You're Not Lazy - Book Review

Photo provided by Lara Wellman

Blog 46


Recently, I read Lara Wellman’s new book, You’re Not Lazy. Lara is a certified business coach who shows small business owners that they can create businesses they love that make money and still allow them to enjoy life. I met Lara at a business networking event many years ago. Since then, we have kept in contact during business or art events. We both love ways of creative expression.

On many occasions, I benefited from her business advice. Therefore, I wanted to return the favour and help her promote her book. I was excited that she chose me as a book ambassador even though I was not sure the book was for me.

Motivation is no problem for me. I am persistent and instead do too much rather than too little. I also create art most days, exercise regularly, and make time for family and friends. So why would I need a book about laziness? Nevertheless, I was curious what she had to say.

I knew after the first paragraph that Lara’s writing would resonate with me. I love her wits. She is approachable because of her ability to make fun of herself and show strength and vulnerability at the same time.

“I feel like I never learned to “adult” the way I was led to believe I would. I thought by a certain age, I would be tidier, more responsible, not forget to pay bills, and not want to spend my days on leisure activities. Truly! I feel I was promised that by the time I reached adulthood, I wouldn’t want to sleep in and that keeping the house tidy would kind of be like my hobby. That definitely never happened.”

I will turn 60 next year, and I still feel far from becoming a respectable and reasonable adult, putting dreams and needs on the back burner. However, maybe we only saw our parents and grandparents in this light because that is what society expected from them, and we didn’t look behind the facade.

“This book is about shifting how we see ourselves, re-imagining what it means to be successful, finding the energy to put towards the things we truly want, and starting to enjoy life more.” While looking back on her journey, she admits that her views come from a place of privilege. She has a husband and a family to support her. “Not everyone can change their lives for the better with nothing more than a mindset shift.”

While Lara tells about her struggles, most of us will find ourselves reflected in any of her stories. Therefore, we benefit from the lessons she has learned. Instead of seeing the insurmountable obstacles, Lara challenges us to see the possibilities by questioning the rules of our society that “puts value on the number of hours we put into things and how hard we work, and not on the output.” She offers thoughtful questions to allow readers to reflect on their own lives.

I come from a family of workaholics and didn’t want work to be the focus of my life. However, breaking out of that life I knew was more difficult than I expected. I quickly fell into the same trap, supported by the expectations at the office. I felt guilty when I started prioritizing my hobbies and enjoying beautiful summer days with friends on a workday. It took a terrible accident a couple of years ago to change my view.

Success is often a synonym for making much money in our society, but is it what it is really about? Lara shows us that success can have different meanings for different people. “When you begin to let go of the societal expectations that surround you and make you feel bad about yourself, you can start thriving.”

Instead of striving for the perfect outcome, she challenges us to enjoy the journey and to stretch ourselves out of our comfort zones to grow. “Stop waiting to arrive and ask yourself what the right next step is for you.”

 

I am sure everyone has struggled with not being enough. For example, consider an artist who works on a painting and gets frustrated with the progress. Art is a lifelong journey – like everything you learn. If you practice consistently, you will see progress.

A look at earlier pieces will show you the progress you have made. Acknowledge and celebrate the achievements along the way. Ask a peer for advice, or consider enrolling in additional workshops or classes to expand your skills and knowledge.

Remember that we always give our best at any given moment. “Just because things might be different (and maybe even better) later, doesn’t mean that what is true and real now isn’t of value. They both are amazing, and the world deserves to have them.”

​”There are people out there who are looking for someone just like you at exactly the stage you are at now to talk to them.”

If you want to shift your perspective and transform your life, you can find Lara Wellman’s book on Amazon in both e-book and print format.

You Have a Choice

Blog 11

 
Last week, I was disappointed and frustrated. A course I looked forward to sharing didn’t run because nobody signed up. I was questioning my path and how and if I should continue with my business.

image provided by M. Shannon Hernandez

Fortunately, the book Practical Joy by my coach M. Shannon Hernandez had only arrived days earlier. It is an easy read at less than 100 pages, but don’t let that fool you. There is a lot of information, exploration and inspiration on these pages.

Her three key points of making joy a choice are easy to remember:

1. Your joy is a daily practice.
2. Your joy is contagious.
3. Your joy is limitless. (page 84)

M. Shannon points out “that you have zero time to waste on things, people, relationships, and experiences that aren’t bringing you joy!” (page 12)

Each chapter contains her observations, suggestions for reflections, space to note your thoughts and a colouring page to get quiet and meditative.
 
