When was the last time you created an experience for your customers, your readers? An experience in real life, not just virtually.

When was the last time you hosted your real life friends and business associates, together, to see what creative genius explodes? Collaboration is always better than taking the world on solo.

{By this point, you’re probably wondering, ‘Who has time? I’m trying to keep the balls suspended mid-air.’}

Move it up to the top three of your list.  {Yea, I see your scribbled list on the back of a receipt.} Being face-to-face, connecting over commonalities, telling stories while waving your arms about, those are important.

We all crave in-real-life a little bit more than we used to. We might think of it as ‘quality time’ or intentional relationships. Slowing down our pace or creating margin for the important things. Moving out from behind the screen.

But it’s not just for you, you who are weary of technology-based relationships, schlepping your carry-on through another airport or building budgets and strategy for the year that is now.

If your customer is your friend, then they need to shake your hand or hug your neck, see the spark in your eye when you talk about your art & know that they have a friend that cares more about them than getting into their wallet. As my friend Robin would say, “See the trees and hug them.” 

The secret? You’ll need to be brave and speak up, organize chaos & facilitate. instead of acting as if you have all the answers. {If you’re brand can’t even begin to act like this, much less host, then #1 & #2 on that little list of yours’ should change to focus on serving your customer and creating beautiful art.}

Lisa-Jo is living the secret. She listened to the (in)courage readers’ felt need and is leading bravely through (in)Real Life. Through her efforts (in)courage is connecting back to the foundation of their brand, creating God’s beach house for women both online and in their real life.

{I’m helping to host an (in)RL meetup. Wanna come? French pastry will be involved.}

This idea of creating community for your brand, gathering your consumers and empowering them to experience you, is a missing piece in most businesses. It requires you to take the focus off yourself and place it back on your reader, your consumer.

Love her. Serve her. And out of your passion for her. . . provide a memorable experience that, surprisingly, with help your business just as much as it does her. 

{If you’re interested in attending or hosting an #inRL meetup in your area, there’s a great site with all things (in)RealLife. And you won’t want to miss this beautiful art from Emily. }

It was the summer of ’85.

Barefoot and long-legged, sticky in a metal folding chair, I waited with my neighbor friends for the next customer to drive down our block, the one that would pay for the best lemonade in the world.

Between the idea sparked, rummaging through mom’s cabinets for the container of Country Time & drawing our sign announcing to the world we were open for business, we laughed and made cartwheels in the thick grass. I got stung by a bumble bee on my pinky toe.

We probably drank more than we sold, embarrassed ourselves chasing after cars of folks we didn’t know & never once worried about where our business would be the following week.

What we stirred up didn’t exist only in a Styrofoam cup, but was a tasty blend of work and play.

Haven’t you had a day like that?

You play, you make something you love, you scheme a plan and you just know someone will pay good money for your concoction. There’s never a moment where work and play aren’t beautifully intertwined. It’s one of the best days and a sweet memory forever.

Memories are fond because they mean something to us. Each mini-mind movie represents a gift that we possess, something lovely and thrilling we’ve learned about ourselves, the world. There’s a moment where something begins to grow and we have a flash of why and what we were created for. We begin to realize there are real dreams, with the hopes of God-sized dreams someday.

The only change for me in those in-between years is it’s not in my front yard and those dreams have become God-sized.

Will you come visit my latest ‘lemonade stand?

Why won’t I print my photographs and finally mount them?

Why don’t I blog more?

Why haven’t I done anything to start selling those lovelies that I make?

Why does a paint brush scare me?

Why is my manuscript still not complete?

Why am I scared to open my lemonade stand?

The voices of fear. I’m sure they’re all too familiar. {They are to me.}

Fear is the silver bullet for creativity. All its super powers dissolve and Art is never born.

“The fear that you’re only pretending to do art is the (readily predictable consquence of doubting your own artistic credentials. . . When you act out of fear, your fears come true.”

{Fear doesn’t leave. Sad but true. Art must be made in spite of its presence. Quickly to be used as motivation at moments.}

Is ‘it’ creative if it only resides in your mind? I say yes.

Is it art? Unfortunately, in my humble opinion, no.

Art has to be labored and birthed like a child. Long hopes, growing, waiting, working & then pushing until the art is born. And just like the curve of a cheek, the prints on a finger, the sound of footsteps, the only kind of Art is breathing, with seeds of creativity born in each. Needing to make art again.

And isn’t that what we all wanted to be when we were children? Artists? To express all the creativity bubbling inside in unique ways so the world can enjoy it, we might receive accolades & be encouraged to make more.

