30 May Smiling Soul Handmade – New Etsy Store
I’ve been keeping a secret…
If you’ve been tuning into my latest email newsletters, or following along on Instagram, you’d know that I’ve been channeling most of my energy into creative projects lately.
At the beginning of the year, I told myself that this is the year I embrace being an artist and a mentor – full-time.
I want to be real with you here – it isn’t easy.
Everyday, I receive inspiration and new ideas. However, everyday I am plagued with self-doubt.
The questions I often ask myself:
– What does all of this even mean?
– Will anyone like what I make?
– What if this item never gets loved by another?
As a result, I struggle to take action when it comes to really sharing my work with the world.
Sure, I share snippets of my art and process online, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that the items land in the hands of someone who’d appreciate them.
A few items have, but I still have piles of finished projects sitting around and collecting dust because I’ve been too afraid to promote them.
I’ve realised that there is one major thing getting in the way –
My thoughts about the things I make, and whether they are good enough.
Ahh the old ‘E’ word…
Enough.
When the ego begins to take over, it isn’t long before I get in my own way and keep all my finished work to myself.
Never to see the light of day again.
Never to be in the hands of someone who’ll love them.
Only to be kept a BIG, FAT SECRET.
When the soft and gentle whisper of my soul steps in to try and save the day (once again), I hear a different kind of dialogue –
Today’s the day, Lauren! The sun is shining, you’ve got magical things to show the world. As soon as you finish this project, share it!
I’m grateful that today is one of those days where I’ve decided to believe in myself.
I better be quick before it slips away and I miss the opportunity. I won’t be surprised if tomorrow I feel different… 😅
The big secret that I’ve been keeping is that I reopened my Etsy store about 3 weeks ago and didn’t announce it to anyone.
All because I didn’t think my creations were good enough.
But today I have courage (going to write this down now and stick it to my wall where I can see it, daily).
Here are some of the items you can find inside the Smiling Soul Handmade Etsy store.
I really wanted to share my struggles of self-belief with you today, because I know I’m not the only one who feels held back or stuck at times. And if this is you, I don’t want you to feel alone.
I’ve come a long way and now I’m mentoring others to step into their potential too. But this doesn’t mean that I’m exempt from feeling:
– Fear
– Self-doubt
– Overwhelm
– Unworthy
– Stuck…
In fact, these are feelings that I experience almost everyday.
But I do try hard to take action and do the things that I dream to do, despite feeling like rubbish at times…
And each time that I get over the hurdle, it gets easier until the things that I worried about in the first place, are soon forgotten.
Then the next hurdle comes along but I mean, that’s just life, right?
“Life is a rollercoaster, you just gotta ride it…” – Ronan Keating (Listen to it as you set aside some time for creativity today 😉)