Thursdays and Thinking Those Thoughts - Thursday Thirteen #18

Yet another Thursday and I find myself, once again, pondering what to.. um... ponder for the day.

No, I'm not feeling full of myself, but I do love me. Ya can't love anyone else until you truly love yourself...

Someone told me recently, that for my Thursday Thirteen I should be talking more about myself... Thursday 13 not ment for business. I agree with that a gazillion%. So I've been thinking for a while now, what exactly does that mean, and how does it apply to me?

So here's my 13 thoughts on what it means when someone says "this should be about YOU" (when it applies to me, JGoode).

1. My Art - doodles, photography, illustration, animation and site design... is ME

-- I've been actively involved in some kind of art community since I was 5 when I won my first coloring contest.

2. I happen to be one of those very fortunate people that gets to do what I love. Or better yet, have made the opportunity for myself to do what I love.

-- My art is my business. I make it my business, I'm nosey like that. Not for the reason of being in business (see #3)... no no. If it were up to me, I'd draw all day and just give it away. But... if I love it, and someone else likes it, why not feed my family doing it? Why struggle with a job one doesn't love just to make money... sounds like a waste of one's lifetime to me -- So that's the goal, Spread the happiness and smiley doodles.. and make money doing it. Howe COOOOL of a concept is THAT?

3. Believe it or not, my art isn't my "real job".. Newp! Yes indeedy, I have a day job - totally unrelated to "who I am" (or it's unrelated now anyway)-- thus the need to doodle and share and doodle some more... it's a preventive tactic for my mental well-being.. with the help of daily gallons of
coffee

which of course inspired the coffee doodles.

4. Standing up and showing someone else what one has created for the shear purpose of creative expression, takes balls, guts, courage, strength or maybe just vodka. However you want to phrase it; so for me to stand up and share with complete strangers, something I have created, it helps me grow as a creative thinker as well as an individual. It also opens the door for unsolicited critiques...


Which leads me to --

5. I also share what I do because critiques inspire improvement. Feedback, viewpoint and opinion are all invaluable assets to acquire.
-- I love learning how I can do something better. And Lordy, I definitely have room for improvement. -- so yes, please comment freely!!

--> Now this brings me back to, who am I and why don't I talk about my family or my house or my dog or whatever. What is it people would want to know more about me.. hmmm - if you got this far, maybe you've picked up on the idea that I am a doodler and doodling is me... (I used to say piddle, but that sounds more like someone needs to clean the carpet when I'm finished) So anyway... I'll give you a few more insights:
(an no, I don't have a dog. I have boys.)

6. One of my favorite artists is Leonardo Da Vinci - not for his art, but for his brilliance, his thinking processes, his courage to explore and his daring spirit.

7. My most fun doodle right now is my Penguins. Funny enough, I've never collected penguins nor had a specific love for them. Never had a facination with them or anything of the kind. I just happen to really like this particular doodle.. started out with an Egghead
, and then turned into a similar shaped critter, the Geek Chick
and now I just darn like the Penguin
. ... interesting how things trangress dontcha think?

8. I reallllly love Dragonflies. However, they're really difficult to create with various personalities.. clothing doesnt fit their wings right. its just all wrong.. believe me, I've tried LOL.

9. The very first doodle I did, that inspired me to go in the direction I am going now...

Peace Love and Happiness, a simple cartoon style drawing. I just started building a design collection last year and I created this design as an attempt to express my view on the topic of "peace". Almost immediately, I sold a handful of this design on the Hooded Sweatshirt . -- At the time, sales were very very rare, and I was drawing as a way to balance out my mind from my disheartening day job. When I started selling this first design, a lightbulb nearly exploded with ideas -- not to mention the motivation that followed!

10. One of my all time best selling t-shirts has nothing to do with my love for drawing nor my skills, it has everything to do with my boys and the inspiration they throw at me every day. I can be a bit grumpy.. I'm a mom and a wife and I stay home doing it all... and being the only female in the house makes it all that much more fun... - wink -


11. Last fall I started a small shop purely for the sake of raising money for charity. My thought was (and still is) - I may not always be able to afford donating money. Because of my own family obligations, I may not always be able to donate time. However, I have a skill that I will gladly share for the sake of helping another. So.. with this, Design for a Cause was born. Every design in the shop is focused at a specific cause and 100% of my proceeds go to help that cause, whatever it may be. I have also scattered additional doodles throughout my sites with the same purpose... "creating to inspire hope".

12. My husband thinks I'm a dork - I say he's the kettle - (he usually agrees).

13. I learned yesterday, I am not fond of snakes.... especially 4+ ft snakes that slither through my own yard. -- I'd show you a picture here of the friendly new neighbor. But my organizational skills have empowered me to temporarily forget where my camera cable went. :D


So there you have it, more Thursday Fun.. and it's all me
I'm happy to share it with you!


Have a Ducky Day

Penguins, Posting, Passing & Oh PLEASE, it can't be Thursday Already!

