fbpx
Category

inspiration & influence

inspiration & influence wholehearted stories

Cora Pacheco – Sacred Creative Stories of Transition

August 18, 2020
Cora Pacheco

Having left her paralegal role and with some newly freed up time, a woman seeks to engage more deeply with her personality, creativity and intuitive skills and self as a guide for the future.

Cora Pacheco joined the Sacred Creative Collective for community and support in going deeper on her intuitive practices. She was seeking clarity on where these important skills could take her in a new phase of life. Building on personality insights, Cora traversed realms of archetypes and shadow work to deepen her intuitive knowledge for herself and for others.

I asked alumni from the Sacred Creative Collective to share their experiences and how group coaching contributed to self-understanding and future directions. Cora took the time to reflect on her journey in life and the Sacred Creative Collective via these interview questions. I am grateful to Cora for sharing her wisdom and learning. Cora’s journey shows how working with a coach and a group can help us embrace the creative and intuitive sides of our personality in a deeper way and without fear.

Enjoy and may Cora’s story inspire your own intuitive search for wisdom!

Can you please tell us a little about yourself and your transition journey? What led you to want to make a deeper, more creative shift in your life?

Five years ago when I was 50, I left my profession as a paralegal prosecutor to stay at home as a full-time caregiver to my children, one of whom has a developmental disability.  I was burned out and needed to focus on priorities.  Then, two years ago, in a serendipitous development, my daughter moved in with her much-loved and fun support worker.  Suddenly, my life changed again, and I had time to rest, re-group and decide what was next.  I had delved into abstract painting already but I wanted to set some goals and have some accountability, as I find it difficult to keep myself motivated and moving forward with projects.  Sacred Creative Coaching came at just the right time for me to explore some goals and how to move forward. 

intuitive learning

What are some of the challenges you have faced when it comes to living in alignment with your creative desires and aims?

As an INFJ, (which I discovered whilst delving into Personality Stories with Terri), I need quiet time alone to recharge and a personally attuned process which helps “set me up” for creative work.  It seems that I need a lot of free, open time (during which I can read inspirational material, pull some tarot cards or delve into my personal astrology, for example) in order to inspire my creative juices.  For me, it’s easy to let my responsibilities take over and just not find the time to be creative or, as is often the case, I remain in research and learning mode without much output.  I have come to realize that self-expression and creativity are important components in my life, but I do seem to need help with keeping myself on track and focused. 

Can you please describe your focus now and how you are working more in line with what is sacred and creative for you?

I have developed my morning routine which includes coffee time, reading, journaling, sometimes including dreamwork, and sometimes pulling tarot cards for myself. I’ve noticed that I need to be inspired and then I feel I can create something or share something; for example, a tarot reading for the collective, on my Instagram page.  I also aim to get out for a walk every day, sometimes in nature. After completing the Sacred Creative Collective program, I started a business as a tarot reader, as I was enjoying delving into the card meanings and using my intuitive abilities to deepen my spiritual practice.  This was a big step for me, fully “stepping out of the spiritual closet”, and letting myself be seen.  I created a website for the business, known as Eagle and Star Tarot and spend time writing occasional blogposts and Instagram posts for the business. 

intuitive learning

What helped you to develop your skills and new/renewed focus?

Over the last few years, I’ve taken several courses, including obtaining a certificate as a Positive Psychology Coach from the Wholebeing Institute, and courses in tarot.  I also did the Personality Stories with Terri, as already mentioned.  During the Sacred Collective Coaching program, one of my goals was to deepen my knowledge of tarot.  One of the things I realized as I went through the collective coaching process and working with Terri, as funny as it may sound, is that it’s ok to like what you like, even though others may find it weird or unappealing.  It also helped me to explore some of my limiting beliefs and shadow tendencies, like people pleasing, which keep me from moving forward and stepping fully into my personal power. 

intuitive learning

What does creative transition look like in your life now and what are you proud of?

My creative transition has been about recognizing that I actually am a creative being (we all are!), and that being creative in some form, whether it’s doing abstract painting or writing a blog or Instagram post, is good for and necessary for me.  I’m proud of myself for being someone who is curious and a lifetime learner and for taking the time to work on my personal development through the courses and coaching that I’ve taken. 

What are your next steps?

My next steps are to continue working on building my community on Instagram at Eagle and Star Tarot, sharing insights and readings, as well as growing my business as a reader.  I also want to continue doing things that I enjoy such as walking in the woods, day-tripping and hopefully more travel. 

intuitive learning
Cards from The Wild Unknown Tarot deck

Thank you for sharing your sacred creative story with us, Cora!

And for the images curated from your intuitive journey, story and business.

If you would like to shape your sacred creative life with the help of a coach and the camaraderie of a community, I would love to support you. You can find out more about the Sacred Creative Collective here.

The Sacred Creative Collective is current open for enrolments with an early bird opportunity until midnight Saturday 20 February 2021 AEDT.

Find out more + enrol in the Collective

If now doesn’t feel like the right time, get on the waitlist to hear about the next round of the Collective. We’d love you to join us! Places are limited. Get on the Waitlist to be the first to know. You also get Exclusive Early Bird access and save!

Join the Waitlist for the Collective!

You can connect with Cora on Instagram and via her website: Eagle and Star Tarot.

