Take a Break: How to Find Joy Amidst Life's Challenges

Create Art Podcast Commentary Climb a Mountain hello friend.

This is Timothy Keem O'Brien, your head instigator for Create Art podcast where I use my over 30 years of experience in the arts and education world to help you tame your inner critic and create more than you consume.

So before we end the year out here in 2024, and I'm recording this in November of 2024, wanted to continue on with Make Fun a Habit series.

And this is from Michael Brennan's book Make Fun a Habit.

And it's a workbook that does just what it says.

It helps you make fun of habit.

Now, I had the pleasure of interviewing Mike on my other podcast, Find a Podcast about and talked about his podcast, Creative Chats.

So definitely check out his podcast and my other podcast.

Now this workbook leads you through the steps to rekindle the fun in your life and get you into a space where you can be your most creative.

Now, it's a 30 day workbook and what I've done is I've taken each chapter and created a episode out of each chapter.

So each chapter has a little short story to start off with and then it goes into questions to ask yourself, tips for you to think about, and it also gives you action items for you to go ahead and do.

And I really like this because first off, it's a quick read.

I like quick reads, what can I say?

But I also like it because it gives you a little bit of inspiration to start off with and then it gives you some ideas or tools or an assignment, if you will, to go ahead and try out for yourself.

So let's go ahead and get started with this episode on how to climb a mountain.

And even though the title of the chapter is Climb a Mountain, I think it talks a lot more about stresses in your life.

So let's start off with the questions for this assignment today.

First question is, what are the biggest stressors in your life right now?

Well, if you're in the United States, we just had an election earlier this month and that is a huge stressor for me, I can tell you that right now.

But it's also done with.

So whatever has happened has happened.

It's in the past and it does cause me some stress for the future.

But I think if we're just speaking artistically or creatively, I think it's that I have too many projects going on right now and I don't know which one to focus on.

So that's kind of my big stressor right now.

I, you know, I started off with poetry, got into music and theater and all that, and now I'm here.

I am into podcasting, talking with you, and I still want to do all those things, but I just don't have the time because, well, I have a life.

I'm a dad, I'm a husband, I'm a lot of things to a lot of people.

So that's kind of where my stress is right now.

So the next question is, what can you do to take a break from these stressors?

And, well, the holidays are fast approaching us here in the United States.

We have.

We just got done with Halloween and now we're going into Thanksgiving and then Christmas and then New Year's.

So taking a break from the stressors for me is just allowing myself to be quiet, allowing myself not to do anything, which is tough for me.

I don't know if it's tough for you, but I know it's tough for me to not do anything.

But maybe, you know, get on the PlayStation a little bit more or read, you know, another book or 25, which is what I'm trying to do this week.

So, you know, just taking a break from everything, taking a break from social media and just saying, you know what, I need some me time.

The next question is what activities help you relax and de stress?

For me, I like music, I like watching documentaries.

I just got done with two documentaries on Star Trek.

I didn't know there was these two documentaries on there, but it was fantastic because one was talking about, you know, kind of the history of Star Trek from, you know, the very first episodes in the 60s all the Way up until recently.

And then the other one was a documentary by William Shatner on the captains of each of the Star Trek ships.

So for me, that was wonderful.

And then Black Friday is coming up.

That's the day after Thanksgiving, and that's a day where we can do a lot of shopping.

And so there is a record store day happening.

Unfortunately, I'm going to be working that day and I'm going to be working out that day.

So I won't be able to go to the stores at 5 o'clock in the morning and wait in line, but I can still listen to music anytime I want to.

And these are things that, you know, help me relax and de stress.

I do play a lot of video games, but that seems to cause me a lot of stress because I'm trying, you know, I play Call of Duty, Modern Warfare, Diablo 4.

So I'm hacking and slashing and blowing things up.

So that can be a Little bit stressful, but that's the kind of stress that I like, I guess.

Now the last question is, when is the last time you took time off for yourself?

Well, I'm actually taking my birthday off.

That'll be December 19th.

So if you want to send me a card or a gift or anything like that, please go ahead and do that.

I'm not going to say no to that.

If you want to just send me money, hey, money works too.

Or gift cards.

I'm all good with that.

But the last time I took time off for myself, I usually take time off to go to doctor's appointments and that kind of stuff.

So I try to every week go out to the poetry readings and the poetry reading here in town and just, you know, kind of support and relax that way.

But another thing I do, and this is going to sound counterintuitive, but working out and hitting the pool, that's a great way for me to relax.

So I.

And I need to do more of that because I am of a certain age and weight.

So for me, that's something that I need to do every week.

