A while ago, I was inspired to write a blog post about joy, which sparked ideas for 3 more blog posts on a similar subject AND made me realise that there is a theme that has run through everything I’ve written about in the last 10 years or so.

The theme of finding joy in the everyday. Finding the joy in my life and in my work.

I’ve been on what I’d describe as a work-lifestyle change journey for over 10 years. I knew I didn’t like the work life I had, but I didn’t really know what it was I wanted.

So I experimented. And I had coaching, both 1:1 and in group programmes. I took opportunities to do new things outside my working life, like volunteering for local charities and community events. I started and maintained several blogs. I did courses to learn about fields I was interested in. And I followed my curiosity and creative nudges.

Eventually, I found the right combination that includes freelancing, a creative life and being a mum! It’s a combination that still changes as I come across new challenges, new opportunities and as I continue to learn about myself.

But there were things along the way that were fundamental to being able to make those changes. And many of those are the things I talk about on this blog.

Noticing the world

I slowed down, went for walks, took photos, wrote creative pieces and poems with observations about my surroundings. Gave myself space in my weeks to do those things. 

Understanding myself

I did a few different personality profile tests which helped me to find my strengths, to see the themes in the way I worked, to understand where I sit in the creative cycle, and helped me to identify the types of people I can work well with.

I read books about creativity and about personal development. I wrote notes and blog posts and journaled about what I was learning.

Exploring and experimenting

I joined group challenges and courses, working alongside others who were on a similar journey to freelance and “free range” life. Trying out new ideas and regularly evaluating my progress, both practically and assessing how the types of activities made me feel.

Communities

I became part of freelance communities online, as well as trying out a range of networking groups locally. Making freelance and creative friends, and meeting people who might one day become clients or collaborators.

Visibility

And I shared what I was doing, in blog posts like this one, and on social media. Both with the online groups I was in, and with my social media connections and friends.

So what did all that tell me?

The most important part of that journey for me was and still is the exploring and experimenting. Both with the ideas and with how I set up my days and weeks. That was what led me to do all the other things. It’s at the centre of all of it.

After doing a few mini creative projects, and deciding that I didn’t want to BE a professional creative writer or photographer, I realised what those two things were to me. They were about noticing the world around me and synthesising and expressing it in my own unique way.

By mixing with different communities and networks, I discovered that my favourite type of people to work with were other people who are creative and who embrace that in themselves – in particular those who are big picture thinkers with a million ideas, because they need someone practical and detailed like me to make their ideas happen.

And the final piece of the jigsaw was identifying and articulating my red threads, my strengths, the every day tasks in my work that I love to do. Along with my understanding of the people I like to work with, this was fundamental in shaping the type of work I now look for.

What’s next?

But of course it doesn’t stop there. If you want to live a life that involves using your unique type of creativity, there’s always a new challenge, another layer to uncover.

My challenges right now are (1) how to be more visible and articulate my talents succinctly – so that people know what I do and ask me to work with them (2) how to make sure that on a daily basis I don’t lose sight of the important foundations I have laid, the values I have uncovered, the vision I have in my mind.

I think the framework I have set out above, my own framework for understanding and harnessing my creativity, could in fact form the basis for a book. And that’s something that can be created from this blog, as I have done with a couple of previous books I’ve self-published. I did say at the start of the year that I was going to write a book. I guess I’ve already made a start on that, even if it wasn’t quite how I planned to do it!

And I’d love to consider collaborations with big picture thinkers who have ideas for projects that relate to creativity, ideas and finding everyday joy in life and work.

What about you?

Where are you in this process of embracing your own creativity?

And what do you need help with to move you forwards?

Image copyright: Nina Lenton