Awakening With Grace — Creativity & Consciousness

Latest Episodes:

Lesson 26 - Creating Work That Has Purpose and Meaning with Von Wong Jul 01, 2019

Show notes

On this week's episode of Creativity School, I talk to legendary viral photographer, artist and visual engineer Von Wong. Von has been hugely influential in the photography industry for over a decade with his massive online following and work seen all over the world, and he drops so much knowledge and insight about the creative life in this illuminating conversation about success, failure and everything in between.

Von Wong is a former mining engineer turned self taught photographer, and we learn how he transitioned from engineering to traveling all over the globe as a social impact artist and viral photographer. We also talk about his pivot into creating work that has purpose and meaning, and how he uses his work to tell impactful stories about environmental issues like plastic pollution, fast fashion, and electronic waste. Von also explains the importance of using strategy to build your creative career rather than sheer impulse.

**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:

Why it's important to know yourself – know what makes you tick, know what you enjoy, and leverage that to the best of your ability in order to make things work
Why failure is actually multidimensional – how failure can also be successful
Why other people's templates for success are totally irrelevant
The recent struggles Von's had while pivoting into new things, and how keeps going
Building through calculated, new steps to get to where you want to go instead of being impulse driven
How to collaborate with others and the importance of thinking how you can benefit others instead of yourself

CONNECT WITH VON:

Website | 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 25 - Simple Social Media Strategies to Grow Your Following with Andrea Jones Jun 24, 2019

Show notes

Whether you love it or hate it, social media is one of the best ways for getting our creative work out into the world. But it can be so overwhelming, time consuming, and yet another thing to do when we're already so busy! How can we make social media simple and fun and use it to actually grow our following?

On this week's episode of Creativity School, I talk to social media strategist Andrea Jones. Andrea loves to help people build profitable communities online through simple solutions, and she's also the host of the Savvy Social Podcast. She's here to answer ALL THE QUESTIONS, and do I mean all the questions. We talk about it all - like what kinds of posts perform best (photos of ourselves? product shots? graphics? personal posts?), how much time we *actually* need to spend on our accounts to be effective, and how to make this whole thing simple and easy. Andrea also shares how to beat Instagram's algorithms and authentically increase engagement, and she also answers a ton of listener questions. This episode is packed full of great information and you won't want to miss it if you want to build your social platforms.

**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 much time you REALLY need to spend on social media to make it work for you
Which social platform to start with
Why social media is like dating and how to use Instagram to meet new people to connect with using hashtags and using Gary Vee's $1.80 strategy
How to increase engagement and beat Instagram's algorithms

Resources:
Canva
Social Report

CONNECT WITH ANDREA:

Website | Podcast | 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 24 - Creativity + Imposter Syndrome: How to Stop Feeling Like a Fraud Jun 17, 2019

Show notes

This week's episode of Creativity School is all about imposter syndrome, and it's a deeply personal one because it's something I've struggled with EVERY step of the way on my creative journey from studying biology to becoming an art director in the ad industry, to commercial photography, and now as a podcaster.

We talk a lot on the show about how we need to do our best work on the inside, so we can create our best work on the outside. And imposter syndrome is a major one to tackle because no matter how long you've been a creative it never goes away. So how can we move past this huge block to our creativity when everything inside of us is screaming about how inadequate we are? This week I share 3 ways to help overcome the dreaded imposter syndrome when you feel crippling self doubt and feel like you're a total fraud and a failure.

**Today's episode is brought to you by Audible! Support Creativity School and get a free audiobook download and 30 day free trial at www.creativityschoolpodcast.com/audible.

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 23 - Change Your Money Story and Make More Doing What You Love with Sarah Li-Cain Jun 10, 2019

Show notes

If you're like me and were told you you can never make money being creative, (or countless other limiting beliefs about money!) starting the process of uncovering your money story is an essential step on your creative journey. I didn't even know what a money mindset was back in 2008 when I started my side hustle, and I had NO IDEA how deep my unconscious beliefs about money went and how much that was impacting my income.

