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My Muses: Sources of Inspiration & Favorites #1

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Sources of Inspiration and Favorite Items #1

I’ve wanted to feature various sources of inspiration for a long time now. I imagined myself Oprah-esque telling you about the things that inspire me. Well, maybe someday I will do a giveaway of my favorite things. But now I will just share them for your own inspiration.

My Muses - Inspiration comes in all shapes and packaging material - a collection of favorite things. Sources of inspiration curated all across the internet

Contains Affiliate Links

When Does Inspiration Come?

The thing is, inspiration can come from anywhere, so you will see quotes, products, YouTube videos, Instagram accounts, blogs, you name it. If it inspires me, I want to share it with you. I hope you enjoy and find some inspiration too.

I always love to hear what inspires others. Leave comments on what has inspired you this week. I’d like to check them out! I will certainly give you a shout out if you inspired me to find inspiration.

So what’s inspired me this week:

Blogs/YouTube

First up – I love this Truth-Bomb-Telling-Mom on many levels, but I’ve never been emotional about what she says. This one was emotional. I need to figure out what I am telling myself and try her experiment. See for yourself what it is.

Social Media:

I aspire to have clean, minimal designs in my bullet journal. However, I am pretty sure it’s not in my DNA. I happened on this account and ogled all the posts. How can there be so much function with so much incredible white space? Are you looking for minimal design? Take a good long gander at @supermassiveblackink on Instagram.

Minimalism is great, but if you are looking for a little more color with incredible calligraphy skills, look no further than @sunlanterns her bullet journaling is beautiful, her calligraphy is ON point (pun totally intended), and the textures used in her photography are eye-catching and stunning.

Products/Resources

January Review - Whats Changing in my Bullet Journal next month

If you’ve scoped out any of my watercolored bullet journals lately, you will see that I use Crayola Markers as my watercolor. Yes – I use Crayola Markers or Tombow Dual Brush Markers scribbled on a smooth plate (or Ziploc bag) and a paintbrush with a bit of water or a water pen.

I like this especially for bullet journaling because I can erase pencil behind it, it doesn’t seem to need as much water and doesn’t leave a funny texture as watercolor paints do.

Crayola Markers

Large Brush Tip Markers

Books:

 In my quest for self-improvement through habits, I started reading books on habits and habit formation. I happened on “Better Than Before” by Gretchen Rubin, and after I turned it into the library, I bought it.

I don’t like to rate books because I feel like if someone poured their heart and soul into those pages, how am I to flippantly leaf through the pages and then give it a rating? So I decided to come up with a rating scale all my own. You can assign stars if you wish as there are 5 questions.

  1. Did I finish the book? Yes
  2. Did I take notes? Yes
  3. Have I used the book to change my life? Yes
  4. Would I reread it? Yes
  5. Would I buy the book? Yes (and I did!)

Skillshare Classes

Brace yourself; I am going to talk about this a lot. It’s simply because I LOVE IT. I signed up in January, and I have taken 30+ classes (that’s an understatement).

I adore learning new things. So, of course, I would say Skillshare ROCKS! My problem is I take too many courses. One of my favorite courses was by Yasmina Creates – Easy Watercolor Sweets & Treats for beginners. That class inspired me to paint some strawberries.

It’s not just creative classes. There are business, time management, project classes, and so much more! Try out the Skillshare premium membership for free. You’ll thank me later – and please tell me what your favorite Skillshare classes are as well.

I hope you’ve enjoyed a sneak peek into my sources of inspiration. I hope to curate more awesome from across the internet and inspire you as well. Please let me know below what you’ve found that inspires you.

Plans, Ambitions & Attitude of Gratitude

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Alright March, I’ve heard you come in like a lion…let’s do this thing. I’ve got ambitions and a bullet journal set-up to prove it. I’ll post the bullet journal set-up later.

