Courtney M. McSwain

Purpose-Driven Storytelling For Your Business

Q&A

Lara Dalinsky on…Bouncing Back

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(Photo: Courtesy of Lara Dalinsky)

Lara Dalinsky lives the type of artistic life that creatives dream of. Through her job as art director for the branding firm Belmont Inc., in Alexandria, Va., Lara is able to apply her artistic design skills every day in order to help people and organizations share their story with the world. Lara also works on additional freelance design projects, and fulfills her penchant for travel writing as the founding editor and creative director for the independent travel site enroutetraveler.com. What began as a passion project has allowed her to become a trusted source for destination expertise as well as a local DC-area travel expert for AFAR – a media company dedicated to experiential travel. If that’s not enough, she spends her spare time instructing high-energy Zumba and practicing yoga.

When I think of what a “good life” looks like, I see a lot of what Lara has cultivated for herself – enjoyable work, fulfilling hobbies, and carving out time for traveling and fun adventures. It’s sometimes difficult to create the kind of life where artistic living takes center stage, and we don’t always see the ups and downs that people go through to get there. I’m lucky enough to get to talk to Lara often as her office-mate in our shared workspace, and I wondered how she’s been able to build her creative life and bounce back from mistakes she’s made on the journey. She was gracious enough to offer these wonderful insights.

How did you start in graphic design and travel writing? How do the two things work together for you?

As a child I was always making things and expressing myself, mostly in the forms of pictures, dance, and music, but never thought about making a career out of it. I also have the type of mind that loves to figure things out and put things in order. I went to a liberal arts college and started taking drawing classes the second semester of my freshman year. It instantly became my favorite class and I naturally excelled at it. After talking to some professors and researching the art program, I realized I could pursue a career in design to marry both my love of art and problem solving.

In elementary school, my mother worked as a flight attendant and would whisk my sister and I away on trips around the world, opening my eyes to new cultures and perspectives. My zeal for travel bled into adulthood. Many of my friends enjoyed seeing my travel photography and asked me for recommendations or to plan trips for them. I decided to tackle writing – even though it is very much outside of my comfort zone – by starting my website, En Route Traveler. It provides articles, stories and tips geared toward independent travelers.

Writing travel guides is similar to design in that both require me to organize information. The difference is that one method is language-based and the other is more visual. I’m also drawn to design and travel because they both deal with experiencing and processing the world around us.

What led you to dedicate yourself to living a life of creativity?

I chose my career path because I believe that design can elevate people’s lives. The desire to make things and fulfill our potential is what has helped mankind evolve. It is our ingenuity that separates us from other species.

There’s a misconception that creativity only pertains to the arts when, in actuality, it’s the ability to connect the dots and innovate in any industry. It’s a shame that creativity is a skill that is not nurtured more in school across all subjects and that as adults, we’re not encouraged to play more. Grownups are so worried about getting it right that we become scared to experiment and make mistakes, denying ourselves the room for improvement.

Was there a time when you made a mistake on your creative journey? How did you bounce back?

Many of my mistakes didn’t come from saying the wrong thing, but not saying anything at all. I have committed to freelance design projects in the past where I undervalued myself by not charging enough or agreeing to work on a project that I knew was not a good fit. I thought that if I turned down offers, nobody else would want to work with me. This has resulted in situations where I overstretched myself, didn’t enjoy the work, and ended up feeling stressed and resentful.

It’s an ongoing process, but I’ve learned how to gracefully say “no” and charge what I’m worth. Many people assume that because my job is fun that I’d do it for free, but they’d never expect that of other professionals like accountants or lawyers. When I don’t have the time or desire to work on a particular job, I now tell my clients that I can’t take it on because I wouldn’t give it the attention it deserves (and then usually try to refer them to someone else). I was surprised the first time I tried this approach – I regretfully had to refuse a travel-writing gig and my contact thanked me for being honest and respectful of his time. Now, when I put together estimates, I outline all the behind-the-scenes effort and highlight the value of the finished product. This helps the client understand how much time and thought goes into my work.