So here we are.. again at Thursday. What happened to last Thursday? Or the Thursday before? Every day is turning into one big blobby blob blur... but MAYBE that's the point. Better to remember blur than crazy workaholic chaos, right?

So, what ever shall we talk about on such a grand ol' day?
I think instead of the deep ponderings filled with concepts of self improvement, fabulous success world change... I'll just tell you what I've been up to this week. Ya never know, you might find something interesting.

1. I wrote my first blog with a purpose, which lead me to
2. My first cartoon with a message which resulted in
3. A new blog, and
4. A new focused shop

BUT, then the real fun begins....

5. Saturday, after realizing how much fun 1-4 were, It occurred to me that I needed a plan, a way to tell the world I have PENGUINS
HA!
and they have something to say.

Sooo, this brainstorming resulted in a whole new series of events, starting with a fun interactive idea to Name the Penguin (oh yes, please do).

6. so then I built a whole new site, with new fun features (and a shop where all my penguin cartoons can be purchased) and I started to tell my pals

--- GO VOTE for a NAME
--- GO SUGGEST NAMES (penguin names of course)
--- HEY, go tell your friends to vote and add - and then add and vote

(please and thank you and ty and all)

and THEN I realized I should

7. tell more people! So I wrote a press release - my first ever. Very exciting and scary at the same time!

-- tons of first things this week. Maybe I need a shirt for that!

8. I then blogged about the new site and the press release... you guessed it, on a brand new blog
9. And then I began setting up a forum for Penguin Lovers. (no, sorry, you can't see it yet... next week, I promise)
10. Then I stopped to breathe. :D
11. I chatted with a few friends I haven't talked to in a while.. got caught up on how everyone is doing.
12. I talked with my 3 year old about building a big tall tower that we could CRASHHhh to the ground (that was just last night)
13. I blogged... on blog a cow (that's right here, in case you've already forgotten)

because I like to think that maybe, there are some of you out there, that think I've forgotten you, if I forget to write. I can't be held responsible for that... so HI, have a HAPPY day! :D

Ya know, it would be really cool if you click that penguin and then went to that site and then got your own neat penguin to put on your blog. I would giggle with excitement for days if I roamed the blogsphere and found my penguin happily living everywhere. HAHA. If you DO happen to post the penguin on your own blog, Come back and comment here and let me know!! (add the tag "POST the PENGUIN" to your own blog maybe?)

Ya never know.. you may be my next Penguin Inspiration. :D

I think today I'd like to wear:

I Love Penguins penguin Women's Cap Sleeve T-Shirt




PermaLink


tags:jgoode, penguin, thursday thirteen, name the penguin, POST the PENGUIN

Adventures into the Realm of Wow

So... did ya know, today is Thursday the 13th. Oh yes, how fun and festive is it to be blogging a Thursday Thirteen on a real live Thursday the 13th? I just can't stand the potential excitement!

So, I've spent the last 2 weeks hopping on airplanes landing in the midst of mass conversations. First was a family gathering, all my husband's side, many of whom I had not met previously. The second was a a business trip to the Affiliate Summit in Orlando.

From these recent adventures, I've acquired heaps of misc. tid bits loaded with fantastic inspirations for not only business success, but also every day life...

1. "I don't waste my time getting mad over silly things.. laugh it off and move on."
- being angry takes a lot of engery which could better be directed towards the progress that should surround us. It's so much more satsifying to me if I end my day on a high note, leaving me excited for another great day... than to end the day with "tomorrow will be a better day".

2. "I don't get mad about things because I just don't care."
- Said with a proud giggle. It's not about not "caring"; it's about not being concerned and consumed by the quirks and kinks that always come up. It's about going with the flow and letting life happen.

3. "Be persistant and have fun!"
- rarely does success come on the first try. More often than not, we'll find ourselves in a state of frustration over our lack of results. Success takes time so we need to stick with "it" and believe in the potential success. However, to stick with something and to truly put forth effort when it appears our efforts are in vain... we gotta have fun -- enjoy what it is we are doing.

4. "Either do what you love or learn to love what it is you do".
- This is one of my favorites. I've always said: we spend so much of our lives working, it's a waste of our time here on earth putting forth effort towards things we don't love and believe in.

5. "Money can buy things that make us happy, but money can't buy us happiness."
- Oh yes, with enough money, happiness may fill our lives in a material aspect, but if all we have to show for happiness is the things we own and the places we can afford to go, we fill our lives with days of grumble and discouragement all for the sake of "i can't wait to go on vacation". Every day should be a vacation IMO.

6. "Some of the best networking opportunities are at the smoking table."
- every opportunity to sit and just talk with people is an opportunity to new successes. We should be spending our time really listening and talking with no preconcieved agendas and just see what happens.

7. "Focus on the - one thing - you do well; don't try to say you can do everything."
- My husband has also said many times, it's not about being able to know how to do everything yourself, it's about knowing who you need to do everything -- a reworded version of a Henry Ford quote. This is SO true. Find your strength/s and then find others to work with that are strong in your weak areas.

