It took me a while to get here.
At the last Rally (Rally!), I spent a disproportionate amount of time thinking about what makes a supportive workspace — for me, at least.
Because that’s where the biggest gap is in my own version of the Book of You. So I started poking around, and before long I was deep into monster negotiations with the various parts of me who think that I don’t get to have space for just me.
And then I learned about tools.
Here’s how it started.
My fuzzball monsters were dead set against me having anything that looked like a supportive workspace, especially if it was silly and playful and had glitter crayons.
They were very emphatic about this. No crayons!
Even though they know from experience that I do my very best work at Rally, which is the most playful and loving space in the entire world.
The monsters were divided in two factions. The ones who think it’s DECADENT and FRIVOLOUS — that I should do without because I can.
And the ones who really, truly want me to have everything that will help me do my best work but say we can’t afford it and anyway what will people think.
But then I couldn’t remember why the crayons were so important.
It was all fascinating, but at some point I realized that I wasn’t sure myself why I get to have crayons. It was like I couldn’t really be on my own side. Interesting.
So I sent the monster brigade off to the Room of Infinite Mashed Potatoes (it’s kind of like their safe room), and took a minute for myself.
I wanted to get clear — for me — about why it isn’t really decadent or frivolous to work in a space that encourages me to approach everything I do in the most playful, creative, and expansive way possible.
I wanted to remember what it’s like (and what I’m like and what the creative process is like), when there is construction paper and crayons and yoga blocks and a hammock.
Obviously the crayons were a symbol. But they weren’t just a symbol.
The investigation behind the investigation.
The question:
Okay, so having a Wish Room that is a supportive space to work is not decadent or frivolous because…??
And the response.
- If something helps me work better, faster, more efficiently and get more things done, that’s a reasonable business investment.
- I’m pretty sure that other people (read: “boring grownup people”) spend money on desks, bookshelves, filing cabinets and office supplies.
So really I’m just taking what would be a perfectly reasonable budget for the home office of a CEO of a growing company, and directing it towards different things that serve the same purpose.
- If I were an artist, I’d need paints. If I were a sculptor, I’d need clay. If I were a designer or programmer, I’d need software. Tools! Tools!
In which I start to claim my tools.
Well, I’m not a sculptor. At least not in ways that aren’t metaphorical. But.
But I’m an inventor of culture and a writer and a teacher and a creative professional, and I need tools too.
My tools are yoga blocks and magic markers and I need them to do my work well.
Without having to know what I do.
It doesn’t matter what I do. Even if I have managed to run this company for five years without knowing what I do or being able to define it even slightly…
That doesn’t mean I don’t get tools!
Because I don’t ever have to decide what I do, dammit. But I can still know lots of things about the culture of my kingdom.
I am a …
Creator of alternative communities.
Conjurer.
Director of a preschool/yoga studio/unusual co-working space (the Playground!). Head of a corporation. Owner and CEO (Chief Eccentricity Officer, thank you).
Writer, creativity consultant and pirate queen.
Highly unconventional teacher and educator. Wild-eyed inventor of ideas, concepts, words and worlds
I am all of these things and I get to have tools!
And these are my tools.
These are my tools:
- Yoga blocks and blankets.
- Stuffed animals, cushions and a napping area with a hammock.
- Music and snacks and rugs to roll around on.
- Crayons, markers, construction paper, and glitter pipe cleaners.
- Stencils and glue sticks and color everywhere!
- Puppets, toys, stickers.
- Costumes and wigs and sovereignty boots and stripey socks.
- Feather boas! And over-the-top hats for every imaginable occasion.
- A slide and a trampoline and a slackline!
- Headphones and ear plugs and hiding places.
- Boxes and boxes and boxes.
- Bubbles to blow and magic wands to wave and magical force field spray.
My tools are pretty, powerful, sparkly, sweet, funny, childlike, welcoming. They are thoroughly unapologetic about enjoying themselves.
They want to play.
What about you?
Tools for everyone!
If you were a graphic designer, you would need software.
If you were a painter, you would need paints.
If you were a photographer, you’d need a camera and a dark room, or access to one.