Cora Pacheco

inspiration & influence wholehearted stories

Elizabeth Milligan – Sacred Creative Stories of Transition

August 14, 2020
sacred creative life

In France, a woman seeks space and a way to slow down and reconnect with her creative energy and many passions. Elizabeth Milligan joined the Sacred Creative Collective for community and support in getting clarity and focus on her creative spirit and projects.

Elizabeth has undertaken deep and reflective inner work in the Sacred Creative Collective. Committed to personal growth, she has worked to understand and focus her naturally expansive personality. Finding heart-centred frameworks and structure has been key to honing in how to shape and finish her creative projects.

I asked alumni from the Sacred Creative Collective to share their experiences and how group coaching contributed to self-understanding and future directions. Elizabeth took the time to reflect on her journey in life and the Sacred Creative Collective via these interview questions. I am so grateful to Elizabeth for sharing her wisdom and insights. Being a group coaching program, community and collective wisdom is an integral element of the learning and process. Elizabeth has been a passionate contributor, sharing her insights and learning to shed light on her own journey and to help others alongside her. As she does in this interview!

Enjoy the read and may it inspire your sacred creative life!

Can you please tell us a little about yourself and your transition journey? What led you to want to make a deeper, more creative shift in your life?

I’m someone who has been searching for something my whole life.  I never really knew what that was so I ended up chasing new jobs, new careers, moving to new countries, learning new languages.  I was generally always looking for something different, exciting, new.  I was always learning and I’m still constantly learning.  I’m a very curious person and this can lead to many avenues opening up for exploration.  It can also become overwhelming and unsettling though, and I think this was what was happening to me.  I needed to stop.  To calm down, slow down and get back to my centre.  To find what it was that was really important to me and put my focus there. 

I took a sabbatical of sorts when I accepted a year-long house-sit for an old French farmhouse in the countryside.  It was my chance to stop, slow down and centre myself.  Through doing this I started to rediscover my sense of play and discovery and this came out in creative ways.  Writing, blogging, photography, collage-making, painting, baking, potion-making.  Living closely with nature, hiking the fields, swimming in the rivers, following the cycles of the moon and the seasons instilled in me a deep sense of calm and well-being and for the first time in a long time I was able to take a step back and assess things.  I realised I had lost important parts of myself.  My creative energy had been focused in other areas and I wanted to get this back, to rediscover those lost parts of myself and bring them into my daily life, whilst also letting go of the parts of myself that were not really me.

sacred creative life

What are some of the challenges you have faced when it comes to living in alignment with your creative desires and aims?

When you choose to live more in alignment with your desires and aims there is always a certain amount of letting go that is necessary.  I’ve always found it difficult to let go.  I have the tendency to hold onto things “just in case” which also goes for knowledge, jobs I’ve done in the past, past experiences.  I’ve found it difficult to commit to a deeper, more creative life because I’ve doubted that it would be sustainable.  This has made me want to hold on to jobs or opportunities even if they’re not the best situation for me in terms of my well-being.  So it’s been a case of two steps forward and one step back.  However, the more I am able to commit to and trust in my creative projects and way of life, the more I am able to let go.  It’s a slow process but necessary if we are to make space for those things we are more aligned with.

Another obstacle was to do with society and the culture of what constitutes “real work”.  Although I’ve never gone down the conventional route, I’ve still found it hard to be supportive of my own creative desires and aims.  I feel like I’ve looked at myself and judged myself through a lens that is not my own.  It’s an external lens that I’ve adopted as my own and judged myself through.  It’s harsh and it’s self-sabotaging so this has been an interesting challenge to overcome as I never before realised that most of the blocks I faced were self-made.

sacred creative life

Can you please describe your focus now and how you are working more in line with what is sacred and creative for you?

My current focus is on bringing together my knowledge as a trained aromatherapist and my love of art and painting in a more sustainable way.  I love creating calming rituals around essential oils and strongly believe that bringing ritual and scent together can be a beautiful healing experience and one that creates a wonderful sense of space and calm for our creative work.  I’m working more in line with what is sacred and creative for me by allowing myself to work more intuitively and using my relationship with nature to inspire and guide me.

sacred creative life

What helped you to develop your skills and new/renewed focus?

For a long time I felt kind of splattered, where I couldn’t get focus and was jumping around through different projects but not giving anything my full attention.  It felt like I had to choose and I didn’t want to as everything felt important to me, but the result was a lot of procrastination and never getting anything done.

I started working with Terri last year because the idea of living a sustainable, sacred creative life was really important to me.  I just had no idea where to start.  Through following Terri’s programme I realised a lot about myself.  I became able to accept all the parts of myself that felt they were pulling me in different directions and start to see how these parts can support each other and work together if I give myself the right framework and enough freedom to be myself. 

Looking at personality type (I’m INFP), archetypes (Creator/Alchemist), tendencies (I’m a Rebel of course) and many other areas really led me on a deep journey of discovery and one that will continue over time.  It allowed me to take a deep breath, lay everything out in front of me, and start to see where things could fit together and how my different types and tendencies would support me.  I now feel more able to bring things together in my own way through my own unique view and experience and I now have the confidence to move forward with my ideas.

sacred creative life

What does creative transition look like in your life now and what are you proud of?