What advice would you give artists and changemakers who are trying to bounce back from a mistake?

Here are a few valuable lessons that I’ve learned over my career:

  1. Mistakes help us grow. Remember that mistakes are wisdom in disguise and we all make them. If you mess up, it’s an opportunity to assess your actions and learn what could be done better the next time. This Michael Jordan quote is used often, but makes a strong point: “I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” It may feel like failure at the time, but really you’re gaining valuable experience.
  2. Realize it may take a few tries. Sometimes when I’m stuck on a problem, it may take a few times to get it right. We may make mistakes, take a different path the next time and discover it’s still not the correct one. You can’t beat yourself up—you have to move on. If you keep trying, at least you’re going somewhere new. If you don’t, you end up stuck somewhere you don’t want to be.
  3. Talk to your peers or mentors. When faced with a challenge, it always helps to go to your peers or mentors for advice and a fresh perspective. They may have already faced a similar situation and have valuable suggestions. Plus, it’s always comforting to feel validated and understood.

What’s the dream for Lara Dalinsky?

I have many and am already living some of them! I hope to keep growing and exploring my creative avenues. For example, I’m starting to dabble in video so I can post travel tips and guides to YouTube. I’d love to live abroad for a while, and there are always new parts of the world I want to discover. I would like to dedicate more time to En Route Traveler, not just to feature my work but to continue building a community of like-minded travelers and showcase the work of other talent. It would be great to build enough of a reputation that I could find sponsors who would want to send us on adventures. Finally, I would like to do some type of volunteer work that helps people unlock their creativity and realize their own potential.

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Thanks Lara for sharing your thoughts! You can follow Lara and friends on their wanderlust adventures at enroutetraveler.com, and get great photos, tips and more on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Rozella Haydée White On…Faith & Work

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(Photo: Courtesy of Rozella Haydée White)

Rozella Haydée White is a ministry professional called to help young adults as they explore questions related to faith, identity, vocation and leadership. Rozella lives out this calling in a variety of ways – as the Program Director for Young Adult Ministry for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA); as a travel guide who leads people on “Sacred Travel Journeys,” helping them transform their heart, mind and soul; as a blogger who writes about mental health awareness, particularly among young Black women of faith; and as a social change agent who pursues faith-based approaches to social justice.

I first came across Rozella’s work on Twitter (where else?) and was instantly drawn to her commitment to working for change and transformation using faith as a foundation. More than that, I love that Rozella is someone who has found ways to incorporate varied gifts into a purpose-driven life.

I reached out to Rozella to ask her how she incorporates faith into her work. As a ministry professional, that might seem like a question with an obvious answer. But the journey Rozella shares about understanding how her faith makes up the foundation of what she does in all aspects of her life is helpful for any artist or changemaker who draws on faith to motivate their work. Here’s what Rozella had to say.

What role does faith play in your life as an entrepreneur and creative person?  
I work for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (the denomination) and my main job is to direct ministry for young adults, people between the ages of 18 and 30, nationally. So my work and my faith are inextricably linked. In my tradition, we have a way of talking about what we do in terms of living out our daily lives. We talk about vocation as this place where God calls us; we use our gifts and our passions and we connect needs that are present around us. We also say vocation is not something you do but it’s also who you are – you have a vocation to be a partner, a vocation to be a parent, a vocation to be an educator. So for me, faith is all over and is the reason why I do what I do.

And all of the projects and endeavors that I engage on the side come from that same place. It’s a matter of thinking about how my gifts and passions are being called into being to actually meet a need or walk alongside folks in a particular way.

Has that always been your perspective?

