Introducing my new podcast – Explore Your Enthusiasm

Like I said yesterday, I've been falling in love with podcasts (and their hosts) since 2005. Podcasts introduced me to some of my favorite friends-in-person people: Guido of It's a Purl Man (he took me on a tour of his neighborhood when I taught at Gather Here); Diane of CraftyPod, now real-life friend + collaborator; Abby of While She Naps (she totally won me over with her straight-talk about money over a chai in Wellesley).
All along, I wanted to jump in and join the fun. In my real life, I talk…a lot. I love leading live explorations (ie, workshops) and I live for long conversations with creative women + biz explorers. Writing just can't communicate the easy flow that comes when I'm teaching a class or having a great conversation.

When the idea hit me again two weeks ago, I wrote all the reasons I shouldn't do it. Then I wrote the reasons I should. And after reading over what I wrote, I added one more line:
FOLLOW YOUR ENTHUSIASM. DO IT.

(I'll talk more about how I launched a podcast tomorrow).

So here it is, my brand new, weekly podcast, Explore Your Enthusiasm.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

In the inaugural episode, I share what I hope to do with the podcast, and what I hope it does for you. I want a casual space to talk about the more complex issues that I write about: motivation, profitability, and map-making. I want to introduce you to crafters that are doing their own thing, experimenting and following their enthusiasm, and making it work. I want you to know you're not alone, in whatever it is that feels like a struggle in your creative business: making money, finding motivation, being consistent.

I also share a bit about my own story of becoming a full-time crafter and the real story behind how my yarn company started. (I don't think I've ever told this story!)

I'll be adding new episodes each Wednesday + sharing them with you here on the blog. There are already a few bonus episodes in iTunes – podcast versions of my most popular videos! These are shorter than normal episodes and will be added to the podcast feed whenever I make a new video lesson (about once a month).

How to listen

You can listen to it using the player above or download it.
You can subscribe to it on iTunes here (or subscribe in whatever you use for podcasts – just search “Explore Your Enthusiasm” and it should pop up!).
Find all the other podcasts here.

I'd love to know what you want to hear and who you want to hear from! You can leave a comment or email me privately. You could also give me some ideas by filling out this 5 question survey!

More than anything, I hope you like it. I hope this helps us connect in a new way and helps you feel supported, encouraged and part of this great community of amazing makers.

Five Podcasts I Listen to Every Week

Podcasts have been by my side at every step in this creative journey, since 2006. From dyeing my first skeins, to spinning every night after my day job, to my first big craft show prep (spinning for 5 hours per day is booooring – ya need some entertainment), to my first days self-employed. I talk about the books I read every month, but I hardly ever talk about this super-influential medium and I'd like to fix that.

This week I'm honoring the medium with a kind of “podcast week” here on the blog. Today I'll share my favorites, tomorrow I'll introduce you to my podcast and on Thursday I'll tell you how I started a podcast in one week (after three years of thinking about it).

The whole process of creating my podcast has me thinking about my favorite podcasts and how much the “scene” has changed since Jay bought my very first iPod Shuffle in 2006, to listen to the very first podcasts I discovered: Cast-On + KnitCast (This episode of Cast-On influenced my entire business direction.) Soon I was mainlining CraftyPod and CraftSanity and This American Life and Stash + Burn.

I listen to different podcasts today, but I love them just as much as ever. Before I share my own tomorrow, I wanted to talk about podcasts from a listener's perspective. The following shows are my inspiration – not just in podcasting, but in life. (True Story: When someone gets in your head with their voice, you carry them around with you.) I find it hard to describe what's great about a piece of media, so instead of telling you what it's about, I'll just tell you when I listen and if you're curious download an episode or two and try it for yourself!

5 podcasts I listen to every week:

Unmistakable Creative

Srini is my go-to running partner. (He doesn't know. In reality, he's only consented to the Oceanside Pier while discussing exceptionalism.) His interviews with creatives keep me company as I train for my upcoming 10k. The length is just right for keeping me from looking at my watch + I always have 100 new ideas to write in my journal the minute I end my run. Bonus points for interviewing as many women as men (there's a huge gender divide in the business podcast-world. It makes me crazy.)

Slate Podcasts

I started with the Political Gabfest and now subscribe to them all, via the “daily podcast” feed. I listen every week while sewing or washing dishes. Bonus points for being one Jay and I both like – perfect for road tripping.

Alton Browncast

You know I love a nerd, and Alton's a big food nerd. Lately he's been interviewing the most interesting food-people + it fits perfectly into cooking a bit-longer meal while cleaning up as I go.

