Category: creativity

creativity, failure, success

Beautiful: You Failed. Now What?

Christa Avampato

e41469c12649a4ba75dff65bd595e8fc“Make failure your teacher, not your undertaker.” ~ Zig Ziglar

There is a lot of talk about failure. Fail fast, fail often is the creed of many an entrepreneur and innovator. But what do you do about failure? How do you move on after it and what do you do with the experience of failure? Here’s a short list of how I’ve processed my (many!) failures and created something valuable from them.

1.) I learned what not to do. We hear this kind of advice all of the time when we have a terrible boss (and sadly, we’ve all had terrible bosses.) They didn’t teach us what to do but they sure as heck taught us what not to do. This is true of failure as well. We experiment with different ideas, crossing off what doesn’t work in an effort to find what does work. Finding success is largely a process of eliminating ideas that don’t work.

2.) I figured out how to build a team. I never want to be the smartest person in the room. Ever. I want everyone else to be heads and shoulders above me with completely different skill sets and interests that complement mine. I build my teams the same way. The collaborative process of a team is one in which every member contributes something unique so that everyone maximizes their learning opportunity.

3.) Know when to press on in the face of adversity and when to quit. Kenny Rogers may have been talking about gambling but his line “you gotta know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em, know when to walk away, and know when to run” is as true in the business as it is in poker. Failure taught me when to cut my losses and stop throwing good money, time, effort, and attention, after bad. It also taught me when to tough it out and get through hard times for the sake of the success that lies just beyond the difficulties.

There is no playbook for managing failure. It is a process of trial, error, and trial again. We all learn it the same way. We can take advice from others, but ultimately we are the captains of our own ships. We have to steer our own course, and many times that means taking failure and success in stride in equal amounts. Don’t let failure paralyze you. Don’t let it keep you from trying again. Also, don’t waste it. It’s an incredible teacher if we are willing to look at it objectively and use it as fuel to move forward.

adventure, career, choices, creativity, job, work

Beautiful: Consider Taking a Crappy Job

Christa Avampato

2b22a1692e52c0522ffd195cd829ba27“What???” you might be saying to yourself. “Christa, the self-appointed evangelist for only doing work you love, is suggesting I take a crappy job?” Yes, yes I am. Under 3 big, fat conditions. It must be: 1.) temporary, 2.) lead to something you love, and 3.) possible to keep your dignity. Let me give you an example.

When I first moved to New York in 1998, I took an incredibly crappy job to follow my dream to work on Broadway shows. (This is more years ago than I really care to admit but since this story benefits you, I’m going to let that slide.) I sat on the floor of a very cramped theatre office opening mail, speaking to screaming customers, getting coffee, and doing just about any horrible job they needed done for $10 / hour.

Taking that crappy job was the best career decision I ever made because it got me inside a theatre which is exactly where I wanted to be. My boss was so appreciative of my work that I was promoted two and a half months later (on my birthday) to a slightly less crappy job managing a box office. In my new role, customers still screamed at me and I got a new boss who was completely awful (which was really unfortunate since I loved my first boss at that theatre), but now I was making $15 / hour and managed a team.

I spent 9 months “in the box” as I affectionately referred to my time there, and on my lunch break one day I ran into a college acquaintance totally by chance who put me on the trail of a job that let me go out on my first theatre tour. On tour, customers still screamed at me and I had a second really awful boss, but now I was making A LOT more money, traveling the country, and running a whole company.

Life was good, until it wasn’t, and then I quit, moved to Florida, and 6 months later got a great job with a great boss and lots of responsibility. There I learned how to be a fundraiser. Unfortunately, it only paid $13 / hour. I took it any way. That was the second best decision I ever made in my career.

My theatre career was a series of trade-offs. I worked my way from job to job gaining experience, making money, then making less money, and then taking my career in an entirely different direction. When I look back, I took those crappy jobs for all the right reasons. They were all temporary (which to be honest is true for every job eventually), they all led me to do things I love to do (working in a theatre, raising money for causes I care about, and managing a team), and I always kept my dignity. Even when customers were screaming at me, I was empowered to help them. Even when my few bad bosses were doing things like throwing staplers around the office and cursing out everyone who came near them, I learned how to stand my ground, stick up for people I cared about, and be confident in the face of great difficulty.

