Awakening With Grace — Creativity & Consciousness

Latest Episodes:

Lesson 16 - How to Turn Your Creative Project Into a Side Hustle with Dielle Charon Apr 22, 2019

Show notes

What if you could monetize your creative project and turn it into a profitable side hustle? Today's Creativity School guest Dielle Charon, is an expert at helping people achieve exactly this and she's here to share all her juicy tips with us in this conversation.

Dielle is a Business Coach, helping other driven and passionate side hustlers finally quit their full time jobs and live a life of freedom. And Dielle walks the walk - she currently runs her extremely profitable coaching business as a side hustle! Despite her crazy demanding day job, she was able to match her 9-5 salary within three months of starting her business.

You probably know by now that I started my photography career as a side hustle back in 2008. I know a thing or two about how to monetize your creative passion projects, but Dielle taught me SO MUCH in this conversation, she blew my mind. We talk about how to make sure your business idea is suitable for the market, how to manage your time when you have a busy day job, and how to avoid "Shiny Object Syndrome" so you can set goals and stick to them. Dielle also shares great advice on when it's ok to quit your side hustle. We talk about so much more and she has a a wealth of great advice, so you might want to grab a pen and take some notes for this one!

**Today's episode is brought to you by Audible! If you want to get started with a free audiobook download and 30 day free trial head over to at www.creativityschoolpodcast.com/audible.

Mentioned in this episode:

The first steps to monetizing your creative passion project
Why you have to find a gap in the market
How to validate your side hustle idea with "coffee chat calls"
What branding is and why it's important
How to balance your side hustle with a day job and manage your time productively
Why Dielle recommends 90 day goals and how they can give us permission to focus on the things that matter to our side hustle
The impact of side hustles on your relationships and how to balance both
Shiny Object Syndrome and how that harms our productivity
Why you have to serve the business, and not your every passion and whim
Dielle's advice on when it's ok to quit your side hustle

CONNECT WITH DIELLE:

Website | Instagram

CONNECT WITH CREATIVITY SCHOOL:

Thank you so much for listening!

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me online!

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

If you have any questions or comments for the show, click here

Lesson 15 - Overcoming Adversity and Making an Impact with your Creative Expression with Simon Tam Apr 15, 2019

Show notes

This week on Creativity School, I'm talking to self proclaimed troublemaker Simon Tam, founder and bassist of the first Asian American dance rock band The Slants, author, TEDx speaker, podcaster, and the David that went up against the Goliath that is the US government in a fight for freedom of speech.

Simon is a strong believer in creating work from your values and making the things you want to see in the world, in order to make an impact and create positive change. In this episode we talk about why he is committed to making the work he does, even when it puts him on a difficult path, and how he overcame incredible obstacles in the music industry that discriminated against his band simply for being Asian American.

Simon and his band have extensively been in the news because of his 8 year lawsuit against the US Patent and Trademark Office over the right to use the name The Slants (the USPTO argued it was racist), and we discuss what happened when his landmark case went all the way to the Supreme Court in 2017. (Spoiler alert - they won!)

We talk about making work that you know you have to make, despite the odds, despite the rejection, despite people not believing in you, and despite having to fight giants like the US government. Simon offers so much wisdom about why overcoming all those obstacles was worth the fight.

**Today's episode is brought to you by Audible! If you want to get started with a free audiobook download and 30 day free trial head over to at www.creativityschoolpodcast.com/audible.

Mentioned in this episode:

How to take action on the things that you want to do
How Simon learned survival instincts – perseverance and persistence – from watching his immigrant parents
How he finds the time for all his creative pursuits and juggles them all
His advice on how to create connection with people and get them interested in the work you create
Why he started the first Asian American dance rock band and why he chose the name The Slants as an act of reappropriation
How he deals with rejection
Why it's important to embrace who you are and not let anyone stop you
Living in alignment with what you believe is right
How starting your creativity journey can lead you to unexpected places

Resources:

The Daily Show with Trevor Noah | USA Today

CONNECT WITH SIMON:

Website | The Slants | Slanted Book

CONNECT WITH CREATIVITY SCHOOL:

Thank you so much for listening!

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me online!

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If you have any questions or comments for the show, click here

Lesson 14 - Turning a Hobby Into a Dream Career with Kyndra Holley Part 2 Apr 08, 2019

Show notes

This week on Creativity School, we're back with Part 2 of our conversation with Kyndra Holley, international bestselling cookbook author and the powerhouse behind the massively popular food blog Peace, Love and Low Carb.

