Teeny Tiny Steps: Part 2 of 2-part series

Here’s Part 2 that I promised.

“Teeny, Tiny Steps the Create a Mountain of
Success”

Here’s one of those small actions that’s paid off for
clients who need help in the creative-unblocking
realm: spend less than $1 and buy one of
those spiral-bound notepads that fit in your
pocket. (Or if you’re more tech-inclined, create
a new Memo record in your PDA).

Deliberately name the notebook (or file) so as to
engage your sub-conscious about your intention.
Call it “Inspirations,” “Messages from the
Interior” , “Finding my Focus, ” etc. Whatever
works for you.

In that notebook or file, start noting and recording
when you are struck by a scene in your day-to-day life.
You may or may not have your camera with you at the time.
But what you always have with you is your attention.
By noting what attracts your attention when you’re
not deliberately looking, you’re going to start
becoming more conscious of a normally unconscious action-
i.e., where your attention is drawn to without you deciding what
to focus on.

That, in turn, will lead to becoming more aware
of what you’re seeing unconsciously-which is an
aspect of your unique vision. Oftentimes, that’s
not what’s reflected in your portfolio–but it
should be. Because it reflects the YOU that no
one else IS.

It’s different for everyone. It could be you’re
always drawn to faces. Particular kinds of faces.
Or shadows of a certain density. Or colors of a
certain hue. Or relationships between people. Or
between people and their environment. Or certain
objects. the way light wraps around metal, or
fabric or liquids.

Over time, you will start to see patterns. You
will see where your attention is consistently
drawn. You will start to have more confidence
that you do indeed have a unique vision.

What this will also do is help you become more
intimately acquainted with the You that is
noticing these scenarios. The reason you need to
know that You better is that that You is the same You
that has shot those gorgeous images in your book
that seem to have ‘just happened.’ Your own
“decisive moments.” The ones that in a flash, you
created brilliantly without thinking.

They’re the images that everyone seems to love
but the ones that you feel a bit sheepish about
including in your book. You tend to devalue them
because you didn’t have to “crawl over glass on your belly”
to capture them. “Hard-to-do=Good” is a deeply
embedded myth in our Western culture.

What I’m asking you to do is to deliberately
engage your subconscious creativity on a daily
basis. You’ve probably have heard this in other places.
To be in ‘the flow’ is how it’s described
in the sports world. To have access to a more
powerful way to confidently and consistently
create new content in your portfolio; content
that reflects your unique vision.

Why? Because that-more than anything-is what will
set your book apart and make you more marketable.
And that will lead to better sales-and at a
higher price.

This same simple recording technique can also be
powerfully applied when you want to grow your
business. In the marketing arena, obviously a
different set of observations gets recorded.
Many of my clients have been amazed at how easy
and yet how powerful that simple habit becomes
when leveraged against a marketing strategy.
I’ll share one of those tips in a future article.

Until then…Take some teeny, tiny steps. Every
day. With Attention. And Appreciation for the
process.

Or as a mentor once said to me: “What’s hard by
the yard is a cinch by the inch.”

Start focusing your vision. Today.

All the Best,
Carolyn
(c) Carolyn Potts 2006