I have more freedom to move forward with the projects I want to work on.  I’m able to step out of the confines of society (and my own self-limiting beliefs) and more closely live the life I want.  I’ve gathered up the lost parts of myself and welcomed them back into my life, feeling bolder and more fully able to embrace them as I move forward.  I’m proud of the deep work I’ve done to get to know myself better and of all the skills I’ve learned through flexing my creative muscles – painting, photography, writing, blogging.  Most of all I’m proud of not giving up on myself.  Of listening to my inner voice as it softly called me and nudged me in the right direction, allowing me to find my way home.

sacred creative life

What are your next steps?

My next steps are to finish my new website where I bring my art and aromatherapy together.  There is also a survey on there for a research project I’m working on around combining ritual and scent.  I’d like the website to house a working portfolio of my artwork – nothing too finished and polished but more a place for discussion and self-realisation.  And towards the end of the year I hope to open up slots for online consultations to help others choose and safely use essential oils in their creative practice.

Thank you for sharing your sacred creative story with us, Elizabeth!

And for the beautiful images curated from your art and life story.

If you would like to shape your sacred creative life with the help of a coach and the camaraderie of a community, I would love to support you. You can find out more about the Sacred Creative Collective here.

The Sacred Creative Collective is current open for enrolments with an early bird opportunity until midnight Saturday 20 February 2021 AEDT.

Find out more + enrol in the Collective

If now is not the right time for you, get on the Waitlist to be the first to know next time. You also get Exclusive Early Bird access and save!

Join the Waitlist for the Collective!

You can connect with Elizabeth on Instagram and her beautiful website is HERE! You can also read Elizabeth’s Wholehearted Story My wild soul is calling here.

sacred creative life

inspiration & influence wholehearted stories

Valerie Lewis – Sacred Creative Stories of Transition

August 11, 2020
sacred creative stories

In London, a creative soul finishes her corporate role and seeks ways to blend her many passions into a new way to live and thrive. Valerie Lewis joined the Sacred Creative Collective in February 2020 for support and community in shaping her unique creative transition and vision.

It’s been inspiring hearing how Valerie has embraced the many diverse creative dimensions of her life and found focus in taking them forward. With commitment and step by step actions, she is negotiating her life shift positively, bringing the threads of her body of work over time together.

I asked alumni from the Sacred Creative Collective to share their experiences and how group coaching contributed to self-understanding and their future directions. Valerie reflected on her journey in life and the Sacred Creative Collective via these interview questions. I am so grateful to Valerie for taking the time to share her wisdom and insights from her transition. Being a group coaching program, the community and collective wisdom is an integral element of the learning and process. It was so wonderful to have Valerie as a vital part of the group sharing her special brand of wisdom and gaining strength and skill for the onward journey. And to be able to share her sacred insights here with you.

Enjoy the interview with Valerie! May it inspire you.

Can you please tell us a little about yourself and your transition journey? What led you to want to make a deeper, more creative shift in your life?

My current transition journey started about 2 years ago, as I became more and more conscious that I was heading towards the age of 60. Aspects of my day job were moved to a different department and my role had become less meaningful; and the beginning of last year when I started on a group programme with a Web Designer & Digital Strategist in learning how to revamp my website – I found myself withdrawing somewhat from the programme as I had a deep urge to ‘go within’, reflect and do some deep thinking about what I wanted for myself in the 3rd phase of my life, which would also mean some changes to the purpose of my website, what it reflected and who it was aimed at/served.

sacred creative stories

What are some of the challenges you have faced when it comes to living in alignment with your creative desires and aims?

One of the main challenges I believe I have faced, is coming to terms with the fact that I am multi-passionate. 

In my early 30’s I consciously made the decision not to climb the corporate career ladder. Mainly because deep down inside of me it just didn’t appeal. I wanted to feel free to pursue or find my “passion” outside of the day job. This decision through the next 20 and more years caused me a lot of internal anguish as I often thought there was something wrong with me for being so undecided and perhaps coming across as flaky/a lost soul.

Outside of my day jobs, I threw myself into undertaking courses, lots of reading, and dabbling in varied interests from, introductory counselling, interior design, colour therapy, personal styling, energy healing and holistic therapies, working with my intuition alone and through attending a few spiritual development classes, and with tarot/oracle cards and providing intuitive readings, some life coaching, and over a 10 year period or so, also making and selling my craftwork and bead jewellery.  All with the aim of trying to fit with the then societal norm of finding a one true passion.  I realise I don’t fit so neatly into any box. It’s taken me a long time to accept and feel truly comfortable with this fact.

I came across a quote a couple of years ago, and it so resonates, as I realise that over the years that is what I have been doing (following the tugs that come from my heart)!

“Follow the tugs that come from the heart. I think that everyone gets these gentle urges and should listen to them. Even if they sound totally insane, they may be worth going with”. ~ Victoria Moran

Naturally, I can’t realistically follow all my passions at the same time. Some I’ve learnt (and still learning) to blend together and refine to represent who I authentically am and what I have to offer/support others with, whilst some passions will remain in the hobby sphere.  But, I am always learning.  That is a huge part of who I am.

Can you please describe your focus now and how you are working more in line with what is sacred and creative for you?

My focus now, is to provide a healing, empowering, Personal Growth Facilitation/Life Transitions Coaching service – primarily for people who have experienced a significant life change (such as loss of a child or someone else dear to them, redundancy, relationship breakdown etc) – which incorporates and blends some of my interests (such as Reiki, meditation, mindfulness, journaling, vision collage work and maybe in the future – depending on how comfortable I feel with Covid-19 and health/safety measures – massage therapy).  Also to make sure I build in time for my creative craft based passions.

sacred creative stories

What helped you to develop your skills and new/renewed focus?