Today's guest Sarah Li-Cain is a finance writer and host of the Beyond The Dollar podcast, where she has deep and honest conversations about how money affects our well being. Her work blends practical tips and mindset strategies so that money becomes a tool to enhance people's lives. On today's episode of Creativity School, we talk about all things money mindset - how we've absorbed messages about money and how that affects our day to day life and the way we interact with it, make it, spend it, and our relationship with it. We also discuss how to begin the process of changing our beliefs about money to ultimately make more money doing what we love.

**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 personal and emotional issues affect the way we interact with money
Why we feel the need to hoard money
How our behaviors around money and the decision process around money fills an emotional need
Techniques to help you move through your negative emotions about money and begin the process of changing your money story

Resources:
Overcoming, Underearning
The Soul of Money
You Are a Badass at Making Money
Get Rich Lucky Btch

CONNECT WITH SARAH:

Website | Podcast | 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 22 - Loving Yourself Even When People Say You Suck with Laurenne Sala Jun 03, 2019

Show notes

I'll be the first to tell you that I used to think "loving yourself" sounded like the cheesiest, most cliché mantra and totally irrelevant to creativity. But what I've learned over the last 11 years as a creative entrepreneur and artist is that loving yourself is the superpower we need to stay the course on a journey that can oftentimes get really, really hard.

On this week's episode of Creativity School, I talk to my good friend, essay writer and children's book author Laurenne Sala all about what loving yourself actually means, what that looks like in practice, and how it allows us to withstand the sting of rejection and stop our constant need to make people like us and our work.

We dig into ALL the things in this episode, from the secret formula to writing a successful children's book, to dealing with rejection after Laurenne submitted hundreds of manuscripts, and to feeling like a total failure when you don't make 100% of your income from your creative work. We also discuss the 3 essential parts of the creative process that highly creative people embrace.

**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:

Laurenne's amazing new book You Made Me a Dad
How a commercial Laurenne wrote for a baby brand went viral and turned into her first children's book You Made Me a Mother
How her entire children's book career started with overcoming her lack of self-esteem and learning to stand up for herself
Learning how to deal with rejection
All the steps to become a children's book author and write a great children's book
3 essential parts of the creative process that highly creative people embrace
How to know what critiques to take from people and know what to ignore
Thinking you're a failure because you can't make a living full time with your creative work

CONNECT WITH LAURENNE:

Website | Instagram | You Made Me a Dad

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 21 - The Power of Redefining How You Measure Success with Anna S.E. Lundberg May 27, 2019

Show notes

The dictionary defines success as "attaining wealth, prosperity and fame". Oftentimes, the more achievements we can accomplish and the more money we make, the more successful we feel. But being on this never ending hamster wheel of chasing external validation and accomplishment can leave us burned out and feeling unfulfilled. Is our creativity only meaningful when it receives attention and accolades? Of course not! So how do we begin to reimagine what success really is, so we can live a life of more meaning and purpose?

Today's guest Anna S. E. Lundberg is a success coach, business strategist and founder of One Step Outside. Anna is passionate about inspiring and supporting others to reimagine what personal success means so we can have businesses we love and live with more freedom and fulfillment. We talk about how to overcome fear and take "one step outside" to start the process of redefining success, and how to discover what personal success is to us so we can find more meaning in the lives we live and the work we make.

**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:

Overcoming fear and taking just one step outside your comfort zone to begin to redefine success
The importance of reimagining success beyond external validation, achievement and accomplishment
How to discover and redefine what personal success means to us
How to find work life integration through the 5 L's – Live, Love, Learn, Lead and Laugh

CONNECT WITH ANNA:

Website | Podcast | 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 20 - Creativity and the Brain: Lessons From a Neuroscientist May 20, 2019

Show notes

Want to learn how to be more creative by hacking the way your brain naturally works?

On this week's episode of Creativity School, I watch and recap my favorite takeaways from Netflix's new documentary The Creative Brain with neuroscientist Dr. David Eagleman. Dr. Eagleman has been a neuroscientist for over 20 years and shares the various ways our brain naturally works for and against our creativity. The movie features creative minds like architect Bjarke Ingels, musician Grimes, actor Tim Robbins, and more. It's a fascinating documentary that looks into the creative process of innovators across multiple disciplines while exploring brain-bending, risk-taking ways to spark our own creativity.

