The Inspiration Grid …!

(Snippits from our oh so popular Digital Glue Podcast!)

By definition, inspiration is the process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something, especially to do something creative.

And as such, being an entrepreneur and building a business from the ground up requires an endless well of inspiration. It’s a massive part of what keeps us going, allowing us to think outside the box by removing it altogether, pivot and adapt when needed, create original and attractive offerings and have FUN while doing it!

People have probably told you that when you love what you do, that energy comes through your work and vibes, attracting people to your personal magic. Creativity and inspiration give us the boost we need to project happiness and excitement into our craft. And it makes people WANT to work with us.

So, where can we find inspiration?

How do we recognize when we have hit a slump and need new invigorating ideas?

Are we kind enough to ourselves to allow us to take a minute and breathe to get that boost?

Our bodies and minds give us clues when we could use a good shot of inspiration. We commonly feel physically tired, unmotivated, unexcited, and frustrated. Our brain block creates a cycle of frustration, fatigue, and mood shifts, and not the good kind. Now, you’re probably wondering … How can one clear the “mood fog” and feel excited again? Our team here at Virtually Untangled has uncovered a handful of things that help us lift the mood, clear through the fog, invigorate our souls and get those glorious creative juices flowing. And the very FIRST thing on the list is REST.

Honouring the need for rest is counterintuitive to how we have been taught a hardworking person exists. In our day ‘n age, if you are not going full speed with 24-hour-a-day accessibility, you tend to feel lazy and unaccomplished. But … The positive swing on that pendulum is that the importance of self-care and mental health is so prevalent in society now. Some of my favourite authors and teachers have written books that will change your mindset and life on this topic. They have certainly been game-changers for me.

One of my absolute favourite people in the world is author and journalist Elizabeth Gilbert who always says:

Don't abandon your creativity the moment things stop being easy or rewarding, because that's the moment when interesting begins.

So, what can we do to physically and mentally rest?

Feeling creatively blocked will strain our physical selves and mental state. The first on the list is sleep!

You cannot pour from an empty bucket. And sometimes, just getting the basic human need of good old-fashioned solid REM sleep will help turn the tide.

Next up is doing our very favourite things list, like a much-loved movie marathon, a good hearty meal and a chat with your bestie. That will give you a shot of endorphins and put more tools in your well-being toolbox.

A great tip during this time is to turn off the sounds of your digital devices when people are “scratching at your door” to get access to you. It can even inspire something inside of you to change the boundaries you created for yourself and your working life. Maybe you are running yourself too ragged, which may just be what the doctor ordered to inspire you inspired … MORE TIME to just quietly be.

2020 created a lot of demands on businesses to adapt to circumstances we’ve never seen before. And often, businesses had to completely recreate themselves. However, it has also provided something we have never been offered before — the downtime to be quiet and hear our thoughts. It’s a time of reevaluating our lives, goals, dreams, and what we want our future to look like. So, for all of the tremendous loss and challenges the pandemic presented, on the brighter side of things, we have seen a shift in how the working world has said, “Okay, maybe it’s time to slow down and create better balance in our lives.”

The rebranding and recreating of businesses allow so much creativity to flow. (And I genuinely LIVE for that DREAM. Not only for myself but for others too!) Sometimes it’s because the businesses were on the ropes and had to shift QUICKLY to stay afloat. That leads us to our second inspiration strategy: looking at what other people in your industry are doing.

What’s new? What’s interesting? What’s trending? Who’s inspiring?

Asking your creative friends what they are up to is also a fantastic way to hear new ideas that may light a spark within. These strange times have taught us that people are incredibly resilient, creative, accommodating, and always looking for what can make a work-life balance more successful. Seeing what others are doing and creating and how they are saving themselves is inspiring in and of itself. To see people happy, living their dream, and adapting so well to hard times that the new face of their business works even better than before. That positivity will excite and prepare you to hop on that happy train.

So, if you are now excited about new business ideas, it’s time to learn something new!

Take a virtual class and dip your toe into the wide world of knowledge!

It can shift your brain to new ways of thinking, injecting a ton of creativity and inspirational moments into your life.

