Be Brave Enough to Bring Your Broomstick: An Interview with the Everyday Magazine Founder
Success always comes when you begin with the end in mind
There is no doubt about it, new beginnings – particularly those that we choose – can feel unbelievably exciting as we leap headlong into our next adventure. We’re enthusiastic about what it might bring and full of optimism, hope and expectancy, which rocks-up nicely alongside a conscious conviction that ‘this time things will be different’.
However, unless we make space for any feelings of loss which can arise during these times – or indeed the pain which made way for that new beginning to be conceived in the first place – we can easily miss important insights guiding us toward who we are, how we truly heal and what’s essential for us to do differently ‘this time’.
Be brave enough to bring your broomstick
It was fantastic to finally meet The Everyday Magazine Founder and fellow creative, Jess Blackwell this week. She greeted me carrying a delightful bag of goodies she’d already collected en route, which included freshly cut flowers and a miniature (but sizable) broomstick. Far from being offended, I was delighted that she had sensed I wouldn’t be bothered by the broomstick. I’m just glad we’re in October. April may have got me wondering. Perhaps Jess knew she was meeting one of her tribe.
So, with endings and new beginnings in mind, I was keen to know what ‘pain’ Jess had encountered on her own road towards the birth of The Everyday, as she immediately resonated with the theme I suggested for our opening article.
Jess spoke quickly and passionately with both warmth and humour as she began sharing the complex mix of feelings and emotions she had experienced whilst letting go of her last job role which meant so much to her; the grief and sadness at leaving such a good friend behind in a place where she had gained such valuable experience. And although Jess hadn’t said this directly, I could sense her enormous empathy with other creatives and the importance she placed on this work of art and expression and her belief that we all have valuable gifts worth sharing with the world.
“I want to thank The Everyday Magazine. Whilst I stroll in the slow lane, you are providing me with a project to work on, something to focus my energy into and allowing me to bring out a passion that I’d forgotten I had.”
- from an Everyday contributor
Not to mention, her capacity to juggle a great deal of diverse projects and ideas simultaneously. Perhaps what gave that one away was her casual relaying of a previous penchant for working up to three jobs simultaneously.
Throughout her story,’ I could hear how Jess was particularly conscious of her inner-world, how she had noticed signs and nudges from the universe, including words and phrases that other people spoke, which had sometimes spoken to her too, drawing her closer and closer to her decision each day.
I shared my own belief about how the universe always acts as our mirror, reflecting back to us our consciousness or thinking; perhaps prompting us to listen more to our intuition and our ‘higher-selves’; which guide us (or goad us) to see something differently or sense when to take that next important step.
Seeing Synchronicity
As I drove to our meeting that day in the delightful, new Tivoli Care-Bar in Bath I heard some of Rumi’s beautiful words on the radio. “Although the road is never-ending, take a step and keep walking. Do not look fearfully into the distance. On this path let the heart be your guide.” I was only in the car for ten minutes, but those words felt fitting for our meeting which was about to take place. Then, as I walked past the railway station, I heard a man boldly sharing with another how he was retiring and that today was his last day at work. A few more steps and I looked up; a shop front’s sign above the door said ‘see life from a new perspective’.
Endings and new beginnings were in my mind that day. So, these synchronicities meant that at least for today, I too was on the ‘right’ path.
If Curiosity Killed the Cat…
…I was curious. I was curious to know a bit more about why The Everyday Magazine idea was so important to Jess and what doing this work gives her, personally.
Jess spoke confidently about her belief – not only in the power of creativity itself and how dedicating routine time to it for personal wellbeing and happiness had impacted her own life – but also how seeing evidence of this already, via early feedback from Everyday contributors (you can see these kind words sprinkled throughout the article) provides encouragement for her to stay on this path. Creatives are saying what Jess already knows; that sharing their work and having it received by others, somehow brings yet another layer of joy and happiness to their lives and profoundly impacts the people who ‘receive’ it too.
