Thursday, January 16, 2014

Creativity Takes Control

Important New Discovery!

Taming creative hurricanes

There comes a time when the swirl of projects, plans, failures, and successes becomes a hurricane of disaster. I seem to live in a place where cyclones happen more frequently inside my studio/office than on the weather report. Perhaps this can be called "creative chaos" -- that sounds positive!

I admit to being a creative junkie. There, I said it! From creating websites, to making and selling jewelry, designing newsletters, cards, and prints — there is a lot of activity here. Lots of papers, receipts, bills, plans, ideas, and especially to-do lists. Mailing supplies, postage printers (2), supply bins, stored completed items, file folders, and back-up drives and equipment — all claim a bite out of my space.  When a huge project comes along and demands full attention, these "space invaders" try to claim more territory and settle in shifty new places.

Making a gorgeous newsletter or website from overly dark photos and 25 articles with 25 formats and even more fonts is simple when compared with playing lion tamer to my creative space's tornado aftermath. But I made a discovery!

Replanting everything in new places only works for just a blip in time. I needed a new modus operandi.  Decisions had to be made. Every paper and folder was evicted and subjected to intense interrogation. Ancient receipts and statements were tossed in one box with their days numbered. Archived papers in other categories got flipped to the trash barrel. How was this newly possible? Aha! the agent of change is a very large paper shredder.

Arriving just yesterday, this hungry beast ate up years of history in an hour and freed up much space. It worked speedily and quietly, only asking for a sip of oil now and again. There is a new best buddy sitting beside me now. I must find more for it to devour! I know just where to look . . .

Next, some equipment and furniture will play musical chairs to reorganize the printers, but that's a tale for another time.

Happy New Year!

Find me online:
www.Lehane.biz
www.Lehane.org

2 comments:

  1. That definitely strikes a chord with me, Lehane! Out with the old, in with the new and then out with some more old until you've got room to move!

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  2. You got it! Sold some older tech items on ebay, donated others to a local charity today, tossed and shredded. Much easier to take a deep breath now!

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