The Creativ & Kin Podcast

In this episode, Kate and I chat about her own experience of self-discovery, taking a gap year and then pivoting her studies and finally her career choice. We also explore the different influences on our own creativity and career choices, and touch on the struggle of getting past the need for validation and believing in your craft.

Kate and I met at recent meetup of Creativ & kin and except for obviously falling in love with her beautiful accent, we connected instantly. She moved to Cape Town from the USA, met her husband here and then decided to stay. She obtained a degree in fine arts in Texas, went on to work for Magnolia Home and HGTV's "Fixer Upper". She has recently decided to restart her own creative business here in Cape Town, and she walks us through a little bit of her journey.

Networking and support is super important for creatives, and Kate is the perfect person to ask for an opinion on how to make the most of starting afresh in a new setting or trade, or even a new country!

Take a screenshot of yourself whilst listening to this episode and share with us your most valuable and inspiring points! Tag us @madebykateg & @creativ.and.kin so we can share it!

As always, stay connected and keep creating!

Barbara xx

@creativ.and.kin

Hi there and welcome to this mini-teaching episode of the c&k podcast. Last night I posted my first ever free download for all of you and I was really surprised by how much all of you loved it! If you haven't already snagged the download, hop over to the link.tree in my bio on instagram and download your own copy. Let me know what you think!

As with anything new, it kind of feels like the classic camping scenario: You arrive in the dark of night and wake up the next morning, sticking your neck out of the tent to check out the surroundings, because you have no idea if the scenery is going to live up to the image you saw online when you booked. And then it takes your breath away because all along it was even way better than what you had imagined. That's how I would describe launching something new and having a good feeling in your gut, but still not being a 100% sure about it. But then, if you don't risk it, you'll never know.

So let's get back to the reason for this download. I firstly had been wanting to create a downloadable mini-guide about how I launched and grew the c&k instagram page in quite a short amount of time, and what I use on a daily basis to carry on with things and get them done. And secondly, I thought that if I felt so overwhelmed by this step, maybe by taking the leap and trying it out, I could learn lots of valuable new things I could then teach many of you. If I could figure out a process or a protocol that I could simplify and write down, I could take a lot of the anxiety out of it for fellow-creativepreneurs.

Ok so let's get down to business about refreshing a stale feed:

If you feel like you didn't quite get on board with the "New year, New me" wave, and maybe your insta feed is in fact feeling a bit outdated and not so much the true you or your business anymore, then this mini-training is for you:

Now I know your first question is most likely going to be: Barbara, do I need to delete all my old posts and start from scratch?! And my answer is a clear and definite: NO WAY! People love seeing how you've evolved and grown in your journey. So focus on the next 5 points and you'll see just why I say: "Keep the messy parts!"

1.Fresh new images:

Have some fresh new portrait pictures or product images taken. A portrait shoot should get you about 30 nice images and you won't believe the impact of this - they could pull you through the next 3-4 months of content for your feed if you use them wisely. It's always a good idea to have some professional pics at hand when collaborating with other creatives.

If there's no budget for some pro pics at the moment, source some nice locations in your area and ask a friend or hubby to take a few nice shots in different spots. Get creative! You could also source some "filler" images from stock libraries - there are loads of free ones available.

2.Redefine the way you speak to your audience:

Is the language you are mainly using too formal? Or are there ways you could hit the spot a little better by changing it up to sound a little more casual, familiar and witty? Or do you need to give them a bit more "real talk" or even some behind the scenes details about yourself to let them in a little more?

Spend some time thinking what it is your readers or community want to read more about or hear more of. Or even better - ask them!

3.Decide on an underlying colour scheme for your feed:

This should fit in with your primary brand colours and feel, it you've already established those, otherwise now might be a good time. Figure out what resonates more with your brand - is it bright and colourful? Neutral and muted? Minimalistic? Feminine? Deciding this will set the stage for the whole look of your feed and will make it easier to decide what goes...

In this episode, Nanette and I discuss the magic of humble beginnings, hiring for the first time (eeek!! Yes that's a daunting step!), the importance of company culture and we revisit the big topic of allowing imperfections for the sake of starting.

Then we also touch on the statistics for small businesses in South Africa... Let us know which category you fall into or currently find yourself in!

If this episode has inspired you in your own journey, please share it with us and tag us @creativ.and.kin and @handmade.media

As always, stay connected and keep creating!

This is a slightly deeper but really relevant topic as we explore Jess' story of how @watercolour_heart_illustration started and her growth as a creative even during difficult times of loss.

Jess' business started as a result of her taking some time off due to a damaged ulnar nerve. She then started to explore and fire up her creativity and love for illustration, as her grandmother had left her a beautiful watercolour paintbox and paper set after passing. Jess has continued to create and allow herself to truly feel and be inspired through deep losses.

If this episode has inspired you in your own journey, please share it with us and tag us @creativ.and.kin and @watercolour_heart_illustration.

