Inspiration – Kristen Baumlier

Category: Inspiration

Is Your boat going in circles? You might be where you are supposed to be.

Posted on July 3, 2012July 3, 2012 by Kbaumlier

This past weekend I attended Bhakti Fest in Madison, WI. The event was a mix of yoga classes, workshops and music. It was my first yoga festival that I went to and it was a great experience.

There were a few things that I have been thinking about since I left which have me thinking about the idea that “you are exactly where you are supposed to be.”

Here are some of the things I heard this weekend:

1. There are no boundaries.

In one of the yoga classes, the instructor told us to approach going into the yoga pose not with the idea of trying to stretch into it as far as we could but to think of it as though there was no boundary. Nothing was there that would keep you back.

2. Your boat is going exactly where it needs to go.

In another class, the instructor led us through a story/guided meditation where we imagined we were laying in a boat and drifting at sea.. He shared the story of some monks who lived in Ireland called the Peregrini in the fifth and sixth centuries who left the monasteries and got into a small boat off the shores of Ireland. The boat had no rudder and no oars. They put up a sail and trusted that the winds would take them where they were supposed to go.

3. Where are you rushing off to? All there is in the end is a hole in the ground.

In a aromatherapy yin yoga workshop where you hold poses for a long time, the teacher reminded us that we all end at the same spot in the end, so why focus on the getting there so much instead of where you are.

Right now we are driving back home, and I have to admit that I am thinking about my broken computer, our ride and navigation home but maybe with a little less focus on what I can’t control at this moment. Ultimately I know that my boat is headed where it is supposed to go.

Links:

www.bhaktifest.com

Making Good: A Book About How to Find Meaning, Money and Community

Posted on March 10, 2012March 11, 2012 by Kbaumlier

As we slowly emerge from the recession, a young generation is searching for practical answers about how to succeed while also making positive change in the world. Making Good is a new book that explores how thousands of young people can find practical ways to succeed financially while making positive change in the world. The book explores areas such as food, energy, and education and outlines how to find opportunities to earn money and create change

The book outlines each step that is needed in order to achieve financial autonomy and find opportunities, while sharing success stories and sharing skills and advice.

The book is co-authored by Billy Parish and Dev Aulia, two successful change-makers. Billy Parish,co-founded the Energy Action Coalition, the largest youth advocacy organization in the world working on climate change issues, is co-founder and President of Solar Mosaic, a solar energy marketplace and serves on numerous non-profit and clean-tech boards. Dev Auila is the Founder of DreamNow, a charitable organization that works with young people to develop, fund and implement social change projects

The book is just part of the Making Good project. Parish and Aulia have a goal to “help hundreds of thousands of people build careers that make money and change the world. The book, our partnerships and the series of missions are our first step to achieving this goal.”

To support this goal, there are missions and experiments to support new projects and to inspire others to think and live for the future. On the book’s website, there is a signup area to sign up for a series of missions where individuals can meet others, build skills, and find opportunities to help get a job that makes money and changes the world.

There also is a series of Experiments –which are projects that are being supported that explore new ideas and resources to creative positive change. Some of the experiments include Gameful, an initiative to support games for change, Doors Wide Open, a new kind of career fair, and Climate Spark Incubator, a program to match environmental ventures.

Wondering how you can live ethical in a economy that seems corrupt? Want to create a positive shift and make money? Pick up a copy of the book, and check the website for the Making Good blog, and to sign up for the missions that will soon be posted on the site.

Image Source:
makinggood.org/

Links:

makinggood.org/

Can you tell a story in 6 words?

Posted on February 22, 2012February 23, 2012 by Kbaumlier

SMITH magazine believes that everyone has a story. Can you tell yours in six words? SMITH Magazine, which publishes the Six-Word Memoir series wants you to send in your six word story.

SMITH was founded by Larry Smith and Tim Barkow in 2006. Smith and Barkow believe that everyone has a story, and everyone should have a pace to tell it. SMITH was created as a place for professional and never-before-published writers, artists, and anyone with a passion for storytelling.

SMITH Mag, and its younger cousin, SMITH Teens, are homes for storytelling of all forms, with a focus on personal narrative. SMITH is best known for the Six-Word Memoir® project, which has led to a bestselling book series, including Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous & Obscure, Six-Word Memoirs on Love & Heartbreak, and Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure

On the website, you can submit your story in six words including topics such as:

Love: Share six words on love & heartbreak.

