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Finding Inspiration! November 5 #DigiBlogChat

November 3, 2024 By Leave a Comment
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November 5th #DigiBlogChat subject: Finding Inspiration! | Image by Kmeel.com from Pixabay

For our November 5th #Digiblogchat, we’re talking about how and where you’d find inspiration, with the topic and questions by @LazBlazter. Sometimes inspiration is nowhere to be found. You might have to keep your eyes open to find any–especially at the end of a long day, month, or year. 

Join us on Twitter each Tuesday from 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time for #DigiBlogChat. My partner for these chats is @LazBlazter.  If you need to know how to participate, click here: How to Join #DigiBlogChat. P.S. Don’t forget to add the #digiblogchat hashtag!

NOTE NEW TIME: at 8pm BST, 9pm western Europe, 3pm ET, 12:00 NOON pm PST.  This week, the clocks between Europe and the United States should be in sync. 

Questions

Q1. What’s a moment in your life when you felt most inspired? #digiblogchat

Q2. Who is the most inspiring person you’ve ever met? #digiblogchat

Q3. What kind of art (music, movies, literature) fuels your inspiration? #digiblogchat

Q4. When you need a boost, what’s your go-to source for inspiration? #digiblogchat

Q5. How do you deal with creative blocks or moments when you feel uninspired? #digiblogchat

Q6. What are some personal goals that drive you to stay inspired? #digiblogchat

Q7. Do you find inspiration in nature or in urban environments? #digiblogchat

Q8, What’s a quote or saying that never fails to inspire you? #digiblogchat

Q9. How do you inspire others around you? #digiblogchat

Q10. What do you believe is the key to maintaining a long-term sense of inspiration? #digiblogchat

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Silent But Deadly: The Passion of The Authentic Pen

January 7, 2016 By 2 Comments
Silent But Deadly: The Passion of The Authentic Pen

Silent But Deadly: The Passion of The Authentic Pen

Some days we all struggle with writing. The words don’t flow, thoughts get stuck, and even our best efforts and tricks don’t create new ideas. Other days, writing is effortless. Words emerge in complete sentences, and all of them make sense. Why is this? More and more, I believe the answer lies in silence.

Escaping the Noise

Escaping the Noise

Escaping the Noise

I live in the middle of a forest. My little house is surrounded by redwood trees. I always thought it would be quiet here, but there is a lot of noise: chain saws, trucks, and leaf blowers are among the contraptions people use daily. And also: motorcycles.

Music

Music

Music

Loud music, or even music with words is distracting. People with their constant chatter is distracting. More and more, I hear both: people talking, loud music, which equals the inability to focus.

Habit Forming

So on those easy writing days when words flow, what happens? What is the difference? For me, writing is more effortless when I write every day, and when that writing is done in silence.

Silence

Silence

Silence

Sometimes white noise in the background works. But mostly silence. Maybe this has to do with being an introvert.

By the way, I’ve been reading a great book about noise and the lack of silence: One Square Inch of Silence. ”

“SILENCE IS NOT THE ABSENCE OF SOMETHING,
BUT THE PRESENCE OF EVERYTHING.”

~Gordon Hempton

Bagpipes, Synchronicity

Gordon Hempton, author of One Square Inch, writes about Jay Salter, bagpipe player, who lives in Santa Cruz. The two of them hiked together and visited some quiet spots. The next time I went to the Homeless Garden Center (a local CSA in Santa Cruz), there happened to be a bagpipe player, playing in the fields. Although I did not stop his playing to ask his name, I’d never heard a bagpipe player there before, and suspect it was him. Coincidence?

Inspiration

Inspiration

Inspiration

Some of my sources of inspiration are:

  • CopyBlogger
  • Twitter (tweets about technology and art)
  • Nature
  • Reading
  • Silence, again
Fear or Silence?

Fear or Silence?

Fear or Silence?

Maybe it’s a generational thing, but I’ve noticed that many dislike silence and will fill it with any nearby noise. White noise generators, steady hip hop, or t.v. Have you noticed this, too, or is it just me?

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Why Collaboration is Crucial to Your Business

May 7, 2015 By 6 Comments
Why Collaboration is Crucial to Your Business Success

Why Collaboration is Crucial to Your Business Success

The Internet can be a big and lonely place. If you are a freelancer, you may only see your dog or cat for most of the day unless you work with other people. That old saying “two heads are better than one” has staying power for a reason. And working with others makes you stretch and keeps you on your toes. Sharing content from others on social media gives you greater reach. And collaboration makes sense from many different angles.

Twice the Information

There is so much information out there right now, especially in social media. When you collaborate with someone, they may have heard of something that you haven’t. They’ve read an article, heard a webinar, or know a shortcut that you don’t. Not only that, but their circle of friends and contacts is different than yours. Also, twice as many people could see your content. By the way, here’s a great article on how to avoid information overload.

