Own Your Creativity

Creativity Requires Risk Elizabeth Johnston 61

Today’s episode is about the connection between creativity and taking risks. It was originally recorded as a Facebook live, and if you’d like to tune in for the video version of my live broadcasts, you’re invited to join my group on Facebook. It’s called Own Your Creativity Cafe. Enjoy today’s episode, and feel free to reach out with questions, comments or stepping up to be a patron of the show. Your support is greatly appreciated.

If you want to kick-start your dream of writing a book, then join us on Sunday, June 4^th in Montreal for the one-day seminar. Full info and the registration link is available at bit.ly/storyseminar2017. And if you’re not in the Montreal area, you can still participate in the online version. For more information about that send me a message to info@ownyourcreativity.com, and put Story Seminar in the subject line.

The Own Your Creativity Podcast is hosted by Elizabeth Johnston, M.F.A., Certified Autobiography Instructor and professor, facilitates personal and professional development through writing workshops that help people put their life experiences into words. Elizabeth is the author of a non-fiction book, No Small Potatoes, the creator of the short film, Keepsake, and has published extensively in newspapers and magazines.

 

Creativity is Invisible ~ Elizabeth Johnston ~ 60

Oftentimes it's the invisible things that have the greatest impact on us.

Day 1 of the 30-Day Journey about Creativity & Invisible Things with Elizabeth Johnston

To join us during the Facebook Live broadcasts, send an email to invisible_things@getresponse.net

To become a patron of the Own Your Creativity show, go to bit.ly/creativitypatron

Last but not least, I invite you to contact me directly at info@ownyourcreativity.com. Share your creative interests or questions. I answer each and every one of my emails personally.

All the best!

Elizabeth

Creativity Feeds Your Soul Sheila Horrell 59

To join the next free writing challenge, sign up here: bit.ly/junewritingchallenge

On today's episode, I talk to Sheila Horrell. She has been drumming for the last 30 years, ever since being introduced to the primal magic of the drum by master percussionist Ubaka Hill.

After studying percussion with various drummers here and internationally, she has been facilitating workshops and Drum Circles for many groups in Southwestern Ontario, including schools, universities, camps, nursing homes, conferences and agencies.

The experience of introducing new drummers to the ease and joy of music making with the drum has been a prime motivator for Sheila's continued success.  There is nothing like witnessing someone relaxing into their own rhythm and having fun contributing to the music of the whole drumming community.

As well as facilitating drumming, Sheila is also a member of percussion groups in London - including "The London Groove Collective", a group which weaves melody (sax and keyboard) with various percussion instruments to create everything from jazz fusion to ambient soundscapes.   As well she sings and plays with WomenSpiritSong choir, and Joyful Noise choir.  Sheila is a proud volunteer at My Sister's Place where weekly drumming on a Monday morning gets the week off to a fine start,  and also volunteers with the Grand Theatre, the Women's Circle at Brescia and Heart-Links, a small London NGO which walks in solidarity with a community of women and children in the desert regions of Northern Peru.

For more information about Sheila: http://sheilahorrell-play.blogspot.ca/p/bio.html

Creating with Lauri's Lemonade Stand 58

Laverne & Shirley Crossover Episodes!

For today’s show, I’ve got something a little bit different lined up for you. If you’re on my mailing list or in my facebook group, Own Your Creativity Café, then you’ll know that I have been on this podcast journey for more than a year with my accountability partner, Lauri Mackey. She interviewed me on her show, Lauri’s Lemonade Stand in June of 2016, and I recently interviewed her on my show. Then Lauri had this idea to share our interviews on each other’s podcast, and I thought that was a great idea. So, Lauri aired my interview of her on her show on May 1^st, 2017. (Click here to listen to that episode.) Today, I air Lauri’s interview of me. It’s a great way for you to get to know me a bit more plus a great introduction to Lauri’s wonderful show, too. I hope you enjoy today’s episode and I’d love to hear any questions or comments you might have. You can get in touch with me at info@ownyourcreativity.com.