My focus has been renewed following deep reflection and also being made redundant from my full-time corporate role at the beginning of this year.  Leading up to the redundancy, I was aware that I wanted some support for what I wanted to do with my life coaching and website post redundancy, but wasn’t quite sure of what that might look like and where it might come from. 

What helped me was attending a small intimate one day goal setting workshop hosted by Sylvi Hussain (Transformational Coach) at the beginning of the new year. This led to more reflecting and I felt within, that once I left employment, and attempted to give new structure to a new way of living, I would like some support with this and also to be held accountable, as I developed and enhanced some skills, and further give shape and definition to my vision and goals. In a most serendipitous way Terri’s Sacred Creative Collective answered my call, providing me with the support and community I felt I needed to be in action!

What does creative transition look like in your life now and what are you proud of?

I would say creative transition is for me, as described above.  Through the Sacred Creative Collective, I became more familiar with the concept of ‘self-leadership’ through Terri’s presentations and group coaching sessions, and in many ways I have been practising this (i.e. striving to live in accordance with my values, getting to know who I was through various modalities such as oracle/tarot, astrology and numerology and a basic understanding of my personality type, etc), but this was reinforced and greatly enhanced during my time in the Sacred Creative Collective.  

It has been a long journey and I am most proud of listening to my introverted intuitive self, even when I doubted it and felt confused and being true to myself, and knowing when to reach out to others (who are ahead of me in their journey) for support and guidance when I need it.  It was also good to have it reaffirmed that there is nothing wrong with being multi-passionate and not fitting neatly into anyone box, through the other women I met in the Collective who had all led interesting and varied lives and were also going through a similar transitional journey leading to a life that was more enriched and meaningful to them through pursuit of their passions.

sacred creative stories

What are your next steps?

Although I certified as a Life Coach back in 2006 it is an area I have not consistently focused on, and so much has changed since then in the coaching world (back then, for example, niching was not a thing, nor social media as we now know it). So at the moment a lot of my time has been spent getting myself up to date on what is happening in the coaching world, getting accepted and listed as a coaching partner on a digital community website for the over 50’s, working on a client welcome pack, refining wording for my offering, etc and before the year ends look at how I can use my Instagram account to promote and market my services and get paying clients and may seek coaching for this aspect. 

I also have some personal creative projects to undertake (i.e. a couple of abstract paintings to do for my living room wall, selling off the rest of my handmade jewellery stock etc) and more writing – for my own blog and a few guest posts and email newsletter.  A neighbour also gave me a large bag full of dried lavender….so I’ve lots of lavender sachets to make for Christmas stocking fillers!  Using the goals and actions template from my time with the Sacred Creative Collective I am reminded of my overall vision and goals for my business and personal life, and strive to set actions and review and update every two weeks. 

Thank you for sharing your sacred creative story with us, Valerie!

And for the beautiful images curated from your life story.

If you would like to shape your sacred creative life with the help of a coach and the camaraderie of a community, I would love to support you. You can find out more about the Sacred Creative Collective here.

We are enrolling soon for an 8 March start and 6 months of community, creativity and wisdom. We’d love you to join us! Places are limited.

The Sacred Creative Collective is current open for enrolments with an early bird opportunity until midnight Saturday 20 February 2021 AEDT.

Find out more + enrol in the Collective

If now is not the right time for you, get on the Waitlist to be the first to know next time. You also get Exclusive Early Bird access and save!

Join the Waitlist for the Collective!

You can connect with Valerie at her beautiful website Visualise and Bloom and also on Instagram.

sacred creative stories
inspiration & influence reading notes

3 practical insights from ‘Chillpreneur’ to inspire creative growth

July 31, 2020
Chillpreneur

Creative growth lightbulb moments!

You know those moments when you are reading a book and it’s like the author is talking to YOU! Looking for creative growth, the writer just seems to know what you are missing and need to know. A lightbulb moment, critical pieces immediately fall into place. You see something more clearly, as you step into a new way of seeing or thinking. One that helps you move and grow.

I enjoyed LOTS of moments like that reading Chillpreneur by Denise Duffield Thomas. But three practical insights for creative growth made a huge difference to how I work as a creative entrepreneur. And as the title, suggest, they helped me to chill and relax into working in line with my purpose and personality.

So here they are, my three top practical insights for creative growth and entrepreneurship from Chillpreneur:

1. Know your business model

The Chillpreneur solution to finding the perfect business model for you is: Know thyself.

Chillpreneur, Denise Duffield Thomas

Knowing your business model might not sound like the sexiest advice. But this insight was truly game-changing for me. Denise DT outlines four business models:

  1. Maker Model – making physical things eg art, jewellery, clothing.
  2. Service Model – solving problems, doing work for clients eg photography, graphic design, editing.
  3. Consultant Model – helping others achieve transformation via“high- to medium’ touch” ways eg coaching, healing, consulting, advising.
  4. Teacher Model – instructing people in a “low- to medium-touch way” eg authors, bloggers, podcasters, online course creators.

Mixing and matching business model elements helps you find the unique best blend for you. And importantly, aligning your business model to your personality helps you work in a way that is fulfilling and relaxed.

