Balancing Act: November Review

This year, I'm holding nothing back in a series called 'Balancing Act' by sharing the behind the scenes insights into balancing commitments and creativity with tips to help you make time for your Art.

This is how I balanced November.

November and Checking Your Diet.

As artists and business owners, we keep a lot of plates spinning in the air. We have a plate for work, family, Project A, B and C; for Friends, Home, Finances, Development, Marketing, Information and more.

As business owners, we spend so much of our time making sure we keep each plate spinning that often we don’t take the time to check that what’s even on the plate provides us with a healthy balanced diet!

Is the plate too full? Does it provide nourishment? Will it leave me feeling bloated? Does it meet the recommended daily allowance? Will it sustain me, give me energy or have I bitten off more than I can chew?

The past few months I have been immersed in my busy season which means the plates I’m spinning are piled high. This has left me feeling too full, a little heavy and ready for a nap.

I’ve been taking a long hard look at my work-diet lately and been coming to some hard truths about how balanced and healthy it really is. Some parts feed and sustain me, whilst others are like junk food – easy to binge but provide short term release.

Often, we only need to make small changes to create a big impact in our diet, like switching to better alternatives or checking on our portion size, but sometimes we need to find the willpower to say no to the junk.

What’s on your plate?

Inside the Studio:

Week beginning 4th: A full-on start to the month with my usual 6 classes, a 13 hour day painting outside to complete the Royal Victoria Hospital mural, a family funeral and a two-part Sculpting the Face workshop.

Week beginning 11th: This week I completed the bare minimum of delivering my 6 classes and nothing else - my bandwidth was full so I took the time needed to reset by having a jammie day, lunch with friends and time with Mark.

Week beginning 18th: Playing catch up with my editorial calendar - been running so tight to release dates that the previous week ‘off’ has had a knock-on effect. The first time this year that I broke the chain of my self imposed deadlines. Alongside this, I delivered a fantastic day of paperclay at Conway Mill and began my website redesign.

Week beginning 25th: A week of celebrations and reflections as another family member (in-law) passed away, our one year wedding anniversary came about, two friend’s baby showers and the final classes at our Winter Term wrapped up with cake parties.

Next Month: December is all about completing Christmas commissions and giving myself a break, reflecting on the year and planning for a strong 2020. November had me running on fumes and it’s time to fill the tank again. Plus, it’s the time of year for giving - so here’s a chance to WIN a Misfit!

Balancing Act Quick Links:

If you’re just catching this series now, here’s what’s happened so far:

January Tactic: Balance and Accountability
January Review: White Space
February Tactic: Define the Pace
February Review: Wrestling Resistance
March Tactic: Action Versus Reaction
March Review: The Knock-on Effect
April Tactic: Go Wide or Go Deep
April Review: Honouring the Intrinsic
May Tactic: Sow a Mustdo Seed
May Review: Honour the Shipping Process
June Tactic: The 3 letter word
June Review: Mid-Year Check-In
July Tactic: How to Say yes to your Art
July Review: Fill The Leak
August Tactic: What do Art and Yoga have in Common?
August Review: Adjust the Volume.
September Tactic: 20 before 20.
September Review: Sprints and Strolls
October Tactic: 8 Artist Body Systems:
October Review: Working IN or ON your Art
November Tactic: The Creative Rollercoaster.
November Review: Check Your Diet
December Tactic: Small Things, Repeated
December Review: What’s Next

What about you?

Let me know in the comments below how you found this month, what you’ve created, or what you’re struggling with and particularly, What’s on Your Plate?

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