Inspirational Quote!

Photography by Monica Li

Inspirational Quote!

Photography by Monica Li

"Great leaders leave a trail of footprints that inspires you to follow your passions and dreams..."
~ Vinh Van Lam

Original post:

"But HOW do I know what my passion is??"

The only two ways to create change in your life

“First you say to yourself what you would be;

and then do what you have to do.”

                                     - Epictetus

Remember, here are really only two ways to create change your life.

You can make an external change (e.g. you can learn a new skill, change jobs, start a new relationship, get some more ‘know how’, or learn a new strategy for property investing) or you can make an internal change (e.g. change your beliefs, values, emotions, and patterns of behavior, etc).

What people usually do when they set a new goal or strive to create a new life for themselves is that they try to make external changes. “What can I learn or what skills do I need?” or “What new actions should I take to reach my goal?” are just some of the usual ways for people to approach their dreams.

The challenge with that is that if your desired external change doesn’t match your internal world then there will be a conflict on some level in your life and in your business. It can show up in ways like addictions, not following through, procrastination etc. The reason for this is that your external world is not aligned with your internal world (your unconscious mind).

Your unconscious mind is like an anchor on a boat, if you want it to start moving in a certain direction, you need to know how to lift the anchor and release the boat. If you don’t, the boat can only travel a limited distance before the anchor (your unconscious mind) will drag and stop you from moving.

In order for you to create the life and the business that you want, you need to learn how to create your internal world (unconscious mind) and design it to be aligned with your desired external world that you want to create. The ArtSHINE coaching process shows you how to do just that.

“Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act.”

“There is no other route to success.”

                                     - Stephen A Brennan

Want to find out more about creating a sustainable Business Lifestyle in your creative Fashion Design Practice?

It’s as simple as 1... 2... 3...

1:Like  ArtSHINE's Facebook page

2: Send an e-mail to this Quantum Compass address: ArtSHINE@QuantumCompass.com.au and get more info about our workshops for creative professionals.

3: Contact Vinh for a no cost, no obligation coaching session: just call Vinh direct on  0410 636 138, Vinh@QuantumCompass.com.au, or go to: 

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ArtShineDiscovery

New Year a great time for review

At this time of year most of our clients are working with us to reflect on past progress.

Have you financially progressed over the year? I.e. Has your net wealth [assets minus liabilities] improved?

Is your net income greater than your gross expenses?

Do you have credit card debt ?(this is a great indicator)

Are you happy in your current circumstances?

Think about these questions next two questions:

1 What do you want your net position to be in 3 years time?
2 How are you going to achieve it?

It seems like only yesterday we welcomed in 2013.

So what has changed in your life since last year? Did you achieve all your goals and dreams?

Remember, a goal without an action plan is just a wish. And in the real world, wishes don't often come true.

But what if you had a way to eliminate all the distractions that hold you back from getting what you want?

Imagine cutting through the clutter to get to the heart of your true desires. How confident would you feel knowing you had definite goals and a plan to ensure your success?

Once you know what you really want, you gain clarity. With clarity, you gain focus. With focus, you get results.

Sounds like an easy thing to do, but without a concrete plan and incremental steps, it will be difficult to achieve anything worthwhile.

The good news is; we've walked in your footsteps. And we’ve walked alongside clients just like you as they achieved success too.

To welcome in the New Year and give you a leg up on making 2013 your year to succeed, we want to give you a special head start in 2013.

It’s as simple as 1... 2... 3...

1: Like  ArtSHINE's Facebook page

2: Come along to the next “Action Planning” workshop.

    E-mail Quantum Compass: Goalseting@QuantumCompass.com.au  for details of the      

    next half day session near you.

3: Contact Vinh for a no cost, no obligation coaching session: 

    www.surveymonkey.com/s/ArtShineDiscovery

Tales My Mother Told Me...Tale 11 "I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done"

Welcome to Tales My Mother Told Me...

