Keep It Real

Image via Wikipedia

I read an article on Hilary Swank earlier this week and something she said struck me as insightful: “You can sit back, or you can go after your life and all that you want it to be.”

Hilary grew up without much money, living in a trailer park. She didn’t have things handed to her on a silver platter. She decided what she wanted her life to look like and pursued it with a passion. Things didn’t always turn out the way she wanted–she was fired once and her career had a few ups and downs–but she made the best out of every situation that was dealt to her and never gave up. She says about when bad things happen and when life doesn’t go as planned, “I get depressed, I cry. I have my feelings and I don’t gloss over them. But then, after that, I pick myself up, brush myself off, and say, ‘Why did this happen? What am I supposed to learn?’”

I admire her spirit. Reading that article got me thinking about two things: 1) What do I really want from life? What do I want my life to be about? 2) Why do I so often just hope things will work out? To achieve something worthwhile, I’ve got to put in the effort–even if that means a few bumps along the way. Don’t be afraid to take the risk of failure, because I can’t accomplish anything of value without taking that risk.

I don’t hate networking but I do love this book by Devora Zack! Zack takes pieces of advice typically offered to those striving to be more effective networkers and turns them around to help those who don’t consider themselves extroverts. If you’re more comfortable sitting down with someone over a cup of coffee than schmoozing with a crowded roomful of people, you’ve got to give this a read. I love the book because it offers some fantastic, practical advice on how to really connect with people on a deeper level and grow your business as a result. Zack is also an entertaining writer and you’ll find yourself laughing out loud as you’re reading some sections!

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about growth and change, and the idea of kaizen–the Asian philosophy of small, continuous improvement. I love the concept of kai (“change”) zen (“good”) because it encourages making tiny changes and taking bite-sized risks that lead to growth. The whole idea behind kaizen is to promote growth while maintaining the freedom of creative thinking. Since large changes (whether good or bad) cause a physical stress reaction that leads to a fight-or-flight mindset, making small changes allows the mind to continue functioning at a high, creative level while benefiting from the growth that change produces. Very cool concept.

Do something different today!

“The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.” -Aristotle

I love art because it often makes you look at things with a new perspective. I was looking at an art piece recently that, at first glance, was not that beautiful–clashing colors, so many things going on in the piece, a lot of chaos. But as I continued looking at it, elements of beauty started to stand out–a soothing shape, a really beautiful color that, when you focused on it, created this sense of happiness. The piece started making more sense as a whole as I looked at it. Isn’t that like life? Hectic, chaotic, sometimes not incredibly pretty. But beauty and happiness are there if you stop and let them reveal themselves. Life isn’t like a Thomas Kinkade print–it’s not all ethereal light and perfect gardens. It’s more like a piece of art that’s hard to understand at first, but by the time you finish looking at it, you realize that you appreciate it more because of its complexity.

We were shopping at Whole Foods yesterday and picked up a watermelon. One of the things I love about Whole Foods is that they tell you about the food–what it is, where it came from. The sign on the watermelon table said “Charleston Gray Watermelons.”

John must have been bored while he was waiting on me to finish answering emails last night, because he Googled “Charleston Gray Watermelons” and found out some interesting things. The hybrid was first developed in Charleston, SC in 1954. This particular variety of watermelon has a high sugar content so it tastes delicious and a hard rind so it gets damaged less easily. Over time, growers moved on to more modern hybrids like the seedless varieties, so today they are not nearly as common as they once were. But most modern American watermelon varieties have Charleston Gray in their lineage.

As he was telling me all of this, an interesting thing happened. I started to actually appreciate that watermelon! Before it was just a watermelon and I didn’t give it a second thought. Once I got to know it a little better, I realized that, hey, it’s a special watermelon! It got me thinking: once you get to know something, you tend to appreciate it more. (I guess there are exceptions to this, like cockroaches and such, but for things that you would otherwise take for granted, I think it’s true). If you’re trying to add more gratefulness to your life (I am!), this is a sure way to do it. Get to know everything from the tree growing in your front yard to that acquaintance you have coffee with every so often. It sounds kind of silly, but try it and you’ll be surprised how it enriches your life!

Spent some time over coffee with some great people today, and it made me realize how blessed I am to have such wonderful and thoughtful friends. If you have a few people in your life who are there for you, say kind words, and do sweet things for you, you are blessed!

Well, tomorrow I am closing Northstar Creative (my company). I started the company back in January of 2007 because I loved design and wanted to help businesses look better and sell more stuff. Over time, my passion for design took a back seat and the dream of building a million-dollar company got in the driver’s seat.

I’ve come to realize that building a million-dollar, famous company is not what I want to do in life. I want to do fabulous design that inspires people and helps my clients. So, I’m taking the leap and devoting myself to the work. I have mixed feelings–part of me is sad to see Northstar go, since I devoted three and a half years of my life to it. Part of me is excited and looks forward to being true to my passion.

I truly believe that taking this path, I can produce better work and do a better job for my clients. And I think I will be happier too. I’m looking forward to this new chapter!

If you want to visit online, check out my new site: lauramacpherson.com.

I recently bought these fabulous plates by designer Thomas Paul. I love the mood he achieved in the designs–they are inspired by Portland, one of the greenest cities in America. A city that’s surrounded by forests and nature, yet cultured and cosmopolitan. Paul has done an amazing job of capturing the essence of Portland in these designs. Love them.

Ok, so I guess I’m officially a Jamie Oliver groupie–I now own three of his cookbooks: Cook with Jamie, Jamie’s Italy, and Jamie’s Food Revolution. I’m now cooking nearly everything from scratch. There are a whole lot more fresh fruits and veggies (organic when possible!) in the fridge, and a whole lot less boxes in the freezer. I’m even making breakfasts now from scratch (what?!).

This is coming from someone whose best cooking specialty used to be opening a box of spaghetti and a bottle of sauce and a bag of pre-made salad. I now even know how to make my own salad dressing and pesto, and the correct way to chop an onion.

All this seems kind of silly to get excited over, but I love it! It’s so enjoyable to eat fresh and know what’s going into my food. And it’s fun trying new recipes.

I think I’ve found myself a new hobby.