slow inside

marlee grace is a writer, a dancer, an artist, and a “shape maker.”

she has books on social media addiction and  “how to not always be working.” she teaches and does creative advising. she has a podcast and a project called CENTER, “an experiment unfolding in space and time.”

she lives in a patriarchal, cisnormative, heterosexual-driven culture as a queer female artist constantly blurring the lines of the known and the unknown. she is not afraid to be many things and she is not afraid to share her truth in all of it.

here are marlee's thoughts on spinning out and getting calm, sharing truth, grappling with doubt and living in joy, and using all of it to find your own “right size.”

some things we talk about:

• how she stays present and manages anxiety, obsessive thinking
• on being honest about who you are even when that means losing those who follow you
• how quitting drinking has informed her work
• her daily “marlee maintenance” plan
• making what’s most important to who you are

with the world falling into chaos, it always lightens my heart to find artists and women like elaine. elaine is a rebel of the highest cause: rising up against the worst parts of a capitalist economy to bring about a more sustainable, peaceful life for all.

elaine’s studio, inner fields, is founded on the principles of deep ecology and buddhism. inner fields has two key wings: on one side are elaine’s prints, pigment drawings and works on paper; on the other side are her hosted listening and drawing communal events.

in all that she does, elaine brings sincerity, intention, awareness and love. as life seems to be getting busier, anxiety levels are rising and loneliness is at an all-time high, elaine is helping ease the pain and suffering of others through the use of natural materials, art that awakens, and “ephemeral art projects” that create community, connection, and change.

some things we talk about: 

• creating a sustainable art business in an unsustainable economy
• using creativity to craft your own path and create your own way forward
• art making that supports the world, the planet and the people on it
• the philosophies that govern everything: her art, her work, and her life
• dealing with doubt and fear as you step into all that you desire

to listen to more brave and experimental artists head on over to the creativity habit  

and you can follow the creativity habit on instagram @daphnecohn

laurie wagner is an expert on telling the truth. it’s the way she writes, teaches, and lives.

there was a time early on in laurie’s success when the success began taking precedence over the truth. what the market wanted became more important than what her heart wanted. so she quit.

she left the public writing world behind – the world of book deals and magazine articles – to find her own words. she turned to teaching as a way of making money while writing privately to discover what really mattered.

in laurie’s words: “as my other friends who were in journalism got more deeply into writing the kinds of stories their editors were giving them I was going off trail and writing the kinds of stories that meant something to me and that’s where I found myself.”

today laurie teaches wild writing through weekly workshops in her home and online. she takes people on writing retreats around the world and she teaches people how to be teachers of wild writing. she is the author of seven books and her work has appeared in numerous publications including salon, glamour, the huffington post, and the san francisco chronicle.

she is a coach a teacher and a writer. but above all she is “tender truth serum in human form.”

some things we talk about:

• how to get from “stuck” to “unstuck”
• sage advice on creating your brand
• how being authentic in your art changes your life (and vice versa)
• when and how you invite your reader/viewer in
• abandoning success in search of her personal truth

you can learn more about laurie at 27powers.org

you can explore more brave and experimental artists and makers at the creativity habit

this is world-renowned photographer, brooke shaden's, second time on the creativity habit podcast. in this conversation brooke shares how she built an entire career, and life, basing every decision on this one question: will this bring me, and others, maximum fulfillment? and she means EVERY decision.

in this conversation we talk about:

• how to trust your voice above anyone else’s
• saying, and making, what’s important (and how it can change your ENTIRE career)
• how to practice bravery
• the importance of aligning with your money mindset and sharing your art as a business

may it inspire you to make your thing and change your world.

for more episodes check out: the creativity habit

when things were hard for anna as a child, and they often were, she disappeared into writing and reading. she left behind what was hard for a world that was hers. a world where she had power, voice, and words. a world where she made up the rules and created what she wanted.

that world was her salvation.

eventually anna turned that world into her livelihood. today anna is a writer, an editor and a creative entrepreneur. she teaches writing to women who want to share their stories and live fully self-expressed lives. her first book, “the creative doer: a brave woman’s guide from dreaming to doing”  is for “female creators, activists, and magic makers.” 

there is so much in this conversation. if you want to connect to your power and share your truth, this interview is for you.

some things we talk about: 

