"Success Is Not a Secret, It Is a System"
Why creating systems and spaces matters, plus 4 writing prompts to journal on
Ever feel like you get knocked off your life path and find it challenging to get back on?
I’ve been feeling this lately.
This morning after listening to a podcast called House Therapy by
Feng Shui expert Amanda Gibby Peters, it suddenly became clear to me why I might be feeling this way. (Or at least one reason why.) Her topic was on the importance of setting up a creative work space. (Take a listen to this episode. Amanda has some wonderful Feng Shui cures for setting up a high-vibe work space, including why she suggests leaving one drawer or shelf area empty, or why she likes to keep either yellow or orange flowers nearby.)
It dawned on me – one reason I’ve been knocked out of my creative flow recently is because I no longer have my own designated work space. A space of solitude and quiet, where I can close a door, put up sticky notes, lay out calendars, and tune in — like I used to have at my previous house.
Much of this getting “knocked out” comes from the big move our family made this summer, as we moved out of our home at the end of June and moved into a different space.
We’ve been in a time of transition, and continue to do so. My daughter enters her junior year of high school today; my son leaves for his first year of college in a month; my husband and I are working on our “what’s next” in our careers; and life is lifeing. But, that’s the thing. Life is always lifeing.
Doing automatic writing this morning, I got the message that in order to get back into a flow of creativity and connection, it comes down to this:
Find and create your systems and spaces.
It reminded me of a quote by author Florence Shinn, who wrote in The Secret Door to Success that:
“Success is not a secret, it is a System.”
And here’s the system, according to Shinn: it’s giving undivided attention to what it is we want to feel, create, make, do, or experience. That’s it.
She says,
“The road to success is a straight and narrow path; it is a road of loving absorption, of undivided attention.”
It’s honoring what it is we want to create, make, do, or feel through unwavering devotion and discipline. Shinn doesn’t offer thoughts on the tools we need, or how to create funnels, or 10 things you need to do today to grow your business. She says that it’s simply giving undivided attention to our inspiration and ideas.
I know how easy it is to get distracted from one’s path, and that excuses can come very easily.
There will always be something going on in life: a move, a job change, a death, a birth, a child leaving for school, a health issue, a divorce, a marriage, and … dinner.
I do believe in giving ourselves the grace to feel all the feelings and to deal with what is at hand. Especially if it’s health related or someone we love passes on. These are moments that we need to give ourselves time to heal and care for our hearts and souls. No rushing the process there.
But what about when we are facing all the other stuff of life? Between taking care of chores and loved ones and finances and exercise and grocery shopping and doctor appointment and carpools and time passing oh-so quickly, how do we stay on the path of expressing our dharma? How do we give it undivided attention?
Through our systems and spaces.
And So I Ask
What do you need to do to honor yourself and your becoming? Is it designing a new space in your home – somewhere, somehow – that you can call your own, free of distractions? So that you can be in your flow, for at least a little bit every day, and give “undivided attention to what it is we want to feel, create, make, do, or experience.”
Is it waking up earlier before others in your home so that you can devote a portion of your morning to what lights you up?
Is it getting a new daily planner or calendar to write out your day and week ahead – and then sticking to it?
Is it going to libraries or coffee shops or a shared working space, to keep things feeling fresh and meet new people?
Is it putting your phone on “Do Not Disturb” for an hour or two so that you can fully get into a groove?
Is it designating a in a corner of your living room to be use solely for a meditation practice, or moving a dresser to make space for a desk specifically dedicated to your work?
What are your systems and spaces that support you?
But Then — There’s a Catch
As Amanda says on her podcast,
“It’s not enough to set up the space, weave in some rituals or even a little practical magic, and have all the best intentions. You’ve got to show up somehow every single day.”
That’s one of the major keys, isn’t it? To show up for ourselves and our lives — and our vision for our life — every single day.
After thinking about this and listening to Amanda’s podcast, my husband and I moved a few things around in our home this morning so that I now have a designated spot to call my own, to write, work, dream, and make. I’m creating new systems and spaces.
Journal On
Thinking of how we honor our time, space, and energy, here are some writing prompts to try this week:
What do you need to edit from your life that isn’t serving you in your growth, creativity, or productivity?
What do you want to reprioritize in your life that will help you feel expansive and evolving – and will make you feel like you are showing up for yourself?
How can you set up spaces that support you? What do you need to do, set up, design, or claim for your own?
How can you honor your space(s) – energetically, emotionally, physically?
As always, thanks for reading. Keep holding the light. xo, Laurie