Broadly, it has always been my perspective, even though I didn’t live that out until early young adulthood. I was raised in a home that was a faith-based home. We were always engaged in church and faith-based community opportunities. But I did not have any desire to work in the church. I went to school initially to be a lawyer and thought about church as something that was ancillary. All of that changed when I actually encountered life and things kind of happened – dealing with mental illness, dealing with family, dealing with major familial and educational transitions – and it led me back to a faith-based summer camp where I used to work. I started to go deeper into what I believed and why I believed it. [Then] opportunities started presenting themselves that were connected to my faith. It wasn’t until basically I hit rock bottom – all the plans that I had for myself fell apart and I had to go back to the drawing board and figure out what I was doing – that I recognized how my faith was a part of who I was and it undergirded all that God had been calling me to do.

How did your faith help you overcome that “rock-bottom” period? 

One of the reasons I work with young adults is because I feel like behind early childhood, young adulthood is the next hugely formative time in people’s lives where so many transitions are happening and so many things are going on – questioning one’s identity, questioning one’s values, figuring out one’s purpose in the world.  And so all of that was happening for me. Because I was connected to the faith-based community, I ended up working for the church as those things were happening and it caused me to go deeper into understanding my faith. I started to question and challenge and really think critically about what I said I believed and how that connected during the times of suffering I was experiencing. Because I was working in ministry at the same time that I was having some of these transformations and breakthroughs, it caused me to put the two together in a particular way.

Do you have conversations with other artists or changemakers who do not work in ministry? How do they incorporate faith into their work spaces? 

There’s a huge desire for many of my friends, and myself, to be where people are and connect with folks in authentic ways. I have friends who are faith-based people who may not work in the church. For my friends that are in the science fields [for example], there’s tension because so much of that community has a complicated relationship with God or a higher power, I think for valid reasons. When you’re dealing with science and logic—faith is the opposite of that. So they find themselves in those places trying to hold fast to what they believe even as they try to communicate also that they are expansive.

I tend to run in progressive circles, by and large, and my denomination is left-of-center in many respects. We would be the people of faith who say God created science and God created faith and the two can interact together. So I feel like my friends in science are trying to be that bridge.

I think about that too with friends who work in the political realm. So much of what they encounter is about the individual – manipulating and getting people to do what you want them to do. I think it’s a constant battle [for them] in some of those spaces to live out their faith and hold fast to the beliefs that undergird them as they are in spaces that don’t come from the same operating values.

What advice would you give those friends or others on allowing their faith tradition into their creative or business lives?  
One of the things that I am realizing as I get older is the need for us to be in community – not just community from a social perspective, but community that holds you accountable, that supports you, that uplifts you and that you also do the same for. 
I always encourage folks to not be isolated. If there are things that are important to you, form a community or connect with a community. It could be two people, one person, three people, a small group, a church – but be connected to something outside of what you’re doing that continues to encourage that.

The other thing I always tell people, and I practice this myself, is the importance of ongoing self-care. How is it that you are evolving in your awareness of yourself and what you value? Are you hearing from other people – whether a coach, a spiritual director, a therapist – as you are engaging in some of these issues? If it’s important for your faith to be in the forefront of what you’re doing, then how is it that you’re paying attention to yourself and your personhood as you’re continuing to develop?

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Many thanks to Rozella for sharing her thoughts on faith and work! Be sure to learn more about Rozella by visiting her website, follow her on Twitter and Instagram and Facebook.

Jake Thompson On…Faith & Work

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(Photo: Courtesy of Jake Thompson)

I had heard Jake Thompson’s name mentioned as someone to learn from when it comes to creating a meaningful brand. When I checked out the website for Compete Every Day, the company he founded and serves as chief encouragement officer for, I immediately knew why his was an example of great storytelling. Compete Every Day is a lifestyle brand that sells t-shirts and apparel; but spend just a few minutes on the website and its true mission of encouraging people to fight, every day, for their lives and dreams shines through more clearly than any t-shirt design. In following the story of Compete Every Day, I also began to observe how Jake weaves his own personal story and beliefs into the lifeblood of his company. Even when it comes to his own faith, Jake allows his personal beliefs to influence his work without alienating customers or team members who may believe differently. Even through his own Twitter page, Jake thoughtfully sends encouragement, sometimes through specific words of religious faith and sometimes not, but always with a sense of humility felt even through a 140-character tweet.