Plans, ambitions & attitude of gratitude
Inspiration for picture layout: Patti @as_a_rye AsARye.com

February Review

Unfinished Projects Bullet Journal Spread

One day, because we’re kind of nerdy, my husband and I looked up why February was shorter than all the other months. What I remember of that brief Google search is that they hated that month. Farmers didn’t like that month, and it was a month to be cast aside and anticipate what was coming next. Well, this year, I can’t say I disagree.

My February mid-month habit check was pathetic (my habits and I were on a break) and nothing seemed to work well last month. After some introspection, I discovered that I was not writing things down and I was just trying to keep it all in my head.

Why?

Partially because I was moving to a new notebook and I wasn’t making consorted effort to keep track of all my projects. So I just got frustrated. Then I was frustrated that I was frustrated. Have you ever been there? I know am not alone. A minimalistic mind map layout showing my unfinished projects seemed to clear the fog.

Plans Do Not Have to be Linear

My February weekly spreads are distinct and different week to week! I recorded videos and walked you through how to create them. I even did real-time freehand drawings so you could see more of the process. Well, guess what? I never posted them. During my slump, I wondered if it would even be worth posting. The month ended, and it wouldn’t be ‘in the month that I created it.’

So is it worth it to post? Absolutely! I figure you wouldn’t have used it in February anyway.

I’m Thankful for SunshineRandom thoughts and great ideas bullet journal spread idea tracker brain dump

Thankfully the cloudy thoughts parted, and figurative sunrays enlightened my mind. I realized that just because the week has passed, the information is still useful! So I will post those weeks later. I got so caught up ‘in the moment of relevance’ that I forgot to take time to ‘be in the moment.’ Posting my March welcome page the day before or the week before on Instagram isn’t necessary. I realized that I love seeing past month’s posts from others and it doesn’t matter to me if it is for that month or not. Inspiration doesn’t need a timeline to be inspiring.

There’s so much I want to share with you! Pages and pages of ideas scatter through my notebooks. I hope you come here hungry for inspiration because I want to serve you a feast.  My ambition is to live by the concept of the design rather than the date in my notebook.

My Inspiration:

I have to credit a couple of people for this inspiration. One is my friend at TheAniKay.com – Ani and I got to meet when she was here in Atlanta for work. We got dinner at one of my favorite spots (Tacos & Tequilas), and then we went to Michael’s. It was a good day! When Ani posted her change of mindset on her blog (read it here), and it got me thinking. I am not one to follow the crowd and never have been.

Tales of a 6th Grade Nothing:

In 6th grade at lunch one day, I remember one of the popular girls asked me to sit at her table (an outsider’s dream!). At first, my heart pumped, and I could hear my heartbeat throbbing in my ears with excitement. But then I told her no.

When I told her no in that split second, I knew that I didn’t want to do what the other girls at that table did. Their hair was the same, and their clothes were from the same store, they even talked the same. I didn’t want to be a copy. Most of all I didn’t want to act the way they acted, they weren’t very nice.

Ambitions: What’s coming:

Since then, I have thought a lot about what I wanted to do. I love posting my monthly & weekly spreads, quotes, mantras, etc. That will continue, but maybe not in the order of creation.

I’ve also wanted to curate inspiration from all over to get your creative gears turning. That is, after all, the goal here.  I will be adding a ‘favorites day.’ I want to share with you what inspires me and what my favorite things are.

Who I am & what I like to do, a definition of me, Bullet journal Collection

Instagram Does Not Rule My Life

Instagram’s algorithms display my content days or weeks later than I post. So why does it matter when I post the content? I am not going to live and die by the way Instagram decides to serve (or not serve up) my content. If I am busy living life and don’t get to post something the day I should according to the current platform algorithm, well, good for me. I’m living life.

What Does that Mean?

That means my posts won’t be timely when it comes to weekly & monthly layouts (posting the week/day before the date occurs on the calendar). But I think that timelines are irrelevant when it comes to that anyway. You can recreate a spread from my March into your October or December journals without caring that it came from my March spread.