As always, stay connected and keep creating!

Hi everyone and welcome to 2020! Some of us might have popped champagne and danced into those symmetrical new digits but I have a feeling that most of us just slept into the new year, blissfully aware of the fact that we would soon be woken up (most of us super early) by our own tiny minions.

Now I really get excited by fresh starts, even if they are actually just another day of the week, same routine and most of the shops are closed on the 1st of January anyway. But we can all create our own magic if we want to right? We had waffles for breakfast at Wimpy today because they were open and it was awesome.

So let's just take the pressure off and enjoy easing into the new year together, shall we?

Now you definitely don't have to feel like you need to be going at full speed in the first week of January because I can assure you no one's watching - they're either still on holiday or wishing they were. So let's rather use the time to start forming some plans so that we can roll over into action once we get back into our usual routines.

Goal setting and actual planning for the year ahead are two quite different things. An example of a goal might be to have 10 new clients by June 2020, or to be more organised in your admin by the end of the first term. Note that these goals all have the same things in common - they are specific, they are measurable and they have a deadline. Now planning for them will be a different process. For those of you in the service based industry, planning to reach a deadline for a project will have a very specific timeline and end date. But for creatives running a product based service, things might be a bit more loose and that's why I want you to be intentional about your planning, so that you don't wake up by midyear and realise you've been dreaming and staring into space for most of the time.

Ok, so if the idea of sitting down to plan a few months ahead into 2020 gets you all anxious and sweaty, or just downright depressed, the following 3 tips to plan for the year ahead might help you out of that situation:

Number 1:

Invest in a planner - whether it be a desk planner or a diary. I've said this many times before, but there is just something so very empowering and super positive about writing your dreams and goals on paper and keeping them somewhere visible in order to hold yourself accountable. For me, I write my big to do lists and deadlines in a day to day paper diary and then usually make shopping lists on my phone, as I know I'll always have it with me. Then for our household, we use a desk planner to synchronise everyone else's calendars - so all the big days, deadlines and to do's go on there so we can try and make sure nothing falls through the cracks.

Number 2:

Decide HOW you want to plan your year.

Do you want to set one big goal per semester or per quarter, or would you prefer breaking the year up into smaller chunks and taking it one step at a time?

Some of us might have a combination of the above approaches and that's actually really good. Do what works best for you.

So if you are doing the smaller chunks, start by planning your personal goals and work goals for the next 3 months only. Once you have that down, you can go on to the next 3 months and that will get you to halfyear. Try to think of these goals as events or deadlines popping up like locations on a timeline.

Now remember that if you are in the service based industry, your goals and projects are two completely different things.

When I started planning for the very first creativ & kin meetup last year, I gave myself 6 weeks and set the date. That way, it was easier for me to figure out what I had to do weekly to get to ...

In this episode we chat about Nikola's big career pivot and her move back to South Africa, as well as a big health turnaround that led her to conscious living. We also dive into the importance of a morning routine (however short or unstructured for the moms listening!) and the power of visualisation & gratitude.

Take a screenshot of yourself listening to this episode and tag us @creativ.and.kin / @nikolabotha and tell us what stood out the most to you.

Thanks for listening and as always, stay connected and keep creating!

In this episode, Jaclyn van Greunen aka @theladyjaclyn lets us in on her secrets for showing up confidently every time - even when she doesn't feel completely up to it. We also chat about setting goals and ultimately playing the long game.

This episode is as much for creative entrepreneurs as it is for every fierce female wanting to step up as the best version of herself. Let's get those creative juices flowing and bubbling for 2020!!!

If you enjoyed this episode, please let us know what inspired you most by leaving a review, or what your main take-home points were by tagging us in your post/stories @creativ.and.kin, @theladyjaclyn and #creativandkinpodcast on Instagram.

You could also leave a review on our Facebook page @creativ.and.kin or send us a DM and tell us what or who you want more of on here!!

Thanks for listening and as always, stay connected and keep creating!

Abi is a local artist specialising in ink line drawings of mostly South African botanicals. For the past 3 years she has successfully and consistently brought out annual & birthday calendars, as well as loads of beautiful commissioned work. Her calendars recently sold out at one of the Kamers vol Geskenke events and can be found in local and international shops, as listed on her website: www.abiwiese.com

In this episode, we chat about juggling creative work, studies and motherhood and all the (wonderful) emotions that come along with this kind of wild ride!

Find Abi on Instagram @abiwiese to follow her beautiful work & inspiring journey.

If you enjoyed this episode, please let us know what inspired you most, or what your main take-home points were by tagging us in your post/stories @creativ.and.kin, @abiwiese and #creativandkinpodcast on Instagram.

You could also leave a review on our Facebook page @creativ.and.kin or send us a DM and tell us what or who you want more of on here!!

Thanks for listening and as always, stay connected and keep creating!

Join Barbara as she shares the heart & vision of the Creativ & Kin community and brand new podcast!