If you were a knitter, you’d need yarn and needles.
If you were a baker, you’d need flour and pans and measuring cups.
You are a destuckifier. And a creative thinker. An inventor of metaphors.
A maker of culture and an explorer of internal worlds. And so many other things.
What are your tools? Play with me?
I am a ___________________ and I need tools!
These are my tools!
And comment zen for today.
As always, we all have our stuff and we all take responsibility for our stuff and make room for everyone else to have their stuff. It’s a process.
So we let people have their own experience and we don’t give unsolicited advice.
That’s it. You are more than welcome to join in, and we can cheer each other on. Yay! Tools!
Let the Tool Revolution begin!
I’m pretty sure that’s it’s just one guy.
Follow
I am a facillitator, educator for adults and I need tools!
These are my tools
* plenty of space so people can move
* empty walls to fill with our work
* post it notes in more colours than yellow
* lots of pens in lots of colours
* lots of big pieces of paper – even a big roll of paper
* yum and energising snacks
* some balls in lovely colours
love this exercise, thanks
That’s a bunch of thoughts that I have/had over the last weeks, too. What am I? At first I’m human, which loves to work in arts, animation and graphic design as well as in teaching and supporting others to find their own voice through creativity. Wuite much, isn’t it? I hardly can’t tell what tools I need because they differ for each new situation.
But I also have my favourites: My Techniclick pencil for example, and pens in general… My creativity is a *very* helpful tool as well. My flexibility. Objects (aka tools) are just an extension of the tools I have inside I guess.
But thank you for sharing, Havi! I learn so much from your experiences!
First comment! Because late-night bloggers in Portland get read over breakfast in England… <3
I think this is awesome. Really awesome. And I'm struggling with it. Both the 'I am a…' part and the tools part.
Because 'I am a…' would have to end 'writer' which is hard enough, and then do I dare to put 'storyteller' yet?
Okay, yes. I am a… writer and storyteller. And God-blogger. And my tools are… space, silence, music, time to myself, prayer, lots and lots of other people’s stories, um… this is going to get so universal as to be useless in a minute and I’m going to start saying things like ‘life’.
And my computer, my iPhone (oh yeah, creative writing On. My. Phone.) and pens and a variety of dog-eared notebooks. And my voice, and my body. Wow.
I still haven’t mentioned anything that would actually involve spending any money that I haven’t already spent. I have trouble with the material possessions. Given that I own a computer and an iPhone, I clearly don’t have very serious trouble with the material possessions but, yes. The having stuff. I am not good with it. And I am not good at separating genuine impulses towards sharing, compassion, and giving of myself from You Don’t Deserve Anything monsters.
However, this is where I’m at with this right now, and I’m allowing myself to be where I’m at. 🙂
Love you, Havi! Gwishing for happy tool-using for everyone!
I may have to get some glitter crayons. This is beautiful.
And I wonder if my frivolous and decadent monsters are cousins of yours? But you don’t neeeeeeeed to have that, you can make do without it they wail.
I’m a writer, a photographer – what do I need?
– time to look at other people’s work
– a sketchbook and pens and crayons and photos and pictures because my thought processes don’t tend to start with sentecnes, strangely enough
– to ask people questions
– light!
Oh My Goodness I love this!!!!
I am a Creative Goddess and I need tools!
These are my tools!
** a bright red daytimer and a pack of rainbow pens for scheduling
** iPhone
** a bliss room to retreat into
** art studio filled with every art supply that inspires me
** meditation
** glitter eyeshadow
** flexibility
** magic red turkish boots
** video and audio recording equipment, macbook
And the one I really need to give myself permission to have right now:
Gentleness and Space or whatever the opposite of “Working As Hard As I Possibly Can, All The Time” is.
Oh! Yes! You’re so right. Amazing what reframing will do for making it ok.
I am a healer, and I need perspective. Because that’s a big part of what I do, is simply share different perspectives to see if anything might be useful. So for me to be a BETTER resource for my clients, I need to collect more perspectives. Which means it’s ok to spend hours over a week emailling people who seem cool and finding out what their deal is. It’s ok to read a staggering amount of blogs and books to catch that teensy little shift in perspective that changes EVERYTHING. And I need to be ok about SPENDING all that TIME. My monsters have a thing about wasting time, not money. Because you can always make more money. This time is INVESTED. It’s a tool and a skill, and it would be silly not to continue investing in the one thing that is crucial to serving my clients.