My business model story

Why was this so game-changing for me? It helped me make sense of my identity as a creative entrepreneur and where to focus my energies. It tapped back into my why, passions and body of work over time. Let me explain.

I trained to become a certified life coach in 2016 but I have been a teacher for most of my life. Working in the adult vocational education sector (TAFE) for over 30 years, I’m highly skilled at teaching and facilitating both in-person and online. So I am a teacher at heart. I love to: share my knowledge and resources, structure and shape learning experiences, and make a difference in people’s lives. I love coaching too for overlapping reasons and for how I can foster transformative experiences, listen intuitively, help people find their truth and be in action towards what’s important.

But when I blend that CONSULTANT model/Coaching + TEACHER model together WHAM! Sparks fly as my zone of genius comes together. I’ve blended them together to create the Sacred Creative Collective Group Coaching program. And powerful personal transformations are the result. I love curating, creating and sharing my wisdom in chunks of practical lessons for others. And I can shape and reshape this material in different forms as a teacher in low- to medium-touch ways. This includes blogging, writing books, speaking, creating online courses such as the Personality Stories Coaching program.

This is all in line with my introverted INTJ personality type which has a natural preference for visioning what could be, creating, curating, organising and structuring into practical frameworks for others. So I am working in a way that aligns with my heart and skills. And that feels so much more chilled and satisfying!

Your business model story

So what’s your business model story? There are plenty of examples in Chillpreneur to consider including the story of Nicola Newman, creative mentor for the Sacred Creative Collective. Nicola blends Maker, Consultant and Teacher in a beautiful creative mix aligned to her heart and skills.

TIPS: Find the blend that makes you sing! Check out Chillpreneur Chapter 4 and see which model or blend suits you and the life and creative growth you desire. The mindset it creates makes all the difference!

Chillpreneur

2. Be a contributor not a guru

As soon as I gave myself permission to contribute to the conversation about women and money, and not have to be a guru or expert on it, my business became fun.

Chillpreneur, Denise Duffield Thomas

How freeing is that thought? How much time do we spend feeling we have to be experts? And how much pressure does that put on us? When we just need to show up and contribute to the dialogue in our areas of expertise or interest.

What’s our unique take? What do we know? What is our experience? How can we share what we know to help others?

Being a contributor means:

  • learning and sharing what we know along the way.
  • being a work in progress, valuing our point of view and experience.
  • not wanting things to be perfect or more complete.
  • defining ourselves by what we can give, not by what is lacking.
  • supporting others by sharing what you know.
  • co-creating with others and tapping into the power of emerging.

It’s valuable to be knowledgeable, experienced and skilled, but let’s not allow that quest to stop us contributing along the way. Be authentic, contribute and share your process and behind the scenes. You never know how your path or learning can help others.

My contributor story

Focusing on being a contributor helped me to share personality type insights as a speaker at the international level. Backing myself, I flew to the UK and presented at the British Association for Psychological Type. In Learned Wisdom: Journeys in Type and Transition I share how I stepped up in my personality work to present to highly-skilled, experienced international type professionals on type and transition.

It put me under pressure but it helped me to invest time to gather the wisdom and learning of my transition experience to help others. By focusing on being a contributor of my unique experience of type and transition, I was able to facilitate new insights for this experienced group of professionals. I received excellent feedback which was heartening. Plus I developed a body of work I can share with others to help their transition through my teaching/coaching blend.

Your contributor story

So what’s your contributor story? Where would it help you to shift your mindset from guru to contributor? What can you share or create that will help others?

TIPS: Reflect on where the need to be an expert is keeping you from growing, emerging and sharing your truth. Journal about the impact of this and how you might change it. Check out Chillpreneur Chapter 1 for further thoughts on this and other mindset shifts for creative growth. Read Denise DT’s 37 Lessons from Becoming a Self-made Millionaire and be reminded: “Who cares if you don’t know everything. You don’t have to be the best to make a difference to someone.“

Chillpreneur
At BAPT in April 2019.

3. Embrace imperfect action

Embracing imperfect action in your business will reap huge rewards for you.

Chillpreneur, Denise Duffield Thomas

I’m a Virgo like Denise DT so I know all about perfectionism. As Denise says, “we practically invented it!” And Virgos don’t have a mortgage on perfectionism either; your personality type can mean you have a natural preference for “perfect” over “in process” or “imperfect”. This can mean all kinds of over-critiquing, over-doing, procrastination and silence.

Like my mug that says, “Done is better than perfect”, imperfect action is a mindset shift that enables us to move, do, write, create and share without the constant tyranny of self-criticism.

Denise shares the example of “placeholder marketing” – copy or offers she has put out there until she creates the “perfect version”. They end up staying out there and being very much appreciated by her community who don’t see them as imperfect at all. Love that idea!

My imperfect action story

The most freeing aspect of imperfect action has been reminding myself I can update, edit, review, revise and reinvent. Also to recognise when I am doing too much and not expending my energy wisely.

Creating a free resource as an entry point for my community has been a journey in moving away from doing too much and perfectionism. My first opt-in resource was a 26,000-word ebook on the 36 Books that Shaped my Story. I’m proud of it and I am looking to publish it in another way. But it took me ages and was way too much as a first step in connecting with me and my work. For both me and my community.