Most of all, those crappy jobs showed me the power of determination and the strength of my own abilities to make a rough situation much better. My presence in those jobs mattered, to the mission of the organizations and to the people around me. And that was a wonderful, beautiful thing. It still is. I’m incredibly proud of the work I did as a theatre manager and to this day I will tell anyone who will listen that it was the very best business training I’ve ever had. It taught me to take calculated risks and go after my dreams.

Your crappy job may do the same for you. If it does, I think it’s worthy of consideration. Sometimes, the very best opportunities aren’t the ones that are shiny and bright but the ones that require our efforts to make them shine.

cooking, creativity, food, weather

Beautiful: When I Need to Think, I Go to the Kitchen

Christa Avampato
French onion soup - one of my favorite comfort foods!
French onion soup – one of my favorite comfort foods!

“On days when warmth is the most important need of the human heart, the kitchen is the place you can find it.” ~ E.B. White

Cold enough for ya? In New York City, we are braving some serious cold and wind. It’s that biting kind of cold where you’re quite sure that if you smile too wide, your face will crack. I’ve found myself eying my new Ninja crock pot and cracking open my cookbooks to create a shopping list of ingredients to create warm, comforting meals.

This weekend, I have brunch plans on Saturday and Sunday and otherwise will be inside working away. I find that I do my best work when I nourish my mind and body with nutritious, delicious food. Additionally, I also love that cooking helps me to quiet my mind and reduce stress. When I hit a road block in my writing, I back away from my desk and head for my stove where I’m sure to get my creative juices flowing again (cooking pun intended!)

Like a good story, a good meal is cobbled together by the hands, inspired by the spirit, and nurtured with love from the heart. This weekend may you find refuge in the kitchen despite the frightful weather outside.

career, creativity, work

Beautiful: Thinking With Our Fingers

Christa Avampato

writing“Writing to me is simply thinking through my fingers.” ~ Isaac Asimov

There is something magical about the act of working with our hands. Whether we’re painting, writing, creating music, cooking, or some other tactile-based project, there is a certain pride that creeps in when we look upon something we physically created. It magically makes us feel whole, capable, and empowered.

I think this idea holds a lot of promise for how we think about our careers. I recently read a post on LinkedIn about 16 words you should stop using to describe yourself. Overwhelmingly, the words that the author suggests omitting are ones that describes traits, not activities. When someone says they’re an architect, I immediately get a picture in my mind of what they actually do. They make things, structural things like buildings to be exact. I can get my head around that. It’s real to me. I understand how they spend their time.

In the next few days, I’ll revamp my LinkedIn profile and business website to better define what I do, why, and how. It will accurately describe how I spend my time and for what greater purpose. I’ll cut the jargon and popular buzz words of the day and get to the simple statements of how I use my heart, mind, and yes, my fingers, to create things I care about.

adventure, creativity, determination, passion

Beautiful: Irrational Passion

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“‘Irrational Personal Passion’ is the heart of effective entrepreneurship.” ~ Tom Peters

You have an idea. A wonderful, beautiful, sparkly idea. After much crafting and nurturing, you slowly begin to release it out into the world. You tell one person, and then another, and then another. You hope for praise and encouragement and much rejoicing. And there is that one person (or in my case, there are many people) who tell you your idea just won’t work because of reasons A – Z. And what do you do? You smile.

You’re on to something. You’ve hit a nerve. You’ve found a new way of seeing the world. Now you’re getting somewhere.

Some people give up in the face of criticism and negativity. You? You keep rising. You take all that energy that people put into tearing down your idea and use it make yourself, and your idea, stronger. Plow ahead. Reach higher. Go further. Irrational passion is the only thing that has ever caused true, lasting, meaningful change. Without it, we’ll never be anything more than we already are. Irrational passion is the fuel of progress.

beauty, creativity, make, maker, nature

Beautiful: Nature Teaches Us to Be Resourceful

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“When you let go of trying to get more of what you don’t really need, it frees up oceans of energy to make a difference with what you have. When you make a difference with what you have it expands.” ~ Lynn Twist

When I feel myself getting a case of the “I need more…” syndrome, I play this little meditation game. I imagine that I’ve miraculously found $100,000 with no strings attached that I can spend any way I like. Would I travel the world, donate it all to charity, put a down payment on a house, pay off all my student loans? A few minutes into the game, I always find myself saying “$100,000 just isn’t enough. What I really need is…” And then I start laughing. $100,000 of discovered money isn’t enough? That’s absurd.

