Personal Development

The Artist’s Way: Week Twelve
Overview: Welcome to the final week of The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. This chapter was very short. Julia Cameron touched on having faith to know yourself as a creative and to understand that we are meant to enjoy life and be bountiful. She says our society teaches us that if we don’t make money, our contribution isn't good enough. We need to break past that and to trust your intuition to know that what you’re doing is good enough. It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. Thoughts: My favourite... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Eleven
Overview: I can’t believe we’re already on the second last week! This week, Julia Cameron discusses Recovering a Sense of Autonomy. It basically means, we are on our own now. We need to carry on this artistic creative venture by ourselves and find our own way forward. There are four main topics in this chapter: Acceptance Julia says that creativity is it’s own reward, but many of us think that if we’re not getting paid for what we’re doing, we’re not very good. This in turn leads us to self-sabotage... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Ten
Overview: In Chapter ten, Julia Cameron talks about recovering a sense of self protection. In this chapter, she discusses ways in which we can find ourselves off course from our artist path. As per usual, most of these are self-sabotage (because it’s easier to stay blocked rather than keep moving forward.) Some of these things that we need protection from are: addictions (this can be addictions to food, alcohol, drugs or even work). drought (life becomes lacklustre and everything becomes grey and mundane). fame. competition.   Addictions are pretty obvious... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Nine
Overview: In Chapter nine, Julia Cameron talks about recovering a sense of compassion. There are five main categories: Fear Enthusiasm Creative U-Turns Discouragement Blasting Through Blocks Most blocked artists are blocked from their own fear - fear of failure/success/abandonment. Fear of failure seems easy to understand, but why would we fear success? This is what morning pages are for - to work your way through why you might be afraid of success. As Julia states throughout the entire book, we usually are our own block. We’re so afraid of what... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Eight
Overview: In this chapter, Julia Cameron talks about strength in regards to recovering Artists. She states that a recovering Artist has experienced a loss of some form - hope, belief in oneself, money, and the list goes on. She also says that when we have a loss, this can be looked at as an ending. However, the end of something is always the beginning of a new chapter. It’s up to us to be able to listen and see when these new doors open up. Julia Cameron suggests that we... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Seven
Overview: This week, in “Recovering a Sense of Connection”, we discuss four main topics. These are: Listening We use morning pages to listen to our thoughts and to hear past our censor. In morning pages, no one is judging us - no one else is reading these pages, so you can literally say anything you want to. Artist dates help us to listen to our intuition - do what feels good, and it helps us listen to the voice of inspiration. Julia Cameron stresses that art is not about thinking... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Six
Overview: This week, the chapter was very short. In this chapter, Julia Cameron gets us to question our assumptions about money, and how they relate to manifestation. She explains that most people don’t associate money and God, because people think money (or asking for money) is inheritantly bad, and it’s something you shouldn’t ask the universe for. She goes on to say that in order for us to make the kind of money we want, we need to do what we were created for. I guess some would say this... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Five
Overview: This was a fun week for me. Julia Cameron wrote about possibility, and the way the universe works to conspire with you (not against you) to give you what you ask for. She says that we are the ones who set our own limits - another form of self-sabotage. She goes on to say that we find the answers we search for in morning pages. Also, she recommends that artists need alone time, otherwise we lose ourselves in doing things for others.   Thoughts: I’ve personally had many experiences... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Four
This week, Julia Cameron detailed how to recover your integrity as a recovering artist. As we dive farther into this minefield, we start to develop strong emotions. We might have before said “I’m Okay” when someone asked us how we are. The beginning of a successful recovery is to break through this “Ok” business, and to explore how you really feel. The morning pages are meant to explore these strong feelings you may begin to have. As you begin to unravel who you actually are, you are losing the old... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Three
Week three of The Artist’s Way covers four main topics: Anger Synchronicity Shame Growth Julia Cameron says that anger is meant to be listened to (not used against) in order to set forth into new territory. At this point in an artist’s recovery, we may feel anger against the system or people we think are holding us back. This may or may not include ourselves. It also means we have discovered our boundaries and what we can give into and what we are going to fight for. When we ask... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week Two
Week two covers finding your identity when it comes to your creativity. Who are we when we create? What kind of person does it make us? Julia Cameron talks about using affirmations to confirm your creative identity. She also says we can flourish in our creativity when we feel a sense of safety, but if we don’t have that safety net, we can start to feel self-doubt. The self-doubt then can bring on self-sabotage which in turn derails our efforts to find or keep that creative spark. The author also... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Week One
Good morning! Well, I made it through the first week! I found this chapter to be a bit irrevelvant for me. I think this chapter is meant for people who haven’t explored their creativity and artistry, or, people who have always wanted to be artists, but were told by others they should explore other career options (meaning they’re not good enough). I have always plowed ahead with whatever I wanted to do - whether that was my science and teaching degrees, my art, or learning how to drive standard. I’ve... Read more...