My Free 10 Tips for Creating more Meaning and Purpose Personal Action Checklist has been the most downloaded free resource I’ve created. Using a spirit of imperfect action and contributing, I distilled wisdom and learning from major life transitions into ten tips. I created this checklist so my community members can craft renewed focus, energy and creativity in their life. Yes, I could easily get put off by thinking about what is not there or if it is enough. But I know these 10 tips worked for me. They’re practical, applicable and I know will work for others. It’s a powerful first step. And if I learn new things or get additional insights, I can always update it.

Your imperfect action story

So what’s your imperfect action story? What could you do now that gets you out there into the world? How could using the idea of “imperfect action” help you? What have you already drafted that you are holding back on? Is there something you want to create but feel a sense of fear about? What would be enough now? How could you save time and energy?

TIPS: Just do it! Enjoy the process of creating and watch out for those inner voices that talk you down. Have responses ready for them. Use the words “imperfect action” in your self-talk to honour being in action. Put your work out there and realise you can always change and improve it later with added experience. Focus on the value of your insights to others.

Chillpreneur

Share your story!

Love to hear in the comments or via social media – Instagram or Facebook:

  • about your business model preference or unique blend.
  • how you are leaning into being a contributor.
  • and where and how are you choosing to be in imperfect action.

I hope these insights, experiences and tips have been helpful. I’m grateful to Denise Duffield Thomas for the insights gifted via Chillpreneur. It is a book I’ll be revisiting over time to strengthen my creative growth, freedom and abundance. I hope these ideas contribute to your creative growth, freedom and abundance too. Let me know what works for you! And check out Chillpreneur.

inspiration & influence intuition

How to develop your practice in the intuitive art of tarot

July 20, 2020

In this post, I share my tarot practice with you and show you how to develop skills in the intuitive art of tarot and oracle. I talk about intuition in my life and my practice. And I talk about the cards that come up in this particular reading and how I help others develop their intuitive practice via coaching. I welcome your feedback!

When I started on my transition journey to COMPLETELY change my life, a few years ago now, I had three major learning pillars:

  1. Become a certified life coach
  2. Become an accredited Jung/Myers-Briggs personality type practitioner
  3. Learn the intuitive art of tarot.
Quiet Writing Coaching

I wasn’t even sure at that time why learning tarot and developing my intuition was so important. It was something I was interested in but never really fully engaged with. Over time, I realised that this was all about activating intuition as a self-leadership tool in my life.

Personality type-wise, I have INTJ preferences, so Introverted, Intuitive, Thinking and Judging. My natural, lead cognitive function is Introverted Intuiting. But in the external world especially the workplace, I relied on my second in command, Extraverted Thinking. So it was time to shake off and shape up my natural intuition and also get some structure for it in my life.

Through my intuitive tarot practice, I have developed a way to write, create and live with wisdom, my own inner wisdom. And through my coaching, I open others to the wisdom and creativity within including via the intuitive art of tarot.

So here’s an insight into my intuitive tarot practice via a video I shared on Instagram and Facebook. If you are coming across this video now, there’s a message for you in there. Time is less important a construct than tapping into the inner wisdom that calls us.

Intuitive practice tools in the video

Here is the blessing I share in the video:

I bless you and in the name of Spirit. I ask for your guidance. Show me what I cannot see, confirm what I know, and help me that I may serve the highest good of all.

Here are the decks I mention and work with in the reading:

The Spacious Tarot

Wisdom of the Oracle

Tarot Narrative

How to develop your practice in intuitive tarot and oracle

Here are a few tips for developing an intuitive practice with tarot and oracle cards:

Start with oracle cards

Tarot is quite a structured system of 78 cards with 22 Major and 56 Minor Arcana. It’s brilliant to learn about but complex. Starting with Oracle cards is an excellent way in to working with your intuition and cards. I started with The Enchanted Map deck by Colette Baron-Reid but any oracle deck that calls you will be a great place to start. There are so many beautiful oracle decks out there to work with.

Do a short online course

A short online course is another way in to begin to explore tarot and oracle cards. My friend Victoria Smith’s Coffee with the Oracle program is instant access, self-paced and a fantastic introduction to working intuitively with oracle cards. Susannah Conways’s 78 Mirrors is an excellent way to learn about intuitive practice, working with tarot and understanding its structure and symbolism. The content of both courses was pivotal to my developing intuitive practice.

Read about tarot and oracle + work with guidebooks

Reading about intuition, tarot and oracle and how it works can be helpful. The guidebooks that accompany most tarot and oracle decks are accessible sources of wisdom based on the symbolism of specific decks. For full-length tarot practice books linked to specific decks, I love The Creative Tarot by Jessa Crispin creator of the Spolia Tarot and Playing with Symbols by Monicka Clio Sakki creator of the Sakki Sakki Tarot. 78 Degrees of Wisdom by Rachel Pollack is a classic text on tarot that I have found valuable.

Get a tarot reading

Get a tarot reading yourself! Find someone who is experienced and offers readings so you can experience what a tarot reading feels like and how it can guide you. That helped me so much in my emerging learning about tarot and intuitive wisdom. There are plenty of online options and Instagram can provide a place to connect with tarot readers and readings. Find someone who resonates with you. Hashtags like #tarotreadersofinstagram or #tarotoftheday are possible starting points.

Dive in and start!