Curious about how Jake manages to integrate his faith and creative work, I reached out to him to get his thoughts, which he graciously shared in the following Q&A.

What role does faith play in your life as an entrepreneur and creative person?

It plays an integral role in anything I do. What you believe influences the lens through which you see the world. My goal has always been to create great art. Every artist’s goal is to create something great. It’s nearly impossible for someone to pour themselves into creating something that isn’t influenced by how they see the world, what they believe and how they see others.

Have you confronted challenges with incorporating your faith into your business or creative life?

Absolutely, especially when I started Compete Every Day early on. We did not want to be a religious brand – that was never our goal. [Our] message is not about a specific religion or belief – the idea for competing for your life, I feel, is universal. But it’s hard for it not to be influenced by how I believe, how I see things, how I love people. Understanding how you separate yourself from that is definitely a challenge. I want what I believe and how I see and love on people to influence the brand, but you also don’t want to completely alienate people who don’t see things your way.

It was really difficult at first to balance. I still think that a lot of the things we say and do are influenced by what I believe, because I think it’s hard to completely remove yourself from something you’ve created. At the same time, we’ve taken a religious agnostic stance on the brand itself because we aren’t saying this is the only group that gets this Compete Every Day message.

One of the first instances I had where I was really struggling with this [was when] we had a booth at the San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon. At the time we had a girls tank top that had the word “faith” on the front – which was very open ended in what [people] wanted that to mean. I had a lady come in and [she] asked me some specific religious questions: “Was it referred to Christianity or a Christian viewpoint?” My response to her was simply that it could be faith in what you believe, in what you’re doing on this earth, and what you believe your purpose is; it’s up to each person to decide how they want that to be displayed because they would be the one wearing it and telling the story when someone asks [about it]. She said, “Well, I wouldn’t wear it if it was something Christian based, but I love it. I want it, I believe in what I’m doing,” and so she grabbed it. Not ten minutes later, someone else walked in and bought it for completely opposite reasons. She wanted it for a Christian viewpoint; that’s what she felt it meant to her and wanted to talk about. At that moment, I realized we had a very fine line to walk because the message of Compete Every Day was applicable to so many different backgrounds and so many different beliefs.

Was there a time when you hit a wall on your journey? How did your faith help you overcome it?

The life of an entrepreneur is a constant roller coaster where you’re just trying to maintain stability. You’re not trying to get too high with the highs or too low with the lows. And when you own the business, you pour so much of your life and soul into it, that it’s really hard to pull your heart and soul out of it and look at things neutrally. So when you do get a victory you really take it to heart, and when you do have a failure, you take it more personally than someone else might in a professional setting.

I’ve had situations where I really wondered, “How are we going to get out of this financially? Are we ever going to make it?” That’s a struggle I think a lot of people deal with daily. I can admit that every so often I have those conversations about doubt and fear that creep into my mind, and I go back to my personal belief that I was born and blessed with certain abilities of encouragement, leadership and making an impact for my faith. So when I look at these tough situations, I try to remind myself of the bigger picture – of why I’m doing this.

In the darkest moments of when I question whether I have what it takes, it’s great to draw on the belief that I was put in this position to make an impact; I was given this blessing of a business and a message to share and I need to see it through. At the end of the day, it’s not about me; it’s about the impact that I can make. Having that faith is crucial for the toughest days, because the doubts and fears can always become a deafening noise in your head if you let them and you don’t focus on what’s really important – what your true mission is here on earth and what you’re trying to do.

Do you have conversations with other artists or changemakers about your faith? What have those conversations taught you?

