Changes to Creative Perch
04/13 2010 Posted in Creative Process | 3 comments
This post may be the hardest one I have ever written for Creative Perch. As many of you know, the last few months have been an incredible transition, one for which I had a plan to navigate smoothly. However, curveball after curveball has been thrown my way. In times like these, it’s easy to look at challenges simply as hurdles to overcome. But as time has gone on, I’ve realized that the “transition” I’m currently in is not just a season I need to pass over quickly. Instead, in my heart I know that I need to dig in, pay attention, and understand what is “really” going on.
So, as of right now, I feel that I need to make a shift away from Creative Perch. This site has been my “one thing” for the last two years or so, and I have loved every minute of working on this project. However, I think I need to take a break from it for a while. There are so many blogs and other resources out there doing something similar, and I feel like I need a fresh vision for Creative Perch to really serve and be a resource in the creative community.
I will be leaving the site up as an archive for the next while, so all of the articles and downloads will be active and available for you. One important thing to note: The How to Get Your Creative Groove On and How to Be an Innovator eBooks will only be available in the shop until May 2, 2010, so if you’d like to order either of those, please do so before May 2.
I’ll be posting on more varied themes on my personal site (deewilcox.com), as well as exploring some new avenues in my personal and professional life, and I am hopeful that fresh vision in those areas will transfer over to Creative Perch as well.
Everyday Creative: Being Human
04/1 2010 Posted in Everyday Creative | 1 comment
Melanie Sklarz, March 2010
While last month I was just embarking on my everyday creative challenge, this month I am proud to report that I am finishing up my second month. It always amazes me how quickly time flies. But really, I am getting ready to start my third month of this journey? Anyway, I digress into my own humanness, which is ok I learned, because this month was about being human.
To begin the month I was asked to forgive myself and forgive myself for all my previous failures. I think in the last 10 years or so, I have been able to do this and so pretty much breezed past this section. Although, I did complete the exercise at the end of the first week, because I thought it seemed pretty cathartic:
Take a pencil and mark on a piece of paper a line for each of your failures throughout your life (perceived or real). One by one erase the lines while forgiving yourself for each one. As you do this, admit that maybe this one was a failure and let yourself move on from it. Learn and grow from your failures.
The next several weeks were filled with more forgiveness. Forgiving myself completely then forgiving others. By the third week I was ready to wrestle all my demons for one final time. It was here that the mission of the book and my creative journey all made sense. The way to being an everyday creative isn’t bound by learning artistic techniques and skills but rather by manifesting your potential as a creator. Just this slight difference made all the sense to me.
READ MORE
Every Monday is Tip Day! This Week: Master the Skills
03/22 2010 Posted in Monday is Tip Day | 0 comments
Every Monday is Tip Day! Grab a cup of coffee and get over the Monday morning bump with tips, tools, and inspiration from Perch.
This Week: Master the Skills
Over the weekend I had a conversation with a friend who works for a local firm that manages creative talent. Recently he recommended that a specific action not be taken and was in turn challenged with finding a better solution. My friend asked for twenty-four hours. In that amount of time, he was able to develop a proposal that solved the client’s problem and far exceeded expectations.
This kind of quick-turn, creative problem solving is not a skill that can be obtained overnight. It’s also not a skill that can be achieved by following a how-to guide. However, there are a few things techniques that we can all master to increase our creativity problem-solving skills.
READ MORE
Calling All Creatives, Vol. 3
03/16 2010 Posted in Calling All Creatives | 0 comments
Melanie Sklarz, March 2010
For the latest installment of Calling All Creatives, I had to overcome some obstacles before I could write this post: a possible closed event and a snowstorm. TEDxCLE is an independently sponsored TED event which promised to bring together some of the most creative thinkers in the Cleveland-area on a late February day during a notoriously snowy winter here in Ohio.
When I first heard about the event, from where exactly I can’t remember, I told Dee I wanted to write about it for Creative Perch. Well, that was the easy part. I then had the difficult task of getting a ticket to an event that was taking applications for attendees. Yes, you read that right. There was an online application form that needed to be filled out to see if you qualified for a ticket first. This puzzled me for months, because it did not include the time and/or price. Would I want to be accepted to something I could not attend nor afford?
Luckily, about a month before the event, I started following TEDxCLE on Twitter, where it was revealed that tickets would be going on sale to the general public. And guess what? The price was extremely reasonable and the time fit into my schedule.
Immediately after the announced ticket sale date and time, I bought my ticket. Lucky for me that I did, because the next day or so the event sold out. So with ticket in hand, I was ready for my TED experience.
READ MORE
Art is Everywhere. This Week: Unhappy Hipsters
03/10 2010 Posted in Art is Everywhere | 0 comments
Unhappy Hipsters has been making the rounds for the last couple of weeks, but it makes me happy every time my RSS feed reader updates with a new post, so I just had to share.
Such a great reminder that we, in all our modern sophistication, need to sometimes take ourselves just a little less seriously.
Every Monday is Tip Day! This Week: Changing Vision
03/8 2010 Posted in Monday is Tip Day | 0 comments
Every Monday is Tip Day! Grab a cup of coffee and get over the Monday morning bump with tips, tools, and inspiration from Perch.
This Week: Changing Vision
Lately, some important life changes and transitions have me rethinking a few things, specifically the trajectory my life is following. Heart checks like these are important. They help keep us on track with our vision, and they help us re-think the vision when necessary.