Probably the best way to develop an intuitive practice is to just dive in and start! Choose a deck that calls you. Draw a card each day, whether it be oracle or tarot. See what comes up, make notes in a tarot journal about what you notice and intuitively feel from the card. Combine intuitive wisdom with reading about the card via the guidebook for insight. Journal about what this intuitive wisdom might mean for you in your life. There are free and affordable online tarot and oracle card options too. I love the Steampunk Tarot app which has a detailed accompanying guidebook and the Housewives Tarot app for some vintage fun. Colette Baron-Reid’s free online oracle app is also a very good place to get started. They are great on-the-go options too.

Follow my Tarot Narrative readings on Instagram and Facebook Stories

You can follow my regular Tarot Narrative readings in my Stories on Instagram and Facebook for wisdom, guidance and insight. Just Follow on IG or Like my Quiet Writing Facebook page and you will see the readings arrive as Stories there. Seeing how others read and the lessons they draw from the cards they pull can be a way of learning about intuitive practice. I also love Marianne’s Two Sides Tarot for regular, inspired insight.

Work with me as your coach + guide to developing intuition

Developing intuition and intuitive practice can be a rich goal to work on with a coach. I learnt that way and I have guided many others through learning to tap into their intuition and develop personal intuitive practices. You need to find what works for you and your personality and contexts. So work with me as your coach and guide to developing your intuition. With years of deep practice in intuition and an intimate understanding of how it works, I can help you find a practice that works for you!

I hope this video and these insights on my practices and how to develop skill in the intuitive art of tarot and oracle help you to create and live with wisdom. Enjoy learning!

You might also enjoy

Intuition and how to master it – a review of The Inner Tree

Introverted and extraverted intuition and how to make intuition a strong practice

Intuition, writing and work: eight ways intuition can guide your creativity

Being a vessel and working with Introverted Intuition

And explore the INTUITION category here on the blog for many more tarot and intuitive inspired insights!

2 Comments
inspiration & influence transition

A year for appreciating what matters

May 5, 2020

What have we been wasting our time doing?

Sherene Vismaya
Speaking of Jung Podcast
what matters

The year so far

In a year that memes have amusingly suggested was written by Stephen King, it has been one crisis after another. A series of emergencies in the form of destructive and damaging bushfires and floods ravaged Australia from late 2019. All fires in NSW were finally contained by 13 February.

By that time we were beginning to deal with the unfolding news of Coronavirus impacts in China beginning to spread. Since then the COVID-19 pandemic has unleashed a wave of unimaginable suffering and fear. To remain safe, we are all indoors and limiting our interactions as much as possible. Life as we know it has radically changed. Loved ones are out of reach physically and the death and sickness toll reflects the extensive impact on both an individual and collective level.

How are you doing?

So how are you doing in this year of immense challenge?

It is easy to focus on the worrying and fearful side of life and disaster. Media reports come at us relentlessly. Each of our situations is different and will influence how we respond. Our personality also plays a significant part. Whether we are introverted or extraverted is a huge influence on how being confined to our home more plays out for us.

For some, it has been a welcome relief from the workplace, commuting and too much social interaction, a time for reflecting within. Extraverts are typically finding it difficult not interacting socially given it is an important form of recharge: “Low-energy. I’m finding I don’t pandemic well.” Some personalities are more likely to thrive in isolation but all of us can find meaning in this time. I shared about what this time of COVID-19 and social distancing has been like for me as a person with INTJ preferences in this guest post.

what matters

Appreciating what matters

For me, this has been a year for appreciating what matters. Right from the get-go. Here are some of the ways that appreciating what matters has expressed itself in day to day life. I hope these thoughts inspire you too to tune into what matters.

Fresh air and sunshine

Those early weeks of 2020 were a stark reminder of the value of fresh air and sunshine. We experienced days of thick smoke with hazardous air quality levels but were fortunate to escape bushfires directly where I live.

As an asthmatic, I didn’t go out for weeks if I could avoid it. Summer in Australia is a time of outdoor living, sun, beach days and clear open skies. But not this year. We stayed inside most of the time at the height of our usually beautiful summers.

When we could finally get out into the fresh air and sunshine, it was with a new appreciation of its value. We could walk, swim, sit on the deck, look up at the open-hearted sky and relax.

In Australia while under COVID-19 conditions we have enjoyed mostly good weather and our level of restriction allows us to go out for exercise. We know from the 1918 Influenza epidemic that fresh air and sun can be a healing agent and natural disinfectant against disease. The value of being outdoors and in sunshine is so appreciated in new ways this year.

what matters

Home and community

In a brilliant podcast on the astrology and spirituality of the COVID-19 crisis, Jungian analyst Sherene Vismaya, tells that her spiritual teacher Amma told her followers in advance that something was going to happen in 2020. And they should all get to where they needed to be to hunker down.

The importance of where we are and a sense of home have become pivotal this year. I have so appreciated having a comfortable and stable home in a place that I love.

So many lost their homes in the bushfires. In recent times, many have had to travel in difficult circumstances to get home. Others have had to leave places that have been home for them while others have not been able to get home as they would like. It’s been a year for appreciating what matters about home, having a stable base and thinking about what home and community looks and feels like.

Friends and family

Family too has taken on new meaning as we have been contained to our smaller family bubble. It’s been wonderful to connect with family via Zoom and in other ways as we all spend more time isolated. In some ways, there has been more regular communication which is welcome. Missing loved ones and not being able to travel to see them or hug them is highlighted. I think we will come out of this time with a new appreciation for what matters in our family and relationship contexts.

