a video on if you’re American, [00:36:30] uh, United States American citizen, because I guess there’s America and Canada and America and South America and Central America.
[00:36:38] So anyway, if you’re a United States person, then you can do the copyright and, and I just need to do it. And you can do 10 at a time, 10 patterns, not colors. They don’t, you don’t have to do colors anyway. That’s what I’m going to do. And then once I get three collections, that means 36 patterns, really 36 times [00:37:00] two, because you have two colorways at least, but I might do a mini.
[00:37:02] Anyway, I can tell you a whole nother conversation about that. But, um, that’s, that’s what’s next. But really, For my students. I mean, it helps them, I think maybe it helps some of the people in my groups that are doing those things, but then, um, does it really help my web people, but I have been using patterns on their website, it gives them extra something that they don’t always have.
[00:37:28] So I’m trying to [00:37:30] match something for their style and who they are. So it helps me set me apart. Um, But it’s not necessarily something I, but for people who are buying, I want them to think of me in that way. Anyway, so I’m splintered. I have divided focus and I’m okay with it for right now. I’m sure if I’m really tight with money or if I’m really, it’s really hurting, I’m hurting, then it won’t be, and then I need to go on one path.
[00:37:57] But for right now, for me, [00:38:00] I’m on a four path, four paths, people, web, well, three paths. People, web, and illustration. Illustration is encompassing any paintings, any, um, because all that kind of gets smooshed together to me. Illustrations are a little different, I mean, than a painting, but I still think I’m learning some of the same things that I need, and I could think about other uses for some of those paintings that would [00:38:30] maybe be licensing.
[00:38:31] It’s, now it’s freezing in here. Feels like I’m sick, but I’m not. I’m not under the weather. Anyway, now y’all know my under the weather joke. So maybe I’ll do a card like that. Are you under the weather anyway? And I’m the only one that thinks that’s funny, clearly. Anyway, um, I hope that maybe this was, I don’t have an answer, but that’s what I’m going to do and I will share it with you as I learn and as I go.
[00:38:58] And, [00:39:00] um, I just am thankful. that you show up and, thank you Amy, um, she said she thinks it’s funny and it would make a good card. Um, I’ll send it to you, Amy. Um, but the tomorrow, not tomorrow, not tomorrow, next Wednesday, Matt Wood. He won’t be under the weather, I hope, but we want him to be, um, full of Matt Wood energy.
[00:39:28] And so. [00:39:30] We just postponed. And you know what? We just had a day and I almost didn’t do it at all today because I was like, I took, I haven’t, well, I didn’t even have a graphic for today because I was doing this other stuff over the weather. So under the weather is If you are feeling bad, you might say, well, I’m a little under the weather.
[00:39:50] Um, so it might be a phrasing thing and you know, I’m, I am just thankful you’re here because English isn’t in your first language. It’s my only language. [00:40:00] So I’m just thankful that you’re here. Um, but maybe we just need to try. I would love to know what you are, what three paths, four paths, five paths you’re on.
[00:40:12] And. I hope you understand, I do think for our businesses, we have to be clear about that. But I do think these other things, I think what I was being told to do is only do one. And every time I think about that, it just makes me, I [00:40:30] don’t know, feel like half a person. I feel like it’s not me. So. I couldn’t do it.
[00:40:37] And, oh, she said she knows about it, but over. Okay. I will see you next week with Matt Wood and hopefully he will be over the weather and um, thank you for coming today and just appreciate you being in my community and you can always put stuff in the chat, um, down below if you’re watching on YouTube and you [00:41:00] can give it a thumbs up and a like, and if you were here live, you can always go do that.
[00:41:05] But, thank you, thanks for just listening, and I don’t have it figured out, I don’t, probably won’t, but, I don’t know, I think we don’t have to fit in everybody else’s lane. We just have to be in ours, and it might be multi lane, I’m a multi lane girl. Alright, see you next week![00:41:30]