Category: action

action, creativity, innovation, invention, writer, writing

Inspired: You’re going to write the next Harry Potter. Or invent the next Apple.

Christa Avampato
J.K. Rowling thankfully hit rock bottom.
J.K. Rowling thankfully hit rock bottom.

When J.K. Rowling and Steve Jobs began, they had an insatiable desire to create with the few resources they had. Rowling wrote Harry Potter on an old typewriter as a single mother while receiving public assistance. Jobs grew up in a lower-middle-class family and spent his early adult years living in an apple-growing commune in Oregon. Then he returned to his parents’ home to tinker in their garage.

We have many more resources than they did. First, we have their example of what the human imagination can build. Second, we have more sophisticated technology and markets, at far lower costs of entry. Third, we have social networks that help us connect to one another and share our creations with the world.

Rowling and Jobs didn’t have any of those resources, but you can bet that if they did, they would have used them to the hilt. That’s exactly what we should do. Right now there’s someone who needs what you want to invent as much as we needed the inspirational creations of Rowling and Jobs. You have the resources to build it. Go!

action

Inspired: Fix what’s broken now

Christa Avampato
We can do it!
We can do it!

“It is the neglect of timely repair that makes rebuilding necessary.” ~Richard Whately

Whether it’s a project, your career, a relationship, or the leaky kitchen faucet, fix what needs fixing now. The problem will not go away on its own. Like a pebble in the bottom of your shoe, it will get increasingly more uncomfortable with time. It will irritate you, aggravate you, and make its presence known until you do something. Figure out what’s broken and address it head on. You can fix everything that needs fixing so don’t back down. Take a deep breath. Have faith. You can do hard things.

action, career, success

Inspired: Don’t compare your beginning to someone else’s middle

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“Don’t compare your beginning to someone else’s middle.” ~ Jon Acuff

When we start something new, or even think about starting something new, we look at experts who are doing what we want to do. While they can be a wonderful source of knowledge and advice, we can’t directly compare ourselves to them. They’ve put in their practice time. We’ve only just begun.

Don’t let someone else’s success cause you to question your potential. At some point everyone, everywhere, started at zero. Just get started.

action, creativity, decision-making, time, work, writer, writing

Inspired: The 2 ingredients you need to do great work

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“To achieve great things, two things are needed: a plan and not quite enough time.” ~ Leonard Bernstein

This philosophy of time and planning really resonates with me. I’ve always found deadlines and outsized goals to be great motivators. They give me something to aspire to with just enough doubt to make me put my best foot forward. We don’t have forever to maximize and reach the potential within us. We have to act, sooner rather than later, with attention, determination, and energy, and that idea gets my blood pumping. Certainly, the process can feel daunting and scary, though when I look back on my life the things I treasure most are the things that required me to take big chances on big dreams that had an expiration date. That’s as true right now, as I transition to writing full-time, as it’s ever been. The time is now.

action, nature

Inspired: Judge your progress like a garden

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

We’re only gardeners of our lives. We plant. We provide what nourishment we have. We wait. The sun, soil, and water do the rest. Then we do our best with what sprouts. It’s terrifying and freeing, frustrating and empowering. Do the right thing for you right now. Plant a seed. Plant lots of them. And let that be enough. The world germinates in mysterious ways.

action, adventure, creativity, discovery, New York, New York City

Inspired: The future takes shape one piece at a time

Christa Avampato

imageI was in a holding pattern on leaving New York for a long time because I didn’t know where to go. I knew it was time for new adventures but I wasn’t sure where to find them. I still don’t know for sure. I’m going to Orlando to see if that’s the right place. It feels like the right next place, and that’s all that matters right now. Nothing lasts forever. We change our minds. We grow, evolve, and get new information. The only step we ever need is the next one. The road ahead will reveal itself when it’s good and ready, and in pieces. I’m trying to live my life that way, just one step at a time.

action, adventure, change, creativity, home, moving, New York City

Inspired: I’m Moving to Orlando, Florida

Christa Avampato

From PinterestAfter years of debate, I’ve made the decision to move to Orlando, Florida at least through the end of the year. I’ve been visiting my family there for long stretches of time while keeping my home in New York City. Now I’m flipping the paradigm to have my home in Florida with stretches of time spent visiting New York.

Some of the reasons are economic. How much higher can New York City rent climb? The answer is always higher, and I really want to own a home, a near-impossibility for me in New York. I could fork over an insane amount of monthly rent for a less and less appealing apartment, but that seems foolish. Better to buy a beautiful place in Florida and Airbnb the time I want to be in New York.

Some of the reasons are personal. My mom’s getting older. My little nieces are getting older. I want more space in my life for travel and exploration, and that’s a tough conundrum to crack with the cost of New York City living.

Many of the reasons are professional. I’m turning most of my attention to writing. That includes journalism, copywriting, playwright, and writing my first novel this Fall. I’ll likely add some teaching into the mix in some way. I’ve also got a few product ideas up my sleeves that I want to be able to build and test. In a less expensive city, this multi-faceted career is possible without sacrificing quality of life.

And it’s time for adventure. If New York has taught me anything it’s that I can survive and thrive and be okay anywhere I go. So I’m going to scale some mountains that have been calling my name for a long time. It’s time to meet them where they are.

I’ll have much more to say in the coming weeks about my move out of New York and into Florida. If nothing else, it’s going to be great material. It’s all great material.

action, work

Inspired: Work worth doing

Christa Avampato

“Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt

What are you doing, right now and in the greater scheme of life? Does it matter to you, to someone whom you care about? Are you a better person for doing this work? Is someone better off because you’re doing it? These are the most important career planning questions we can ask ourselves. The answers to them will do one of two things: either help us double down on our commitment to what we’re doing or steer us toward charting a new course. Life is short. We have a small amount of time to leave the world a better place that we found it, and there are so many ways to do that. Our only work is to find the right way for us.

action, dreams, fear

Inspired: You can handle obstacles

Christa Avampato

When we think about pursuing a dream, we often worry about the obstacles, challenges, and difficulties that may lie ahead. I wonder how many dreams never got a shot because the anticipation of those obstacles stopped us from trying before we even started. This quote helps me. I hope it helps you, too: “When the root is deep there is no reason to fear the wind.” Of course there will be obstacles. Don’t let them make you discount your capabilities; those are your roots. You got this.

action, adventure, change

Inspired: Don’t wait until you’re ready

Christa Avampato

“Great people do things before they’re ready. They do things before they know they can do it.” ~Amy Poehler

Lately I’ve been feeling the tug of big life changes. I recognize their knock at the door and I’ve resisted answering for a bit because I felt like I wasn’t quite ready. This week the knock has grown louder and shouted, “I’m not going away so you might as well answer.” And I did, and the message was simple: “It doesn’t matter if you’re ready or not. You’re capable, and you’ll make the best of everything that comes your way. And where there isn’t opportunity, you’ll make it. Have a little faith in you.” Then all I felt was a huge sigh of relief. And I smiled: a big, wide, knowing, peaceful smile. There’s a great, big, beautiful, blank canvas out there just waiting for me and no one can paint it except me. Ready or not (and capable!), here I come!