Yes, from a standpoint of: How do you balance it? How do you create an environment influenced by what you believe, but at the same time not alienating individuals who don’t see things that way? I’ve had some great advice from guys who have built fantastic companies. [I’ve learned that] at the end of the day, you want to love on people. You want them to see the value you see in them. You want to remind them daily of how great they can be…if someone wants to have a conversation with me about what I believe, I’ll happily have that conversation with them. But day in and day out, I’m not trying to beat the door down on anybody. I’m not trying to impose what I believe on anybody. I’m just trying to love on people, respect people, remind people of how awesome they are. And in a world that’s so negative—just trying to pick [people] up a little bit every day.

What advice would you give other artists and changemakers on allowing their faith tradition into their creative or business lives?

The words you say [and] the actions you take daily tell people exactly what you believe about yourself, about them, about the world and about any higher power that you may or may not believe in. You want to take a position, in my opinion, where you integrate what you believe in how you do business ethically and morally; if you have a certain standard, you need to abide by that standard. At the same time, unless you’re outspoken that this is a religious company or brand, you don’t want to beat people over the head. I don’t think people have ever converted to one faith or another by getting yelled at, beaten over the head with something or told how terrible or how wrong they are. More often than not, it’s from someone loving on them, having genuine conversations with them and respecting them enough to care about their well-being.

It’s really about maintaining the consistency in your word and deed with the daily interactions with your team, with the products you produce and especially with the people in the community who support [your business]. It’s a fine line to walk, but I think if you have a diverse team that believes different things, but who are all committed to building that same organization, that product, that brand, they’ll find a way to work together.

Thank you Jake for sharing your story! Be sure to get some encouragement from Compete Every Day’s website, Twitter and Facebook pages. You can also connect with Jake Thompson on Facebook and Twitter.

Julian Kiganda On…Fear

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juliankigandaPhoto: Courtesy of Julian Kiganda

Speaker, writer and creative consultant Julian Kiganda is on a mission to inspire people to live boldly and fearlessly. Recently, Julian co-authored “Whose Shoes Are You Wearing? 12 Steps to Uncovering the Woman You Really Want to Be” along with her sister Christine K. St. Vil. Motivated by their own journey in overcoming fear to stay true to their creative calling, Julian and her sister felt the need to help others by sharing the discoveries they’ve made. In addition to her new book, Julian consults with individuals and companies on marketing, design and creating transformational brands.

Whether through writing or consulting, Julian frequently helps people confront their own fears in order to create more meaningful work, so she seemed like the perfect person to join me during this month’s deep dive on fear. Having worked with Julian on several occasions, I am always inspired by her willingness to take on new challenges in spite of fear, and so I’m excited to share her thoughts on how others can do the same.

What role does fear play in the life of a creative person?

Fear plays a role in just about every person’s life. My biggest fear is not getting out all of these amazing ideas that are in my head before I die. It’s less the fear of doing the work; I get excited by the challenge of doing something that I’ve never done before. [But] it’s more just making sure it gets out of my head. That really propels me to make things happen.

Has there been a time when you hit a wall of fear and overcame it? What happened and how did you persevere?

Always. I would say practice makes perfect. The more you confront your fears and address them, the easier it gets.

One of the biggest is the fear of rejection. I still find it a challenge to ask for help or approach people I really respect. Another is public speaking. People who meet me – they may not have any clue that I’m actually shy. But I had to really break out of that, because there are so many things that I have as part of my vision for my life, and I can’t afford to hide behind a keyboard all day. Earlier this year I was invited to speak at the United Nations for the International Day of Happiness. I had to give a spiel on how my life, my entrepreneurial spirit, and my community work have contributed to my happiness and how that applies to the general population. Initially I though, “Oh wow, this is the United Nations [with] all of these famous people.” [But] I’ve found the more I interact with people from different walks of life, cultures, backgrounds and levels of accomplishments, I’ve realized we’re all really alike. More often than not, we all have the same fears, the same wants and the same needs.

Now, I don’t get as nervous as I used to when I have to approach people of a certain status, because I’ve learned to recognize we share more commonalities than we do differences.