Oooh. Ok… so… I have decadence monsters too!
I am an artist, a writer, an Enchanter.
My main tool; my laptop.
And then my notebooks and nice pens and my art materials… (I enventually came to understand that nice writing materials are an essential!)
My tools are books, full of interesting and inspiring things and information. Books are important for justabouteverything!
And Guilt-free time for reading, also very important.
Comfort is key. I need my comfortable chair and desk – currently these are stranded elsewhere, but not for long now! Yay!
Colour and texture and pretty things. Things which make me smile. A clean and tidy space. SPACE. I need space and light and music. My radio is a really really important tool.
And and… and space for my stuffed friends who make me smile.
and a collection of magic wands and fun clothes.
and a selection of colourful cushions to transform my study-corner into a Gypsy Den… full of lovely fabrics and a gorgeous rug that keeps my toes snuggly and warm.
And candles. They’re good too.
And my camera.
*** What this shows me is how much I would be helped by collecting cushions and throws in luxurious colours and textures… and thinking of these as tools for good working is helpful. And how I could do with properly organising dedicated time for reading the piles of useful books I have! And I also need to find a way of balancing the bohemian desires with a need for spaciousness and avoiding clutter…
Thankies!
It’s funny… all of your examples at the end… “If you were a…” at some point in the past 6 months I’ve considered being/attempted to be/visualized myself as all of them. Ha! Is that a bit… unfocused? (Cue: Identity Crisis… and… ACTION)
I’m an effervescence finder! And an excavator!
The tools of my trade are…
+ my up-close lens that finds the light
+ Muji pens and Muji notebooks
+ fonts galore! and colors galore!
+ speaking of which: the rainbow, baby
+ space (both literal and figurative)
+ things that connect me to people, like the telly-phone, and the internets, and cafes
+ tea. lots and lots of tea. with cream.
+ blankies
+ soft, comfy, flowy clothes.
I love this game! Thanks, Havi!
HOW MUCH DO I LOVE THIS GAME? so much!
Hooray for everyone and their tools, both the tangible and the intangible!
(Taking an organizing e-course right now, so this seems very synchronistic!)
I am an actress, dammit! and I need tools!
These are my tools:
Books! Plays and poems and acting books and the COMPLETE WORKS OF BILLY SHAKES
Headshots and postcards and resumes, oh my
Backstage and Breakdowns
Costumes and hats
My body
Space to move in
My voice
Crayons and paper and playdough
My computer
a video camera
my planner
my journals
PENS
My tools are helpful and magical and friendly.
All of my tools deserve love and respect to be part of my environment.
I am a virtual technical assistant, writer, and kennel tech and I need tools! a creative, sensitive being who’s more than the things that pay for kibble. These are my tools:
-quiet, uncluttered space in which to serve my clients
-happy pleasant space in which to serve my Self
-lot of purple pens
-lots of notebooks
-a laptop
-a software backup system
-a paper – yes paper – daytimer
-my Plush and Plastic family (stuff animals and toys)
-dogs. dogs. dogs. yes they are tools – living breathing furry sanity-maintaining tools.
-physical strength and stamina
-health, nutrition and fitness plan – to keep me physically able to work with big strong dogs…and clients…and my Self
do I have all these tools right now? mmmm…mostly. do i USE all these tools right now? nnnnn…nope. I’m stuck and I think there are monsters at work here. That’s one of the reasons I’m off to Rally! next week.
i am a headshot photographer and these are my tools:
physical:
my awesome camera and lenses,etc
photoshop
the internet
business cards
wrists/hands in good condition
decent eyesight
health
a good stylish wardrobe for me.
good shoes
clients!
not-at-all-physical:
my sense of exploration.
an easy smile & fun personality
tactfulness
perspective
continual learning
i feel like this is an incomplete list…something to think on!