“I just feel like I’m more ‘Me’ again now that I’ve got something to do that isn’t just work or television. It’s difficult to describe.”
- from an Everyday contributor
Or as Jess so generously put it “it [The Everyday Magazine] brings happiness and if you’re in a position to bring that to people, why not?” Since leaving university, Jess deliberately took time to explore how she could use her creativity wisely. And by wisely, I mean the kind of wisdom which serves humanity, not her own salary or status. Staying true to her heart, she became a co-founder of Doppler Effect [another creative organisation which matched her passion and desire to make a difference to the lives of fellow creatives mixing her natural gifts with her background, qualifications and training.
But when life in that role gradually and organically changed, and as Jess too grew and changed, she knew it was time to move onto pastures new.
And into her own new pasture.
Dedication to The Everyday Magic
Jess strikes me as a bit of a pioneer. She focuses on determination and expansion. She trusts her own instincts and guiding light by choosing her-Self; instead of a place in a Rat Race.
It’s not always easy for us to follow our hearts or our passions. Our heads can quickly and easily dominate, taking us down society’s super-speedway where a race to the top is our main objective. It takes courage to stay true to our inner-knowing – or for some, even acknowledge its existence. Sadly, there are times when our early childhood experiences unconsciously drive us down a road we didn’t know we’d taken, in a vehicle we didn’t choose using a map we cannot read.
I loved finding out about The Everyday which has a clear and simple purpose. It’s a diverse and deliberately inclusive platform for anyone to create and share their art – whether it’s “one piece, once” as Jess put it, or an ongoing dedication to their craft. When describing the energy of the magazine, Jess was confident that The Everyday is definitely “not pretentious or trying to be cool, but it does have a rebellious spark” which felt reassuringly like home to me.
She told me about her ‘dedication to the everyday’ (which I immediately loved as a strapline!) and how excited she feels for people to see new potential in their lives through sharing their creativity.
“Without being dramatic, it has changed everything for the better. It has brought out things in me that bring me the most joy.”
- from an Everyday contributor
The Everyday Magazine is for those who used to be creative, but for one reason or another just stopped. Ordinary-every-day-life can easily take up all the space if we let it – and Jess told me her own experience of that. The Everyday is for those who have never shared their work, those who are frightened to share their work and those who don’t even know they have work to share - not just for those who are already comfortable exhibiting their work.
So many of us have no idea about the power our creative work can have on us until we give ourselves to it. There is a letting go which is necessary in creating and a deeper letting go and trust which is required when we share ourselves with others.
“‘I think that because it’s going somewhere, and not just into the void of my computer hard drive, I’m a lot more keen to do it, and do it well. Plus, it’s something I’ve always done, even before uni, so the fact that I stopped was upsetting me a bit, but I never really had a reason to get back into it”
- from an Everyday contributor
The Bat Out of Hell
So, now with The Everyday Magazine and with thanks to Jess, we not only have a safe and rewarding space to create and share our own work, we too can feel joy and happiness from experiencing other people’s work, creating a virtuous circle of joy.
By acknowledging our path – and processing any pain along the way – we’re making space for the new and wonderful beginnings which await us. Whether that’s a new way of thinking, a new behaviour or a whole new way of living – or making a living.
I truly believe that we’re always making progress in our lives (however different that may look for each of us) travelling ever-further-forward toward more positivity and growth, whether we realise it or not.
Our unconscious mind keeps working to heal the past by crafting new ‘spells’ for our future, by re-creating similar scenarios, relationships and energies in the hope that ‘this time’ we’ll make a new and different choice.
And sometimes, like a bat in the night, although we can’t see the light, we hear and trust that call and let new magic in.
Written by Sarah Thayer
Sarah is a Transformational Coach and developing Writer who helps individuals and organisations to slow down, transform past patterns and live more authentically in life, in business, and in all their relationships.
http://www.slowcoachsarah.co.uk