You can’t change the world unless you find your people. This is a story of shared transformation, and I invite you to come along. Through a contact at Impact Hub Minneapolis-St. Paul, I met wholistic consultant Julie Delene of Move as One this spring. Within minutes, we both knew we had work to do, together.

We’ve teamed up to create this blog series, The Soulful Sidebiz. I’m following my call to help people find my voice, and Julie’s providing me tools for creating systemic change. Our hope is to inspire you on your own journey of transformation, whatever it may be. Here’s to aligning passions with goals!

“I’d love to hang the pictures in my home office,” I responded with a sigh, “but I’ve been avoiding the task for months. I want to be surrounded by art. Instead, the room has frames stashed on the floor and clutter in every corner.” Even as I spoke these words, I perceived the slightest question on Julie’s face. I could tell this wasn’t what she’d thought I’d say, and–quite frankly–it wasn’t what I’d have predicted, either.

I Visualize a Goal

I was in the middle of a leadership consultation, you see, and I’d just answered a question from a board game. Created by Julie, the game helps players gain clarity. Called 5 Mindful Moves, it prompts players to have conversations around enhancing their work, life, and relationships. In my case, the plan is to build a side business that “does good” in the world and generates income. (Deep down, I fear this isn’t possible. Help me, Julie!)

Today’s game had begun in the same way it always does: I named the objective I wanted to explore. This time I’d told Julie I wanted to think through a decision I was mulling at my full-time job. I’d already completed my first two moves and had just pulled a card from a stack of prompts about visualizing my goals.

Look, it actually happened! These pictures adorn the wall, providing constant energy and inspiration. For months, they sat on the floor leaning against the wall. Thanks our recent conversation, I got the motivation to take on the task of hanging them. Now I see this was an important step in furthering my side-biz goals.

I Allow My Inner Voice to Speak (And You Should, Too)

All of a sudden, I came up with a response that had nothing, whatsoever, to do with my full-time job. Instead I began talking about hanging pictures in my home office. But even though my response surprised me, I didn’t push it away. For an over-functioner like me, this was a tiny victory. Moments of allowing can teach us so much, if we can resist the urge to bury them.

In this case, I was finally allowing myself to listen to an inner voice I’d been ignoring for months. I’d wanted to hang pictures in my office for nearly half a year. And yet. Over and over again, I’d come up with reasons not to. Raise your hand if any of these sound familiar:

• Hanging pictures is frivolous. I have more practical things to do, like laundry.
• Putting holes in the wall will mar the room for future residents. (Never mind the fact that we have no plans to sell the house.)
• I don’t have the proper nails. What exactly are the proper nails, anyway?
• Hanging pictures requires making decisions. Which pictures should go where, and what if I change my mind later?
• I’m tired. The Gilmore Girls are calling my name.

Thanks to a prompt similar to this, I was spurred into action. The card sparked a conversation in which Julie underscored the importance of personalizing my home office. Three days after my coaching session–that very weekend–I busted out the hammer and nails. My wall now surrounds me with art. Finally!

I Take Action and Hang The Freaking Pictures

What Julie helped me realize is that decorating the office wasn’t just a fanciful whim. Having a well-designed office is critical to productivity, and–for an artist like me–inspiration. Don’t just take my word for it. As Entrepreneur magazine puts it, “Ensure that your office reflects you and that it contains a favorite object or photo that will give you the break you need when you pause in your work . . . Your office should be a connection to yourself, your spirit and your productivity.”

I bought these letters at a local thrift shop, then glued them to this simple frame. Rather than adding photos, I warmed the frame with scraps of fabric. What do you want to make, mend, or change in your life?

I Surround Myself With Art

My office is no longer a reminder of things I intend to do. Instead it gives me energy by surrounding me with art.

• A pencil drawing by my grandfather, who was an architect.
• A block print by a friend to commemorate his wedding. (The couple distributed handmade gifts to guests during the ceremony, encouraging us not to be shy about accepting them.)
• A picture frame I transformed myself, using letters I bought during this amazing trip to one of my fave local thrift stores.
• Items picked up at art festivals, independent bookstores, and fabric remnant bins.

I adore this piece. My grandfather was an architect who loved sketching buildings. Though I only knew him through the eyes of a child, my adult perception appreciates the careful precision he put into every scene. This one depicts the courtyard of a California home he and my grandmother Dosie lived in for years.

Your Turn. Go Out and Pretty Up Your Space.