It was interesting to read that the author thanked two creative instructors for helping her to “heal so many years of wounds and blocks around creativity,...” (page 97) They guided and supported her to rediscover and nurture her creative voice.

While M. Shannon talks about joy, her three key points are relevant to my mission to help you find and nurture your creativity. Being creative is a choice. Others might encourage or discourage you. However, your creative expression is foremost for yourself. You might decide to share it with others to inspire them to discover their voice, but first, you have to find yours.

“True joy will be yours when you find the courage to pull the weeds of achievement, never-ending to-do lists, and mediocre living.” (page 31)

Whenever I doubt my mission, I remember the joy art brings to my life. It has been there for me in good and challenging times. I want you to experience the same. Join me for a coffee date to see how I can support your journey. 

 

P.S. I continued my daily art projects. This week, I drew many people, which I will not share, to respect their privacy. The image of the lovely young woman in the collage is my daughter Christine, who turned 22 this week.

 

 

Book review: Sketch Your World by James Hobbs

Blog 13

This year, I will write a book report from time to time. Being an artist does not mean that you just have a given talent which lets you create beautiful art just by itself. Every artist wants to see progress. As with any other profession or ability you have to practice frequently and learn how to apply new techniques or materials to keep things interesting.

Last year, I decided that I wanted to draw more. I love painting but always taking your paints and boards along is not very practical. A camera is great but due to the lens distortion your photos do not necessarily give you an exact image of what you see. If you look at your photos you will also notice some colour differences between real object and photographed object.

As I am someone who is hardly ever sitting around not moving my hands, I was also looking for something to do while sitting on a bus or waiting for an appointment.

I usually take my camera when I am on a trip, or even for a walk with my dog. However, there are situations, when I would like to capture my interpretation of the people and things around me. For the longest time, I felt intimidated by the drawings of other artists who seemed so accomplished and able to draw so beautifully. Being a rather slow painter, I was afraid to just go out and try to capture the fast moving world around me.

Then I came across the book “sketch your world - essential techniques for drawing on location” by James Hobbs.

I was immediately hooked when I read in his introduction that the purpose of drawing is to “express yourself” and to “record your experiences” with “the simplest materials”. I always tell my students that even if they will never become a famous painter just by really observing the world around them, they will see things most people just overlook. Many people do not take the time to appreciate how the change in light changes the appearance of the elements of nature and creates certain moods. You can go to the same spot for many times and will produce a different painting every time. Monet and his water lilies are a great example for this experiment.

If you have ever gone on a plein air painting trip, you know that packing lightly is one of the most important rules if you want to be able to reach even areas which are off the main road. This was the big draw for me. I wanted to be able to take something with me which was light and easily transportable.

A sketch pad, pencil, eraser and sharpener are ideal. They fit in every little purse.

Hobbs’ advice that “there is no right way or wrong way to do things” and that you should find your own expression of what you see, gave me the confidence to get started. Sketching is not about what others see in your drawings but a way to express yourself in your own way, like creating your own shorthand. It is not about drawing what your camera can capture but your interpretation of what you see.

Hobbs gives a good overview of drawing tools, even mentioning digital tools before he takes the reader through the first section of “Getting Started”, discussing everything from dealing with on-lookers to locations for drawing. He talks about using what you see to put pieces together to create something new. As an artist you can always make changes to your composition, add or omit objects, join different views. Your options are endless.

Hobbs’ examples of sketches from other artists confirm that everyone has a unique style. Sketching is not like painting by numbers. It is like writing a journal: It is for keeping your very personal memories. Your sketching style will reflect your personality.

Hobbs gives lots of tips on how to draw in general as well as concentrating on certain subjects, like buildings, parks, people, and night time. I also like the information Hobbs gives with regard to social media, and joining drawing groups like the sketchcrawl.

So whether you think about getting into sketching, or want more information about ways to document the world around this is an excellent book.

To have a quick look at the book and its content please go to https://youtu.be/6Facje92jGA.

Here is the information for the book again:

Sketch Your World - Essential Techniques For Drawing on Location

Author: James Hobbs

ISBN-13: 978-1-4403-3141-3.

Have you used this book as a resource? If so, what do you think? Do you have any other sketching resources you can recommend? It would be great if you would share them in a comment.