If you didn't listen to Part 1 our talk, go back and listen to Episode 13 to find out all about how Kyndra started her blog back in 2011 as a hobby that made zero money, and eventually turned it into a full time dream career that now supports her family.

On this episode, we discuss the importance of advocating for your work and standing up for the vision that you believe in, and why we should create from a place of power and never hold back and stifle our own creativity. Kyndra also shares her thoughts on how to be healthy overall so we can have a long term and sustainable business, and why your career can't be motivated by money.

Mentioned in this episode:

How Kyndra self published her first cookbook after just 1 year of blogging
How she got into publishing her cookbooks with her traditional publishers
Why it's essential to speak up for yourself and advocate for your own work and creative vision
Her philosophy on giving back to the community, animals and other people
How Kyndra keeps her creativity going without burning out
How giving ourselves rest allows us to be more creative and have better ideas
Kyndra's thoughts on starting a blog now, in such a competitive landscape
Why your career can't be motivated by money
The single most thing that has propelled Kyndra in her business and career

CONNECT WITH KYNDRA:

Instagram | Blog | Facebook

CONNECT WITH CREATIVITY SCHOOL:

Thank you so much for listening!

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me online!

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

If you have any questions or comments for the show, click here

Lesson 13 - Turning a Hobby Into a Dream Career with Kyndra Holley Part 1 Apr 01, 2019

Show notes

Have you ever dreamed of monetizing a hobby and turning it into a successful career? It's entirely possible, and on this week's episode of Creativity School our guest Kyndra Holley is here to tell us exactly how she did it.

Kyndra is an international bestselling cookbook author, and the powerhouse behind Peace, Love and Low Carb, a massively popular food blog that gets 4 million page views a month. She started her blog back in 2011 simply as a hobby to lose weight, using a first generation iPhone. Kyndra eventually quit her day job in the restaurant business to focus on monetizing her blog. And now 8 years later, she's supporting her family with a food empire that spans Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and 6 traditionally published cookbooks.

Kyndra doesn't hold back in this conversation, and shares everything from the steps she took to monetize her blog, to how she kept going even though things got really dark and hard in the early days of her business. We also talk about how she deals with viscous online trolls, how to overcome anxiety and fear, and why gratitude and abundance mindset is crucial to our overall health and wellness.

Tune in next week as we continue our conversation about how Kyndra self published her first cookbooks, her experience getting published with traditional publishers, how to have a long term, sustainable business and much, much more.

Mentioned in this episode:

Why Kyndra embraces vulnerability and how it creates connection with her readers
Why she treated food blogging like a career even though it was a hobby
How she ultimately quit her day job to focus on food blogging even though it wasn't bringing in any income
Why she says gratitude is essential
How being real and authentic on social media has created connection, community and grown her Instagram following
How our emotions and deep inner worlds affect our creativity and the work we make
Abundance mindset and how it affects her creativity and business

CONNECT WITH KYNDRA:

Instagram | Blog | Facebook

CONNECT WITH CREATIVITY SCHOOL:

Thank you so much for listening!

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me online!

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

If you have any questions or comments for the show, click here

Lesson 12 - Creativity + Perfectionism with Grace Chon Mar 18, 2019

Show notes

On today's episode of Creativity School I discuss perfectionism and why it's so detrimental to our creativity, especially when we're starting something new!

Listen to find out why we should stop being focused on perfection, and what we can do instead to create work from a space that's healthier, more loving, and free of shame, judgement and fear. This episode is a must listen if you struggle with perfectionism in your work, and you feel like you can't share anything you make until it's absolutely perfect.

I also share why I'll be taking a few weeks off from the show, so listen until the end if you want to find out more.

This episode is dedicated in loving memory of Maeby 2005-2019.

Mentioned in this episode:

Ira Glass and The Gap

CONNECT WITH CREATIVITY SCHOOL:

Thank you so much for listening!

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me online!

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

If you have any questions or comments for the show, click here

Lesson 11 - Perseverance, Creating From Your Why, and the Best Donuts in LA with James Choi Mar 11, 2019

Show notes

How did an aspiring pro-golfer turned accountant end up opening one of of LA's most popular cafes with ZERO restaurant experience? Tune into today's episode of Creativity School, to find out the incredible origins story of how my good friend James Choi started Cafe Dulce, one of the most popular bakeries and cafés in the entire city. With 4 locations, thousands of reviews on Yelp and lines out the door, people can't seem to get enough of Dulce's specialty coffee and creative pastries – especially their famous donuts. (My favorites are the Snickers and Green Tea, and I love their iced Vietnamese coffee!)