Oh, I love this! Love the declaring and the tool-gathering, and all the shifts that go with taking a stand for our infinitely creative selves.
I’m a Dreamcaster, Spellmaker, Storyshaper, Patternweaver, Scribbler of the heart’s landscapes, angel of creative transformation.
And my tools are: relationship; attunement; crowns for every occasion; my computer; my body; my consciousness; space to play in the natural world; the key to the kingdoms of wholeness.
Love to all of you, and may your right tools find you!
Hiro
I am a Life Purpose navigator and a magic maker and these are my tools:
+ Notebooks
+ Pens of blue and black and red and purple and green
+ a good laptop
+ my iPhone
+ cushions + blankets
+ candles
+ flowers
+ open space
+ good light
+ pretty water bottles
+ inspirational books, audio, video, websites
+ lists
+ chalkboard paint
+ colored chalk
+ imagination
+ creativity
+ an open heart
Goodness. I have never thought about it in these terms before! Of course my work is perhaps not as creative as some, but let me try this anyway…
I am a grant writer and a community builder, and these are my tools:
+ Laptop, of course
+ Black n’ Red notebooks
+ Uniball Signo pens
+ A very comfortable desk chair
+ Space to spread things out
+ The comfy chair for imagining/plotting
+ Tea and coffee (a.k.a. Steadiness and Go Potions)
+ Community time
+ Folders and places to hide them in
+ Clothes for meeting Important People in
It’s funny, in writing this down I find that I resist listing things that are “not work” like the walking that keeps me sane and breathing fresh air, the yoga mat that lets me roll around on the ground, the blog that keeps my brain running in the in-between times. But aren’t these also part of my work?
Hmm. I think this bears some more thinking about.
Thanks for this awesome thought exercise!
Oh goodness! Tools!!
I am a writer. Pens, paper, laptop, I-phone are my tools.
I am a photographer. Laptop, cameras, Iphone, GPS are my tools.
I am a fixer of things. Multipurpose tools (Leatherman, for the win!), std. issue tools (you know, hammer, nails, glue gun–things gotten from Home Depot or Sears). Instruction manuals.
I am a healer. Massage table, pillows, warm things. Scented oils. Muted lights. Reference manuals.
..and that’s just the tip of the proverbial iceberg!
It just dawned on me (again) that I’m all about tools to help people heal in all sorts of aspects of thier lives.
Now I’m wondering why I feel so bad/guilty for all of these talents, and why I’m so poor when I’m so talented? This is ridiculous.
I will be thinking about this as I pack to move. again.
Oh oh oh I love it!
I am a Book Roadie, and these are my tools:
Physical!
– Strength (yay the gym and weights!)
– A label maker
– A computer and its software for working on blog posts (to help my Right People get to know me) and working out library classification systems.
– Boxes
– My Craftsman toolbox full of bookbinding tools (special knives and an awl and a bone folder and and and)
– My bookbinding supplies (pretty paper! and book cloth! and bookboard and regular paper, and and and)
Not-Physical!
– Rockitude
– My leather motorcycle vest (loads of pockets, and it supports my rockitude)
– Curiosity about and love-and-respect for other people’s books
– A quiet place to work on bookbinding
– A fondness for organization and precision
As others have said, I’m sure there are more! I smell a blog post brewing while I figure out what they are.
I just remembered a quote that says something like, “She walks in beauty, like the night.” This got me thinking that my work is to notice and share beauty, so it is important that my home/sanctuary is beautiful. My space is my tool. The art on the wall is my tool. The red tea kettle and red pots are my tools. Etc.
Nature – and time to walk in nature (especially walks in the woods and along the ocean) is my tool.
And then @Shanna’s comment got me thinking. Part of what I do to notice beauty is to see things though different perspectives. Books are my tool. Reading is my tool. Making time to read is not a luxury; it is a necessity.
I must go write this down immediately.
I am a Word Healer.
I need:
–lots of examples of other people’s good writing
–brightly colored office supplies
–tea
–plants
–my laptop
–meditation pillows
–a door to close
–something to make me grin (answers may vary)
–a mental audience composed of several different people I care about–“different” in that they are all different in important ways from one another
–space to do Shivanata
–brightly colored office supplies
–time
–love (From me? for me? Both–it’s all the same.)
