by Tara Joyce | Sep 10, 2009 | Cultural Creativity
As author Thomas Friedman illuminated in his books, The World is Flat and Hot, Flat and Crowded, the world is increasingly becoming more hot (global warming, etc.), flat (simple knowledge dissemination) and crowded (rapidly growing world population).
The middle class in the Eastern world grows daily. In the 80’s and 90’s alone, 200 million people entered the middle class in India and China alone. Twelve years from now there will be 1 billion more people on the planet than there is today – that’s 1 billion more people competing for work and resources. It’s a bit scary to think about… if the world feels crowded to you now, just wait a few decades.
Fear is stupid so let’s be smart
Looking at it from an abundance perspective however, one can see that our rapidly shifting world creates great opportunities for each of us to:
- connect – meet those of a similar mindset
- develop our craft – share our work with others interested in our passions
- collaborate – encourage and support each others work
The only way to stand out in a crowd is to be your Self
So, first things first, get clear on who you are and what value you bring to the world. If you don’t know, no one else will. You can’t rely on others to tell you about you for you’ll learn more about them than you.
Second, effectively and authentically express your value and for god sakes, be sure to do it online. Give yourself the chance to reach everyone you truly can. Authentic, effective online self-expression is your store window, a window through which your clients can become aware of your craft, and connect and collaborate with you.
I get all tingly just thinking about it
We are witnessing an important shift in our world economy and world consciousness. We are observing a movement towards business being the solution, rather than the problem. A shift towards not what you know, but how you apply it. A evolution towards excellence, as mediocrity is quickly forgotten.
So get out there and shoot your flare. Let people know you are out there for there are clients who are looking just for you.
photo credit: National Library NZ on The Commons
by Tara Joyce | Sep 7, 2009 | My Journey | What's On My Mind
I have just returned from New York City. It was a wonderful trip to experience the city with my husband and be in the home of a great friend. I met her in France when we both were on exchange there. We lived in the hilltop suburb of Rouen, Normandy, a beautiful city in the North of France. We studied business there but mostly we traveled everywhere together.
Together we discovered our individual love of improvising. Of adventure. Of exploring. But only now, five years later, am I starting to truly understand and embrace it.
There is just so much to see… I’ve realized that exploring really is my greatest passion. Whether it is in words, the world, or thought.
I thrive in the unknown, in the new, in the discovering. It feeds my freaky soul.
Coney Island, New York City
photo credit: moi!
by Tara Joyce | Sep 3, 2009 | Cultural Creativity
Why is it that ‘being realistic’ is synonymous with being pessimistic? Why is being negative being real? Who decided that life is actually cruel and unkind?
Who determined that being an optimist was the antithesis of being a realist? I know, I know, being an optimist means I’m in lala land. Get real, people. Your thoughts (both conscious and unconscious) dictate the reality of your life. Reality is what you make it. If you think your reality sucks, it will.
I guess the truth of the phrase ‘be realistic’ is that it means nothing unless you understand its source. After all, if I told you to ‘be realistic’, I wouldn’t be telling you to be pessimistic, I’d be saying that you need to shape your thoughts around the outcome you desire.
photo by: robbed
by Tara Joyce | Aug 31, 2009 | My Journey | What's On My Mind
I’ve updated the site. I made it a bit easier to use and more streamlined. Plus I like the smoke.
I’ve been posting three times a week as well. Monday, Thursday, Friday. I’m disciplining myself.
I’m learning about time right now and I’m realizing I need to quit making excuses for not doing things. I can make the time because I make time. Not making time to write is me limiting my Self.
I was Self sabotaging without even knowing it. If I love to write, I need to do it.
A few people have joined the innerpreneur forum. Yay! I encourage anyone who has a question or something to say to post it there. Start talking to each other. I really think knowing each other is of great benefit to us.
photo credit: Tiago on Vacations
by Tara Joyce | Aug 28, 2009 | My Journey | What's On My Mind
This is actually a quote from Seinfeld‘s Jerry in the episode, ‘The Mango’… obviously he wasn’t talking about me though, he was talking about Meryl Streep. But whatever, that’s not important.
We all feel like phony baloneys
I pontificate weekly about craft, community and connection… but, at times, it feels fake. The truth is, I’m not yet confident enough in my own craft to call myself a writer (if someone asks me what I do I say independent Web Consultant), I have a secret scorn for humanity and I often feel alone and disconnected from the world.
So what do I really know about craft, community or connection?
Putting limits on my Self
I’ve become aware that calling my Self a phony is my way of limiting my Self and my ability to enjoy all the love, joy and abundance I am capable of (and more importantly, deserving of) experiencing. It’s just that sometimes I can’t let go of the story that I am fundamentally flawed and ultimately not worthy.
Most of us tell our Self this story — we are all phony baloneys fooling the world into loving us.
Oh that Tara Joyce, she’s such a wizard
Being conscious of the story and the self-imposed limits it creates, I have now started to work positively with it. When I start in on my “you’re such a phony baloney” bit, I now see it for what it is, a story that I use to limit my Self, rather than a truth I need to get hip to. (Yes, I know the 60’s are calling and they want their lingo back;)
There is nothing wrong with me and the sooner I stop telling my Self there is, the sooner I can embrace my own genius and work fully in it.
I want to be the most wicked me I can be. I want to be a wizard. Like Einstein. And that’s no baloney.
photo by: Vaguely Artistic
