Back in 2017, my lifelong ache to become a self-employed creative and contemplative led me to go deeper than I had before. And that’s WAY DOWN DEEP, baby. As someone who spent most of my life reflecting, pondering, and getting to know myself, I still had to peel back more layers if I was going to make the leap into the uncertainty of self-employment).
So, I captured the process and the questions in a book I published in 2019, the year I LEAPED right out of the “grown-up job” INTO FREEDOM (Freedom, yes. Easy, No.)
If you find yourself wanting to join the GREAT RESIGNATION, this is for you. Grab your copy of “LIFElihood: 31 Days to Explore Work, Time, Money, and intention to Create Your Best Life” on Amazon. (Soon, I’ll be making it available on many platforms)
And now on with the show. Here’s an excerpt from the beginning of the book.
“For years, it was a tug-of-war between the relative, mundane world and the distant reality I wanted. It felt like the only way to be happy was for my big dream to come true. How to be happy with things just as they were? Never allowing myself to be deeply joyful because I thought I was a sellout was a sad way to live. A pretty harsh judgment, right? Do you beat up on yourself like that?
It’s OK to be just as you are right now in this time of your life.
It’s OK to be happy.
It’s also OK to have something you’re working towards, some bigger vision for the work you do. It’s fantastic when you realize life is more than work, more than money, and that time is abundant.
If I can offer just one piece of advice, enjoy what you do now and if that seems like a stretch, try to be cheerful in this moment even if the job you do doesn’t feel very satisfying.
Throughout the next 31 days, you’ll have a chance to explore all the ways you feel satisfaction and also how to work towards something more meaningful and magical for you.
What’s Right Livelihood?
In the Buddhist teachings, it often mentioned more about what right livelihood isn’t than what it is, and it boiled down to not doing harm.
But what about all the things it is? There are encouraging challenges that give us room to grow, think, explore, and learn. There are elusive joys and contentment that come from work well done.
So, let me lay out a framework for you to explore the ideas of work, time, money, and vision in search of your best life. Maybe you’ve been trying to figure this stuff out for a while. By now, you know nothing gets solved overnight. These questions you carry around are the questions of life, at least some of them.
What’s my purpose?
What am I here to do?
Finding answers won’t solve everything- because there’s still the work to be done. But boy, it sure lightens the load.
It’s like when I give meditation instruction; people relax as I mention they can move a little on their seat, making micro-adjustments and being super gentle with themselves. I encourage you to do that here. What you write one day isn’t the last word on a subject.
Can we playfully look at work and money?
Can the spending and arranging of our time and resources be more artful?
Is it possible to bring our intentions and visions into greater clarity and light (and lightheartedness)?
Let’s see what it feels like to go through a month devoted to living with these kinds of questions.
Maybe you’ve been living in a state of chaos or overwhelm. Constant busyness is the mantle of the old paradigm and a culture that will no longer be relevant. We’ve used busy-ness as a source of price. It was a deception we fell for, bought into, and you know what? It kept us from knowing what is truly possible!
Are you willing to let go of things and concepts you’ve been carrying around that block you so you can live out your Creative Purpose?
You might not even know you’ve been toting around a bunch of dead weight. This book is the chance for you to explore those underlying themes in your life.”
Want more? Grab your copy of either ebook or paperback HERE.
