Applying Creativity and Craftsmanship to Our Work

Picking up where we left off last time, let's at ways to apply some creativity and craftsmanship to our work.

If you remember, we diverted from an initial discussion of the work of artists and craftsmen and began applying some of what we discovered to our own work. We'll return to more focus on artists and craftsmen. But for now let's expand on how we all can use a form of creativity and craftsmanship in our particular work, whatever it may be. We'll start where we left off last time with a personal example of this sole proprietor juggling and struggling with the plethora of activities the rain down on me.

When I took up the challenge of running my own business, there was a long stretch where I basically worked 7 days a week, 24/7 in the current parlance. When I wasn't actively doing something related to the business, my mind was almost totally occupied with it. (This was, of course, not ideal for a husband and father of 5 boys.) 

Without dragging you through all the particulars of what occupied my mental and physical energy, here are some highlights.

First thing I realized was the need for organizing my time. I tackled this using some outside resources along with some reliable practices I had applied as an employee. 

What suited the fledgling size of my business as well as my finances and temperament was paying for office space in Manhattan. I had commuted there from my home for a stretch of years and was most comfortable there. I also had the "luxury" of a dedicated space for a home office. So while commuting remained a staple, it was reduced from 5 to - at first - two days a week. (Over time, I figured I could manage things with a once a week commuted, eventually a once every two weeks.)

The week was broken down into "chunks" of time devoted to particular activities that needed attending on a regular basis. I posted this breakdown next to my home office desk. With some success, I filled in those chunks with the appropriate activities, such things like: Prepping for client calls/meetings, reading/research, bookkeeping, regular business review, etc. All were broken down into days of the week, with basically hourly chunks for each day.

This worked for a while. At least it was something I could use as a guide as I juggled the plethora of tasks that a sole proprietor and professional advice-giver has to manage.

Note the two sides of my endeavor: the business as business; the professional practice. The former presented the bigger challenge as I had never really run a business for any reasonable length of time. (We'll skip over the starts/stops/failures for now.) For the latter, I had some reasonable background. But I had to now not rely on a company to provide training, information, colleagues with various skill-sets. Never mind not having tech and admin support...well, you get the picture.

So all this kind of cascaded down on my body, mind and emotions as a kind of waterfall that splashed (crushed at times) onto me upon awakening each day.

This waterfall image presents a relatively accurate picture of what those first months were like. Picture yourself under that sort of watery assault. There's the pounding of the water - a heavy commodity to be sure - on head and shoulders. There's the inability to see clearly. There's the noise from the falling/pounding water. 

It was a challenge to think clearly and act in a measured, efficient manner. What to do first? What to do next? 

When you're an employee, tasks and activities are in a way imposed on you. You deal with them best you can. But starting up from scratch, you've got to sort through things and figure out what really needs doing, what's important to do right away, in the mere 24 hours we're given each day.

If anything cries out for the need to be creative, well, this would be it.

Circling back to the artist and the craftsman, maybe we compare a coloring book to an original work of art. The coloring book relates more to the employee. The book lays out all that's to be colored. Our input is in choosing appropriate colors. There's certainly creativity here. 

But the original work of art begins without the outline of the coloring book. And unless you're copying from a master, you've got to come up with the whole kit and caboodle. It may be clumsy comparison, but it's more like what starting up a business is like - at least for this fledgling, frequently bumbling sole proprietor.

The point being that creativity kicks in right away when you start up. At least it did - of necessity - for me.  

We'll have to continue this story next time, but for now, what of the Catholic part of this Catholic man at work? Did a lot of prayer go into starting up my business? Was I recollected during the frantic start- up phase such that I could pause during those early days and recognize God's Presence? Was I able to abandon myself to Him and not rely solely on my own efforts?  

All I can say is "Bravo!" to those who could/can do this. That'll give you some idea of the answers to these questions.
Until next time...