Elise Gets Crafty

This one's brand-new but has already earned a spot in my weekly rotation, usually while I'm cooking dinner – it's the perfect length for a quick dinner!

Pop Culture Happy Hour

This one just makes me happy and is the perfect sewing companion. I'm pretty sure Linda Holmes and I would be friends.

3 more favorite podcasts:

I don't listen to these every week – but they're on heavy rotation:

Nerdist – I love the casual, conversational style of interview and Chris Hardwick hits all my nerdy buttons. Jay + I save up episodes and listen together during road trips. It's often pretty long, which is perfect when you're staring down a 4 hour drive.

While She Naps with Abby Glassenberg – I love Abby's honesty and authenticity when it comes to how she runs her business. She talks to a wide variety of people in the fiber art world…but of course I'm biased because she invited me on as a guest. 🙂

CraftLit – I dip in and out of Heather's amazing podcast, picking up specific books and following along. This is a totally genius solution if you: feel like you missed out on “getting” literature (or you just never read it), are learning English, are homeschooling, or just want to seem/feel smarter.

Your turn!

You'll notice I don't have any strictly-business or strictly-knitting podcasts (although there are a zillion of each.) The truth is, after being bored to tears the last time I looked for new ones (um..3 years ago?), I haven't even tried any new ones (unless people I already read start a podcast, like Elise + Abby.) I'd love to find some new ones – what do you listen to?
You can click here to tell me in a quick 5-question survey.

The Adventures

Every day is an adventure. I share the view, the gratitude and the news on Fridays – you’re invited to join in. You can find all my adventures here, or follow along via email here.

The view

I am so grateful for…

Eventually I'll stop talking about flowers. But not yet! I am totally grateful for the gorgeous blooms – especially the just-burst-open dogwoods.
The ability, flexibility, and permission to follow my enthusiasm towards a new exciting project (podcast! details next week!)
The birth of the newest version of my most popular class, Pay Yourself, went swimmingly.
A lovely Good Friday morning full of sweetness + hope.

The Finds:

I’m reading:

Erin Loechner on windows into other lives, via social media.
Elise Blaha on experimenting in her business.
Arianne on why she's done paying Facebook.

I'm eating:

Ancho Lentil tacos
Spaghetti squash + Newman's Own sauce (delicious and totally easy)
Banana bread (with chocolate chips)
Beefy tips + Asparagus, from Isa Does It
Tempeh BBQ sammiches + hashbrown casserole from Cookin Crunk.

In case you missed it:

What adventures have you had?

You deserve to be paid, no matter what you need

One thing that comes up every time I talked about money-making with a group of women is “need” and who needs what and how much and how this impacts their work. This is a loaded, emotionally-charged issue, but it's time we talk about this openly and without shame.

The simple fact is:

Some makers need to make money from their craft in order to pay the bills + some makers do not need this money to pay the bills.

I think of this as the Spectrum of Money Need. There are some of us on the far side of MUST make this money to pay the bills. If you're single or if you're the main “breadwinner”in the family – your business, no matter how much you love it, has to support you financially. On the far other end are those who have another income that pays all of their bills (this might be a day job or a partner's income). Most business owners are somewhere in the middle. (Perhaps you have a part-time job, or your creative work brings in 35% or 70% of your needs.)

Everyone, no matter their need, deserves to be paid for the work of their hands.

This is why I created Pay Yourself and this is the reason students across the spectrum love it – makers are ready to start valuing their work.

This is a common rallying cry around the craft community, but it usually get stuck in the “people should charge more” debate. I take it a step further. It is not your buyer's job to be sure you're paid fairly. It's not the community's job to set a standard of fair prices.

It's your job. It's your responsibility to price your work competently, to know your expenses, to be aware of your Break Even Point. It's your responsibility to not only know these numbers, but to make smart decisions informed by them. It's your responsibility to keep paying attention to what your business and customers are telling you. And it's your responsibility to stay open to change.

No matter what you need in terms of income – you have this responsibility if you want to build a sustainable, satisfying business*. No matter what you need, you have no more (or less) right to be paid fairly, and no more (or less) responsibility to make that happen.
There are differences – where you are on the Spectrum of Money Needs will impact what you struggle with. Makers who don't feel a pressing “need” for the money often feel weird about charging for their work, or making decisions based on the numbers. Makers who desperately need the money so that they can continue to eat often feel overwhelmed and frustrated. They want to know exactly what to do to make it all work out. (Triple the stress if you have other people counting on you to feed them as well.)

