Guidance for when the fear of criticism hinders your creative growth
How can I stop being interrupted by self-criticism every time I’m about to create? In this episode, we explore our relationship to criticism— whether it's feedback we receive from someone else, or from ourselves (ie: inner critic). We take a look at what the resistance we feel around it, and discern constructive vs destructive criticism so we can set boundaries (with others and ourselves) to receive and use feedback in a helpful way.
How can I stop being interrupted by self-criticism every time I’m about to create? In this episode, we explore our relationship to criticism— whether it's feedback we receive from someone else, or from ourselves (ie: inner critic). We take a look at what the resistance we feel around it, and discern constructive vs destructive criticism so we can set boundaries (with others and ourselves) to receive and use feedback in a helpful way.
Some pointers for asking constructive feedback:
Approach feedback with an open-mind, as an opportunity for personal growth. Keep an open mind before seeking any feedback, be it from others or your inner critic.
Select the right source: carefully choose someone whose opinion you value. Seek feedback from individuals who understand your work and can provide valuable insights.
Express your vulnerability: be honest about your apprehensions. Acknowledge your vulnerability by sharing your feelings: "I’m seeking feedback on my work, and it feels vulnerable. I’m looking to enhance my skills and would appreciate specific pointers."
Evaluate the feedback: when you receive feedback, assess its nature. Distinguish between constructive criticism and destructive comments. Set boundaries; if it doesn't benefit you, gently let it go. Seek clarification, ask for examples, and delve deeper to ensure you receive specific feedback.
Detach from self-worth: remember, feedback does not define your self-worth. It is aimed at improving your skills as an artist or business owner. Choose to reflect and respond thoughtfully, instead of reacting emotionally. Embrace feedback as a tool for growth and development.
Loving reminder: You don't have to do anything with the feedback you receive. You're the best person to know how/if it serves you. ;) Setting boundaries around the type of feedback you're open to receive might be helpful.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
Navigating anxiety + perfectionism with psychotherapist Tara McRae
In this episode, Tara and I dive into some of the misconceptions we might have about anxiety, panic and perfectionism, chat about creating a safe space within, look at how we can learn to hear our true voice and differentiate it from our anxiety state, and gathering the courage to share our different opinions.
In this episode, Tara and I dive into some of the misconceptions we might have about anxiety, panic and perfectionism, chat about creating a safe space within, look at how we can learn to hear our true voice and differentiate it from our anxiety state, and gathering the courage to share our different opinions.
About Tara
Tara McRae (she/her) is a Registered Social Worker, Psychotherapist working out of Ottawa, Ontario. She is a multi passionate and creative human, working with young adults experiencing the weight of anxiety in a pursuit driven world, the neurodiverse who have struggled to find the right therapeutic service and couples looking to rebuild connection.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
A meditation to ground yourself through an unsettling transformation
This is a short meditation practice to hold yourself steady in the thick of an unsettling transformation. These moments can be challenging, and if you find yourself in one now, I want to acknowledge your courage and invite you to cultivate compassion for yourself. I'm here with you, and I hope this meditation helps anchor you in this uncertain journey.
This is a short meditation practice to hold yourself steady in the thick of an unsettling transformation. These moments can be challenging, and if you find yourself in one now, I want to acknowledge your courage and invite you to cultivate compassion for yourself. I'm here with you, and I hope this meditation helps anchor you in this uncertain journey.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
Guidance for when the fear of failure hinders your creative success
How can I overcome the fear of failing at my dreams? At times, we might hold ourselves back from pursuing a path because it might fail, or we feel scared to take action because, well... What if it doesn't work out? What if we invest our precious energy, time, and money into something that ultimately fails? In this episode, we explore our relationship with failure and how avoiding setbacks might hinder our growth. What if we used challenges as creative fuel? I'll be sharing thoughts and guidance on reframing our relationship with failure, drawing inspiration from athletes.