The Artist’s Way: Introductory Week
Good morning! I would like to introduce a new series to my blog: The Artist’s Way. When Jenny Penton from Planner Perfect had first introduced morning pages, she had said it came from a book called The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. Now Julia Cameron did not invent the idea of morning pages, but she uses the technique in her system of removing creative blocks so you can be artistic and creative no matter who you are. This blog is an introduction to my experience with the book (namely the... Read more...
Keep Learning Always: Personal & Professional Development
Let’s talk about learning! No matter what stage of life you’re in, there is always the time for a little professional or personal growth/learning. If you’re a professional, you may be sent to courses by your boss to up level your skills and to keep up with the changing times. If you’re your own boss, you may have to be on the look out for courses and learning experiences that help you in your journey. Even for stay at home moms, or retirees who are currently not in the workforce... Read more...
The Best Advice I’ve Ever Gotten
The best advice I’ve ever gotten my entire life was basically no advice at all. I was one of the quiet ones growing up…always watching, always listening. I picked up on a lot that way. You know how kids say “I know"!”, and you know that they really don’t know. Well, I was one of those gen x kids who actually did know. I felt for some reason that I had an “in” to the ways of the world, almost like I would have these private conversations with the universe... Read more...
Stuck In The Stages of Life
Sometimes we get stuck in a rut, or a certain stage of life and we start feeling stuck. We feel like nothing ever changes or we do the same old boring things all the time. It’s easy to get upset, sad, angry and frustrated when this happens. We feel these things because we think we have no other choice, or there’s nothing we can do to change it. This might be true for certain circumstances, but what it might take instead is a mindset change. Have you ever had those... Read more...
The End of Janes Agenda Masterplan & The End of a Year-Long Goal
Hello and welcome! It doesn’t seem that long ago when I started Janes Agenda Masterplan 365 Class. I was so excited! I felt like it was a such a positive thing at the time. I had always wanted to work on my personal and professional development in the past and just never made time for it. I wanted something that was a bit more structured and guided rather than just doing something on my own. In reflection, I had months where I felt like I got a lot out of... Read more...
Finding Time To Better Ourselves: Additional Thoughts
A few weeks ago, I wrote a blog on personal development and the struggle with time, and since then, I’ve had some additional thoughts I wanted to share with you. I’m currently participating in the Janes Agenda Masterplan Productivity Course (you can read my blog about it here). I’ve been reading some interesting books that Jane had picked for the course. (She had a main book, and then an additional book for those who wanted the extra material, or for those who really enjoyed reading). Well, I have picked up... Read more...
Janes Agenda Masterplan 365
There’s something that I’m super stoked about and I feel like I need to share my thoughts and excitement. Jane from Janes Agenda is hosting a personal development Masterclass Training for an entire year! At the time of writing, the training has not yet begun - it’s scheduled to start April 1, 2024. By the time this post goes live, it will be almost the end of May, and I will do a follow up post to let you know how the course is going. (If you’re interested in the... Read more...
Personal Development: The Struggle With Time
The struggle is real: twenty four hours sometimes feels like it’s hardly enough time to do anything at all. When we’re young, time seems endless, like an eternity. When I had summer break, I felt like it was the entire summer. Now I know it’s a measly 60 days and it comes and goes so quickly. As an adult, I get anxious knowing how fast time passes. Sometimes I panic, thinking of all the things I still want to do and still haven’t done. I can’t even place the time... Read more...
Five Things You Should Do For Yourself Everyday
Read 20 minutes. Reading not only makes you focus on one thing (the book), but it promotes different skills than listening to a book. Your mind sees words differently than you hear them. It also gives you time to sit and relax where you’re not doing something else all the time. You can read for pleasure or for learning, but either way, you still learn something new!   Write down a positive affirmation or quote. Again, the physical act of writing (instead of pressing a keyboard on a computer or... Read more...
Upleveling Your Life Through Change
Hey friends! Welcome back! This week, I want to talk about how you can uplevel your entire life though change. Have you ever heard the phrase “Progress is impossible without change”? Most people fear change; change is hard. Things are easier if you don’t have change - easier maybe, but you also remain the same. How can you use change to your advantage to up-level your life and yourself? Keep reading to find out! Could you imagine living in the same house from the day you were born to the... Read more...