What practices help you deal with fear in your daily life as a creative person?

A couple of things. First, I stopped watching the news. I’ll catch snippets of things here and there on social media, but I stopped watching the news in general because it’s mostly bad and, I think, a way of creating fear mongering in the general population. I also figure if something bad is going to happen, it’s going to happen regardless of whether or not I know about it. There are certain things that I’ll hear about and research if they have to do with my own interests, but news for the sake of keeping up with crime and all the terrible things that are going on in the world – I avoid.

Secondly, I make sure I connect with people on a regular basis. As an independent consultant, it’s so easy to become isolated. I find that I have to meet with people regularly, one-on-one or group meetings, just to stay connected. I’m also pushing myself to attend different events and meet people who I’d like to have in my circle. One thing I’m pushing myself to do more now is actively seek out speaking engagements. With speaking, there’s that fear of, “Am I good enough?” Again, it comes down to realizing we all have a gift that’s meant to help other people. Once you realize what yours is, it makes it easier to push yourself to use that gift.

Do you have conversations with other artists & changemakers about fear? What lessons do you take away from those conversations?

I don’t know that we necessarily look at it as fear, because fear rears its ugly head in so many different ways. Often you’ll hear people talk about “haters.” You have people, very often on social media, who think they can say whatever they want and there are no repercussions. I definitely believe making nasty comments is a form of fear. I always say if you don’t have something nice to say it’s because you don’t feel good about yourself. If you’re puling someone else down, that’s a reflection of how you feel about yourself…you’re fearful that this other person is getting ahead while you’re not moving or aren’t where you want to be.

I work with people doing transformational branding and one of my philosophies is that your brand has to reflect what’s really going on inside. One of my clients has an amazing reputation in her industry and an incredible body of work, but she has not been advancing in her career the way she should. While trying to pinpoint what has kept her stuck, we realized it was fear. Transforming her brand meant that she would have to become more visible, and, because she had gained a lot of weight over the past few years from having kids, she felt uncomfortable. She was fearful of how she was going to be received, when in reality, her reputation precedes her.

Fear keeps so many people from fulfilling their purpose. The reality is that fear never leaves you, and it’s a good thing that it never does. I think fear is a motivator to keep you on your game and keep you doing your best, it’s just that some people learn how to manage fear better than others.

What advice would you give artists and changemakers on how to recognize and confront fear?

For me, step number one is having a very strong faith and spiritual connection. I can’t operate without that. When I wake up in the morning, I spend about thirty minutes in bed praying and meditating. I drop my daughter off at school, and on the way to school, we’re praying together. When I go to bed, I have my conversation with God; if I have energy I’ll write in my journal. So that’s the first thing – take care of your spiritual relationship and your relationship with self.

The second thing is journaling. Journaling allows you to get all of the thoughts out of your head that you may not otherwise be able to verbalize. In looking back at journals I’ve written in the past, I’ve been able to recognize my own negative behavioral patterns and pin point where they stemmed from. A lot of it came back to fear.

The third thing is being honest with yourself. I don’t believe you can truly overcome fear unless you’re willing to be real with yourself. You have to take off the masks you wear to keep people out; that space of vulnerability is where the true change happens. I became more fearless when I allowed myself to live more authentically and stopped putting on a mask for everyone. Thinking everyone has to like me and being worried about who’s going to say what – that’s not even a concern anymore. I’m very clear on who I am, what my gifts are and what my vision is.

The last big thing is to surround yourself with positive people and positive energy – people who are aspiring for greatness or are already there – so you can learn from them. Your circle makes a huge difference in how far you get in life.

Thanks Julian for sharing your story! Next week, I’ll review “Whose Shoes Are You Wearing? 12 Steps to Uncovering the Woman You Really Want to Be,” so be sure and come back for a closer look at Julian’s new book. Until then, connect with Julian at boldandfearless.me, on Twitter and Facebook.