Okay, this interview was from last June and that’s what we’re referring to when we talk about the writing challenge. Good news, though. I will be hosting another writing challenge this June, so if you want to be the first to get notification of the next free challenge, go to http://bit.ly/junewritingchallenge, or you can find the link for it in the show notes of this episode on ownyourcreativity.podbean.com

Join us in the free writing challenge happening in June 2017. Get on the mailing list to get all the details: bit.ly/junewritingchallenge

 

Creativity is Worth It ~ Gaia B Amman 56

Gaia B Amman was born and raised in Italy. She moved to the United States in her twenties to pursue her PhD in molecular biology. She's currently a Professor of biology at D'Youville College in Buffalo, New York, where she was voted "the professor of the month" by her students. Her research and commentaries have been published in prestigious peer-reviewed international journals including Nature.

A bookworm from birth, she wrote throughout her childhood and won two short story competitions in Italy in her teens. Gaia is an avid traveler and many of her adventures are an inspiration for her fiction. Mostly she is passionate about people and the struggles they face to embrace life. Her highest hope is to reach and help as many as she can through her writing as well as her teaching. She authored the Italian Saga, an irreverent series of humorous and insightful young adult novels taking place against the gorgeous backdrop of Northern Italy. The books, light-hearted and funny at first sight, deal with issues like sexuality, divorce, friendship, abuse, first love and self discovery. 

gaiabamman.com

 

Reflective Journalling for Success & Transformation - Elizabeth Johnston 55

In this episode, I talk about how to use reflective journalling for creative success and transformation. I also make a distinction between diaries and journals and show how you can use this writing practice for both personal and professional goals.

Creativity, Dreams & Hope - Kimanzi Constable 54

Hi, I'm Kimanzi :) In the last five years, my books have sold over 100,000 copies. I have spoken at conferences and companies in 36 countries. You can see my articles in the largest websites in the world and I have helped thousands build their dream lifestyle business.

I can clearly remember the day I knew I had to make some major changes in my life. It was three a.m. and I was delivering bread to a grocery store on a brutally cold Wisconsin morning. As I was taking three stacks of bread off the truck and onto a lift, I fell and hit the ground hard. There were about three inches of snow on the ground, so it cushioned my fall, but the reality of my situation hit me like a ton of bricks. If the fall wasn’t bad enough, the bread ended up falling on top of me.

This was mid-2011 and my life was a mess. I was over $180,000 in debt. I was 170 pounds overweight. I had owned a bread delivery business for twelve years that I hated more and more. I woke up every day dreaming of a better life but I didn’t do anything about it. After the “bread incident,” I promised myself that I would finally take action on my dream of becoming a writer.

That year, I wrote and self-published a book only to have it flop. The book sold five copies in the first six months and those copies went to friends. I spent the rest of 2011 studying how to sell books and build an audience on the Internet. Along the way, I spent over $5,000 on coaches, courses, and on digital information products that I hoped would bring me results. What I got was a lot of hype and not enough practical content to help me build my lifestyle entrepreneurship dream.

I spent all of 2012 implementing and taking action. I landed 60 guest posts on various blogs. I was a guest on over 80 podcasts. I networked with anyone who would talk to me. By the end of 2012, I had a lifestyle business that was generating $5,000 a month. I was able to use the income to pay off ALL of my debt.

I got to speak at 36 conferences that year, I coached 20 people and helped them with their dream, and I was hungry for more. I was able to sell my bread business and live a life of freedom through lifestyle entrepreneurship.

2013 and 2014 were building years. My business would grow from $5,000 a month to multiple six-figures a year. I got to travel the world speaking at conferences and some amazing companies. I got to experience new cultures and learn more about myself.

2015 was the year that my business exploded. I started that year with an appearance on Smart Passive Income with Pat Flynn–someone I look up to. I started writing for some of the largest websites in the world such as The Huffington Post, Entrepreneur Magazine, Success Magazine, AskMen, The Good Men Project, Mind Body Green, and ten other websites. I got consult contracts at companies in countries that I had always dreamed of going to. My books continued to sell and my coaching clients got impressive results.

Today, I live a life I love. I travel the world helping dreamers build a profitable lifestyle business. I am not writing about or speaking on theories here–I have done all of this and more. If you have not signed up for my email list, you should. I deliver fluff-free content every week.

Browse the site and find what resonates with you and what you want to accomplish. Connect with me on social media. Let me help you build a successful lifestyle business that gives you control and freedom in your life. Let me help you build a business that lets you spend all of your time on the things that are important to you.