Questions : Ask a question in exactly six words.

Resolutions : Hopes, dreams, motivations, and mistakes to avoid in the coming year.

Happiness : Share your six words on the secrets to happiness.

Each Monday there is a six-word question of the week that is posted.

So why it is called SMITH? As you probably know, Smith is the most popular surname in the U.S. Smith and Barkow felt that the name “represents us all, each of us living our extraordinary lives—day by day, story by story.”

On the site, I checked out some of the stories listed under Green Life.
Some of my favorites include:

Seventh generation? try saving this one.

and

Saving paper not doing homework.

What can you say in 6 words? Check out the SMITH website, and see if you find a topic/challenge that you want to write about.

Links:

smithmag.net – SMITH Magazine

Do you still dare to dream? Check out An Awesome Book and get inspired

Posted on December 9, 2011December 9, 2011 by Kbaumlier

Dallas Clayton is an illustrator who wrote a book for his son about the idea of dreaming big and never giving up. Entitled An Awesome book, he put it online, and as Clayton writes, “my whole life changed forever.”

The book starts with these 4 pages, “ There are places in the world where people do not dream.. of rocket –powered unicorns… of magic watermelon boats… and musical baboons. …” The illustrations have a hand-made whimsical look, and the book goes on to talk about those who forget to dream, those who give up, and that you can dream whatever you want.

A simple message, but when I checked out the book online, it hit home with me .

How often do I think of ideas that might be impossible? Am I too quick to discard what could be a good idea? A car that runs on jellybans? Thinking of feasibility too early in coming up with ideas?

Clayton started a foundation to give away one book for every copy of An Awesome Book that he sold. In an effort to promote children’s literacy by encouraging kids to dream ,the books are delivered directly and distributed to schools, hospitals, libraries, camps and shelters both domestically and worldwide.

Today he writes children’s books for a living and is frequently on book tours, traveling the world reading to kids.

Need some inspiration to dream? Clayton has a website and blog where his new books and illustration work can be seen and read.

Image Source:

Images by Dallas Clayton

Links:

Try Something New For 30 Days

Posted on December 5, 2011December 5, 2011 by Kbaumlier

We finally did it. Last month we got a new HD tv with streaming capability. Now we have Netflix, Hulu Plus, and can add other websites/channels like TED talks on the television. The other day, after I streamed an episode of Gossip Girls off of Netflix on the new tv, I thought about what would happen if I watched TED talks (videos of inventors, thinkers, and people who are “inspired” rom the annual TED conferences) regularly instead of junky television shows?

Since then, I can’t say I have watched TED talks every day, but by watching some of the talks it has given me some new ideas and new perspectives to ponder. One talk I watched last week was by Matt Cutts entitled “Try Something New for 30 days.” In the video he shares about feeling stuck – and deciding to try something new for 30 days. He biked to work for 30 days in one challenge, and during one November (which is National Novel Writing Month) he wrote a novel.

I recently have been feeling like I am not sure what to make next for my research and artwork. I recently completed two bodies of work. I started to work with some images that I shot in the studio a few months ago but things were not going the way I wanted, and I felt frustrated. I decided to take a break and focus on research. Research for me includes reading, taking notes, and sketching ideas – not focusing on the end result.

I find that the older I get – the more pressure I put on myself to think about what will the end result be, where will the pieces show or function, and what will people think. This focus on the end result is not helpful – but it is a habit I easily slip back into. What gets me out of it? Reading, research, sketching, and experimenting.

My current interest is on food and food equity. I have ideas about making a new series of photographs, and also making a public online tool (or app?) available to others to support the creation of making images of food.

After watching the TED talk about trying something new for 30 days, I have decided that I am going to generate one image a day of food. Good, bad, and even on some days uninspired, but I’m going to make one every day to see where it goes – and to see if my work gets more direction.

My studio setup is ready to go. I start today. Not sure what I am going to photograph yet today. I am thinking about buying a piece of fried chicken or carrots to photograph today. I also have six books on reserve for me at the library to pick up.

Is there something you have always wanted to do – or are you feeling stuck? Why not do something for 30 days?

LINKS:

TED Talk: Matt Cutts – Try something new for 30 days