Extra Laughs Per Minute

Besides the extra reach, collaboration is fun. Working with someone else always leads to more laughs per minute (LPM). As this article from PBS states, we don’t need scientists telling us the benefits of humor. A few of them are:

  • increased creativity
  • decreased pain, and
  • an increase in the ability to deal with stress.

Inspiration and Support

Every entrepreneur has moments when they want to throw in the towel. We don’t talk about them much. But with other entrepreneurs that you trust, you can share some of those moments. Chances are, your work friends will share how they’ve made it through those moments. Some days are tough, but someone else has had the same problem as you.

My good friends at Blue Steele Solutions Create Websites

My good friends at Blue Steele Solutions Create Websites

Shared Clients

Often, when someone asks me for a service that I don’t provide, I’m happy to give names of others who do. For instance, I don’t create websites, but my good friends at Blue Steele Solutions do. Odds are, others can do the same thing with your business. Some clients may need anything from a new website to SEO to social media marketing. You may be able to create a virtual business organization to provide everything.

What Has Collaboration Done for You Lately?

I’m curious if you have collaborated on projects. Were they long-term or short-term? And what benefits did you receive from them?

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The 9-1/2 Best Places to Find Inspiration

February 5, 2015 By 2 Comments
The 9-1/2 Best Places to Find Inspiration

The 9-1/2 Best Places to Find Inspiration

You’ve been wracking your brain trying to figure out what to write about on your next article or blogpost, but have come up with nothing. Zero. Zilch. When you’re at your wit’s end, here are a few places to go for inspiration.

Go Into Nature for Inspiration

Go Into Nature for Inspiration

Go Into Nature

There’s something about the sight of trees, the sound of rain, the smell of the ocean, and the feel of sand and rocks that help you to refocus and rediscover what’s important. Here’s an interesting article about sounds: Why Buffalos and Crickets Help Us Relax. A field trip to a nearby park can really get the inspirational juices going.

Take a Shower if you want inspiration

Take a Shower if you want inspiration

Take a Shower

A warm shower is one of the most relaxing places there is. You don’t have to take one with your dog to get the benefits, but that could help as well. Look at how happy that dog looks!

Get Enough Sleep for Better Inspiration

Get Enough Sleep for Better Inspiration

Get Enough Sleep

Getting enough sleep has been touted lately as important to alertness and health. And if you don’t believe me, take a look at these articles:

Go for a Drive

A drive forces your mind to focus on something other than your work (unless you’re a taxi driver). Hopefully, there’s a place to drive nearby with trees and that doesn’t involve sitting in traffic. Rolling the windows down and feeling the wind can help clear the cobwebs out of your mind and help inspire you.

Get inspired: Go Drive

Get inspired: Go Drive

Explore Other Blogs–Or Your Own

Other blogs may give you ideas that you hadn’t thought about. You could even search Google for “Inspiration,” and see where that takes you. Another idea is to go back through your own blog and see if you could take off or expand upon an idea that you had.

 

Explore Blogs

Explore Blogs

Spend Time with Pets to Be Inspired

Spend Time with Pets to Be Inspired

Spend Time with Pets

Your pet cat, your pet iguana, and your dogs would all like you to inspire you. And it turns out that you can get a lot of great ideas from man’s (and woman’s) best friends. Being more curious is but one of the things you can learn from your pets.

Go Somewhere with No Internet

Go Somewhere with No Internet

Go Somewhere with No Internet

Better still, go there without any way to record those new ideas. Then you’ll be forced to remember that idea. Many of us who are online all day find being offline a welcome relief.

Answer the Questions Your Clients Ask You

Answer the Questions Your Clients Ask You

Answer the Questions Your Clients Ask You

Clients will often ask you the best questions, questions that you didn’t know that anyone had! Last week, someone asked me how to have a conversation on Twitter, and seemed surprised that a conversation was even possible. That could turn into a blog post, or a series of tweets.

Talk to Your Friends

Talk to Your Friends

Talk to Your Friends

I’ve talked about having a blogging buddy before. That is someone who supports your crazy, crazy ideas, and inspires you to have more of them. Bridget Willard is mine. You could also have coffee or lunch with someone, especially if, like many entrepreneurs you often eat lunch alone.

Let Tweetchats Inspire You

Let Tweetchats Inspire You

Let Tweetchats Inspire You

Sometimes I’ll get inspiration from others on the #DigiBlogChat Tweetchat (Tuesdays at 1 pm pst if you’d like to join!). Recently, someone asked about Twitter best practices, so that became a blogpost and it also turned into chat questions, too. Yes, the tweetchat idea was the 1/2, but really it’s more like one and one-half. That chat always invigorates me!

 

 

 

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