Nancy Belmont…On Fear

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124b60fPhoto: Courtesy of Nancy Belmont

In past blog posts, I’ve made reference to the “creative coach” who helped me recognize I was living with some pretty big fears. That coach is Nancy Belmont.

Nancy heads the brand- and culture-building company, Belmont, Inc., and I met her quite serendipitously. While looking for an office to rent, I came across a space Nancy’s company was subletting. Their sunny office, decorated with inspirational words and phrases, made me feel instantly at ease, and I signed up immediately. As it turned out, Nancy also acts as a coach, helping leaders define who they are, what they stand for and how they want to show up in the world – all areas I needed to work on. How convenient?! I worked with Nancy at the beginning of this year, and her coaching provided a looking glass, a sounding board and some guided direction toward a much more meaningful understanding of why I decided to start my own writing business. One of the biggest discoveries I made was the presence of fear.

Recognizing and learning to deal with creative fear has been a total game changer for me. I couldn’t keep Nancy’s insight to myself, so I invited her to share her thoughts on fear for other artists and changemakers. Here’s what she had to say.

What role does fear play in the life of a creative person?

Fear helps let you know that you’re doing something that really matters to you. When you feel that fear, you know that you are stretching beyond your comfort zone and taking a risk. You know that your heart is in it.

Has there been a time when you hit a wall of fear and overcame it? What happened and how did you persevere?

Sure, I’ve run into the “fear wall.” The most important thing is to realize that’s what it is. Sometimes it shows up as procrastination or an uninspired feeling. If you believe the problem is that you’re uninspired, you don’t have any power. Once you recognize that fear is the culprit, you can put it in its proper place. Don’t get me wrong – the fear is still there; but once you acknowledge it, you can disassociate the fear with your ability to get the work done.

A trick I’ve used is to thank the fear for showing up, invite it to sit across the table if it insists on staying, and then get about your work. The fear is not you. The fear is simply a signal that what you’re doing matters. Another tactic I’ve used is to tell myself that this is going to be the very first draft of something so it doesn’t have to be anywhere near perfect. I do a rapid fire to get as much as I can down on paper then go back and look at it later. Usually, it’s not bad!

What practices help you deal with fear in your daily life as a creative person?

If I’m worried about someone else judging my work and thinking negatively about it, I applaud myself for putting my work out there. There is a great quote by Theodore Roosevelt called Man in the Arena that helps me build my courage and protect me against the real or imaginary critics.

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena. . . who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” ~Theodore Roosevelt

If my fear is rooted in feeling like I have nothing new to add to the body of work that is similar to mine, I remind myself that I have a point of view that could be just different enough to touch even one person. As long as I believe I am making a positive contribution to somebody, it builds determination in me to move forward.

Do you have conversations with other artists or changemakers about fear? What lessons do you take away from those conversations?

I don’t think many people would automatically name the issues they’re facing as fear. I hear a lot of individuals talk about writer’s block or a shortage of time, or a lack of resources. Every day I hear people give reasons why they can’t do something or claim they have no choice. There is always a choice; you just have to open your eyes. Once you realize that every action or inaction is a choice, you can see how the fear has twisted you up into thinking you have no choice. It’s easy to see this in others, but not so easy to see it in yourself. So the lesson I take away from those conversations is to ask myself, “What are my choices in this situation and what’s holding me back from doing what I want to do?”

What advice would you give artists and changemakers on how to recognize and confront fear?

Know how fear shows up for you. Sometimes it appears as an inaction – people feel stuck but can’t determine why. Other times it looks like a lot of action around the wrong thing. If you feel stuck, ask yourself the question, “What might I be afraid of that has me stuck here?” Name those fears. Write them down. Then ask them to take a seat and be quiet so you can get on with being the creative genius you are!

Thanks Nancy for sharing your story! Be sure to follow Nancy online through her website, Facebook and Twitter. Also check out Belmont, Inc., on the web, Facebook and Twitter.

