We’re working towards something here. We’re perfecting our craft. We’re evolving as our art is evolving. We’re sharing our beauty and our wisdom with those who long for it and…we are allowing ourselves to receive the intangible and tangible rewards that this sharing returns to us.

I am the first to admit a failure to value my abilities, but every day I am also opening myself to the possibility that what I have to share is valuable. My goal is to allow myself to be supported by doing what I love and by offering that love to others.

This week I was looking for examples of creative people who have taken what they love doing and have found a way to share their love with the world. Creative business owners and entrepreneurs who have allowed themselves to be rewarded spiritually and financially for their contributions to this wild and amazing world.

It Takes a Village:

Since launching The Performance Lab and doing the inner and outer work (in progress) necessary to craft and nurture a business, I have learned the truth behind the statement; “It takes a village.” I’ve said this many times before. The key lies in creating and growing positive relationships. Find people who dig what you do and dig who you are. Find people that inspire you and start a conversation.

Twitter is all over the news. I get teased by friends constantly because I have a Twitter account. Fine. Tease away. Say what you want. But, the truth is I have found some wonderfully creative friends on Twitter. People that I never would have been able to connect with in any other way. These friends keep me inspired, challenge me to stretch my vision and keep me accountable to my goals.

Take a gander at Sandy Dempsey’s (@SandyDfromNJ) article about Twitter and you’ll see that social networking is a powerful tool for finding like-minded friends and building relationships with them. Keep in mind, like any tool, Twitter is what you make of it.

Twitter = Relationships and Communities

Two of the following links came from ChangeThis.com. I’ve included some manifestos and links to the author’s site. ChangeThis.com is a great place to go if you want to shake yourself loose from any stuck-in-a-rut-patterned-old-wornout-cobwebby thinking. The ideas are BIG and you will find things there that inspire you, confuse you, stir you and irritate you. It’s awesome!

Big Thinking, Brainstorming and Visualizing:

Learn from The Master, Seth Godin. He makes it simple and rattles my brain at the same time. That’s why I call him “The Master”. (I don’t know how he would feel about that, but so be it. That’s not the point right now.)

Pushing Past The Dip: How to Become the Best in the World by Seth Godin.

Seth Godin (If you have a little geeky streak like me and run your online world from iGoogle, you can link to Seth Godin’s iGoogle page and sorta kinda cyber stalk him in a friendly “permission based” hero worship kind of way.) You can also find other favorites to add to your iGoogle in the iGoogle Celebrity Showcase.

I have found, much to my surprise that I am more visual than I am literal or aural. Pictures help me grok ideas and help me bring all the little bits and pieces together into a unified vision.

Another manifesto from ChangeThis.com:
Drawings That Will Change Your Life by Ralph Perrine

Ralph Perrine has an online gallery that will be featured in a future Virtual Gallery Crawl. He also has a calendar and a book that feature his life changing drawings.

I bought a copy of Brian Mayne’s Goal Mapping at Barnes & Noble. It was pricey because it’s an import (if you’re in MidMO, USA), but I got a lot out of it so it was well worth the cost. When my daughter saw my Goal Map she wanted to make one of her own. We had a great time coloring together and working through the Goal Mapping process. Brian’s Lift International is an abundant site full of resources. I highly recommend his process for brainstorming, visualizing, planning and fun. Be sure to browse the Goal Mapping gallery.

Jennifer Lee has been featured in previous Friday Posts, but I wanted to add a reminder about her very unique and so very relevant work:

The Right-Brain Business Plan E-book and Visualization

The Unfolding Your Life Vision Kit

Awesome (New to Me) People Who Are Doing Their Thing and Rewarding Themselves for Doing It:

The Art of Non-Conformity by Chris Guillebeau
Yes, he’s a guru. There’s a reason. He’s generous in sharing his knowledge and he walks his talk.

White Hot Truth by Danielle LaPorte
I like her attitude!

Rescue Girl by Amy Luwis
(I bought all of these iPhone apps because I am completely addicted to my new iPhone and iPhone apps! I love the illustrations and down to earth straight forward.)

Unravelling & Unravelling Further e-courses offered by Susannah Conway
Beautiful!

PR in Your Pajamas by Elena Verlee
Practical publicity for the time-strapped, cash crunched mom entrepreneur. (That’s me!)

Inspired Livelihood by Terri Belford
She has a couple of e-books that I love. Be sure to check out the PJ-Preneur’s Bedtime Story.

Joyfully Jobless by Barbara Winter
Barbara is the author of Making a Living Without a Job.

The Freelance Mom by Noelle Abarelli
I love the look and feel of this site.

Leah Creates: Creative Handygirl by Leah (Dawn) Creates or “Lee”
I’m a big fan! Big fan! I featured Leah (or Lee) last week in my Creativity & Humanity post for her collaboration on The History of Human Desire. This site is her biz site. She’s awesome.

I know there are more wonderful creative powerful gainfully self-employed people out there and, I promise, I’m coming to find you soon. Please send me any other links you’ve collected in your arsenal of resources. I’d love to add them. Happy creating!

Tags: Business, Entrepreneurship