8. "Take with you the important things, leave behind the baggage"
- Don't try to hold on to every time thing you hear or think you've learned. Hold on to the parts and pieces that are important to your business and life, and let the rest go. Save room in that already oveerloaded grey matter for more of what it is you need and can use.

9. "Dramatically changing things takes a desire and honesty."
- If you really want to make a change, you need to not only really believe in the change, but we also need to be honesty in our approach, tactics and pursuit of the change. We need to put forth the effort and run ahead full force... great things can and will result.

10. "Serious reflection is always needed."
- It's one thing to push aheead with ideas and attitudes, or brainstorm variations of tactics towards our goals. However, it's an entirely different view when we really take the time to stop, think about where we are and what has happened. We need to really make time to view and ponder and realize where we started, what we've tried, who we've helped and who has helped us.

11. "What can I do for you today?"
- in such a fast paced society I think we often find ourselves in a "I need" mode. " I need to do this....", "I need to find this....", "I need so-and-so for this...". If we stop and ask of others, "What can I do for YOU today?", I think we'll find more of what we need without asking for it. - Think about it, if I walked up to you unexpectedly, and ask you what I could do for you... many times the resulting reaction is "um, well what can I do for YOU?".

12. "Develop something of value and people will link to it."
- not only does this apply to the world of websites and ecommerce, but it also applies to every day life. If we put more value into the things we present to others, the value that is gained is then held on to and passed on. Remembeer the "pass-it-foward" concept? People pass on the positive without requiring something in return.

13. My own quote for week is "I'm just being me, and making new connections... ".
- During all of my traveling I was walking into the unknown and had no idea what exactly to expect. I had no idea who I would talk to, let alone what I would have to offer to a conversation. Yet, I walked away having made piles of new friends, meeting mentors I didn't realize I'd find, and learning more about me than anything else. Always because I was "sitting at the smoking table".


A JGoode... Ode to the Affiliate Marketing Industry:
Peace Love and Affiliates





Tags: JGoode, Networking, Thursday Thirteen

13 ways to lose your mind

Ohh happy happy Thursday! I've been running around like mad for i can't exactly say.. but probably full force since about April. I thought that after my sister's wedding was over things would slow down... I mis-calculated.

So today's Thursday thirteen is more or less a list of all the ways I can think of (or at least 13 of them) to make yourself crazy... or prevent scheduling chaos...

1. Make a list - they always say make a list. I prefer to make a list that i forget i have. so then i need to make a list of where my lists are... and try to remember i have those too.

2. Plan ahead - its always a good idea to plan. Make sure to plan ahead so that when your schedule gets completely whacked, you have more reason to have a mental breakdown because your plan has vanished and no one has noticed you even had a plan.

3. Always consider everyone - make sure to take in account how every project will affect anyone remotely involved so that you never please everyone 100% and you never finish your project how you planned (see #2).

4. Brainstorm - its a great idea to brainstorm new ideas, especially when youre in the middle of your latest "bright idea" project. this way, you'll side-track yourself to the point that you must either stop what youre doing to find your list and add to it, or begin a new project because it's definitely a higher priority than the last.

5. Think it Through - a million times before you start. If you stop to think of every possible result, reaction, alternate plan or even compliment vs insult... there is no possible way you can produce the perfect solution. perfect.

6. Always be willing to help - every time someone asks if you can help, whether its for work, family, side work or otherwise, make sure to always lend your helpful self regardless of the time frame. who cares if you don't sleep?

7. Believe in Yourself - to the point that you know you can do anything you try. This way, when you are approached with a #6 situation, you know you aren't crazy and you can indeed live a zombie life.

8. Go with the Flow - make sure to bend at every obstacle that comes your way. This will build character, teach tolerance and surely test your ethics and morals.

9. Teach Indepedence and Confidence - and stay out of silly arguements; so when you walk into super walmart with your children they are sure to argue amongst themselves at the top of their confident lungs knowing you will continue to walk the other way pretending you don't them.

10. Make Time for Yourself - and make sure on your "for me" list (that you can't find) you have noted things such as "organize the garage", "weed the garden" and "paint the guestroom", you have yet to build, so that when you are truely exhausted from life's mundane dailies, you have something to look forward to.

11. Set Goals for Your Children - before they are born. Things such as do's and don't of disapline and learning experiences.. by planning these in advance you're sure to find yourself in the midst of an adventure -- review #2, 5 and 9.

12. Have a Good Attitude - regardless of the situation. Other's will surely see you as a go-getter that can handle anything and know you are there when they need you. When times are tough, they'll gladly step out of your way to let you do what it is you do, because you can handle it alone.

13. The best way I can think of to drive yourself crazy is to be all you can be, all the time regardless of your knowledge of who you really are. Don't worry about stopping to listen to your own advice but do worry about how your actions will become consequences for everyone else (good or bad).. because what's most important is that everyone is happy...

right?

And as a kudo for reading my thoughts for the day... i suggest you join the JGoode Mind Awareness group... cost is: 1 tshirt (and a friendly comment or two)



The Voices In My Head White T-Shirt



have a fantabulous weekend!

tags: thursday thirteen, jgoode