You can use an idea from a collection and turn it into a tracker or another spread.

This blog is meant to inspire. If it is only inspirational right this minute, well, that’s a lot of effort for just a moment. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and let that take over.  I have three kids, a husband, a house, a job, a cat, church responsibilities. I drive like a civilized human being, I try to smile at strangers (I have an ongoing battle with RBF), and I am trying to make the best of things in my life. Following my advice: plan your life, so you live beautifully. Sometimes living beautifully means that I live on my schedule and I go to the park instead of edit a video.

Ambitions: Help You Find Your Inner Muse

I love creating content for you. Hearing that I helped make a difference in your life and ignited your inner muse is AMAZING. I lived through years of what I call the ‘dark ages’ where I never touched a paintbrush or picked up a pencil. When I finally rediscovered my inner muse, I vowed never to let her go. I intend to help others find their inner muse and enjoy life too.

Life is complicated and messy. My bullet journal has helped restore some order to my life, and for that I am grateful. I am also grateful to create and be creative.

I hope that no matter when you find this content, you will be inspired in some way.  And the figurative sunrays will find their way through cloudy thoughts and lighten your day.

My goal in life is to be happier. I read books on the subject, make goals, create habit trackers, all to lead a happier, more fulfilling life. Forgive me if I am behind on posting my weekly or monthly layouts. I am working on forgiving myself for it too.

Here’s Your Challenge:

Decide who you are and be that. Choose what you do, who you talk to, your friends, when you post to social media, and how you live your life.

Mid-Month Habit Check – What to do if You and Your Habits Were on a Break

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What to do if You and Your Habits Were on a Break?

I feel like Ross shouting at my habits “We were on a break!” or maybe my habits were yelling at me? Not sure which, either way, we parted ways for a while. I had good intentions, and I swear this month I thought I was going to rock at everything. But I just crashed and burned. So what to do if you and your habits were on a break? I used a simple shift in mindset to recapture the flame after a habit break-up.

We were on a break - what to do if you break up with your habits

Is It Just February Blues?

I don’t know if it is just February blues or if there is something else going on, but I know I am not the only one who feels it. Today my boss commented (by the way, I have a job too!) that he feels like it is February blues. He said that all the things to look forward to are far away that it’s hard to get excited about them. So it’s a time between events and just feels, well, blah.

My habit tracker shows that I feel the same way. This blog post is supposed to coincide with the middle of the month (give or take a couple of days) and I am nearly a week late just writing it. I do have good news…in just the past couple of days, I have managed to crawl out of the crazy unmotivated slump. But that wasn’t easy. You can read how a simple list turned things around for me here.

The simple mindset to adopt if you and your habits were on a break

Falling Off the Wagon is my Specialty – Getting Back on is Not

Falling off the wagon per se is my specialty. I am good at starting something, but continuing when I mess up or get off track is a whole other story. I feel like the wagon runs off while I am off smelling roses and continues faster than I can run, so I just pretend like I was never on that ride.

Change of Mindset After a Break-up With Your Habits

This whole running after the wagon mindset changed when I read a book by Gretchen Rubin called Better Than Before. She suggested that if you are going to have planned break in your habits, then plan a time when you come back. I figure that if I have an accidental break, I just tell myself that we were on a break, but not to worry Rachel habits, I am back and we will live happily ever after.

This change has helped me immensely move on from incidental breaks and just pick up where I left off as though I never missed a thing. So using that mindset… it doesn’t matter how terrible the last six days of February, here I come!

By the way, I am trying a new layout for March. I’ll give you a little sneak peek even though it’s still in pencil mode. Oh, and just so you know, I still do dishes every day so at least that habit stuck, it’s these new habits that are causing me trouble.

Sneak Peek - tracking habits by category instead of log style in my bullet journal

Question:

I’ve never met a single person who hasn’t broken up with their habits at some time or another. So I’d like to know how you handle your habit break-ups. What strategy do you take?