Tale 11: "I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done" - Buddha

I always do my best to remember this quote from Buddha, particularly when I get snowed under, or overwhelmed with work.

This quote always brings me back to reality.

Let me tell you why...

Fifteen years ago we owned a small chain of furniture and homeware stores in Sydney.

The business was demanding on many levels, with plenty of pressure. We were constantly busy with co-ordinating the furniture production on the manufacturing side of the business, along with selling the furniture in our retail stores. And then of course, there was the furniture delivery service too.

It was non stop.

We were very lucky to have the support of my parents at the time. Mainly moral support, but they certainly played a critical mentoring role.

My parents, particularly Mum, were great, full of encouragement, and they kept us focused too.

I can clearly remember one particular day. It was a one of those days where everything that could go wrong, did go wrong... You know those days...

On this day we were expecting a huge delivery of furniture from the factory, and of course, it was well and truly late.

Worse, because the factory was rushing to mean the deadline, the entire shipment that arrived was badly finished.

To say that I was very disappointed was an understatement. And stressed!

We were due to commence delivering to our customers within the hour. Our delivery drivers were waiting, and already on the clock.

Looking at the furniture, there were fifteen pieces of furniture that needed to be retouched, I totally lost it...

I started to yell and complain about the state of the furniture. "This is crazy Mum, we have to retouch the lot, all fifteen pieces, and we don't have time!" I yelled. "Look at the dispatch area! It's full of deliveries! We are so far behind with the delivery schedule, we'll never be able to deliver any of this on time!"

In a very calm tone my Mother asked me, "So Son, which piece of furniture shall we get done first?"

Now I know my Mum was deliberately ignoring my yelling, my stress, and my out of control sense of urgency, but that didn't stop my tirade. Everything spilled out at that point. All the things I still needed to do. All the things that were going wrong. All the things that other people had done wrong. All the things that I knew were going to happen now that everything had gone so wrong...

I'm not sure how long I was whinging and complaining for. Quite a while I imagine.

And all through that time my Mum was amazing.

Looking back on that day I can recognise that Mum felt all those stresses and worries too. And on top of that, she was subjected to all of my stresses and fears as well.

But here's the difference...

My Mother chose not to be in the same emotional state that I was in.

This was what she said that brought me back to my senses. "My little one, at this moment don't worry about what has been done. I understand that you are very upset because of what the factory has delivered today. We can deal with the factory latter. What we need to focus on right now is how to get the rest of delivery out to the customers' home. So keep calm, and focus on what really matters... what remains to be done".

On that day she knew what needed to be done to get us out of trouble. She never focused on what had been done, she only saw what really remained to be done. Mum was right about the delivery too. Although our delivery was running late we managed to inform all our customers about the delay and they were quite understanding. And we did complete all the delivery runs on the day, late, but everyone received thier furniture.

So that was my story about the quote. Now I would like to share with you how this quote  has changed my way of thinking, and how I run our business. You can apply these tips into your own business too of course.

Here are some of the tips:

Don't make excuses or keep complaining about things that block the way in your life and business. Instead, find solutions to the problem and fix them.

The amount of time we spent on making excuses, complaining and whinging could better off invested into solving the problem. Whinging and complaining are time wasters, and they definitely won't move you forward to achieve your goals and dreams.

As your own boss no one's there to hold you accountable except yourself. Sometimes it's easy to procrastinate and not to follow through all the important tasks in your business.

So have a list of things to do each day that will keep you on track for what you are trying to achieve.

Set regular purpose goals and review each one regularly.

Plan your 90 days activities planner so you know which task to focus on.

Be honest with yourself by acknowledging your strengths and weaknesses. Know where you are and own the situation. Ask for help too.

Focus on the "NOW". Don't delve on the past. 

Once you do this you will embrace changes to your life and business and will be looking for solutions, or getting people to help you with your business.