I have been countless times wandering around my favourite bookstore … Picking up books by authors I have never heard of to try something NEW. And then, some of that specific book changed my life forever!

Planting thought seeds shifts the way we think. And that will inspire a person to see things differently and even walk a new path without all the fear.

The effect of that life-changing book then became a series of books that landed in my life quite organically without me seeking them out. This then created a flow of energy that inspired so much of the creative sources for my business. Books are POWERFUL and can transform us from the inside out. One of my favourite quotes by Dee Hock is …

Clean out a carrier of your mind, and creativity will instantly fill it.

Another way to get inspired is by trying something new — a hobby, an experience, a recipe …! I am an avid at-home chef and baker. I’m truly a foodie by all accounts, and something that really feeds my soul is learning about that subject. I also love to paint, create art … and not just digitally! So, watching an online class or reading about fun techniques is something that truly feeds my soul and gets me excited about my artwork, a passion from my personal life that literally infuses into my business. I feel mentally inspired, which resonates in everything I do here at Virtually Untangled. Gives everything a fresh new feeling. It sometimes even takes me down a new creative path I have yet to explore. So, sometimes when we are disciplined and hardworking, we forget to give ourselves little nuggets of “soul food” in our days. You know … The things that we feel in our hearts that we truly desire but may feel guilty taking the time to do.

As the fabulously brilliant Glennon Doyle says …

If you feel something calling you to dance, write, paint, or sing, please refuse to worry about whether you are good enough. Just do it. Be generous. Offer a gift to the world that no one else can offer: yourself.

Okay …

Now let’s talk about giving yourself a simple change of scenery – which is our FIFTH tip.

A quick trip in the car, a walk in the woods, or maybe even an entire weekend away can give you just the rest and quiet you need to allow the new thoughts to flow. Most days, we just sit in our workspaces … Day in and day out. Then we fall into routines that are comforting but stale. We find ourselves going through the motions of our day without even realizing we are feeling STUCK! We get bogged down with all the “busy work” of our days that we forget to stop and create something new. And then, when a client comes to us and asks for work that demands creativity … We must put on our inspiration hat – even when we are just not feeling it.

So, sometimes that just means a desire to leave the “normal day” behind and see if we can find something new that sparks our attention. And hopefully, that spark leads to new thoughts, which turn into jaw-dropping ideas. And that accomplishment alone will create happiness. And we all know what happens when we are happy working people!

Another tried, and true method for becoming inspired is journaling.

Keeping a notebook at our fingertips to scribble down thoughts that we have or that just come to us “at the moment” can be a powerful resource.

Sifting through those thoughts later can flick a switch inside our souls and start a train of thought that you may have forgotten you had once upon a time. It is helpful to have an ideas notebook, even when you know you don’t have the time or resources to jump into that project now. It’s a great way to always keep a hold of your dreams and ideas.

I am an admittedly overly organized person – And I feel that organization is one of my love languages. It brings me peace and order, which can then shine through in my work.

Making lists is another way to quiet the “busy work” and shift that cluttered brain space leaving room for new thoughts and ideas.

The habit of jotting down these inner conversations cleanses room for new thoughts. It makes me more concise in my tasks and clear in my conversations with others. It’s a highly healthy habit for people to adopt.

This also goes hand-in-hand with my next thought on inspiration … Vision boards!

Think about what you want for your life and start envisioning it. Collect pictures, quotes, colours and words that depict this life and bring them together all in one place. This can be a collection of every aspect of your life, even beyond your business, like hobbies, travel, food, education, and people you admire. There is a very cool virtual vision board phenomenon called Pinterest … Yes, we have all heard of it and love it! I am a huge lover of all things Pinterest, and when someone sees my virtual boards, I feel like it presents a perfect snapshot of me and what makes me tick, what I love, what I want to create myself into – or just create — and what I want to do.

So, when I need inspiration- personally or professionally- I pop in there for a quick looksie and let the inspiration take over!

There are millions upon millions of ideas in there. Consider it your virtual playground for sparking that bright shining light on the projects you’re working on or even your daily routine. Even if you desire to create something new and exciting for a client! The opportunity for NEW ideas is endless. And you even have the luxury of curating your collection of these ideas to help you remember your thoughts and dreams in moments of great inspiration.

