How Does the Online Idea Party Work?
You have a dream or a wish, and an obstacle to getting there. (If you don’t think you know your wish, work through my kick-starter and read this post. To learn why you must put logic aside to find your dream, read the following.)
The online Idea Party is here to help you – and the other fellow party goers – with your wishes and obstacles.
Voices from Success Teams and Idea Parties:
Having a team to report to and hearing what everybody did each week is very exciting. It’s kept me moving all year. In the past I made some good starts on my own, but found, every time, when the energy ran out, I ran out. Now it doesn’t run out.
Jade G.
Children’s Playroom Therapist, New York Hospital
I would do a painting a year, a sketch a year. If it was only me I know I would never do it. Having to tell you makes all the difference. It’s crazy why I didn’t do this years ago, it’s so easy all of a sudden.
Caroline R. Personnel Executive, Macy’s Dept Store
Post Your Wish and Your Obstacle Here!
And help your team mates out when you can. Use the Reply link to help, the form below the comments to add your own Wish and Obstacle.
(Your first comment below has to be approved, so it may not display instantly depending on the time of the day. Once your email address is approved you can post instantly. If you want your own profile photo to show up beside your comments, instead of the cute little design, upload your photo on Gravatar.com and give them an hour or so to make it happen.)
Hi everyone,
I have a friend from an English speaking country who is currently living in the UK.
She is in a bit of a pickle:
– Family: through no fault of her own, a few years ago when one of her parents passed away, her family has mostly turned her back on her, so she no longer has a home in her country nor a proper family.
– Health: she has underlying health conditions which puts her on the critically vulnerable list in the UK, which means she’s been locked alone in her house since the lockdowns started, being too afraid to go out.
– Work: she has worked in insurance all her life, mostly in the lower paying jobs that involve customer focus or filling in paperwork / bespoken systems. She also works very long hours on systems that she’s not been properly trained to use and she absolutely hates her job.
– Passion: before covid, she was training on weekends to work in a beauty salon as it’s something she’s really passionate about, but she is now scared to be in contact with people, and doesn’t has the time / motivation to keep studying for it. She had a knack for it though.
– Finance: a lot of what she makes is spent on rent and it’s really hard for her to save much. She’s been lucky to rent the place where she is now as it’s cheaper than the rest of the market, but in a month or so the landlady wants her to either start paying more (can’t afford), find someone else to rent with (too scared because of covid) or move out (scared because everything else is too expensive and covid).
Strengths and skills:
– Language: she is incredibly pleasant, articulated and persuasive in English.
– Character: she is kind, non-judgemental, friendly, helpful and hard-working.
She is terribly proud and won’t accept financial aid from friends, so the only way I can see for her to improve her life would be if she could make her own money from a different job. Ideally she would get another job in a similar industry, but everything she’s found so far either pays less or asks her to go back to the office which she’s not in a position to do.
Can anyone think of anything she might be able to do as a primary or secondary job to get more income?
There are online jobs to teach English as a second language to school children. I know a couple of teachers who do it as a second job to supplement their income. They have told me it pays well.
Hello from your “tocaya” (in Spanish, someone with the same name as you). Your friend’s situation sounds similar to that of a friend of mine from the UK who lives here in my Mexican town, San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, where I moved from the USA 12 years ago. My friend Penny from the UK has health issues, family issues, and had a terribly expensive misadventure buying a home here, but thankfully has sold it again now. She moved here 4 years ago and her mom died during the lockdown so she had to attend the funeral via Zoom, all very sad. She did fall in love with a Mexican man, though, and they are living together now! I can see your friend coming to Mexico and living in the house my partner and I are renting now for only $8000 pesos (about $400 USD) a month and it has room for a hair salon on the first floor (no zoning laws here, you can do that!). I’m looking to go back to the States and the owner of this house lives in Texas and won’t be back any time soon, so when we leave, the house will be available. There are at least 10,000 English-speaking permanent residents here in San Miguel, including several who are British. I could introduce your friend to everyone! In fact, I know two women who would love to partner up in a salon business. Mexico is still lagging behind the UK in terms of vaccination rate but we’re getting there. Please tell her that if she can manage to get herself to the airport and visit, she can stay with us for a week or so. We have a guest room, so it won’t cost her anything. There are inexpensive Airbnbs and hostels here, too (lots of them) if she prefers more privacy or is allergic to dogs (we have two). Anyway, tell her to check out my blog MoveToMexico.org. It’s geared toward Americans, mostly, but it’s a way to get a feel for where I live. Then if she wants, she can write to me from there and ask me questions. I know it sounds far-fetched but if you read my story on the blog, you’ll know that I just “up and left” the USA one day, drove south for 4 days to San Miguel, and have never regretted it one bit!