Tune in for next week the finale tale  Series 1...  "Frog In The Well"

More Tales My Mother Told Me...

Volume 1:

Tale 1: "When You Help One, You Help Thousands"

Tale 2: "Your Mind is Powerful"

Tale 3: "The Importance of Self Understanding"

Tale 4: "Being Compassionate"

Tale 5: "Finding the Inner Calmer In You"

Tale 6: "The Magic Pen"

Tale 7: "Here comes the Fair- Weather Friend"

Tale 8: "Confidence & Competence"

Tale 9:"Being Present"

Tale10: "Chicken scratches for what it gets"

Tale 11:"I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done"
Tale 12: "Frog In The Well"

Volume 2:

Tale 1: Pulling Up the seedlings to help them grow
Tale 2: Grind an Iron Pestle into a Needle

Tale 3: Talking about army on paper.

Tale 4: Being Persistent

Tale 5: A Poet’s Writing Skills Decline

Tales My Mother Told Me... Tale 8: Confidence & Competence

Welcome to Tales my Mother told me...

Tale 8: Confidence & Competence

"When you have high level of competence in what you do 

and the confidence to act on your ability...

you can succeed in any area you choose in your life"

- ArtSHINE

This tale started when I was in year nine at high school. Our school introduced public speaking as part of the English curriculum.  At school, I was a shy student; I recall hardly ever putting my hand up even if I knew the answer to questions. Or if I did, my heart was pounding like I was going to have a heart attack, and my hands would also shake.

I also remember my very first public speaking assignment in my English class...We all had to pick a topic and be prepared to stand up the front of the class and speak for at least five minutes. After I got the assignment, I was so worried about how I was going to do the public speaking.

So I went home with such a look of stress on my face and told Mum about the public speaking assignment that I had to deliver in a weeks time

.  

"What should I do mum, I am no good with public speaking. All my friends will see how nervous I am going to be and it will be so embarrassing" - I said quite distressed.

"Relax my little one, do you have a topic in mind that you want to present next week? Mum asked

“Yes I do, but I 'm so scared that my nervousness will kill my speech Mum" I said

"Public speaking is quite a challenge and the key to success is to know your topic well with lots of practice” Mum said.

"I will learn my script but I don't think my nerves will ever go away. I really wish I could do something about this" I said.

"Nervousness is part of us and there is nothing wrong being nervous. The reason you feel nervous is because you really care about what you’re going to present. You will feel those butterflies in your tummy and at times you will feel their movement stronger than at other times. The key is to keep them calm and comfortable so you can focus on your speech instead of your nerves. Remember your performance on the stage at the school show" Mum said with encouragement.

"Mum I was in kindergarten! I was a kid and I did not care what people think of me then, and I do now and this is a problem"

 "You were so confident on the stage and wearing a cute little tie that your Dad & I bought especially for the show." Mum said proudly.

"Yes I was and it was fun to be on the stage. I wonder why I wasn't nervous then.... Why mum?" I was puzzled.

"You were confident because you know that song back to front. And remember how you loved that song? You used to just sing it day and night because you loved it so much... In anything we do, first we need to be competent and learn the work in order to give us the confidence to deliver the result." said Mum.

"Confidence & Competence... what a pair"

"That's right my little one. Your nerves can be put behind you. This will come with experience. And to do well you need to do practice regularly and you need to know your stuff" Mum said with a big smile.

Needless to say, she was right, practice, practice, practice was my strategy for that first speech of mine. Of course I was nervous, but by focusing on what I knew, I was able to deliver without a stumble, and without a hitch.

So, in life and in business, Confidence & Competence play a major part in what we do. To do well and to be happy with what we do, we need to acknowledge and accept who we are. To celebrate our strengths and acknowledge our weaknesses.  After all, we’re all truly unique individuals.

Success in your Art & Design practices have everything do with you; how you feel, how you act, and how you embrace who you really are. 