As I worked on my vision board tonight (still not finished – it’s always evolving), I thought about how some of the creatives I know create a new vision for every quarter, and some change it out every month. A vision, by its nature, is a constantly changing, evolving thing. Life brings new challenges and opportunities, so we adapt our course.
READ MORE
Changes to Creative Perch
This post may be the hardest one I have ever written for Creative Perch. As many of you know, the last few months have been an incredible transition, one for which I had a plan to navigate smoothly. However, curveball after curveball has been thrown my way. In times like these, it’s easy to look at challenges simply as hurdles to overcome. But as time has gone on, I’ve realized that the “transition” I’m currently in is not just a season I need to pass over quickly. Instead, in my heart I know that I need to dig in, pay attention, and understand what is “really” going on.
So, as of right now, I feel that I need to make a shift away from Creative Perch. This site has been my “one thing” for the last two years or so, and I have loved every minute of working on this project. However, I think I need to take a break from it for a while. There are so many blogs and other resources out there doing something similar, and I feel like I need a fresh vision for Creative Perch to really serve and be a resource in the creative community.
I will be leaving the site up as an archive for the next while, so all of the articles and downloads will be active and available for you. One important thing to note: The How to Get Your Creative Groove On and How to Be an Innovator eBooks will only be available in the shop until May 2, 2010, so if you’d like to order either of those, please do so before May 2.
I’ll be posting on more varied themes on my personal site (deewilcox.com), as well as exploring some new avenues in my personal and professional life, and I am hopeful that fresh vision in those areas will transfer over to Creative Perch as well.
Everyday Creative: Being Human
Melanie Sklarz, March 2010
While last month I was just embarking on my everyday creative challenge, this month I am proud to report that I am finishing up my second month. It always amazes me how quickly time flies. But really, I am getting ready to start my third month of this journey? Anyway, I digress into my own humanness, which is ok I learned, because this month was about being human.
To begin the month I was asked to forgive myself and forgive myself for all my previous failures. I think in the last 10 years or so, I have been able to do this and so pretty much breezed past this section. Although, I did complete the exercise at the end of the first week, because I thought it seemed pretty cathartic:
Take a pencil and mark on a piece of paper a line for each of your failures throughout your life (perceived or real). One by one erase the lines while forgiving yourself for each one. As you do this, admit that maybe this one was a failure and let yourself move on from it. Learn and grow from your failures.
The next several weeks were filled with more forgiveness. Forgiving myself completely then forgiving others. By the third week I was ready to wrestle all my demons for one final time. It was here that the mission of the book and my creative journey all made sense. The way to being an everyday creative isn’t bound by learning artistic techniques and skills but rather by manifesting your potential as a creator. Just this slight difference made all the sense to me.
READ MORE
Every Monday is Tip Day! This Week: Master the Skills
Every Monday is Tip Day! Grab a cup of coffee and get over the Monday morning bump with tips, tools, and inspiration from Perch.
This Week: Master the Skills
Over the weekend I had a conversation with a friend who works for a local firm that manages creative talent. Recently he recommended that a specific action not be taken and was in turn challenged with finding a better solution. My friend asked for twenty-four hours. In that amount of time, he was able to develop a proposal that solved the client’s problem and far exceeded expectations.
This kind of quick-turn, creative problem solving is not a skill that can be obtained overnight. It’s also not a skill that can be achieved by following a how-to guide. However, there are a few things techniques that we can all master to increase our creativity problem-solving skills.
READ MORE
TED + The LXD
Check out this impressive clip of the Legion of Extraordinary Dancers, a dance troupe that believes that dance can have a transformative effect. It’s truly incredible.
Calling All Creatives, Vol. 3
Melanie Sklarz, March 2010
For the latest installment of Calling All Creatives, I had to overcome some obstacles before I could write this post: a possible closed event and a snowstorm. TEDxCLE is an independently sponsored TED event which promised to bring together some of the most creative thinkers in the Cleveland-area on a late February day during a notoriously snowy winter here in Ohio.
When I first heard about the event, from where exactly I can’t remember, I told Dee I wanted to write about it for Creative Perch. Well, that was the easy part. I then had the difficult task of getting a ticket to an event that was taking applications for attendees. Yes, you read that right. There was an online application form that needed to be filled out to see if you qualified for a ticket first. This puzzled me for months, because it did not include the time and/or price. Would I want to be accepted to something I could not attend nor afford?
Luckily, about a month before the event, I started following TEDxCLE on Twitter, where it was revealed that tickets would be going on sale to the general public. And guess what? The price was extremely reasonable and the time fit into my schedule.
Immediately after the announced ticket sale date and time, I bought my ticket. Lucky for me that I did, because the next day or so the event sold out. So with ticket in hand, I was ready for my TED experience.
READ MORE
Art is Everywhere. This Week: Unhappy Hipsters
Unhappy Hipsters has been making the rounds for the last couple of weeks, but it makes me happy every time my RSS feed reader updates with a new post, so I just had to share.
Such a great reminder that we, in all our modern sophistication, need to sometimes take ourselves just a little less seriously.
Thanks for stopping by! My name is Dee Wilcox. I started Creative Perch to help provide resources for creatives that inspire creativity and encourage innovation. I hope you enjoy the site! 
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