When we work within deadlines, sometimes, we don’t have the luxury of being as creative as we’d like. We just need to get the work done on time and within the limits presented.

What if we decided to work on a project without deadlines and pressure? Just for the sake of creating and to see what inspires us?

Well, it’s simple … You can set aside some time to sit with your materials, experiment and create whatever comes to mind without the pressure of those dreaded time crunch deadlines. This process of experimentation is liberating and exciting and can spark some truly beyond-amazing ideas. You may even develop new processes or templates to help you with future projects.

And truthfully, you could discover a better way to present new work to your clients and have the pleasure of being creatively inspired at the same time.

It’s TIME to do what you love and make it even better. To enjoy the love of the work .. Without the pressure of a hard-driven timeline.

And lastly … circling back to reading a new book.

Often, I have been encouraged to read the classics. And there is a reason they are called just that. The simplicity in that itself can foster peace and new waves of thoughts …

Maybe this can be simplified, maybe it doesn't have to be so complicated, maybe my work can be just as good and fulfilling if I approach it from a simpler view.

Simple, reliable, constant, classic — these concepts hold a lot of respect and elegance just by being themselves. Having that kind of confidence in your work will also attract people to want to work with you.

Reading a classic book is almost the opposite of the warp speed of life that we find ourselves in, in our current business world. Information is coming at you from all directions at a pace and steadiness that is hard to keep up with. And even hard to process at times. One of the most significant factors in the way the world now works is the use of social media, which brings me to my final idea … What can seem like endless platforms to navigate, endless messages to weed through, and the assumption that we should be available at the *PING! of a send button. This virtual overload is a considerable barrier to creative thinking and causes us to seek inspiration to quiet the noise.

So, how can we switch the story around and make our work unique while making social media work for us and bringing us joy-filled inspiration instead of brain fog?

The upside to this enormous well is that boundless amounts of good content are out there. And exciting people to follow that can give you snippets of happiness, love, and light goodness to surge the “drag of the day.”

So, take a few moments every day to find and follow accounts that align with how you like to live your own life, people who share your hobbies, people who are masters of the things you want to master, and especially folks who make you laugh. They will teach you things that will set a steady stream of ideas in motion. Utilizing the many resources we have – right at our fingertips — can change the way we think about our business, those of our clients, and the way we work and can even help bring fresh inspirations into our routine-based world! The happiness from finding and sharing all this inspiration will not only inspire others to do better and be better but will resonate and reflect what you send out into the world and those around you.

So, take a quiet moment to yourself once in a while and refill that inspiration bank!

WANT MORE DIGITAL GLUE (FROM OUR PODCAST)?

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Crystal Kordalchuk

Crystal is an artist, a writer, an organizer, a dreamer, a doer, and down-right proud of it NERD!.

Struck with a love for #AllThings creative at a very young age, Crystal dreamed of a life fueled by her passion for creating and bringing the stories and images in her mind into reality.

As she worked toward her dreams, she earned a diploma as a Computer Applications Specialist then another in Graphic Design and from there began to develop her extensive background in multimedia and the arts. She began her worked in the magazine industry as a layout designer and had a succession of design jobs thereafter. It was her role as a graphic/web designer that gave her the first real glimpse of her future. Soon she began a side job as a freelance designer while keeping one foot in the corporate world. A spark was lit! She turned her freelance gig into a full-time business combining design work with her other passion: creating organization from virtual chaos.

Crystal is one of the most organized individuals on the planet. She is by all means a Zen master of her crafts. She excels at helping others become “untangled” and provides her clients with tools to run their businesses smoothly while she takes care of the details behind the scenes. Thus Virtually Untangled was born. A successful business where her work as a top notch creative in graphic and web — with a twist of virtual assistant — married into one amazing place where clients can come with their virtual messes and become magically untangled. Crystal can always make sense of even the most unorganized chaos and offers a virtual detox of order and peace, so her clients can get busy doing the work that they love the most.

The Inspiration Grid …!

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Crystal Kordalchuk

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