James explains how he quit his job in accounting 8 years ago to build Cafe Dulce from the ground up with his late mother, thanks to a whole lot of grit and perseverance. He also talks about his struggles during Dulce's early days when he had to "fake it til you make it" and how he ultimately began to grow his business and loyal fan base through having a very clear intention for his business and a heart of service for his customers and community. His advice for how to build something meaningful and impactful is really insightful and applicable to any creative work.

And you'll have to listen to find out the surprising way I met James back in the mid 90's, when he was a kid in Southern California and I was in Philly. (It's pretty funny.)

Mentioned in this episode:

How James pursued a career in professional golf since he was 10 years old
Why he ultimately quit college level golf and majored in accounting
How he was able to keep Café Dulce afloat in the early days when they had maxed out credit cards and piles of debt
Why James says you have to be clear with your messaging and be intentional with why you're doing it
Why good hospitality is NOT just for the hospitality industry and will help any new business thrive and stand out
How to add heart to your business
The best way to create something meaningful and impactful
James' advice on how to be patient when you're building something, especially through hardship and obstacles
Simon Sinek – Start With Why Ted Talk
CEOs Say How You Treat a Waiter Can Predict a Lot About Character

CONNECT WITH JAMES:

Instagram | Facebook

CONNECT WITH CREATIVITY SCHOOL:

Thank you so much for listening!

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me online!

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

If you have any questions or comments for the show, click here.

Lesson 10 - Creating with Intention, Going Viral, and Making Your Dreams Come True with Nathalie Basha Mar 04, 2019

Show notes

Nathalie Basha is a Webby nominated travel journalist with a passion for telling stories about the intersection between people, culture and fascinating places. She shoots, writes, edits, and reports on her stories both at home in LA and around the world on assignment. Basically, she has a dream career! And her pieces regularly go viral, getting millions upon millions of views per story. One video alone has more than 70 MILLION views and counting!

If you're interested at all in being a content creator, learning how to create stories that connect with people, and learning how to make things that resonate with an audience, this is a must listen episode.

I love this conversation, because we learn all about Nathalie's journey to working in such an incredible career, with stops along the way as an entertainment news reporter, features news reporter, and the surprising part time job she picked up to support herself when she quit TV news without a plan and decided to go full force with her YouTube channel The Travel Muse.

Nathalie shares why it's so important to create roles and opportunities for yourself, why we have to purposefully conquer our fears, and how to manifest the exact dream career and life that you want.

We also talk about going viral - why she thinks her work connects with such a massive audience, and her advice on creating work with the intent of going viral.

Mentioned in this episode:

How Nathalie burned out of TV news, quit without a plan, and started her YouTube channel The Travel Muse
How she developed The Travel Muse over 3 years, without generating any income, and took a part time job to pay the bills
Why it's so important to create the opportunity for yourself and take the initiative if you want something to happen
How Nathalie finds the stories she reports on and why she is interested in telling the stories of the people that make the places she travels to special
Why feeling nervous is a good thing
How she has had countless videos go viral
Nathalie's advice on approaching content creation with the intent of going viral
How Nathalie and her fiancé Dr. Evan Antin both manifested their dream careers
How to get started in telling stories through video like Nathalie

Nathalie's videos mentioned in this episode:

CONNECT WITH NATHALIE:

Instagram | YouTube | Facebook

CONNECT WITH CREATIVITY SCHOOL:

Thank you so much for listening!

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me online!

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

If you have any questions or comments for the show, click here.

Lesson 09 - Feed Your Soul with a Creative Side Project with Kevin Butler Feb 25, 2019

Show notes

We talk a lot on Creativity School about making things simply because it makes us happy, even if we don't have a bigger plan for it. Yet we often find ourselves feeling like our creativity needs to be more purposeful than that - if it doesn't make us money, what's the point?

In today's episode, I'm talking to someone who has an extremely demanding day job, and started a creative side project for one reason: purely because it was fun. What happened next was beyond his imagination!

Kevin Butler is an award winning creative director that's created memorable ad campaigns for clients like Apple, Playstation, Tinder, Airbnb, and Facebook. While he was working at his most demanding job ever (working 6 days a week, 12-14 hours a day), he started his illustration project, Rad Cars with Rad Surfboards. It started out as one personal drawing that quickly grew to 100 illustrations. Now, 10 years later, Rad Cars with Rad Surfboards has had sold out art shows and collaborated with brands like Herschel Supply Co., Igloo Coolers, Vans, and more!

Kevin talks about how Rad Cars with Rad Surfboards is what keeps him sharp and inspired, why money is never the motivation behind his project, and why it's important that he protects the integrity of his work by choosing the right brands to collaborate with.

