do not be timid, experiment

 

Riding a roller coaster. 

Literally. My family kidnapped me and took me to Dollywood. Husband, mom, brothers, cousins. A whole puppy pile of giggles and boy-jokes.

Preparing to begin a new year.

My birthday is Sunday. It's a big one. I have all kinds of new-decade ideas bubbling. I have a new challenge for the new year (last year's challenge was to get a publisher for a then-undetermined book. It worked out pretty well.)

Thinking without planning. 

I have an idea. A really great idea for what comes next. I think you're going to love it. I nearly told you about it today, but instead…I'm letting it percolate. Before I jump in and commit to it being one way, I'm letting it roll around and transform and by formed by everything else.

This is new for me. I'm of the have-an-idea and act-on-it school of Making Things Happen. But sometimes, an idea is improved by letting it spend a little more time as an idea, before immediately jumping to the how-will-it-happen bits.

Confession: I might never have given this idea space if my family hadn't kidnapped me. I probably would have planned and created the whole thing today.

 

At dollywood, inspiriationSign at Dollywood

Experimenting.

Last week I experimented with my workday (What happens when I change places in the middle of my day?).
This week, I'm experimenting with with ideas, and what happens when I give them space to be ideas before they become things.
Next week, I'm experimenting with the Starship.
The week after that? Location-independent work weeks (ie, travel).

All of my experiments come down to one question:

What happens when things aren't the way I think they have to be? 

What are you, today? 

3 Comments on Today, I am…

  1. Elizabeth Drouillard
    June 1, 2012 at 12:21 pm (12 years ago)

    In my experience, they happen anyway. Which is both at time profound, sometimes annoying, and sometimes freeing.  Trying to control less frees us to really do what we can control.  Looking forward to hearing more! Happy Birthday!!

  2. Kate England
    June 1, 2012 at 1:09 pm (12 years ago)

    Tara, first of all, HAPPY birthday! 🙂

    And yes… I think that it can be good to go WITH an idea, to follow it, if it’s a strong idea, it might have a bit of a life of its own… So acting and pushing it into the formula box can stifle the idea. I can’t WAIT to hear what you’ve got brewing!