I’m currently training to be a concert pianist but it’s very hard to find somewhere secure and not phenomenally expensive to study. I’m starting to feel overwhelmed with the lack of opportunity to study on a good piano and my funds are getting lower and lower. I’m estranged from my family and I feel a general lack of support around me as well.
My wish:
Find a place I can play for 6 hours or more per day (anywhere in the world, I would love to travel and that’s not a barrier to me – especially somewhere I can learn French or German even)
My barriers:
1. I can’t find a place/ opportunity
2. The opportunities I have found are extremely expensive (£400+ per month to rent a place)
Have a great day guys!
Hi Juliet,
I have a few ideas:
1. Find a Facebook group with likeminded people, they may know more?
2. Put an ad in the local newspaper and explain, what you are exactly looking for, maybe someone has an unused piano in a nice location you can practise on.
3. Start a YouTube channel and play the piano, also introducing yourself and say what you are looking for?
I live in Germany and some regions are more reasonable than others. I think Leipzig is not so expensive, you could also google cheapest city in Germany :-). Good luck!
I cannot promise all would have good pianos, but you might actually get paid something to play if you find a good piano in a department store, a nursery school (probably not the tunes you want to play, but you might find you get access to the piano before and after classes), a nursing home or assisted living center (as they are discovering the huge advantages of music with dementia patients), the homes of wealthy people whose families are now gone (the ones with a baby grand in the living room), and piano salesrooms.
Ask if you could get employment as a pianist at a cruise ship. They usually have a pianist to entertain their guests in the salon or the bar for some hours in the evening. So you have a good piano, much time to play and can enjoy travelling.
Juliet, I live in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico, and my partner (Mexican) is a professional musician, so I know all the other musicians in town, and I know where they keep the grand pianos! There are several places you could practice here that wouldn’t cost as much, and if you come, I’ll introduce you to world-renowned Latin jazz pianist Gabriel Hernández, who is a friend of ours (he toured with Buena Vista Social Club for years and is currently on tour somewhere, maybe Asia, but will be back soon). There are other concert pianists here, as well, and at least 10,000 English-speaking permanent residents, plus a few who speak French and I have a dear friend from Berlin who lives here, too. Check out my blog, MoveToMexico.org, and feel free to contact me through there if you want to visit. (You can fly into any of three airports, MEX, BJX or QRO, and get to San Miguel easily.) I am happy to answer any questions!
hmm i was thinking how lonely the pianos are in some big homes. and how the children may wish to learn piano too.
you can possibly strike a deal/barter with some nice family with a piano
who likes to teach their children or hear music or have social evenings
in return you get free lodging food plus pluss
this is like good old things of the past. no one said it had to be done alone and alond in an apartment. go big.
Hello everyone,
I’m a 22 year old from India pursuing writing as a career. I finished writing my first book.
Goals:
–Find an agent.
–Publish this book.
–Adapt it into a movie.
–Write my next book.
Obstacles:
–I’m worried I might end up with the wrong agent and my book will find no audience.
–Querying literary agents requires marketing strategies, and I don’t have any connections to market the book. (I was in an abusive relationship during college, which left me alone and isolated with no friends.)
–I’m trying to build a following on social media for this purpose, but it has only been a distraction, derailing me from my goal.
–I’m feeling depressed often, worried that I might be alone and isolated forever, and never reach my goals. I can’t really go out ‘coz of the pandemic and also because I can’t afford to go out and have fun. It sucks being a 22 year old, with no friends, no money or independence to live her life. This really lowers my motivation to work.
–I don’t have a job to fall back on or to just bring money to the family (I don’t want to do any other job. I want to write. I want to make a living writing books and adapting the books into films).
–Indecisive and anxious about the path I chose and on what to do next.
I’m trying and trying, only to be in the same place for two years. I finished writing a book, which is a huge progress. But I feel like my motivation, drive, desire to live, and be hopeful of a successful future–everything has gone. I’m feeling stuck.
I just got this opportunity from Jack Canfield, an American Autor and Coach, who also publishes books and supports writers. May be this can help you, and if not, you can ask them your specific questions
https://www.celebritybrandingagency.com/jack
Hope this was helpful
See also
wwwjackcanfield.com
Oh, thank you so much. I’ll check it out.
If you end up with the wrong agent…find a new one. You can also self-publish (search for that in google…lots of online platforms cropping up for self publishers).