–brightly colored office supplies
–more tea
–did I mention the brightly colored office supplies?
Wow, I wasn’t even remotely first comment. Embarrassing! Loving everyone’s tools.
Just last week I totally choked when someone said I was a photographer. I said, “Sort of. When you say ‘photographer’ people get the wrong idea. They think magazine covers and so forth.”
Of course, I am a photographer though, and also a writer, a songwriter, a sculptor, … an artist.
Stuffed animals are so part of my tools though I hadn’t considered them that way before today. I have a long history with them all and they lend support.
A camera, computer, Photoshop, boxes of prints and negatives…
Some large Really Useful Boxes for files.
Scissors, utility blade, and screwdriver: just things I need around.
The red bandanna I clothespin between my curtains when the sun is too low.
Lots of strips and scraps of paper on my desk because I reuse paper before I recycle it and large rectangles are often too much.
Lists. Music. A USB hub shaped like the TARDIS.
Little Lego figures from Star Wars and Indiana Jones. Little pygmy goat figures.
Hmm, not sure I’m still with tools so much as stuff I like having around. That’s ok though. Their presence makes me feel at home, creates a space that’s supportive and friendly.
Ah, I have been away too long! Loving you, Havi.
Reading this post, I realize that I STILL have the wrong tools! I’ve recreated tools that look very similar to the tools I had when I worked for someone else, read “traditionally.” And somehow, the tools I took up for myself when I started this gig have fallen away.
So, thank you, Havi. More play time and more play tools for this girl.
xoxo
I am a knitter, spinner, writer, bringer of color and I need tools!
+ as much yarn as it takes to inspire me (whether it gets knit up or not)
+ color. in quilts, pillows, paintings, pictures, swatches, dye…whatever. COLOR
+ visits to farms where I pet the sheep
+ a puppy snuggling me
+ many many many pillows to hold my arms up while I knit so I don’t get a neckache
+ books. On every subject. Just books.
+ blank books. As many as it takes.
+ A computer that doesn’t futz. And a printer that makes gorgeous labels
+ Quiet in the morning
+ Many seats to work from: for laptoping, for spinning, for knitting.
+ movies + TV + podcasts, to give my mind something to do while I’m spinning.
+ A floor to yinyoga + Shiva on.
+ stripey socks and sparkly shoes
+ skirts of all kinds
+ handmade jewelry that makes me feel sparkly
This was fun! Thanks for the reminder!
A variant on the “you can’t have frivolous and decadent tools!!” monsters: convincing yourself that a sort-of tool should serve the same purpose as a real or better tool. So: when I go inspect and fix apartment properties, I had convinced myself I could just carry a swiss army knife and one of those tiny compact hammers. Except that when I need to use a hammer I need a full-sized one, not that tiny one. I kept telling myself to use that inadequate tool because it *should* work, and it never worked. Now I carry a real full-sized hammer and a real set of screwdrivers. It makes the bag of stuff heavier, but I save a lot of time now that I’m no longer using an ineffective tool to get the job done.
My tools are really nice felt-tipped pens, and a pretty pink laptop in a pretty pink bag, and the world’s best homemade oreo cookies.
Oh, and also, I’m really fond of comfy pants. Not so much a tool, but more of a uniform. Still, some people have uniforms, right?
I am a creative being. (Some people might say artist.)
I create things – cards, jewelry, paintings, collages, bears (wonderful, articulated designed-by-me stuffed bears with their own names and personalities and life stories).
My tools are many –
-Glue, paper, stamps, ink pads, erasers, glitter, ribbon, stickers, pens, scissors, pretty pictures.
-Paints, canvas, brushes, watercolor pencils, pastels.
-Beads, stringing materials, pliers, crimps, wire.
-Fabrics, german glass “eyes”, joint kits of wooden discs, cotter pins, and washers, thread, needles, fiber fill.
Many tools fill my spirit –
-Smudge, crystals, medicine bags and bundles.
-Meditations.
-Mountains, birds, sunsets, moons, stars.