At ArtSHINE we talk with our clients about “Confidence and Competence”.

Here’s why...

As creative individuals we all have dreams and desires. And we set goals that relate to those dreams and desires. Perhaps it’s to become a successful artist or designer recognised in your particular field. One thing’s for sure; all creative people have one very common goal; to be successful in our own right and to be doing what it is that we love.

From our coaching experience we see two essential characteristics required in order to achieve our goals:

1 CONFIDENCE: our heartfelt belief in our ability to do a task, and

2 COMPETENCE: all our abilities, all our skills, experiences and knowledge that means we are capable to do a task.

In our work we have found creative professionals generally fall into one of three groups when it comes to competence and confidence...

Confident but lacks competence: - Confident and talented with a clear focus on art and design, but not fully competent in all the aspects of the design practice.

Competent but lacks confidence: - Uniquely talented with a passion for Art and Design with an understanding, ability, and appreciation of the multiple facets of a successful design practice. But lacking the self confidence to move beyond current experiences. Sometimes reliant on others to confirm talents. Has the ability yet lacks the confidence to take action. Therefore remains stuck and seldom achieve goals and dreams.

While successful creative professionals fall into this third category...

Confident and competent: - This is where we want you to be... Positive in your approach to your Art & Design practices. Confident in your ability to achieve what you want, and actively working towards your goals. Understanding of what it takes to be good at what you do, and grateful for both your strengths and weaknesses. Constantly challenging yourself, learning new skills to get better within yourself, and in your Business LifeStyle.

So, to achieve our goals and be successful, the first step it to achieve competence. Build the necessary skills and knowledge you need in your Art & Design practice. And that’s not just about the Art and Design... It’s about your ability to "deliver the whole package".

Just as critical is your belief and having the confidence in yourself to take action. To have the confidence to do everything that’s necessary, to do what you know, to use your talent and your skills to the best of your ability.

The really good news is that both confidence and competence can be developed over time through learning, experiencing and gaining knowledge.

When you have a high level of competence in your particular area and you have the confidence to act on your ability... you can succeed in any area you choose in your life.

More Tales My Mother Told Me...

Volume 1:

Tale 1: "When You Help One, You Help Thousands"

Tale 2: "Your Mind is Powerful"

Tale 3: "The Importance of Self Understanding"

Tale 4: "Being Compassionate"

Tale 5: "Finding the Inner Calmer In You"

Tale 6: "The Magic Pen"

Tale 7: "Here comes the Fair- Weather Friend"

Tale 8: "Confidence & Competence"

Tale 9:"Being Present"

Tale10: "Chicken scratches for what it gets"

Tale 11:"I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done"
Tale 12: "Frog In The Well"

Volume 2:

Tale 1: Pulling Up the seedlings to help them grow
Tale 2: Grind an Iron Pestle into a Needle

Tale 3: Talking about army on paper.

Tale 4: Being Persistent

Tale 5: A Poet’s Writing Skills Decline

Tales My Mother told me..Tale 2 : "Your mind is powerful"

Welcome to tales my Mother told me...

Tale Two: "Your Mind is Powerful"

Illustration by Anthony Van Lam

This week I want to share with you a story about my mum when she was a little girl.

The story took place in her new home over 70 years ago. Mum was adopted by her aunt and migrated from China to Vietnam when she was only 8 years old. In her new family there were also 5 other children who were also adopted. My grandparents did not have any children of their own so therefore they wanted lots of children to bring noise and joy to their big home. Unlike the other 5 children, mum was alone, her parents and siblings were all still in China, she was lonely and scared in this new family.

Mum was the newest member to the family and it was difficult for her to adjust to this new life, new family and new place and the worst part of all she missed her family terribly.  Her life was not easy in the beginning as she was bullied by an older boy whom I called Uncle Quin. Uncle Quin also has a sister and who was younger than my mum and her name was Aunty May.