I would have raised my hand if asked at a young age. It was on my list with Choreographer & Teacher. {What was on your list as a kid? Astronaut? Baker? Rock Star?}

Then somewhere along the way an adult in our lives taught us about the ‘real world.’ The idea of Artist wasn’t realistic. ‘Where would you work? What would you do for money?’ Starving Artist. No thanks.

But with that moment, we also allowed someone to tell us what Art is {and what it is not.} Art doesn’t require colors, a degree, design savvy, canvas, camera, or the ability to showcase your work in a gallery or sell it.

“Because making art is hard! What you end up caring about is what you do, not whether the doing came hard or easy . . The best you can do is make art that you care about – and lots of it! The rest is up to perseverance.”

Art is the flourishing of your creative seeds blooming into what The Artist’s palette needs. Art is living the life in obedience with the design you were given. Art is confidently doing what you love, beautifully. Art is saying ‘No!’ to perfection, performance, pretending and the voice that keeps telling you everyone else already knows that, does that. {They don’t.}

“And it’s true, most artists don’t daydream about making great art — they daydream about having made great art. What artist has not experienced the feverish euphoria of composing the perfect thumbnail sketch, first draft, negative or melody — only to run headlong into a stone wall trying to convert that tantalizing hint into the finished mural, novel, photograph, sonata. The artist’s life is frustrating not because the passage is slow, but because he imagines it to be fast.”

But be encouraged, if you’re in between the now and the finished piece, it’s “a test of correspondence between imagination and execution.” Continue on with fear by your side, your mind focused on the imaginative & dirty your hands of the work of today.

What art will you make today?

* Quotes are from a wonderful little book called Art & Fear: Observations on the Perils (& Rewards) of Artmaking 

I was in sheer panic.

For no reason.

I’d had more time than normal to rest, reflect, read. And yet I felt like I had slept through the prep class and was 15 minutes late for the ACT exam, knowing my chances to getting into the ‘right’ school were lost.

{Even writing those words, my adrenaline surges and stomach somersaults.}

My thoughts swirled around me. I hummed songs I didn’t like. My emotions matched the deep end of the ocean.

I walked through a craft store and noticed my thoughts were simple.

“What’s the point?”

“I don’t have time.”

“It’s messy.”

“What if I don’t finish?”

“What if it’s ugly?”

I don’t know what ‘it’ is, but I was scared of it. {Well. . . let me rephrase that. I wasn’t scared of ‘it,’ the Left Sphere of my brain was. I call him Leftness, as in the monster.}

Groping for air, for release, the Right Side of my brain jumped to her feet ripped off the duct tape that Leftness had neatly placed over her shiny pink lipgloss.

With her frilly skirt, paintbrush in hand, the eye-twinkle that has created adventure and art in my life before, Righty giggled with freshness and invited me to play.

The impossible became possible and much more fun.

I grabbed a cart, bought supplies and we – Righty and me – made a beautiful wreath for my front door.

I don’t think it’s by coincidence that it’s on the entrance to my home. It’s a sign of things to come, welcoming more little steps towards art, crafty giddiness, messy moments that make for fantastic stories & most importantly, freedom for creativity in my life and my work.

Have you been ignoring your best friend? The Righty right inside you. {Don’t worry about Leftness being left out. He will always be there, our culture demands it.}

But Righty, you gotta play with her. Especially since the world tells her to be quiet, sit down, and act like everyone else.

What’s amazing is Righty is the secret to art that looks like business & the key to creativity that can change the condition of the world.

What will you finally create?

You’ve been busy working on your God-sized dream, balancing what matters and your business. 

You’re tired.

No, actually you’re teetering on the border of exhaustion.

Others are tweeting about writing goals, new resolutions for the new year. . .

 112 ways to grow your business.

Make more money {like me} in 2012.

Finally Get Your Act Together This Year and Become a REAL Success.

And though I’m sure there are helpful hints and tips nestled in each of those, to you. . . it sounds like more added on your overwhelming list of do’s.

When all you really want is a few moments to remember who you are and why you do what you do.

“Do I really love this? I thought I did.”

It takes time. Time to do the work. And time to remember. . . to see the art in the day-to-day, to look back at the blessing and pray, plan about the upcoming opportunities and work. You have to have energy to do the work.

I am going to add one item to your list that trumps all else that you deem important for success. Take a break. {You read that right.}

You don’t have to explain to anyone what you’re doing. Don’t apologize. Don’t feel weak or guilty. Tell everyone you’re going on sabbatical. {I promise you might get a few strange looks, but no one will dig much further than that into your affairs.}

Do the things you love. Give your mind freedom to think. Create something that you keep talking about, just for you. Be with others or be by yourself. Do NOT take this opportunity to get more on your personal list accomplished.

YOU is what’s on your list.