-Music by Deuter, Fabeku, Yanni, Mannheim Steamroller,and others.
-Hugs and kisses from wonderful puppies.
-Smiles for and from all kinds of wonderful spirits.
-Gatherings of wonderful souls in places like this.
I am full of adoration for the wonderful I ams. Reading through is a constant stream of “I wanna do that!” and “I wanna be that! Even though I’m not sure what it means!”
I am a renderer of beasties, a hookie creative and a novice maker of home. I need tools!
-Blogs, forums, yarn group and community.
-Patterns. Pattern books!
-My laptop and the connections it affords to people all over everywhere. Everything that comes from my fingers begins with thought of a person.
-Crochet hooks and yarns and more yarns. And so much fibrefill!
-Safety eyes and embellishment nicknacks. Embroidery gubbins.
-Tea to calm and tea to enliven.
-Pottery class for pottering about!
-Shelves and lots of clear plastic boxes and project bags.
-Movies and books and stories and pictures and words.
-My beautiful big red sofa.
-Lots of random craft and art type stuff that I don’t use but love to have there. At least it’s limited to 2 baskets! Nearly.
-Felt tips and cheap paper.
-Lists. Sticky notes with lines on and backs of envelopes and old paper.
-A virtual ball-pool for my monsters to play or chill out in as they choose.
I need tweaks – more cushions (thanks for mentioning them, Tara!) and organisation type happenings for my workspaces. I want to make some salt dough with glitter in it.
And there’s more, something missing, in the shape of the smell of all I’ve been, all I’ve experienced, all I am and all I will explore. These things are my levers, I change the world with them. These are the things under the things. The unseen foundations.
lovely!
i am a writer.
my writer self needs inspiration, plenty of time, lovely music, a space clear of clutter and messes (yes this means leaving the piles in other rooms/in their boxes unless they directly pertain to what i’m working on!!!), and maybe I’ve decided she needs a big comfy vintage chair to lay on while reading/proofing her work.
sure, i think it’s extravagant and i don’t deserve it or “need” it but those are the monsters talking, and they can suck it!
i’m a singer.
and she needs a place to practice, a mirror to watch herself in, pencils (the prettier the better!), a lovely vocal coach (yay i found her!), privacy for when songs are still on their way, and a lovely house mate who will only ever say encouraging things.
something about saying these bits out loud (or writing them publicly at least) is very freeing, because some of these things I have, some I don’t, and some I’ve been feeling selfish for asking for.
brava, Havi! Thank you!
valerie
(yay first blog comment!)
I love, love, love this post! And I love all the comments, too.
I am a creative artist — a music therapist, a singer, a player, a writer, an actor, a composer, a performer — and I need tools! These are my tools:
Journals and smooth-writing pens
Guitars and pianos
My voice and body
Assorted instruments~~ drums, shakers, pipes, kazoos!
Computers, a smartphone, and the Internet
Comfortable clothes in which I can move freely and feel beautiful
Lovely, uncluttered spaces.
Furthermore, dear monsters, it is important that these tools be of excellent quality, well-loved, and well-cared for. I am allowed to have these things, and any other tools that truly serve my dreams!
Oh wow, tools! So many thoughts. This may spill into a blog post.
When I first figured out that I was a scanner and was exploring what excites me about all my different interests, I had to make a whole mindmap about tools. Thank you for reminding me to look it up!
Tools! Things that are made just to help me do a specific thing. I will be able to do it! I will be able to learn how to do it! The tools make me feel expansive and safe at the same time.
My monster says, “You spent all that money on those tools and you’re not using them!” I say, “I always come back around.” I say, “I get to have tools because what I am doing is important.”
I am a teacher, writer, singer, songwriter, indexer, organizer, artist. I am a scanner, so I get to be lots of other things too, whenever they pop up. My tools:
Desktop and laptop computers and lots of time on them
Lots and lots and lots and lots of books
Perfect pens
Colored pencils (lots and lots. Do we see a theme here?)
Really nice paper to draw on
Electric pencil sharpeners
A bound sketchbook journal
Moleskine notebooks
My digital recorder
My guitar
Microphones, mixer, and speakers!!!