Uncle Quin would pick on my mum a lot and whenever there were house tasks to do he always insisted mum had to share the work load with him.  One day, his job was to fill up water in the two huge ceramic urns. He was not happy that he had to do it all by himself and so he made mum fill up the water urns with him as mum was the eldest girl out of the children and he was the eldest boy.

The other children all yelled out to him and said "that's not fair, Big Sis is a girl and smaller than you, you can't expect her to carry water from the well with the heavy buckets and the water urn is bigger than her. There is no way she can do that”.

He grinned and said "well that's too bad! She still has to do it even if she can’t and no one is allowed to help her".

So my mum was left with this big task ahead of her and she had no idea how to get the job done and the more she thought about how big the task was the head chatter in her mind confirmed that it was too hard and too big a job for her to do. She was crying the whole time as she tried to get the water from the well.  Crying for her mum back home and crying for her help.

"Don't cry Big Sis" said a little girl, it was my Aunty Le. Your mum is not here, she can't help you and I am sorry we can’t help you either. We are too small and too weak. Why don't you have a rest, your mum wouldn't like to see you like this. Then mum stopped and started to think back at what her mum said to her before she left home. "My dear child, I won’t be around you from now on, so make me proud, there will be times when you don't feel so good away from home so just remember this "be strong for me, my love, if you are strong, your mind stays strong and you can do anything you want if you believe in yourself".

Mum then stood up tall and walked to Uncle Quin and said "Stop picking on me just because I am new to the family and because I am small. I know you are bigger and stronger than me and I’m not here to compete with you. I may be small and weak and yes it will take me longer to fill up the water urn and that’s okay as I have the time, even if it takes me till midday to finish  the job and I will get it done.

With the heavy bucket, mum filled it half way each time and slowly poured the water into the urn. Although it did take her awhile, she did it and eventually filled up the urns. She achieved this because she changed her thought process.

"We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think"- Buddha

So, from this tale, I learnt that our mind is incredibly powerful. Your life and your business is a reflection of your thoughts. When you think about that, there is nothing that is too hard or easy…your thinking just makes it so’

Buddha also said "The mind is everything. What you think you become".

In life and business if you think you are weak and hopeless then you are formed by your thoughts. Just like mum, she thought she couldn’t do it in the beginning until she reframed her own mind and instead of giving up she became determined. Her goal at the time was to fill the urn with water and the task was bigger than she could chew so she filled the bucket halfway and slowly she was able to fill the urn until it was full. Just like your business lifestyle if you have a big goal and it’s too hard to achieve, what you can do is to break down the goals to sub goals and into small tasks so it makes it easy for you to manage, so you don’t get discouraged, overwhelmed and end up procrastinating.

Have you heard the funny joke about how to eat an elephant? One bite at a time!

So if you throw away those harmful thoughts and negative actions and cultivate all the positive thinking and goodness you CAN change and inspire your business lifestyle and the world you live in.

Please share your thoughts and leave your comments here or leave a comment on ArtSHINE Facebook page.

Tune in next Friday for tale 3: "The Importance of Self Understanding"

More Tales My Mother Told Me...

Volume 1:

Tale 1: "When You Help One, You Help Thousands"

Tale 2: "Your Mind is Powerful"

Tale 3: "The Importance of Self Understanding"

Tale 4: "Being Compassionate"

Tale 5: "Finding the Inner Calmer In You"

Tale 6: "The Magic Pen"

Tale 7: "Here comes the Fair- Weather Friend"

Tale 8: "Confidence & Competence"

Tale 9:"Being Present"

Tale10: "Chicken scratches for what it gets"

Tale 11:"I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done"
Tale 12: "Frog In The Well"

Volume 2:

Tale 1: Pulling Up the seedlings to help them grow
Tale 2: Grind an Iron Pestle into a Needle

Tale 3: Talking about army on paper.

Tale 4: Being Persistent

Tale 5: A Poet’s Writing Skills Decline