Crazy? You’ll approach the new year refreshed and ready to work.

Remember who you are, what you love, and sleep.

That’s really what most of us want to know. “How long will this take?”

How long will it take to write my book?

How long will it take to get ‘the’ job?

How long will it take to experience creative freedom?

How long will this take to become a success?

What you’re really asking is “When can I stop working this hard?”

or

“When can I go on to the next thing?”

Unfortunately, the news I have to share isn’t easy to swallow. . .

The project, site launch, plan to put your mark on the world, will take much longer than you ever anticipated.

And just when you think you can see the ‘finish line,’ you realize it’s not a race you’re running at all. This is your life. Your calling. Your purpose.

Work diligently. Contribute. Share smart.

Please don’t give up when you think you should have been done by now.

{The moment when you desperately want to stop is when you’ll look back and see the break through that changed everything.}

What happens when the idea is better than the result?

{I’m not referring to your Google analytics or even sales data. But when the meetings in your office become rhetoric.}

Do you know if you’re in ‘that’ place?

The place of talking about it, brainstorming, and not realizing nothing is happening based on your plans.

The vision has no legs. No one has experienced it, not even you. . . since it’s still just a thought..

Do you think there is an end result, but in reality it’s still a concept to the rest of the world?

What if you don’t know where you are in the process of making reality look different for the rest of us?

Do you even realize that the jargon you keep saying isn’t what is actually happening? The idea, the way to make a difference, the gadget. . .it is a good one, but where is it?

Sometimes we spend far too long on the process, creating a safe way to do business, trying to figure out the path of least resistance, when we really should be spending all of our time on the brilliant work of making ‘it’ happen.

Your consumer can’t buy into it, if it doesn’t really exist.

Do the work. Your passion and zeal is appreciated, but it isn’t enough.

I get asked a lot, “When can we activate an influencer?”

As if the company was the puppet master.

As if we live in an economy that looks to gatekeepers to tell us when it’s the right time.

As if influence can be sold.

“Really. When can we ask the bloggers that we’re working with to sell our product?

What most companies really want to know is,

“This relationship stuff is fine, but we need sales. When can we push our product?”

I would ask a few questions in return to help you make your decision.

When is it okay to turn your relationship with an influencer into a transaction?

When is it okay to stop building relationships with your consumer and just sell stuff?

When is it okay to go back to the way you were doing business before?

Never.

Never should you change your motivation in your business relationships. {Your consumer can always tell.}

Never should you be more focused on a sale and miss the opportunity to be a tribal leader, making yourself a force to be reckoned with in the new economy. . . {gaining more sales than if you asked for it.}

Never should you give up your future success for a quick return.

Be innovate. Be creative, beyond what’s asked of you by your competitors. Be honest. Be generous. Be relational. Then the influencers will ask you if they can ‘sell’ what you’re offering. It’s simple and reaches your goals liked you wanted all along.

Geeks are making a comeback. {I ‘heart’ The Big Bang Theory.}

Dorks have changed the face of our world. {Who doesn’t love their iPhone?}

I was a dork in high school. {And am finally proud of it.}

Because being a dork in school pays off in your 30′s.

There are secrets that no one tells you. {Or they try but it’s so hard to believe when you’re not popular by 16 year old standards.}

Dorks have the advantage of planting the early seeds of non-conformity, going against the grain.

But looking back, I learned a few things:

Dorks possess vision, even if it’s just beyond high school.

Dorks are the rare bird that won’t always do what’s popular, but do what’s smart.

Dorks don’t blend in and can someday stand out.

Dorks aren’t afraid to be the purple cow.

What did you learn from your younger years that has paid off in your business?

Part of personal branding is empowering your current and future consumers to talk about you.

To feel like they know you. To recognize your brand, your look and feel, and give the pitch on your behalf to their circle of influence.

You want them to love you so much it comes naturally to ooze glowing remarks about you.

To do that, you have to serve them 

Be consistent and do the work.

Make yourself visible through your online creativity – Tumblr, blog, Pinterest boards, e-books, podcasts and business cards. . . all the while knowing that your online presence and real life much match. {Don’t try to pull a fast one on her. She won’t like you for it.}

Write a killer About page.{Yes, I know talking about yourself is hard. But who knows you better!}

Cover what you’ve got. 

Equip her with the tools to spread the word. Listen to her and she’ll tell you what she can do for you.

Then actually do what she loves. Don’t go into maintenance mode. Keep learning. Keep creating. Keep pushing the boundaries. It’s difficult to not to get distracted by the flashy new tools. But remember that beautiful branding isn’t about what everyone else creates or what the whole world needs.

Branding is about focusing on what you’re the best at and continuing to build a relationship with just your consumer.