How can I overcome the fear of failing at my dreams? At times, we might hold ourselves back from pursuing a path because it might fail, or we feel scared to take action because, well... What if it doesn't work out? What if we invest our precious energy, time, and money into something that ultimately fails? In this episode, we explore our relationship with failure and how avoiding setbacks might hinder our growth. What if we used challenges as creative fuel? I'll be sharing thoughts and guidance on reframing our relationship with failure, drawing inspiration from athletes.
Journaling prompts:
What unexpected opportunities might arise from this situation?
How can I turn this failure into a plot twist in my life's story?
If this were a puzzle, what are the missing pieces I need to find?
What role did courage play in my attempt, and how can I honor that courage going forward?
If I were a superhero, what superpower would help me overcome this obstacle?
What if failure were just a dress rehearsal for spectacular success?
If my life were a canvas, how would I paint over this mistake to create a masterpiece?
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
Embracing our colourful minds with Brandon from Happy Tears
In this conversation, Brandon and I dive into the colourful spectrum of emotions as he shares his journey into creating Happy Tears and The Connect Deck, his perspective on finding the balance between self-improvement and allowing yourself to just be, his exciting new collaborations to further support the LGBTQIA2S+ community, pursuing your creative curiosities, mental health... and so much more!
In this conversation, Brandon and I dive into the colourful spectrum of emotions as he shares his journey into creating Happy Tears and The Connect Deck, his perspective on finding the balance between self-improvement and allowing yourself to just be, his exciting new collaborations to further support the LGBTQIA2S+ community, pursuing your creative curiosities, mental health... and so much more!
About Brandon + Happy Tears
Meet Brandon (he/him), a self-identified recovering loner, colour enthusiast, and mental hygienist, not to mention the queer Founder behind HappyTears.ca! Brandon thrives on helping humans clean the mind of all the noise in order to connect themselves with who they truly are. Happy Tears is no exception. Launched in late 2018, Happy Tears set out on a mission to make people happy(er). From bags and apparel to a growing collection of connection card games (The Connect Deck), Brandon's creations have helped inspire its community to prioritize their mental health each day while building resilience through powerful mindset shifts and practical tools. Brandon believes wholeheartedly that to be human is not simply to feel good; to be human is to feel everything.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
A meditation to soften the inner wars you host
This is a short meditation practice to foster a sense of self-partnership and truly welcome all parts of yourSelf here, so you can soften the inner wars you may be hosting within yourself.I hope this practice supports you when you’re experiencing resistance in your creative process, or whenever you need to ground back into inner peace so you can find more flow, more space, more harmony.
This is a short meditation practice to foster a sense of self-partnership and truly welcome all parts of yourSelf here, so you can soften the inner wars you may be hosting within yourself.I hope this practice supports you when you’re experiencing resistance in your creative process, or whenever you need to ground back into inner peace so you can find more flow, more space, more harmony.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
Guidance for when you keep rebelling against your own structure
How do I stop rebelling against my own structure? Many creative minds (including mine) struggle with setting and maintaining structure. We often end up rebelling against it. In this episode, we're exploring the resistance we experience regarding structure. I'm sharing some reasons why you might be experiencing this in your life, including the internal conflict that can arise when a part of us craves freedom while another part seeks structure. We also discuss what we can do about it so we can build a healthier relationship with ourselves, our art, and structure.
How do I stop rebelling against my own structure? Many creative minds (including mine) struggle with setting and maintaining structure. We often end up rebelling against it. In this episode, we're exploring the resistance we experience regarding structure. I'm sharing some reasons why you might be experiencing this in your life, including the internal conflict that can arise when a part of us craves freedom while another part seeks structure. We also discuss what we can do about it so we can build a healthier relationship with ourselves, our art, and structure.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
Embracing flexible consistency and humanity in business with Maggie
In this episode, Maggie Gentry and I chat about letting ourselves be human in business, stepping away from social media, planning solo business retreats and the concept of flexible consistency.
In this episode, Maggie and I chat about letting ourselves be human in business, stepping away from social media, planning solo business retreats and the concept of flexible consistency.