You see, your hesitations and fears are normal. You are not alone. You are not more or less deserving than the crafter next to you.

No matter where you are in this spectrum – you deserve to be paid.

Your work is worth the effort. Your gifts are worth the work you'll do to find the profitability. Only by truly believing this, and taking on the responsibility for your own business, will you find your way to what you want. (And remember – you get to define success for yourself.)
While you're at it, while you're working on believing in your own worth, take a moment to accept the worth of everyone else. Let's stop debating who has a “real” business and let's stop trying to figure out who is making “real” money. You just don't know. You don't know how hard anyone else works or their own issues with self-worth. You don't know, so stop using it as a yardstick (or excuse) for your own goals.

If you're ready to get real about your own numbers + take responsibility for making money, check out Pay Yourself – it's now a self-paced e-course and for this week only it's on sale – $20 off. If you're ready to value your work and get paid, this class will help you find the profitability and improve on it.

*Don't care about making money on your craft? That's ok! Check out: Is it a business or a hobby?

The Adventures

Every day is an adventure. I share the view, the gratitude and the news on Fridays – you’re invited to join in. You can find all my adventures here, or follow along via email here.

The view

I am so grateful for…

Gorgeousness around every corner – SPRING!
My new website design + the patience of Jessika.
The editing powers of Jessica.
The “you're in my head!” emails I get after I wrote about freaking out. (THANK YOU!)
This completely amazing email from a student.

The Finds:

I’m reading:

Take the DIY out of your business, by Kim Werker. (I believe in hiring people to do the things you can't – but I only hire people named Jessik/ca.)
A Scientific Guide to Hashtags. (Just promise me you won't fill your #whole #tweet with #hashtags, ok?)
Get more writing done (tips for hiring + working with an assistant), by Tim Grahl

I'm eating

The amazing peanut curry sauce from Isa Does It over tofu, broccoli + quinoa.
Jambalaya from Cookin Crunk.
These fluffy pancakes.

In case you missed it:

What I’m reading: April 2014

I follow my enthusiasm by reading…a lot. And once a month, I share (some of) the books I read last month and the books I intend to read this month. You can join the informal book club by sharing your own list in the comments and find all the posts here.

What I read

Slow Motion by Dani Shapiro. A fascinating memoir-ish book by my new favorite author.

Knowing your Value, by MikaBrzezinski. If you work for The Man, you're probably not being paid enough. This book will help you work through asking for more.

Ready Player One, by Earnest Cline. SO GOOD. I devoured it.

Hotel New Hampshire, by John Irving. I went through an Irving spell several years ago and I don't know how I missed this one. A great novel, recommended by Kim.

A pile of quilt books, including Word Play, The Quilts of Tennessee,and Tula Pink’s City Sampler.

What I'm reading

Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook, by Gary Vaynerchuk.

Quilting with a Modern Slant, by Rachel May. So good!

The Art of Learning, by Josh Waitzkin

Parallel Lives, by Phyllis Rose

Frankly, I've lost my reading mojo. Got a book suggestion? I'd love to hear it!

How about you? What are you reading?

Disclaimer-y Disclaimer! Or course I’m biased when my friends write a book, but I don’t mention things I don’t like. Read the usual disclaimer here.

3 lessons for a website redesign

Welcome! Come right in and make yourself comfy!

I'm so so happy to introduce you to my redesigned site! It's been an amazing (and overwhelming) experience and I've learned SO much.
(If you're reading this via email, click through to see my brand new site!)

The changes represent a massive visual re-branding, created + implemented by Jessika Hepburn. Well, it can hardly be considered a “re”-branding, since I didn't have visual branding to begin with.
And this brings us to the lessons I learned:

Just because you have a website doesn't mean you have a visual brand.
A website designer is not the same as a visual branding specialist. (Although some do awesome visual branding, you should be clear up front on what you're looking for.) You see, a website designer will design your website – give you a cool template, and maybe make a few buttons for you. But they're not looking at the entire visual identify of your business. And for many of you graphic designers + artists – that's perfect, because you are skilled at creating your own visual identity.
But I am not. I can use Photoshop and I know what I like, but that doesn't mean I can illustrate or even come up with the ideas of what will communicate what I want to communicate. As Jessika said when we started this process: Your voice is SO clear in your words, you just need your visuals to match it.
Although there was also a change to my website's layout, the focus was on creating a cohesive visual presence, that matched with my words + my work, so that as soon as you land here, you can get it.
You are responsible for knowing what you want. But often someone else can spot your sparkle better than you can.
Whether you're working with a designer, an exploration guide, or a hairstylist – you have to know what it is you want. You need to be clear on what you do, who you serve, and how you want them to feel. So your first step is to get crystal clear on that (which is what the first 2 chapters of my book help you do.)
But then, once you're really in it, sometimes you can't see what makes you so special – that special blend of happiness and delight that you bring into your customer's life. This is where working with a professional is so important – they can see what you do well + how that's different from what other people do + how to communicate that. (This assumes you're working with someone who really *gets* you.)I hope that what I really wanted out of the redesign (for you to feel comfortable and happy and encouraged) + what Jessika spotted in my work (silliness + boldness + adventure) comes across in what you see on the page. (I think it does!)
Prioritize what you want your reader to do.
Even though I literally wrote the book on this (Chapter 4), it was still super hard. This is where knowing your customer's path comes in.* I've learned that the path most customers take is –>read blog + like it –> subscribe to email lessons –> buy book or class –> join Starship (once inside the Starship, we work together one-on-one). This leads to the best, most productive relationships, with the biggest transformations in their business, so it's my job to make that path clear + easy.

*I'll be teaching a brand-new class about this next month!

How can you make your Customer Path even easier?

Now that you know what went on behind the scenes, here's what actually changed:

I have a home page! It'll help you navigate to whatever you need.
I have a shop! Finally, all of my classes, guides, books, and adventures are in one spot. (And I have a cart! So you can buy more than one thing at a time without checking out multiple times! Magic!)
A brand-new page for new readers. If you're not sure where to start, this page will introduce you to what you can find (and where!)
Check out the new footer – no matter what page you land on, you've got a chance to meet me (hi!) + learn a bit about being an explorer.
Stars, smiling planets, and pink! Jessika did a glorious job designing my new logo (up top!) and adorable illustrations for my products.

The smiling planet is my fave. Isn't it adorable?!

A note for subscribers

If you subscribe to the blog via email, you don't have to do a thing, you'll still get the messages same as always.
If you use an RSS reader, you'll have to update it to link to taraswiger.com/blog/feed.
If you only get the weekly message but you'd like to get the blog posts too, you can always edit your subscription by heading here, putting in your info and “update subscription”

And that's it!
Do you have any questions about the process or the new site?

PS. Jessika isn't just a designer, she's also a genius community-builder + supporter. If you'd like to meet more of our community + get away from it all, check out her Maker's Retreat.

The Adventures

Every day is an adventure. I share the view, the gratitude and the news on Fridays – you’re invited to join in. You can find all my adventures here, or follow along via email here.

The view

I am so grateful for…

The support and generosity of the Starship Captains. They've been blowing my mind with their vulnerability and kindness to each other this week.
$2 tulips
Finishing + filing my taxes!
Flowering trees! Every corner brings a new smile.

The Finds:

I'm reading:

“The good things in life..are often the direct result of very slow, deeply unglamorous work.” –Sarah Von Bargen
This case study of Jimmy Beans Wool in the New York Times.
This is a great way to handle people using your photos (and it improves your SEO!)
I love that Abby is sharing her actual sales numbers (and expenses) in this quarterly review.

I'm listening to:

Elise's new podcast!

I'm cooking:

These gluten-free, vegan, protein-rich cookies are actually super tasty!
Manicotti! Cheese-stuffed manicotti was the first special meal I made for Jay and for years it was our anniversary dinner. Since going vegan I kinda forgot about it. But this recipe brought it back!

I'm teaching locally:

I'll be leading Pay Yourself next Wednesday, at Mayland Community College's Small Business Center. You can register here (scroll down).

In case you missed it:

When you discover you didn't meet your goals last quarter, choose resilience.
Review your quarter (and learn it's lessons!) with this free download.
January Yarns wrote a sweet insta-review of Market Yourself! If you've read it, please share your review and I'll highlight it here!

Note!
My website's getting a spring cleaning this weekend! It may be offline for around 24 hours from Saturday afternoon – Sunday. So don't fret! We'll be back on Monday with a new site, a new shop and a brand new class! (Sign up here to be the first to know!)

What were your adventures this week?

Choose resilience

For the last year, I've had the same project on my to do list – my next book. Last April, I made it my Destination (the bigger goal you're working towards in a map) for the quarter. I made VERY little progress on it. I was disappointed, but I learned: I have a lot going on that I'm not willing to put aside to give this my 100% attention. (I'm equally excited about this book and my online and in-person workshops.)

So I adjusted. I got more specific. In Q4, I set the goal to just finish the outline. Well, that didn't really work out, but I DID work on it every week and got a lot clearer on what I'm really writing.