And actually did go to the pool today, and it was packed.

It was jam packed.

And I know it's going to be jam packed in January with all the people that are, you know, doing their New Year's resolutions to, you know, lose weight and all that kind of stuff.

And in about two weeks to a month, it'll be empty again.

So that's what I'm doing is hitting the gym and hitting the pool and just kind of, you know, allowing my mind to go when I am gasping for breath, shall we say, in the pool.

All right, so we're going to talk about Mike's action items.

And I really like these because it gives you something to do.

It gives you an idea of what you can do.

First idea is go for a walk in nature.

Well, it's getting cold here in Virginia, but cold is a relative term.

So actually going for that walk around the neighborhood or with a bunch of trees around, that is a great idea, and that is probably something I should be doing more of.

The next idea Mike gives us is read a book.

So I have on my phone an app, Goodreads.

Maybe you have it on your phone, too, and that tracks my reading.

And you can set a goal up for yourself.

Every year, I usually put 25 books a goal for me, and right Now I'm on 23 of 25.

So I've read a bunch of books.

Now, granted, most of the books that I'M reading are poetry magazines that are about 80 to 100 pages long and the Paris Review, which is a literary journal.

And that one's about 350 pages long, 250 to 300 pages long.

So, you know, at least 12 of the books that I'm reading, probably 16, 14 to 16 of the books that I'm reading are literary journals.

But I do have other books that I do enjoy reading.

And I'm actually getting ready to read a Seth Godin book on strategy.

And I have some John Coltrane biographies that I'm going to be reading in the near future as well.

Next up is number three, which is Listen to Music.

So right behind me, and you probably can't see it right now, but I have a turntable with about 500 records there.

Most of them are jazz records.

And I have a bunch that I haven't listened to.

So that's something that I need to do is while I'm working on my day job, having that music playing in the background.

And that's something that I picked up during the pandemic, besides Covid, but a definite love of vinyl and exploring more jazz music.

So definitely listen to music.

Music does soothe the savage breast, as they say.

So give that a try, Give that a shot for yourself.

Next up is number four, spend time with loved ones.

So, yeah, my.

I have twin 10 year olds, so they're here all the time.

But most of my family lives across the country, so for me, that's a little bit difficult to do.

If they come and visit, fantastic.

But usually I'm spending it right here with my family, my immediate family.

So I spend a lot of time with loved ones.

Maybe too much time, who knows?

Okay, number five is meditate or do yoga.

Now that's something that I started.

I'm getting ready to finish a 90 day challenge for meditation.

And I gotta say, it really is doing good things for me.

It's kind of mellowing me out a little bit and getting me more in touch with myself.

So I can definitely recommend the meditation, the yoga, it reminds me too much of yogurt and I like Greek yogurt.

So, you know, if you can do yoga, by all means.

I would love to get into a tai chi class in the near future as well as doing my meditation and my working out five days a week.

So that's something that I'm going to be looking at in 2025.

Oh my God, we're already talking about 2025, aren't we?

Okay, number six is get a massage.

I Do that every other month.

And I have my masseuse here in town, and I gotta tell you, I really enjoy it.

Yes, my body feels good, but the conversation that I have with my masseuse is usually pretty good.

So, you know, get a massage to relax your muscles, but also get a massage to relax your mind.

If you have a good masseuse, it means the world.

So definitely do a favor for yourself and go get yourself a massage.

And then his last action item is do something creative.

Oh, I don't know, like, make a podcast and call it Create Art Podcast.

Do something creative.

Even if it's something that you're not going to give to anybody else or have it viewed publicly, just go do something creative for you.

I mean, that's why I always end the show the way I do.

You know, go make something for somebody you love yourself.

Do something creative for yourself right here, right now.

You can put this podcast on pause right now.

Go do something creative and then come back and then email me and thank me for that.

Okay, now we're going to go on to the tips that he gives us.

First tip is set aside a specific time for relaxation for me.

I do my meditations usually the mornings before everybody gets up.

I do a brain training game, and then I do do a lingo to learn French, and then I'll do my meditation.

Today I'm running a little bit late on my meditation, but after I get done recording this, definitely I will go ahead and do some meditation as well.

And that's just, you know, that's not being selfish.

That's just taking care of yourself.

And that's the most important thing to do.

Number two is find activities to help you relax and de stress.

So that could be going for a walk, reading a book, listening to music, spending time with loved ones.

All of the action items are activities that you can do to relax and de stress.

If you have others that you do and you want to share it with me, feel free to email me.

I'd love to hear about it.

Okay, next up is avoiding checking work or email during your relaxation time.

And that is a tough one for me because I have my phone nearby at all times.