• the trial and error of sharing vulnerably
• how to create safe spaces within the fear (so that you can do what you need to do despite being scared)
• honoring your natural rhythm and creative cycle
• getting back into your body (even when it doesn’t feel safe) and creating from your heart instead of your head
• striving and what to do when it’s running (and ruining) your creative work

when jen was eight her father died. the last words she said to him were “I hate you.” those words would haunt her well into adulthood as she found herself dropping out of NYU as an english major, working as a waitress for 14 years while “pursuing” acting and dead-end relationships, and falling deeper into depression.

the day she began taking anti-depressants was the day she began finding her way home.

she became a yoga teacher and started writing what was true. sharing all of what it means to be human: the messy, the hard, the beautiful, the magical. no shame. no apologies. just “real fucking life.”

today jen is the national bestselling author of "On Being Human: a memoir of waking up, living real, and listening hard." she leads sold-out yoga-related movement and writing retreats around the world, and is the founder of the online magazine The Manifest-Station. jen has been featured on Good Morning America, New York magazine, Health magazine, CBS news, and more. she has a massive online following and is loved the world over for her raw and real telling of what it means to be human.

some things we talk about:

• how jen rebuilt her entire life from depressed and unhappy to wildly successful and happier (most of the time)
   
• how much to share, how to bear witness, and how to just be
   
• on making the thing that is true to you and designing a life, and business, around who you are
   
• on busting through shame, giving yourself a fucking medal, and being free

we all get thrown off course. sometimes it’s the teacher who told us we weren’t any good. or the school that rejected our application. or the job we didn’t get. or the launch where no one bought. it’s different for everyone but everyone has some version of this story.

for araki it was when she was 16 and, after having devoted a childhood to making art, to loving art, she didn’t have the grades for art school. so she stopped. for ten years she didn’t make any art. she studied international business, traveled the world for exchange programs and internships, and worked for start ups and big companies.

until depression hit. until her eyes began to hurt and she had trouble focusing and she was tired more than she wasn’t. until the day she heard a voice, loud and clear, in the middle of a park that said to her, “go back to what you loved when you were younger.”

so she did.

for the last six years araki has devoted her life to her art. just as she did when she was younger. araki is an illustrator and a reiki healer. she no longer works for big corporations in international business, she makes art. and she lives art. choosing to follow whatever is next on this creative journey – despite the uncertainty and the doubt, this is her path. and it is what she loves.

some things we talk about:

painter and writer, lindsay king, is devoted to love: self-love, unconditional love, and spreading love. it's her art, her business, and her purpose.

in her own words, my “intention is to create meaningful work that carries the energy of love and healing. Asking to be a clear conduit for messages of love to move into the paint and fibers of the paper itself.”

these are hard times. no matter your political beliefs, your nationality, or your place in life, we all are facing big challenges. to choose love in the midst of all of this is one of the bravest, boldest, acts I know.

it was an honor to talk with a woman of so much courage. may we all love a little deeper and a little wider because of her.

some of the things we talk about:

may it inspire you to make your thing and change your world.

It’s hard enough to feel worthy and good about oneself just being a human in a big, uncertain world. But for Kaylani, it was even harder. Born to a black father and a Filipino mother, Kaylani never felt like she belonged. She was bullied in school and at home. The messages she received about her worth and inherent goodness were twisted and cruel.

And yet, somehow, Kaylani found her way through art and an incredible inner strength. With the help of mentors, teachers, and her mom, Kaylani is now an illustrator whose clients include Chronicle Books, Cicada Magazine, and DEFY. Her work has been recognized by Society of Illustrators, The Huffington Post, and BBC.

In this conversation Kaylani talks honestly and compassionately about a difficult upbringing, a mental breakdown, and her rising up.

Some things we talk about:

May it inspire you to make your thing and change your world.

Catherine Just started using drugs and alcohol when she was 13. By 18 she was addicted to crystal meth. Then one day, in the throes of addiction, she heard a voice. It said, “There’s more to this life than what you’re living.” Something in Catherine woke up and she got sober. She "checked herself into art school" where she immersed herself in discovery through photography.

Today Catherine, 32 years sober, uses photography to help others return to their essence. Using a 4x5 large format film camera, Catherine captures, in a single image, “the breath, heartbeat, dreams, wishes, and desires” of her subject. Her photography has been published on the cover of National Geographic Magazine, inside O Magazine, Photo District News Magazine and shown in galleries in the US and France. 

In this conversation some of things we talk about:

May it inspire you to make your thing and change your world.