Raymar Hampshire on…Celebrating Failure

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Photo: Courtesy of Raymar Hampshire

The best revenge we can have on failure is to turn our experience into an opportunity. Raymar Hampshire epitomizes this idea as the founder of SponsorChange, a social enterprise that matches young professionals to skill-based projects at nonprofits and provides a student loan payment reward for each project completed. Perhaps the concept wouldn’t have occurred to him had his own high school record been more pristine and led to a lucrative scholarship. But, needing student loans to finance his own college career, Raymar had first-hand knowledge of the debilitating debt many college students find themselves in upon graduation. Searching for a solution led to the innovative approach of SponsorChange, which has garnered attention from media outlets such as MSNBC, the CBS Sunday Morning Show and CNN.

As he admits, opening up about failure isn’t easy to do. But I’m grateful Raymar agreed to give it a shot to reassure others that creative failures don’t have to mark the end of an idea. Here’s what Raymar had to say about celebrating failure.

What role does failure play in your work as a social changemaker?

Much of my work is trial and error – there isn’t an existing plan to follow because SponsorChange is the first service of its kind. We strive to make educated and data-informed decisions, but we miss the mark occasionally and learn from our mistakes. I welcome mistakes from my team; it means we are trying and taking risks.

What’s the best lesson you’ve learned on failure?

My parents taught me early on that not trying is worse than failure. This has probably been my best lesson on failure. I’ve been able to have some success simply because I outlasted other people who gave up or lost interest. Charles Bukowski, one of my favorite poets, once said, “I am a series of small victories and large defeats.” I like this quote because he is brutally honest about his failures, yet he was also one of the most prolific writers in his genre of poetry.

Albert Einstein said that, “Failure is success in progress.”

Michael Jordan once said:

“I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

We all fail, but we all deal with failure differently – either we give up or keep trying new things.

Have you ever celebrated one of your failures? If so, what happened and why was that failure a good thing? If not, can you think of a failure that you should have celebrated and why?

Celebration? I actually have personal issues with being too celebratory of my victories, let alone my failures. I’m working on this! But, when I think back there are some failures that I’m thankful for. I guess these are the proverbial blessings in disguise.

I once thought that I wanted to be a pharmaceutical sales representative. This was my senior year in college and it seemed like a lucrative career for a 21-year-old. I was lost. I applied for a job to sell a drug that I actually take to treat my asthma. I got an interview, [but] I didn’t get the job. I failed. And I’m thankful I failed. My 32-year-old-self would hate being a pharmaceutical sales rep. After this failure, I ended up becoming a broker for a large bank. I learned a lot about money, which has helped me with SponsorChange.

Also, I’m thankful for understanding how it feels to manage student loan debt – this understanding is the reason I started SponsorChange. In hindsight, had I failed less in high school I probably would have landed an academic scholarship and graduated debt-free, never knowing how it feels to manage student debt or having the motivation to create an idea to address it. It’s ironic that one day you may actually be thankful for some of your biggest failures.

What do you think keeps people from talking openly about failure?

Everyone’s life is a highlight tape these days. We live in a day and age where social media is used to share baby pictures, promotions and pumpkins. These are the things we openly share. I get it, most people are terrified of being vulnerable with people they don’t trust – me included. I’m sharing my thoughts on failure [here] in hopes that it helps others.

I think if you are in a position of leadership, you should become comfortable with admitting your mistakes and failures with your team. You should create a space where team members are encouraged to make mistakes, learn and create new solutions.

Also, I do think that everyone should have a trusted circle of friends or advisors that they can confide in and share their biggest failures with. It’s healthy.

What advice on failure would you give other artists & changemakers?

Become comfortable with failure. If you’re not failing you are not taking risks. Failure is an active ingredient in the recipe of success.

Thanks Raymar for sharing your story! Be sure you check out SponsorChange online and on Twitter. You can follow Raymar on Twitter @Philanthroteer.