Remember to plan your life so you live beautifully and don’t be afraid to find your inner muse.

~Tricia

A Confession of Unfinished Projects

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How unfinished projects seem to take over my life, and how I broke out of a rut and coaxed creativity to come out of hiding.

I get all wrapped up in so many big and small projects. Then thinking that the best way to get the things done, I constrain my creativity and it all backfires, and a week later I’m waking up from a veritable coma of uninspired late nights where I accomplished nothing except me feeling sorry for myself and the amazement of how much time has passed.

A Confession of Unfinished Projects

I confess: I’ve fallen into a slump, I tried to blame it on ‘monthly’ woes, but that’s not going to work anymore. I just can’t find the motivation to do the things that I usually do.  There are so many unfinished projects needing attention that I don’t know where to start. Moping around for the past few days wishing I had the energy or the deep-down willpower to just muscle through skip a few days of sleep to get everything done.

I know many people fall into this dazed state where they don’t know where to begin or what needs attention the most. For me, it’s unedited raw videos sit waiting on my hard drive. Images in various stages of editing, and ideas floating around my head and never doing anything about them. All of these unfinished projects vie for a snippet of time, and I am trying to keep them all straight but never focus on one.

There is my problem.

The Problem

The problem is my focus (or lack of focus). Choosing one thing during a block of time to complete (and be entirely done) and then move to the next. The other problem is trying to remember everything. Um… I bullet journal remember? That magical dotted notebook is supposedly the keeper of my secrets, my tasks, my second brain! That’s a big problem, and I wasn’t using the most obvious solution to help me organize these projects.

How Did I Get Here?

Recognizing the path that brought me to this point is essential so I don’t repeat the same mistake again. Why didn’t I just use the obvious solution of using my bullet journal to organize these unfinished projects?

I realized that the reason I didn’t use a bullet journal to organize myself is that I am moving into a new notebook and haven’t transferred over spreads yet. In fact, to combat having to go through this move situation in the future, I am moving into two notebooks: one for planning and one for collections.

In the middle of that transition… well… I decided to put together some tutorials using my real-life experience to create these tutorials. But since I was moving into a new notebook, I had nothing to guide me and tried to do it all in my brain and became overwhelmed. If I had had a journal to help me keep the tutorials straight, I would not be in this mess. Aaaaaah, classic catch 22.

The Solution for Unfinished Projects – Why Didn’t I Think of That Before?

In my collections notebook, I made a list of my unfinished projects. HUGE ‘duh’ moment – why didn’t I think of that before? I considered scrawling a quick list of projects. Unfortunately, that is the type of list I will ignore once it’s written. If I’ve learned anything about myself by bullet journaling, it’s that it’s got to be ‘pretty.’ I feel like a bee attracted to beautiful and fragrant flowers. But in this case, I didn’t want to spend a lot of time creating this ‘project list’.

I lettered the title and then sketched in the projects – but I left it unfinished. Fitting for a page that highlighted the unfinished projects in my life. I decided to ‘finish’ the boxes one-by-one as I completed each project. Once the page was complete, I’d create another ‘unfinished projects’ page and continue the trend.

Unfinished Projects Bullet Journal Spread

The Solution: Have a Keeping Place

Mind-map is one of my favorite ways to layout ideas on a page. For one thing, it doesn’t place importance on any one idea. You start with a central theme and spread out. There are apps and software to create intricate mind maps, but mine rarely go more than a couple of levels deep. For example, my 10-minute task list was a mind map.

Tips for completing unfinished projects

Keep It Organized

Even if I am in the middle of moving notebooks, I need to make sure I have a place to keep ideas organized. When I organize my ideas, it makes ME feel more organized and confident. When I am confident, I’m pretty sure I can take on the world.