**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.

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 19 - Create Work that Connects with Your Audience Using the 5 C's with Hommy Diaz May 13, 2019

Show notes

We're back with more wisdom from Hommy Diaz on this week's episode of Creativity School! If you haven't already, be sure to back and listen to last week's episode where he shares his origin story and how he navigates the unknown of his creative journey without stress or fear.

This week Hommy's talking to us about the formula he's come up with to create work that connects with people called "The 5 C's." Hommy has used this formula successfully for his projects working on collaborations for brands like DC Shoes and K-Swiss. You'll find out why he says some people get the formula backwards when creating, and when they do, it inevitably fails.

Hommy also shares how he uses the 5 C's to create products with meaning and depth, and how he utilized his formula for building his own brand, Magnus Alpha. We also talk about how to execute ideas to make them awesome, and how to build a great brand from the ground up.

**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:

Why you should align your work with the 5 C's and then create
How he tells stories through footwear design
Why he says the context around your product is the most important thing to consider
Why you shouldn't be in a rush to develop an idea and get it out
How appreciating what he has helps his mindset and creative journey

CONNECT WITH HOMMY:

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 18 - Don't Stress About the Unknown of Your Creative Path with Hommy Diaz May 06, 2019

Show notes

We all know the unknown and uncertainty of forging ahead on your own creative path can be terrifying! So how can we overcome all the fears and move forward?

On this week's episode of Creativity School, I'm talking to Hommy Diaz. Hommy is an influential designer in sneaker culture with over 15 years of experience working with with top brands like KSWISS, Palladium Boots and DC Shoes. He is also the cofounder of MAGNUS ALPHA, his own designer sneaker, accessories and apparel company.

Hommy is a proud child of immigrants from the Dominican Republic and his family told him he couldn't make money being an artist. Despite this, he went to Parsons art school, graduated, and then took a part time job at the Apple Store, much to the confusion and disappointment of his family. Somehow, Hommy leveraged that experience to end up as the global product line manager at DC Shoes... with zero shoe design experience! We talk about how he navigated this journey, his particular way of thinking that allows him to stay open to possibilities without trying to control the outcome of the unknown, and how this has consistently opened doors for him on his creative path.

Stay tuned for Part 2 with Hommy next week, where we talk about how to create work that's meaningful to consumers and more.

**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:

Being open to opportunity even if it's not exactly what you expect
Why its so important to create your own opportunities
Why Hommy says setting expectations is self sabotage
How to release the impulse to control things and enjoy the process
Why Hommy says to rack up as many small failures as possible

CONNECT WITH HOMMY:

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 17 - Believing in Yourself Even When No One Else Does with Sara Carson Apr 29, 2019

Show notes

On today's episode of Creativity School, I'm talking to Sara Carson, celebrity dog trainer, top international trick dog trainer, and finalist on Season 12 of America's Got Talent.

Sara and her dogs now have fans all over the world, but she faced harsh criticism and lack of support from her family and friends while she pursued her dreams of training and performing with dogs for a living. Despite starting her own dog training business at 15 years old, Sara was told her entire life that what she was doing was silly, unrealistic, and that she could NEVER have a career doing what she wanted to do.

When she auditioned for America's Got Talent, even the judges didn't understand her work. It took Simon Cowell getting on stage for the first time ever, to vouch for Sara and her dogs and get her through to the show.

Sara shares how to overcome the lack of support from your family and friends and how to create the things you love anyway. We also get a behind the scenes look at her time on AGT - from the audition process, to the moment the judges criticized her act, to Simon getting on stage and fighting for her. She also talks about the process of creating new performances week after week under high stress, how she overcomes her nerves before big shows, how she deals with online critics, and more.

**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 Sara learned how to do dog training while watching YouTube videos when she was 10 years old
How she started a dog training business when she was 15 years old, teaching at night after school
Her experience having a video she made for fun go viral, getting 22M views overnight
How she got onto America's Got Talent Season 12, her process auditioning for the show, getting rejected and hearing criticism from the judges, and how Simon Cowell believed in her
Sara's advice on how to create things when you don't have any support
How she deals with the nerves of performing in front of a huge audience
Her advice for creating work through anxiety or depression