Likewise, friends and community have been so supportive as we share our experiences and support each other. I have always valued my online friends and community. This time has bought that meaning to the fore.

Many of us gathered around Susannah Conway’s April Love 2020 hashtag challenge and continue in various challenges in May. I deeply appreciate my friends and community, whether the connection is mostly in person or online. This time has helped us to remember that it is connection that matters, however it is formed and shaped. Oh and I so appreciate anew those special times I have caught up with Quiet Writing friends overseas.




  • Meeting Lynn Hanford-Day in London



  • Meeting Emmy in Glastonbury



  • Meeting Julia Barnickle in London
  • joy + travel



    Meeting Kerstin Pilz in Frankfurt (+ Sydney and Hoi An!)



  • Meeting Claire and Tori in Manchester



  • Meeting Jennifer Cockcroft in London

Animals

Witnessing the terrible destruction of so many animals in Australia during the bushfires was so upsetting. Our beautiful native animals – koalas, kangaroos, wombats, and so many others – unable to move fast enough and killed in great numbers. We often take it for granted that these animals will always be there. But the bushfire emergency highlighted that wide-scale death and destruction can mean species may become extinct. Additional funding started to flow, publicly and privately, to the work of native animal rescue and rehabilitation. There was so much more appreciation for their work in keeping these sacred animals alive.

It’s also been lovely to witness the role of companion animals in these crises. Being at home more and in our bubble, the animals we share our space with have taken on even more value and significance. New bonds have been forming with new animals finding forever homes to share a life with. And just the opportunity to cuddle up close is so comforting.

what matters
Azzie cuddling up close with me

Beach, bush, yoga, walking and swimming

I live in an isolated area surrounded by beach and bush. These past months have highlighted the preciousness of both. Many of us have sought solace in wooded sanctuaries and parks nearby. The open space of the beach and the rhythm of the sea have been restorative energies.

I have used this time to sharpen my Personal Success Routines and ensure exercise is enshrined in my days. When we experienced the bushfires, I couldn’t get out to do what I loved most – to swim and walk. Even yoga classes were difficult with the poor air quality during the bushfires. It was safer to stay home. So when we could exercise outside eventually, they were like holy times and totally newly appreciated.

In this time of COVID-19, I started off hunkering down more than I needed to as I shared in my guest post on self-isolation recently. Eventually, I started going out more and getting back to walk and swim as I used to. Again, I missed yoga classes as they stopped due to social distancing. But I helped my yoga teacher get onto Zoom and offer her classes online. So in a wonderful win/win, I now can enjoy my yoga classes in my own home.

My new Personal Success Routine has been an opportunity to really up my commitment to what makes a difference with these new realisations of what matters. I have always been terrible at yoga home practice. But now I start the day with 30 minutes of yoga, a 45-minute walk on the beach and then an hour of Morning Pages, Tarot and Creative/Spiritual reading. I’ll share more on this soon. But it’s an embodiment in practice of appreciating what matters. And it is making ALL the difference.

what matters

Nourishing local organic food

Along with these new practices, I have found locals are working hard to source and help us access organic food locally. In my village, we are now able to source organic fruit and vegetables and more recently, organic meat and wild-caught fish. I was unaware of these options before this time. So now I am enjoying the freshest of produce that last for a long time and only driving 3 minutes up the road to get it.

I am so thankful for those seeking local organic alternatives and helping others to enjoy them too. We swap recipes on our Facebook group and share a joy of what matters when it comes to eating in healthy ways.

what matters

Reading and personality type

Hasn’t reading come into its own in these times? Always an avid reader, I have savoured it all the more as I have had to stay inside more. I have chosen novels for most of this time, enjoying historical fiction, especially by Australian women authors. You can always check in with what I am reading here over at Goodreads.

Finding it hard to concentrate initially in this time of bushfire and pandemic, I am enjoying catching up more now on my consolidating reads and personality reference material as I shape up some new offerings and material. Personality type insights have been a key tool in negotiating this time and my reactions. I have shared personality insights online, via this guest post and via 1:1 and group coaching.

Quiet Writing and working from home

And of course, it’s been a time for quiet writing, for going deeper in my business, my coaching, offerings and writing. I deeply appreciated that over time I have built an online business coaching, writing and working from home. Pursuing multiple streams of income through a combination of property investment and development, coaching, online courses and writing books, it’s been an affirmative time for knowing this is the right strategy. It’s been a time of digging deep to work out how to share with others how they can work on what matters in their lives.

How are you appreciating what matters at this time?

So that is my thoughts on appreciating what matters at this time. It took me ages to write this post as I reflected deeply on these past months and what they have taught me. I would love to hear what you are appreciating as mattering and making a difference for you now.

What are you appreciating more deeply?

What matters for you – what realisations have you had?

What have you missed?

What new practices would you love to cultivate?

What transitions are you seeking?

Transition Coaching

I am a transition coach and work with women seeking deeper meaning and purpose and change in their lives. If you would like support working with the energies and challenges that this time has brought to the surface, I’d love to work with you.

Coaching with me can help you navigate these times so you can make the most of what matters.

Head over to my Work with me page for more information:

Work With Me

Or head straight over to book a Discovery Call – love to talk with you and support your stepping into this time more positively!

Book a Discovery Call
what matters
2 Comments

PRIVACY POLICY

Privacy Policy

COOKIE POLICY

Cookie Policy