About Maggie
Maggie is a thought partner to coaches and creative entrepreneurs looking to intentionally scale with a focus on marketing operations. She helps her clients create proactive, sustainable marketing plans and effective systems that support both the business and the business owner. Her approach lets values lead, prioritizes people over profit, and focuses on long-term sustainable growth over short-term gains.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
A Fall Equinox journaling practice for renewal + progress
This is a live journaling practice to release the stagnant, and welcome in fresh support to help us make progress on our creative goals this season.
This is a live journaling practice to release the stagnant, and welcome in fresh support to help us make progress on our creative goals this season.
Not in the space for the practice? Save the episode and schedule a moment later this week to come back to it.
Find the prompts on the blog here
Find the playlists on my Spotify here
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
A meditation to boost your confidence and clear self doubt
This is a short meditation practice to help you dissolve self-doubt and boost your confidence so you can go after what you truly want and bring your vision to life, bravely.
Artist, do not dilute your art please (guidance to stay true to your vision)
How can you stay true to the version of yourself, here and now? How can you own the boldest hues of your truest colours?
In this episode, I'm reading a past letter I sent to the community last year to share guidance around staying true to our colours and stop diluting our art to fit in. How can we stay true to our vision and feel at home in our creative work?
We can easily dilute our true colours as artists, creative minds and unconventional humans, when our creative vision gets tinted by the demands, 'shoulds' and distractions of the outside world... or the impossible standards we hold for ourselves.
Fully honouring who we are will also inevitably bring out where we contrast with others. That’s where our truth gets to exist, that’s where our beauty lies.
How can you stay true to the version of yourself, here and now? How can you own the boldest hues of your truest colours?
Prompts shared in this episode:
+ Where am I diluting my essence and my art to keep the peace or please others?
+ How can I be kinder to myself and let go of the red editor’s pen?
+ What beauty can I choose to see in the messiness of this process?
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
Support your creative resilience, wellness and growth
In this episode, I'm answering the most frequently asked questions about working with a coach: What is coaching? What's the difference with other modalities? What can we work on together?
Private coaching is now open! You're welcome to schedule a complimentary clarity call so we can meet, talk through your current challenges and aspirations, and identify what kind of support may benefit you right now.
In this episode, I'm answering the most frequently asked questions about working with a coach: What is coaching? What's the difference with other modalities? What can we work on together? Our coaching partnership is a space we co-create to explore questions like: What might happen if I was courageous enough to truly be me? What if I listened to my intuition and followed the muse? What if I just went for it? I’ve had the honour to witness such beautiful things + magic come out of bravely exploring those questions.
Through coaching, we can help you:
+ Ground your big vision into reality, with more focus, less overwhelm
+ Support your creative wellbeing to find more flow, less resistance
+ Shift self-sabotage patterns and soften the inner wars you host (hello there, inner critic!)
+ Step away from overwhelm and build emotional resilience
+ Design aligned strategies to elevate your creative business with calm and confidence
+ Reunite with joy + ease in the messiness of the creative process
PS. Thank you for the important work you do, dear creative mind. If receiving support this season would feel like a big exhale, I can't wait to meet you!
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
Expanding our creative mission without exhausting ourselves
This episode is a loving reminder that you don't have to carry your creative mission alone, and how collaboration can not only relieve the pressure but bring your ideas much further.
How can I find more ease in my creative work? How can I bring my mission further? And more importantly, how can I avoid exhausting myself in the process?
You may have witnessed your creative mind oscillating between burning out and giving up, between pushing through and declaring defeat. This episode is a loving reminder that you don't have to carry your creative mission alone, and how collaboration can not only relieve the pressure but bring your ideas much further. This gets to be a shared experience, and it has to. We cannot create that big change on the collective by working alone… we need to work together to make a real impact on the collective.
