Friday, November 14, 2014

Oh Lord, You're beautiful lyrics - Keith Green







If any of you like Karaoke and you feel like worshipping...there's nothing that beats singing with the original Keith Green. Be blessed.

Carla


I Still Believe

I still believe in dreams. I hope when I am over 90 years young that I will still be toting that party line.
It isn't just a romantic notion for me, it is a part of who I am.

If folks give up on their dreams, they become a shell of who they were meant to be.
Sometimes church folk get too spooky about life and act like we have to lay down our dreams to God and just give them all up. But I don't agree with that philosophy.

I believe that God works through our dreams and then nips and tucks us so that we stay on track to serve Him. We don't have to throw out our ambitions just because we have received salvation in Jesus.

I not only want to achieve my own dreams and to bring them step by step into reality, but I also want to be that one who will be able to teach others how to do the same. The goals can be very very different, but that foundational structure of setting goals and then putting steps into place to achieve one's ultimate goals are universal and can be achieved by anyone. Same playbook....different goal.

I am grateful for the examples of many brilliant men and women who have shown through the example of their lives, that yes indeedy, dreams can still come true. I am not sure why there seems to be so few
female role models in the field of success and motivation. There are oodles of successful women....why do so few teach other women how to do so?

I have found that  most of my mentors have to be male, just because I can not find the ferocious few women who are capable of leading and teaching others to do what they have done.....except of course for Barbara Corcoran , the real estate tycoon/author.

How about you?
Looking forward to reading your comments in the section below.
Peace.





Thursday, November 13, 2014

Obtaining Funding For Your New Business

I was reading in Nov 10ths, 2014 edition of the Globe and Mail, about how Robert Rhinehart, the creator
of the "instant" meal powder named "Soylent"......how he raised up the capital to launch his venture.
One of his sources of capital came from using a site called.Tilt  .
I was amazed that he raised over a million dollars just through that site.

The new age of funding is certainly developing. From sites like Patreon for artists like me, and Tilt for business people, it never ceases to amaze me how quickly ambitious folks are bring their dreams to reality.

Would you consider using a crowdfunding site to launch your next creative venture? Or would you only consider it if the banks turn you down?
Looking forward to your input  in the comment section below.

Peace.

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Supporting Artists

Crowd funding seems to be one of the greater inventions of my generation.
It helped support the campaign that got President Obama elected and has also been the vehicle by which folks raise thousands and sometimes millions of dollars for other humans who have experienced a tragedy.

The whole paradigm shift in securing funding from a multitude of smaller donors at modest sums instead of
seeking out large chunks of cash from a few select and wealthy individuals is turning the industry of fund raising on it's head.

It is a welcome relief. When push comes to shove we really do want personal choices when it comes to who and what we support with our hard earned dollars. We want to support people and causes that we can relate to, and those that touch our hearts.

It's amazing what a click here and a link there can bring about in changing someone's life. Support for
quirky artists via the site Patreon is bringing much needed financial support to struggling artists around the globe.

Then of course, there are the folks who wind up gaining a windfall of cash for epically absurd adventures (such as making a potato salad) but hey a person can do whatever they want with their own money,.

I am thrilled that sites like Patreon exist, because it makes artists like me believe again in our dreams and hopes and ambitions.

Remember when that middle aged lady, Susan Boyle was discovered on Britain's Got Talent in 2009? Her voice turned her world upside down in one brief performance. That is the same concept that brings speedy rescue to struggling artists who post quick blurbs about their creative adventures on the crowd funding site called Patreon. If you are at all curious as what Patreon is all about, it's definitely worth a gander.

Be blessed and say creative.

Peace.

Patreon






Monday, November 10, 2014

Marketing Your Products as an Artisan

So truth be told, I'm back on the market selling stuff I have made from earthy materials and up-cycling.

What are earthy materials? What is up-cycling.

Earthy materials are as raw as possible, and preferably not dyed or painted with any kind of toxic substance.
They are raw materials such as jute, cotton yard, soy bean based yarns, hemp string, fabric made from bamboo etc. They are usually bio-degradable. They blend in well with any kind of
"Back to Nature" theme.


So perhaps you are still wondering what up-cycling is.....Well, in my humble opinion, up-cycling is when you take a product that already exists that might be ready for recycling or the landfill, and you fashion it and rework it until it becomes something totally new, more valuable and precious. It is recycling with a moneyed twist.

For example, I have a fondness for gathering those ole wooden skids/pallets and hacking them up and using them for firewood. But I've noticed that some creative folks have taken to making incredible
household furniture out of these very same wooden skids/pallets. I've seen whole walls make out of them, along with every conceivable style of coffee table, bookshelf and even chairs. That is genuine up-cycling.

Have you ever up-cycled something? By the way, if you want to see how I've up-cycled some ole blue jeans
check out my Etsy page at  http://etsy.me/1xDNiWV
Carla's Etsy