If you’ve been hesitating to prettify a space of your own, I hereby give you permission to go for it. After hanging my pictures, I immediately starting using the space. Indeed, as I type this post, I’m looking at my wall, which still makes me smile every time glance up. If you have a project in mind, let me know how it goes. I’d love to hear!

This shot brings warm memories of a wedding I attended in Pheonix. The groom hand-printed copies of this block print he desinged. The couple distributed these, along with a variety of other handmade gifts, to wedding guests.

I like to put fabric behind picture frames, then use the glass as a “white” board.

I bought these at the Stone Arch Festival, one of my faves in the Twin Cities.

My wall of happiness.

Seeing my grandfather’s signature reminds me of my legacy as an artist. I mustn’t let my fears and busy-ness get in the way of living it out.

“When you want to hit the delete key, that’s often the good stuff.” I heard these words more than three months ago–on August 28, to be exact. Yet here they’ve come again, worming their way into my mind. Maybe I’d prefer to ignore the sentiment, this advice I received at a writing workshop led by the amazing Cynthia Morris. Perhaps I really like the delete key and all the power it provides.

Deleting allows me to avoid vulnerability, you see. It lets me pretend I’ve got it all together, and, ahhhhhh, doesn’t that sound just grand? I don’t know about you, but as far as I’m concerned, avoiding uncertainty sounds nothing short of fantastic, in writing AND in life. But–you know where this is headed–that ain’t gonna happen.

And so, here I am. Announcing to you that I want to start a business. I’m afraid it might sound silly, but that sentence was really hard for me to type. Writing it down nearly (not quite, but nearly) brought a tear to my eye. I ended up taking a long pause afterward, for, I don’t know, probably 40 whole seconds. Just to let it sink in. Then I read it over and an actual tear came next. Next, the fact of the crying made me mad. (I’m SO not a fan of the whole vulnerability thing, remember?)

Thankfully, I’ve just signed up for a forum that’s giving me a structure to start talking about this. A few days ago a FB friend of mine suggested I check out Quest2016 on Jefferey Davis’ Tracking Wonder site. Over the course of 12 days (starting today), participants receive 12 prompts from 12 visionaries to help them envision the next 12 months. I’m glad my friend suggested it, because the Quest does in fact suit my intentions right now. Indeed, I signed right up.

This is my entrepreneurial art journal. You heard me right. I keep an art journal devoted to my business aspirations. Adding art to an endeavour always sweetens the pot for me. So I bought a discounted sketchbook, then used fabric scraps and ModPodge to decorate the cover. The pages contain  collages of paper scraps and washi tape.

Today’s prompt (which comes from mindfulness expert Susan Piver) goes something like this: What do you need to tell yourself about 2016?  For me, the timing of this new year happens to coincide with plans to explore my business ideas. Last month I sold a townhome I’d owned, but hadn’t lived in for years. No longer a reluctant landlord, I now get to focus on starting a new part-time job. This time, it’ll be one I choose, and I couldn’t be more grateful.

I discovered The Creative Entrepreneur by Lisa Sonora Beam several months ago. Its combination of art and practicality is what drew me in. I particularly love that it features a shiny silver SWOT analysis, a key tool in making a business plan.

Having this new burst of time, energy, and money, is a huge and necessary advtantage. Still, in order to succeed, I need to give myself permission to let it be a quest. If I look at this new venture as a finite thing, a task to be completed, I’ll choke my dreams before they start. Getting caught by perfectionism can sometimes be my M.O. But I’m learning to overcome this tendency. I’ve found that it cripples me, and these days I’m more interested in progress than proving I can get everything right.

Discipline, meaning, heart. All these will be necessary as I move foward.

Instead, I need to embrace the act of seeking. I need to turn curiosity into a verb. After all, there’s a reason quests have endured throughout time in literature. There’s a reason just about every grade-school student loves video games. Quests aren’t interesting because their heroes already live where he or she wants to be. Rather, such stories live on because their journeys–yep, usually long ones–involve discovery and travel and failure and confusion and hope and renewal. I’ve never started a business before, but I’m pretty sure the process will be less like a static accomplishment and more like an epic trek.

I ripped this heading out of an old book given to me by my friend Heidi at one of her Crafternoons. She’d fished the book out of a recycling bin, solely for use in a future craft project. Thanks, Miss Heidi!

“It’s okay to be on a quest.” “It’s okay to be on a quest.” This is the mantra I need to keep telling myself next year. Along the way, I plan to record some things I discover about becoming an business creator. No, I don’t know where it’ll lead. But, hey, maybe that’s all right. Because, as the saying (now) goes, it’s okay to be on a quest.