Kit and Caboodle.
You know when you meet someone and immediately you get a sense of what a wonderful, calm and peaceful person they are?
That is Marie.
I met her at a bloggers tea hosted by Soumya a few weeks ago and although I didn't get a chance to chat to her as much as I would have liked, I came away thinking what an incredible spirit she has and I was honestly (secretly) hoping for a chance to meet up with her again.
Then a few weeks later, out the blue, I received an email from her asking if I would be interested in a 90 minute life coaching session in exchange for me to write about the experience on indieBerries.
Her email came through one evening just as Husband was walking through the front door -
Husband: What are you doing?
Me: I've just been asked if I would like to have a life coaching sess....
Husband: YES. YES!!! YES. THAT IS WHAT YOU NEED. EXACTLY!! YES.
Because the thing is (and with many creatives) there is a LOT of stuff flying around my mind (ALL THE TIME). I have new ideas, new project ideas, new creative endeavours, new things that pull me in thousands of different directions (know what I mean?) And it's not all that productive to be on several different paths all at once. Trust me.
So I snapped up her offer and she asked me what I would like to focus on in our session.
*ahem*
DIRECTION. GOAL SETTING. FOCUS.
I met Marie at her (amazinglycraftybeautifullydecoratedcanistayforever) house and we got straight to business. We first plotted out my life with various key moments to get a sense of where I am (something like above). It is really insightful to have someone who is trained to ask you very specific and analytical questions throughout this process. It helps YOU to become more analytical and objective about experiences that you have had in your life and helps you to learn from them - positive or negative.
Next we went through all the different projects, ideas, creative things, freelance work, job opportunities and future projects and ideas that I have floating around my mind. (There are PLENTY). We also plotted key life factors such as environment, creativity, reliability, caring for others etc. Once I had ranked these, Marie then asked me very specific focusing questions to get a sense of where each of my creative endeavours/projects/plans/work/ideas lay on this map.
Once the projects had all been evaluated it became so much easier to see which of those would bring me the creativity, inspiration and altruism that I crave, but also to be balanced with more structure, a good salary and developing a sense of status within my field.
It sounds crazy to say, but after this one session I came away with such a greater sense of clarity. I literally messaged Warren as I was leaving Marie's house to say that I feel so much lighter - so much more focused towards a specific path and with a clearer direction to follow. (For any creative: trust me, I know how you feel. Marie can help you). For people who have their minds so busy with creativity and ideas it is essential to have a more structured process for you to know which ideas to pursue and which to let hibernate.
If you need any more proof that Marie is absolutely amazing at what she does - the minute I got home that evening (and had finished spewing all my new-found inspiration all over Husband), I emailed her to ask her if I could book some more sessions with her at my own expense. It's one of the most important investments that I could make in myself and my career. I'm SO excited to delve more into my own mind and develop a clearer sense of purpose, creative direction and targeted goals. We start our next three sessions when I get back from South Africa and I cannot wait.
For indieBerries readers - Marie is offering a special blog offer for her sessions. Ideally, it is best to have a session face-to-face (and trust me, if you get the chance to visit Marie's house - you should) - but she is also available for a skype session, if you are an international reader.
The offer ends March 2015 - so have a think, and then sign up. Because, you need it. I promise.
If you're like me, sometimes it does take someone else (impartial, analytical, calm, non-judgmental) to direct and focus your mind.
I can't wait to share more of this journey with you!
Take a peek at Marie's Website here,
I can highly recommend her.
YOu can also follow her beautiful instagram feed or check out the Kit and Caboodle facebook page
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In other news - we are heading off to South Africa this evening and of course,
I have left all my packing until the last second. *slow clap*
Expect airport selfies.