I work in my home office, so I get constantly pinged for this, that, and the other thing.

And I'm always like, you know, this meeting could have been an email or do I have to go do this in person?

You could have just done virtually.

But turning off the phone, turning off the notifications, you don't need them.

Nobody's going to die if you don't answer that Facebook post or if you don't watch that TikTok video, just turn it off for a while and allow yourself to relax.

Be selfish with your time.

If you're going to think you're selfish, I give you permission.

Be selfish with your time.

Okay, the last thing for the tips number four is be kind to yourself.

Nobody else is going to be kind to you.

I'll be kind to you.

I mean, I like you, you're fine.

But be kind to yourself.

First and foremost, you deserve it.

You know, you're listening to this podcast looking for creativity and inspiration and so you're already kind of being kind to yourself in that aspect.

But find different ways to be kind to yourself by doing any of the, you know, the action items that's being kind to yourself.

You deserve it.

And if you don't feel you deserve it, then you especially deserve it.

That is a sure sign that means you need to be a lot more kind to yourself.

Alright, so that is our episode for today on, you know, dealing with those stressors and taking good care of yourself.

Now I just want to let you know that I appreciate each and every one of you.

I hope you all have a great holiday season.

And if you'd like to reach out to me, you can email me.

Timothy create art podcast.com and I want to hear about your journey.

I want to know what you're working on.

I've had people reach out to me and say, hey, this person would be a great guest on your show and guess what?

They were great guest on my show.

So definitely feel free to email me.

I'm not going to bite your fingers off, I promise.

I might nibble on them, but I'm not going to bite them off and only if they're clean.

So make sure you wash your hands before I nibble on your fingers.

Okay?

Now if you found any value in this podcast and I'm going to ask you to go ahead and share it with a friend because that's the best way to discover new podcasts.

You know, I really want this to be a five star podcast in your eyes.

So let me know what you'd like to see.

Give me the good critique, give me the bad critique.

Feel free to email me on that.

I want to make this your go to podcast, that every time an episode comes out you're like, yeah, I gotta listen to it.

He's gonna have something really cool to say or really stupid to say or something that I need to hear.

So definitely reach out to me, let me know and share the podcast if you got something out of it, because I know you did.

Because you keep on coming back.

I know you keep on coming back.

It's weird and I appreciate that.

Speaking about sharing it with a friend, I have another podcast.

It's called Find a Podcast about.

And that's where I help you outsmart the algorithm and find your next binge worthy podcast.

You can find it at Find a Podcast About XYZ now this is the part of the show where I tell you how I get great guests because I have had a ton of great guests in this past year or two.

I use a service called Pod Match.

And what Pod Match does is it matches up guests with hosts and you know, you fill out a profile and you guys match up and you have a wonderful interview.

So check it out in the show notes.

I have my affiliate link for that.

So if you do sign up through my affiliate link, just let you know.

I get a little bit of a kickback.

Not a whole lot, but what I found for me cost me six bucks a month.

And I have gotten such great guests and such wonderful friends that do listen to the show.

So definitely check it out for yourself at Pod Match.

Now, if you're a podcaster, I use a service called PodBeacon.

And basically what it is, it looks like a little wrist, a little wrist watch.

And what it is is the NFL s NFC A little device there and somebody can wave their phone over the top of it.

And I'll take you right to your podcast website.

So definitely if that's something that you want to do, if you're tired of business cards or you're tired of saying, hey, go to this website, blah blah, blah, blah, blah blah blah.

Use this word on your wrist and you know they can put your logo on it.

And it's made by a really good friend of mine, Matthew Passey.

Wonderful guy.

So definitely check out my affiliate link there and find out all you can about Podcast Beacon.

Lastly, to remind you that this is a production of TKB Podcast Studio, you can find it at TKB Podcast Studio Calm.

And that has my whole portfolio of all the podcasts that I work on and I am taking clients.

So if you have an idea for a podcast, you want to get it started up or you know, you want to hear what I've been doing outside of create our podcast, go to TKB Podcast Studio Calm.

And like I said, you can hear everything that I've been doing.

I do a lot more than just this show.

I do find a podcast about cannabis stories.

I do some shows for the federal government, and I have a couple of clients that I'm working with right now that have wonderful shows out there.

So definitely check all those out for me.

All right.

We're at that part of the show where I let you go get back on with your day.

And when I get back on with my day again, I want to thank you for listening and for your continued support.

I hope you have a wonderful and creative holiday season.

Now go out there and tame your inner critic.

Create more than you consume.

Go out there and make some art for somebody you love yourself.

Talk to you again next time.