And this is how it goes for so many of us. We focus so much on what we don’t have that we lose sight of all of the resources at our disposal. Our culture feeds us a healthy diet of lack. Nothing is ever, ever enough.

When this happens, it’s up to us to turn off all of our devices, get outside, and go for a walk. Look around. Nature doesn’t think about lack. It adapts without any drama to the resources available at the present time. Nature has a much bigger job than any of us. It has to keep this whole planet and all of life moving forward. We think we’re over-scheduled and tired? Mother Nature takes a look at her to-do list and shakes her head at all of us.

Stop letting a sense of lack deprive you of the wonders that lay at your feet. Pick them up and put them to good use. Everyone can make something beautiful right where they are with exactly what they have.

action, adventure, creativity, time

Beautiful: Your Actions Belong to You

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“My actions are my only true belongings.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

I know this to be true. Over 3 years ago, I lost almost all of my possessions and nearly my life in an apartment building fire. In an instant I learned the deep truth of that old adage “it’s just stuff.” If it had gone another way, if I hadn’t gotten out in time, all that would have remained of me would have been the results of my actions and the people who remembered them.

So there is no time like the present. It’s the only time we have. Do something with it. Make something beautiful that matters.

creativity, gratitude, Life, simplicity

Beautiful: Be Like Water

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

I started a new morning routine on January 1st. Upon waking, I stretch, place my hands in front of my heart, bow my head, say thank you (out loud), and drink a glass of water.

The stretching reminds me that my body is a vehicle for action to create a world I am proud to call home. The focus on my heart reminds me that it is the best guide for my journey, whatever that journey is each day. I bow my head in reverence for the wonders of the world. I say thank you to remind me that every day is a gift and I’m lucky enough to get another one each morning.

That all sounds lovely, right? But drink a glass of water? What’s that about? you may ask.

Yes, it keeps me nourished and hydrated. Yes, it reminds me about the ebb and flow of life. But why make it part of this ritual? Is there anything spiritual about drinking a glass of water?

Water reminds me to keep it simple and to never underestimate the power of simplicity. This humble offering, a glass of water, keeps all of life moving. Without it, we would all perish. Without it, nothing around us would have ever existed. It offers everything and asks for nothing. It is the ultimate creative force.

beauty, creativity, curiosity, science, television

Beautiful: The Pi of Life

Christa Avampato

Have you been watching the TV show Person of Interest? Filled with quirky characters, nerdy testaments to the power of technology and programming, and a healthy dose of espionage and government secrecy, it consumes my complete attention during every episode.

Last week’s show, 2πr, began with a lyrical discussion of Pi. Yes, that Pi: 3.14159265359… or said another way, the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. Pi randomly repeats with no end. Finch, the main character of the show, explains that Pi contains every number combination possible. It contains all of creation – past, present, and future. Somewhere, it contains our phone numbers, birthdays, social security numbers. If those numbers were translated into letters, it would contain every word, every sentence ever written by anyone. Mind-blowing.

This is why I find math and science so intriguing, inspiring, and endlessly fascinating. We don’t need to ask, nor wait, for answers to any of our questions, curiosities, and confusions. They are all around us. All of them. What we need is an open heart, a discerning eye, and a clear, keen mind to see them, recognize them, and then put them to good use.

beauty, creativity, dreams, make, maker, time

Beautiful: Create the Conditions You Need to Do Your Best Work

Christa Avampato

21814379414799127_vbmdhYPx_c“Do not wait until the conditions are perfect to begin. Beginning makes the conditions perfect.” ~ Alan Cohen

Why wait? There will never be a better time to do the best work you can do than right now.

More money won’t help. Neither will the illusion of more time. Focus is gained by focusing. Confusion is sorted out through action. Clarity is gained by deciding to be clear about your priorities.

The conditions around you are always temporary and you have the power to make the ones that are right for you. Begin and the world will mold around your dreams. The Universe loves purpose, passion, and action.