In 2014, I decided it would be one of my big goals for the year: I'm going to write and self-publish this book sometime during the year. (It's also alongside my goasl to teach at least 4 workshops around the country (1 down!), and to create one completely new digital class (coming soon!), and overhaul Pay Yourself (done!) and to continue to add content to the Solo Mission.)

I looked back at what I'd already done, and what else I had going on and I decided that I would be satisfied if I wrote on it every weekday. That went great through February, but when Pay Yourself got crazy, it went out the window.

Now we're at the beginning of a new quarter and I've got two options:

I can be bummed that this project I'm totally in love with hasn't gone farther. I can recognize that my life is too busy for this project. I can give up on it, or put it aside, or let myself fall out of love with it by judging its progress too harshly.
Or. I can look deeply at what's gone well so far. When did I write the best bits? What could use expanding? I can review what specifically led me to put it down. How can I protect against that? I can learn the lessons of this book – what does it need from me?

You have the same choice.

It's time to review the last quarter and everyone inside the Starship and Solo Mission is busy looking back and making new maps. (I'll be sharing the review worksheet for free here, if you want to play along.) They are finding bits they are proud of and bits they wish were different. Between all of us, there's a big list of things that didn't get done. There is a big list of mistakes.

If you find a big list of things you didn't do: You are not alone. This is a normal part of growing, expanding, and trying new things. So the question isn't “Why didn't I succeed?!”, it's “What now?”

Pay attention!

This is an important moment. This is where you find out what kind of business, success, and life you're going to have. It is this disappointment (and how you choose to handle it) that determines whether you have a business or a hobby.
If you're committed to your dream, your business, and what you want, you bounce back. You become resilient.
The reality is, everyone falls short. Everyone misses the mark. The difference between success and failure is what you do next. Do you give up or scale down your vision? Or do you make a new plan?

Make your choice. Choose resilience.

How I learned from my customers to create something new

The Starship closes for the quarter, today. If you want to join, do that here.

In April 2011, I sent a message to 10 of my most-committed students and I told them about this idea I had. There wasn't a name (they helped me name it), there wasn't a big plan. I wasn't even sure I wanted to do it for more than a year. There was just a seed of an idea, based on what I had learned from my own students.

They wanted to support each other.

At the end of each class I taught, I'd have a Q+A time where student's could ask me questions. After class, I'd get a few emails: “I really wanted to tell the question-asker THIS about my own business.” So I added chat rooms to my classes. But these felt temporary and the smarts that students shared was soon lost. The solution: a forum, where the shared smartness is searchable.

They wanted to feel less alone.

The regular refrain of my class chat? “It's so nice to know I'm not alone.” Even today, after three years of weekly live chats, someone always expresses this, every week. And you know, I feel the same way. It's lovely to be surrounded by people with the same goals, the same trials, and the same hope.

They were ready to commit.

At the heart of my new, nameless idea was commitment. If you joined, you'd be in for a year. Your participation could be ANYthing for the year, there's absolutely no guilt and no expectation. I felt that this commitment to working together on their business, for a calendar year would be the impetus for real change. Instead of taking classes and here and there and just jumping around, you could really dig in and focus on one area, or one goal.

Over the last three years, I've had push back about the year-long commitment (you should make it shorter! More people would join!), but shortening your commitment changes the nature of the relationship. Instead of feeling safe, you'd feel adrift. You'd always be deciding if it was “worth it”…and if you're busy evaluating your experience, you aren't really living it.

Why do I only open it for 10 days, once a quarter?
Because we're all in this together. When new people are drifting in all the time, they might come in during the middle of something (a class, a series) or they might not get my full attention. But when everyone new comes in at once, everyone, new and old, makes their own map at the beginning of the quarter. We're all starting at the exact same place (wherever we are in our own business path). So we go through the agony of choosing, the strain of dedication, the everydayness of continuing to work towards it, together.

From these three tenets (supporting each other, feeling not-alone, committing), has sprung everything else – the weekly chats, the 1:1 sessions, the forum, the classes. I actually write all of my new classes based on what the Starship member needs. (And it turns out my classes are better than ever..and better attended.) This quarter I'm creating a class about your customer path — all of your marketing that leads your customer closer to you.

Throughout the last three years, Captains have inspired me, challenged me, and shaped the Starship into what it is. They've named it, created the culture, and requested the classes.

If you'd like to get the new class for free, and your ready for support + commitment, join us!

PS. It really does close at 4pm today. So don't dally!

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