I hope you'll join us this summer for The Creative Playground, a bi-weekly community gathering that happens around the New Moon and Full Moon this season. Also, Momentum is coming back later this fall! This is a 5-week intimate group coaching experience to make progress on your creative goals. You can sign up to the waitlist to be the first one to know about it + receive a bonus :)
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
A meditation to reclaim your power and fuel your creative fire (setting boundaries)
Today's meditation is a guided practice to self-inquire and set loving boundaries with your mind, heart, body, and anchor you back into the present moment.
Today's meditation is a guided practice to self-inquire and set loving boundaries with your mind, heart, body, and anchor you back into the present moment. You may also choose to use this as a journaling practice to help call back all the parts of you that are plugged in places that deplete you of your precious energy, so you can rekindle your creative fire.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
For when you feel overwhelmed (guidance to soften the mind chatter + get into creating mode)
Coaching guidance for artists and creative entrepreneurs: soften the mind chatter, get out of overthinking mode and get back into creating mode.
Have you ever caught yourself ruminating on the same idea, overwhelming yourself and getting dizzy with your own thoughts? Maybe you’ve explored so many options and scenarios that you don’t even know what you want to create anymore. Maybe you’re ruminating on a project, redoing things that don’t seem to make much difference. Or maybe you feel like your thoughts are running on a hamster wheel in your mind. Whatever it looks like, the result is usually the same: we paralyze and we feel stuck. It happens to all of us. For many reasons.
Your mind is creative… you have a vivid imagination, you have this ability to invent things. That includes thoughts and scenarios and options and layers of options. So, let’s explore a few things together to help you soften the mind chatter, get out of overthinking mode and get back into creating mode.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
A meditation for the burnt out creative being (refill your creative well)
A meditation for the burnt out, exhausted or inspired creative being. Follow me on a guided meditation journey to refill your creative well.
A meditation for the burnt out, exhausted or inspired creative being.
Feeling burnt out, exhausted or uninspired is something a lot of creative minds can relate to… as if your creative garden suddenly became a desert. We can’t seem to connect with the muse that usually leads us or we simply don’t have the energy to follow her guidance.
Dear creative mind. You’re not alone.
Follow me on a guided meditation journey to refill your creative well.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
Reframing the illusory concept of balance for artists + creatives
Balance can feel like a puzzling concept and impossible destination to reach for us, creative minds. In this episode, I'm reading a past letter I sent to the community to invite them to seek flow within the tumultuous reality of creative living.
Balance can feel like a puzzling concept and impossible destination to reach for us, creative minds. In this episode, I'm reading a past letter I sent to the community to invite them to seek flow within the tumultuous reality of creative living. Balance needs to be a flexible and responsive concept— it cannot be a fixed destination we’re hoping to reach. We may need to accept our imbalances and wobbliness, while building the ability to recalibrate. We find balance when we follow our natural rhythms and don’t obstruct the flow— when we’re not trying to control the waves, but decide to ride them.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
A meditation to welcome abundance and challenge the starving artist myth
Dear creative mind, welcome to this meditation practice. Today, we are welcoming abundance and challenging the starving artist myth, and all the ways we cultivate a lack mentality.
Guidance to face the discomfort of change + cultivate courage
How can we keep making progress towards our vision despite the anxiety we may feel around the big unknowns it comes with? Change is…well, change. It disrupts the status quo. And that comes with waves of (annoying, awkward, frustrating) discomfort. It asks you to plant your feet in new grounds, walk on an unpaved road, and sit with the discomfort of not knowing how this change is going to unfold. Let's explore how we can bravely face the discomfort of change.
How can we keep making progress towards our vision despite the anxiety we may feel around the big unknowns it comes with? Change is…well, change. It disrupts the status quo. And that comes with waves of (annoying, awkward, frustrating) discomfort. It asks you to plant your feet in new grounds, walk on an unpaved road, and sit with the discomfort of not knowing how this change is going to unfold. Let's explore how we can bravely face the discomfort of change.
listen on
iTunes | Spotify
A grounding meditation to get into your flow state
This short meditation practice is designed to ground your creative mind, step away from overthinking and get into your flow state, so you can create from a place of calm today. Meditation practice for artists and creative entrepreneurs.