My name is Kimanzi and it’s nice to meet you 🙂

kconstable.com

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To find out more about Elizabeth Johnston's online course, "How to use story in your business," go to

http://www.elizabeth-johnston.com/courses/passion/

3 Myths About Using Story in Business with Elizabeth Johnston - 53

Today’s episode is about using story in your business. You might be asking yourself, What does that have to do with owning your creativity? Well, that’s what I’ll be talking about as well as three major myths that are stumbling blocks. Today’s show is mainly directed towards entrepreneurs and small business owners who are having problems reaching the people they want to serve. It’s also a show that will hold some interest for you if you have ever thought about writing about your life and the experiences that have led to your expertise or wisdom.

If you happen to be listening to my podcast for the first time, let me give a bit of background. I’m a story junkie. I love reading fiction, non-fiction, screenplays, poetry, you name it. I also love writing in those genres. And one of my all time favourite things to do is to teach about those topics. There’s nothing like getting together with people ready to jump into exploring their creativity. I just finished teaching two classes – one was magazine writing and another was introduction to short fiction. And the best thing about doing what I love is helping people like you unlock your creative potential so that you can think, feel and do better in work and in life.

Recently I’ve been having some informal conversations with my fellow entrepreneurs about how they use story in their business, or if they actually do use story, and how. The surprising thing that came out of these conversations was that not many people are aware of using it, and if they are, it’s not in a conscious, strategic way. When I probed this further, it became clear to me that there are actually some myths surrounding the use of story that are holding people back in their businesses.

Here are the most prominent myths:

1. Stories are made-up or false by nature;
2. I’m a business-person not a creative person; and
3. There’s no return-on-investment in being creative.

Today I’m going to unpack those myths for you so that you can see the possibilities of using story in your business.

If you enjoyed this episode and want to learn more about using story in your business, join us for the next online course. Go to my website for full info: http://www.elizabeth-johnston.com/courses/passion/

And if you have any questions, send them to info@elizabeth-johnston.com.

Creativity is a What-If Process - Dr Anne McTiernan 52

Anne McTiernan, MD, PhD, Starved: A Nutrition Doctor’s Journey from Empty to Full, Central Recovery Press, Las Vegas, November 2016

Dr. Anne McTiernan conducts studies on the effects of diet, exercise, and weight loss on cancer and health. She is a professor at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Washington Schools of Public Health and Medicine in Seattle. She is author of Starved: A Nutrition Doctor’s Journey from Empty to Full (Central Recovery Press, Las Vegas, November 2016) and Breast Fitness: An Optimal Exercise and Health Plan for Reducing Your Risk of Breast Cancer (St. Martin’s Press, 2000). She has appeared on the Today Show, MSNBC News Show, ABC World News Tonight, CBS Evening News, ABC News with Peter Jennings, and has been featured in USA Today, NY Times, LA Times, Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, Parade, Associated Press, Seattle Times, US News & World Report, and other media. Dr. McTiernan has published over 350 scientific articles in prestigious medical journals, and lectures around the world on nutrition, obesity, physical activity, cancer, and health.

Creative Commitment Generates Magic - Helene Oseen 51

Helene Oseen’s passion and mission is to inspire women to love who they are, to own their power and to create their best life.

She has spent many years advising and styling women across the country and encouraging them on their life-long journey to learn, transform and expand life’s experiences in pursuit of happiness and that perfect outfit. As a speaker, style expert, Fashion 911® author, newspaper columnist and television contributor she dispenses both wisdom and wardrobe advice in her always true-to-the-female way experience. Her newest book (January 2017) Wear Your Life Well: Lessons on the Journey to your Truest Self is available on Amazon as an e-book or paperback as well as on Audible.

Helene is a distinguished recipient of the Global Woman of Vision Award. Honoring exceptional women, it is bestowed on leaders who have implemented their passion and whose personal dedication and actions inspire others to new levels of success.

Visit her web-site at www.wearyourlifewell.com. Find her on Facebook at facebook.com/heleneoseenwearyourlifewell and connect with her on Instagram @heleneoseen.

And while you are on the web-site don’t forget to get your FREE copy of Wear Your Life Well: Your Journey through Journaling.