Blank music paper
Software! My wonderful indexing software Macrex, Word, Evernote, Mindgenius
Getting Things Done
The process for digging out my knowledge and getting it ready to teach
Mindmapping
Twitter
And I just realized that as I design invitations to my teaching business, I wrote “Do Mi Stauber: Tools for an Expansive Life.” I give people, not just encouragement and cheers, but tools.
*creeps out of lurkerdom to share her list*
*OK…here goes…*
I am a DANCING NINJA (an enabler of wildly joyful dancers) and I need tools! These are my tools:
~my body (preferably well-rested, well-cared-for, and chock full of Reiki)
~iPod and speakers and music!
~(the big one I am now working on) TIME AND KID-FREE SOLITUDE! Mama needs her solo-time!
~Time and space to dance. Living room dance parties pretty much every day
~A sense of playfulness and cheekiness
~Mia, the MacBook and internet access
~Pretty spiral-bound notebooks and awesome pens (extras of both for my toddler-son so he doesn’t get jealous!)
~my big white binder with looseleaf and my Goddess Year Workbook
~Oracle cards and smudging apparatus
~Colouring books and coloured pencils
~PERMISSION SLIPS
~tea with milk and some really good chocolate
~Time and permission to attend some dance/yoga classes
-Friendly space to hold my own classes (this is a VPA waiting to happen)
~Tenderness, gentleness, and self-care (which is kind of a given, but is such a new concept to me that it needs a clearly delineated space on my tools list!)
Thank you, Havi, for sharing your process! 😀
Do Mi Stauber? Thankyou! I’m a scanner too and had precisely the same argument with my monsters who worry I waste my money on things I’ll never use… I chose to do a lot of thinking about what all my passions fall under, and decided that it was the pursuit of delight, or enchantment. Hence my choosing the term ‘Enchanter’ for myself 🙂 It allows me to explore many methods of enchantment while still keeping focussed. And now, after a year or so of doing this, I’m finding one or two are coming to the front as key for me, and am doing much more of them. When I labelled myself simply ‘artist’ I limited myself. Since recognising an umbrella term which allows space and play I’ve come to realise this, and have expanded more into writing, which currently suits me better. And I know that, if it so happens that that changes, my label allows me to follow a different path which is equally as fun!
I am loving these comments, so many inspiring thoughts! Thanks everyone!
Ooh, Halo, how lovely to find another scanner with an umbrella term!! Love your website too. Thanks for the inspiration.
I am a writer and I need tools! These are my tools: Novels and memoirs and poetry to fill my creative well. Long walks outside. Colorful markers.
Five hundred pounds a year and a room of one’s own. Yes, please.
Right now, “I am a complete mess” seems to be the most appropriate answer so I have asked Future Me to tell me what she is and what her tools are.
Here’s what she says.
* I am a vision keeper, inspiration bug and haver of brilliant ideas
* I am a pattern finder and concept connector
* I am a culture builder, people finder, cultural guide and translator
* I am a CEO (Chief Engagement Officer) and lost sheep returner and releaser
* I am a solution finder and sticky cobweb dissolver
* I am a community host and idea fertilizer
* I am a start-up capitalist and investor in tiny sweet things
* I am a fairy godmother, laughter addict and creator of very bad puns
(And I am barrel rider!)
and I need tools!
