Well My Friends: 

We have just completed our new video set, which has been our labour of passion for the last two weeks.  Of course, we thought it would be fun and easy… just a couple of days … and two weeks later, and hundreds of dollars more than expected, we are about 75% complete.  And the last bits will have to wait while we recover.  

Boy did we learn a lot about ourselves in this venture! The good news is that we completed the shoot that had inspired us to make the set in the first place, and more will come in beauty. It was not all fun, creativity and light, as we had anticipated, but the lessons learned definitely got our attention and we pray that they reverberate in every new experience so that we don’t make the same mistakes! 

For me, in the past, when I take on a project, I give it my full attention, as best as I can.  In other words, I have been known to put the project above my self, sublimating my other needs and desires in order to make sure that it gets done in a reasonable amount of time. With a history of not completing all that I start, I am very sensitive now to working on maintaining my focus to really get things done. 

This project was no exception. My partner suggested this new set with such joy and enthusiasm, I eagerly jumped in with both feet, knowing that we did need it for a better look.  I found fabric to cover the walls, sound insulating materials;  I sewed and measured and tacked and stapled til my hands were bruised and cut. Then my girlfriend came over and let us know that we probably had it all wrong, and made some suggestions to rectify the problems she saw already mounting.  This put my partner into dismay and discomfort because the whole thing got changed and none of us were sure then that we could actually do it!  

But we pressed on with this shoot deadline looming before us at the end of the week. Needless to say, as we slaved away from 8 in the morning til we dropped, neither one of us was taking very good care of ourselves.  We both had other things we needed to do that didn’t get the proper attention. Both of us got testy and very tired.  Without enough sleep, stress, a less conscious diet, and no time for exercise or meditation, frustration escalated and tempers flared.   We kept looking at one another in amazement, exlaiming, “this was supposed to be fun!  What happened? 

Well, we didn’t make our deadline and had to postpone the shoot a week.  That next week, we dragged through finishing up the last bit needed to be ready for the shoot and at the last minute, were able to make it happen.  Thank God/Goddess it went relatively well and the set does look great!

So what did we learn from this?  When we talked about it after the fact, we realized that both of us have been operating from a paradigm that we had intended to shift, but forgot at that time.  We have our own business now!  We can do things at a pace that serves us, rather than someone else’s!  We don’t have to knock ourselves out anymore to meet some arbitrary deadline set by someone else. We can slow down and allow ourselves to enjoy the process more.  What a concept!  This is why we became entrepreneurs in the first place, because we wanted the time and space to enjoy the journey!.  We can take the time and do it the way that feels the best.  So, now do it!  

Gosh, I have been learning this lesson in so many ways all year, and yet here it comes up again! I am more important than the project!  When I am better cared for (by me), then I bring a much better attitude to my efforts and the project.  It is more likely that it will be more enjoyable and more efficient.  I can still take the time to do what keeps me happy and centered and enjoy my work! One other thing I learned in working with another… if they are stressed and interacting with me from an attitude that is counter-productive, I can request that we take a break and come back from a more centered place. Now I do this in my normal everyday experience, but somehow, in project mode, I fell back into old patterns which made me miserable when working at a job — which was, “just swallow it, set your feelings aside and DO it.” NO MORE!   

Ultimately, I am glad we are making great progress on finishing the set even now, and I am grateful for the hard won lessons learned.  May we love ourselves above all so that all can better love us!  Excellence is bred from caring, preparation, centeredness and balance in all you do.  So, be excellent for your self first and the rest will follow. 

Copyright 2008 SHAMANESQUE ENTERPRISES

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