It’s Got To Be Pretty

Oh, and it needs to have a pretty header. Don’t get me wrong, there is a time and a place for quick note-taking and ‘brain dumps’ but if I intend to spend any time on the page, it has to be attractive. The goal here is to choose a project and get it done not feel more scatterbrained after I look at the page.

This spread is a ‘brain dump’ or idea log of sorts, but it’s more than that. It’s a place where I can sort through all unfinished items and figure out where to focus first. And knowing where to focus is what got me into trouble in the first place.

The After-Effects of This Realization

As I unleashed my creativity and watched my brush pen slowly mark the page lettering the words ‘Unfinished Projects’. I made another realization: when I restrict my creativity and restrain myself from writing, drawing, painting or creating in any form because these do not complete the to-do list I rebel and instead do nothing.

‘Idea Keeping’ is Like Beekeeping?

I’m going to think of this page as ‘idea keeping’ kind of like beekeeping without the stings and the buzzing. If I want the sweet stuff (finished projects), I need to have a place for the bees (ideas) to come home but allow them the freedom to explore, just like giving myself creative freedom to explore. (This is a fun idea! I think I may have to see where that one takes me).

idea keeping is like bee keepeing

Allow Creativity

There will be some days that are more productive than others. If I have learned anything from this experience, it is that creativity spurs my productivity and restricting frustrates me. Taking a lesson from the 10-minute task list, if I need to get things done but am itching to create something, I need to give myself just a few minutes and listen to my inner muse without restriction. Doing this frees my brain to think and organize subconsciously, which, ironically is just the thing that I need.

Sometimes we are our own worst enemies when it comes to productivity and creativity.

Choose the First Thing

I’ve honest so far, so here’s a little more honesty. I am going to choose the easiest thing to check off my list and ignite the momentum. It feels good to get something done, and now that is important to keep me going. I feel the spark again, and it’s lovely. I am sure there will be follow-ups to this post. This breakthrough in creativity has spurred many other ideas. It’s nice to have the spark alive in my soul again.

Question:

What do you do to break out a slump?

My solutions are:

  1. realize why I got here (to prevent for the future)
  2. write down all the things I need to do
  3. make it pretty (so I want to look at it again)
  4. allow time for creativity and not restrict it (helps me mentally sort through the tasks)
  5. choose something from the list and get it done to create momentum (choosing the easiest thing is the fastest way to create that momentum)

All of this will enable me to focus which is essential for feeling accomplished. I know I don’t get anything done when I bounce around from thing to thing, but if I give myself 10 minutes to do something that has bothered me, I can then turn my attention to other tasks done.

I’d love to know what you do let me know in the comments below.

Remember to plan your life so you live beautifully and don’t be afraid to find your inner muse.

~Tricia

Medicine Tracker – I Don’t Have to Remember Everything!

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It’s So Nice to NOT Have to Remember Everything!

A few weeks ago, my baby was not feeling well. I took the poor little guy to the doctor and came home with 3 separate medicines 3 times per day for two weeks. I knew that I would have to wrack my brain to remember when I had given him the last dosage. Then try to remember if I gave him all nine dosages of medicine the day before. I just knew I was going to forget dosages. Then knowing when to stop was the other issue. So what did I do? Created a quick medicine tracker spread in my Bullet Journal of course!

medicine tracking spread, use your bullet journal to remember for you

The Medicine Tracker

Each column has the dosages per day and the rows were the dates. Each day I would mark off the medicine without too much effort to remember what I did or did not do. Except for maybe one day, I successfully administered all the dosages and thankfully, the little guy is feeling better.

Before I started planning with a bullet journal – I would have just tried to remember. Thankfully, now I don’t have to remember everything. I write it down, then out of habit, I check my planner and do the things I am supposed to. What a relief. Medicine tracker to the rescue!

medicine tracking spread, use your bullet journal to remember for you

I’d Love to Know: What uncommon trackers do you use in your planner or bullet journal?

Leave me a comment below and let me know!

Remember to plan your life so you live beautifully.

~Tricia