These are my tools:
+ a room of my own, with spaciousness and pot plants and artwork and French doors to the courtyard outside and a heavy door between me and the rest of the house
+ a yoga mat, cushions, bolsters and blankets plus dvds, practice charts and many books
+ a comfy armchair, ottoman, standard lamp and bookcase, with a basket for something meditative and make-y
+ a quiet courtyard with many plants and comfy, sturdy table, chairs and umbrella to sit and write in, sit and think in, sit and be in
+ a kitchen, pantry, fridge and garden with some sort of helper elves that make nourishing myself and my family easy peasy
+ the assistant of total astonishingness, obviously
+ lovely laptop, sound-system and headphones
+ notebooks and comfy, non leaky, non blobby pens
+ a smart phone of complete awesomeness
+ a big ass table high enough to stand and work at, plus a high stool for when sitting is appropriate
+ big sheets of paper to collage ideas onto, plus magazines and scissors and glue, oh my
+ wall space and easy to change hanging systems for aforementioned big sheets of paper
+ many blogs, books, magazines, video and audio resources from brilliant people all around the world
+ a big ass PLACE where all my people congregate and share and spawn ideas, energy and inspiration and also bring all their people who take the ideas, energy and inspiration out into the wide world. The place includes the café, the shop, the nursery, the garden, the kitchen, the studio/s, the consultation rooms, the group space and the admin space
+ not to mention the online place where people who aren’t actually in the same city can get the gist of it all too
+ plenty of money and other such enabling energies
+ an awesome team who take care of me and each other to bring the vision into presence
+ a highly organized (probably colour coded) system of easily re-organized folders to house the brilliantly documented System that communicates the essence of What We Are Building and How We Do Things Around Here (like, The Tao of Us)
+ the Library of Incredible Ideas and Resources – including structures, systems and routines that channel all the brilliant ideas, practices and methodologies we come across and let us work with them, experiment and play with them, incorporate or release them, reflect on them, share them and add them into the bigger picture and then find them again later.
It’s like Draegers but for hippies not foodies.
And it’s not just a place of business but a WAY of doing business, for hippies who really just want to teach their yoga or do their acupuncture or run their knitting circles or sell their permaculture gardening services and how-to guides, but also wouldn’t mind using their own wisdom to help each other run these businesses successfully and cooperatively.
Like a place where the bookkeeping and marketing and office admin specialists of legendariness can do their thing without having to work in yukky corporate!
With coffee and green smoothies and cake.
Wow, I am in awe of Future Me. That’s massive!
Hmmm where to start? Small. With baby steps. And faith.
???
Yip yip!!
I’m trying to answer this but all I hear is POST IT NOTES in joyous shouts from my head. So I guess i’ll go with those. Colourful ones and maybe some colourful pens to match.
I also, have no idea what I do. 🙂
a bit late to the party, but here it goes:
I am an engineer and I need tools! These are my tools:
– sticky notes in all shapes and colours to organise my thoughts
– a window with a view to put the stickies on, and admire the view at the same time
– crayons to dedicate time to projects in my planner
– a steady stream of tea and a dedicated room mate to provide it (got that!)
– permission slips for declining post-haste help requests
– an occassional pat on the shoulder
– cookies
Thinking of it, I already have most of this. Yay! Going to get some colourful stickies and going to hand out some more shoulder pats myself.
Wonderful excersize, thanks Havi!
Havi – It’s been three weeks since I discovered your blog and I still haven’t read every page. I’d like to drink them. It feels like I’d absorb it quicker 😉
I am an artist, a wordsmith and wings for women and children with dreams
These are the tools I have had and still have to fight, negotiate and convince my monsters I should have:
– Fromage blanc – Quark I think you call it (to make natural caseine paint)
– Pigments in EVERY COLOUR so I can mix those many more colours I feel inside (still working on that one)
-Time to play and play with the pigments without HAVING TO HAVE A GROWN UP RESULT
-Brushes -flat and pointy to write the right words (expensive -still collecting)
– Old Wooden doors to write on (the bigger the better – I don’t want to be small anymore) so I can open more doors for myself and others
– Old sparkly chandeliers, jars, old light bulbs (that the husband monster would like to get rid of) to fix up and make into lights. Lights to go on the doors so we can light the way through once they’re opened
– TIME to play around with drilling through glass and experimenting
– Colourful balls to sit on instead of chairs
– TIME to play around making my own writing instruments with bits and pieces og stuff I find here and there
– A lap top for designing my workshops
– A couple of trusty sidekicks to work with who can share the adventure
Lucky lucky – I have lots of these things too. Still working on the ‘Time’ as you can see from my last blog post which was written a month ago! And on the sidekicks.
Fabuleux Exercise Havi. Mille Merci 🙂
I’m a visual artist. And I have all the basic tools I need except for a hammock. I WILL GET A HAMMOCK.
I’m not going to argue with myself about it either! thanks!