The Differences Between Being Self Aware and Self Conscious
The official definition of self awareness is the experience of your own personality or individuality. To be self conscious is to have a heightened sense of awareness of yourself, in other words, being aware that you exist and that you are conscious. We’re going to explore these ideas a little bit and get a little more detailed into what they actually mean to us as individuals. Both of these concepts are considered signs of emotional maturity. As a child, we do not think in terms of self, or worry about... Read more...
The Effects of Social Conditioning
Hey friends! Welcome back. Today’s blog is a side note from last week, when I wrote about how it takes courage to be yourself, a continuation if you will, and goes a bit more in-depth. Why does it take so long to figure out who we are? There are some really courageous people out there who dance to their own tune, right from birth. They don’t follow societal regulations, some laws or societal norms. These people are generally looked down on as outcasts of society. Think about it; all our... Read more...
It Takes Courage To Be Yourself
Throughout my last few years of writing and working on blogs, I’ve noticed a general trend in my stories. A lot of my work is based on self-care, healing trauma and in general, figuring out who I am and letting you get to know me. I’ve noticed that I come to these points quite frequently; it takes time to figure out who you actually are. Once you graduate, you are expected to have a chosen career path. Most of us have no idea what we’re planning on doing with our... Read more...
My Experience With Swedish Death Cleaning
Hi folks and welcome back! I was debating whether to put this blog under organization & productivity, Who I Am, or personal development. Personal development won, because even though this method is aiming to help me become more of a minimalist, (i.e. more organized), I’ve had to work on myself during this process. I am not a hoarder, by any means, but I carry about 2 households worth of stuff with me every time I move, and I have been doing that since my dad died. I feel like by... Read more...
How To Turn Your Dreams Into Reality
Hello beautiful people! I hope you are doing well this week. In today’s blog, I will show you how to succeed and get one step closer to your dreams every single day. Now I am not referring to winning the lottery or anything really that involves chance or winning a large sum of money. I am involving steps that you will take all on your own to take you closer and closer to your dreams and/or your goals. So at first when I was thinking about what to title this... Read more...
How to Build Routines & Why They Are Important
Hello and welcome back to the blog! Today. we are going to talk about the importance of routines and how to create them. So, the exact definition of a routine is doing something in a regular order. Of course on YouTube, we see everyone creating videos about their morning routines, or evening routines. Sometimes I wonder if they really do all the things they are saying they do. Most people already have established routines, and they might not even realize it. For example, most people get up in the morning,... Read more...
The Point of Having a Degree
Hello and welcome back! This topic may sound pretty straight forward to some, but I can guarantee there are very opposing views on it. I have two degrees: my first one being in science, Bsc. My first two years were the basic science requirements that everyone takes in a science degree. Honestly, these first two years are the hardest. The courses are very general, and you cover a lot of material over a lot of different subjects. The books are extremely heavy and large, and it is a huge jump... Read more...
Perfectionism: The All or Nothing Dilemma
What is perfectionism? It is actually a personality trait in which a person strives for flawlessness in unobtainable or far-reaching goals, is self-critical and worries about how other people see them. This is not to be confused with doing your best, or actually doing a great job. We will focus on the type that is so debilitating that people stop before they even get started. I am part of an online group that discusses bullet journaling and bullet journal topics. I will not give the name for obvious privacy reasons.... Read more...
Personal Development: An Actionable Plan
Hi everyone! Welcome to this week’s blog. Today we’re going to talk about personal development and how to develop a plan of action - basically ground zero; starting at the beginning and building up intention to set meaningful goals and strategies that work for you as an individual. First of all, I don’t know about you, but I always found the term “personal development” to be elusive. I mean, it’s easy enough - it’s working on yourself, “upgrading” yourself to be a better person, and to increase your potential for... Read more...
How My Online Business Improves my Personal Development
Hey everyone! Welcome back to my blog. We’re going to discuss all the ways that I have grown in the last two years since starting my online businesses. I say that in plural, because I have two Youtube Channels, https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJuWbC7-oQ_qAl205tIrGzA, and https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCj2TnymFlDjnhClNAwx5Stg, an online sticker shop on this website, and of course, this blog. I also use affiliate marketing in all that I do, and all of these things combined constitute my business “hats”. In the past, I have strictly discussed my Youtube channel, and all the work that goes... Read more...
Communication: Asking For What You Want
Hi! My name is Sandra, and I’m asking you to read this blog and support me in my small business. LOL No, really…this is part of why I want to write on a topic about asking for what you want. I think a lot of times, we do something good and then we expect reward for it. However, that doesn't always happen. If it did, we would all be super motivated, hard working individuals and we all know that is NOT the case. Asking for what you want takes courage.... Read more...