He also shares how he juggles his side project with such a demanding day job, and why it's SO IMPORTANT to be selfish in the work you create for yourself.

Mentioned in this episode:

How Kevin creates effective communication that connects with people through his ad campaigns
Why he says you need to be selfish in the work you create
Why other people's opinions shouldn't matter
The questions he asks himself when he chooses which creative side projects to work on
How starting Rad Cars with Rad Surfboards was started purely for fun
Why you should value your work and be discerning about what brands and companies to work with
Why money is never his motivation for his Rad Car collaborations
How giving your brain space to rest and breathe allows you to be more creative
How he finds time for creativity with a demanding day job and while being a dad
The Modern Trap of Turning Hobbies into Hustles
Facebook "Friends" brand campaign

CONNECT WITH KEVIN:

Rad Cars | Instagram | Website

CONNECT WITH CREATIVITY SCHOOL:

Thank you so much for listening!

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me online!

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

If you have any questions or comments for the show, click here

Lesson 08 - The Power of Being Unapologetically You in Your Work with Evita Castine Feb 18, 2019

Show notes

Today's episode digs into the power of owning your story and being authentically and unapologetically yourself in your work. Because what you create is a reflection of who you are – whether it's a film, a photo, a business or a cupcake!

Being so honest can be pretty scary for most people, myself included. I struggle with this a lot, especially on social media. But this conversation reveals how when you can embrace your identity and the things that make you different, the more relatable, resonant and creative your work will be. And I truly believe this applies to LIFE IN GENERAL. Just swap out the word "work" for "life."

Evita Castine is an Emmy Award winning producer, director, actor, and photographer. Her films have been recognized by the Cannes Film Festival, One Lens Festival, Warner Brothers, and more. In today's conversation, she shares her journey to becoming an award winning filmmaker, why she says putting emotional intelligence into your work makes it stronger, and how being different is your super power.

Evita also shares how she uses her iPhone (yes, you read that right - her iPhone!) to create work for major clients like Spotify, musicians like Cody Chestnutt, and Fox Studios.

Mentioned in this episode:

Evita's journey to becoming a director and why she became inspired to begin telling her own stories
How being different and an outsider shapes her work and makes it unique
Why putting emotion into your work makes it stronger
How judging things inhibits your creativity
Why she says you don't have to go to film school if you want to be a filmmaker
How she developed her artistic voice and unique visual style in her work
How she started creating work using her iPhone for major clients
Her formula for the "straightest" path to living a fulfilling creative life and making your dreams into reality
Why a teacher told her to go clown school

CONNECT WITH EVITA:

Website | Instagram

CONNECT WITH CREATIVITY SCHOOL:

Thank you so much for listening!

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and connect with me online!

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

If you have any questions or comments for the show, click here.

Lesson 07 - Building Self Confidence and Resilience as a Creative with Aimee Hoover Feb 11, 2019

Show notes

Today's episode is for everyone that was told you can't make money doing what you love, especially as an artist.

(I have a feeling this is the majority of us!)

The myth of the starving artist is one of the biggest misconceptions there is about creativity. I was told my entire life that I could never make a living with my creative hobbies. But my guest today, Aimée Hoover, has made a successful career as an extraordinary fine artist for 20 years, painting contemporary portraits of animals. Her paintings are in collections all around the world, seen in galleries and exhibitions, and featured in countless magazine articles.

In this episode, Aimée tells us how she accidentally stumbled upon her niche painting portraits of pets 20 years ago, built her business as a side hustle painting in her living room, and how she's been able to sustain a long lasting career creating exactly what she loves to make. She talks about the point in her career when pleasing clients left her lost and burned out, and how she shut down a successful, profitable business to find joy in her work again. Aimée also shares how to build self confidence and resilience in your work, especially in this day of social media when it's so easy to feel like you're not good enough. You'll also find out why I call Aimée a social media and marketing genius!

Mentioned in this episode:

How Aimée accidentally stumbled upon her niche painting pet portraits 20 years ago
How she transitioned from a side hustle to full time business
How she learned the business of being an artist (and it wasn't from school!)
How to overcome the "compare and despair" of Instagram and social media
Why I call Aimée a social media and marketing genius
How to build your confidence in your work as a creative person, even when you feel like you're not good enough
The point in her career when she felt completely lost, burned out and wanted to quit everything
Why filling your creative well is so important when you have a creative career
Aimée's tips for how to get started as a creative entrepreneur
The power in just being yourself and creating work that's important to you