Find writer friends (you can meet online for the time being). I don’t know if you have meetup.com where you are. Or just, again, google writers groups….find writers and set up a weekly zoom meeting to write together or talk about how to publish and how to find a good agent….network. Find a publisher willing to give you a 15 minute informational interview. Ask the person what publishers look for in a book to decide if they will publish it (or read about this online). You need to try to educate yourself about your field. Also, now that you finished one book, there is no reason to stop and wait for it to top the charts….keep writing. Maybe another book or maybe look for some online part time opportunities for: blogging, writing articles on subjects that interest you, etc.
Re: the depression….you are not the only one going through loneliness, especially right now. You need to find like-minded people to talk to. And also, thee is nothing wrong with being alone. Try meditation or some sort of exercise.
Thank you so much. I’m doing these things and am researching too. I’ll keep on trying.
Bavi,
Is your book written in English? Fiction or nonfiction? Genre?
I ask because there is a really great publisher in California, USA, run by Brooke Warner, for women authors only. It’s called She Writes Press, and I know they are full for 2022 but it takes a year or two to get a book published no matter what, so you can submit your manuscript right now if it’s one of the genres they’re looking for. Here’s the website: https://shewritespress.com.
Also, I’m a writer/editor and am thinking about becoming an agent because several of my clients who have self-published haven’t made money, but have books that are worthy of a trade publisher. I get that authors hate to wait two years to see their books come out, and I realize that huge advances and publicity tours are only for celebrity authors, but self-published books so often languish and I think that’s because everybody’s doing it—plus self-published books are not eligible for reviews at most of the important publications.
Anyway, I have a few publishing contacts, not many, and am looking for a way to break in. If I like your book, maybe I can help you out. Feel free to send me a copy of the submission that you sent to She Writes Press, if you like, and I’ll read it. You can reach me through my website https://editorsma.com.
One more thing…I belong to several Facebook groups with Binders in the name (an inside joke about a past US president accused of not putting women in positions of power, because he said, “We have binders FULL of women applicants!” and of course that’s where the women were kept… in the binders). One group is called #Binders & Book Marketing. I suggest you join that group, and find similar groups on LinkedIn. You can learn so much by reading what other authors are doing around the world, and you can post your own questions as you did here.
Hope you’ll get in touch!
Annie
Hello Anne,
It was wonderful to read your detailed reply to my comment. It gave me hope. I just submitted a message on your website’s contact form. But I made the mistake of adding an “i” to your name in a hurry. I apologize for it. Thank you so much for your help. I’m looking forward to getting in touch with you.
Bavi
Bavi, I don’t see your note. Did you send it via the contact form? *https://editorsma.com/contact/(
Yes, I did send it using the contact form, Anne. I got the message saying it was sent. I’m not sure why it hasn’t reached you. I’ll send you another.
I’ve sent the message again, Anne. It’s under the name Bavishya. Hope you received it this time.
I want to be independent; having part time job and stuff so I can move out of my house and have my own place and be able to effort my own education.
my obstacles are I have no driver license, no one accept me into any job, too depressed and anxious to apply to more jobs, possibly autistic burnout but have not been diagnose yet (diagnose need to be secret from parent read more to see why), fear of rejection, no close friend(irl that live in the same country), no income, and my parent are the type that would shame me for having any problems at all – that means getting help, mentally, physically or socially would need to be secret from them.
Hi y’all!
I’m a 21 year old South African. I have many dreams, and I have one particular wish that I know will enable me to pursue the others should said wish become a reality.
I currently live in a tiny town. I work full time at a local pig farm for approximately $380 per month. I graduated from high school but haven’t been able to pursue higher education (I tried so hard I remember trying to send Bill gates an email in the hopes of a scholarship or something xD)
I live in a small town where everything is pretty much basic. We have incredibly poor internet, we lack stuff like a gym and other things, etc. though it does come with the advantage of being quite safe. It is unfortunately a place with many homophobic individuals including my own parents, and as a result I’ve had little to no liberty. I can’t even paint my nails without dealing with harsh concequences, especially with the fact that I am. dependent on my parents in order to survive. While I do pay rent and stuff, they help me out by letting me pay slightly less so I can afford everything. They are very toxic though and have never been able to handle their own finances well. I never could ask them for help with stuff like paying for studies or anything because they place themselves in a lot of debt. I’ve been forced to face a lot of abuse from and because of them.
recently I applied at a local university with the hope of applying for a government bursary we have. I got accepted and had to fill in a contract, but because I am under 25 years old I had to have someone sign as a surety/cosigner, and my parents were not willing to do so. It hurts a lot knowing that they are readily willing to pretty much destroy any chance I have of a future. I tried finding someone else who’s willing to sign but have had no success.
My wish is to move to America and become a resident. Even a job with only 20k a year would be so much helpful. The obstacles is that I need to have an appropriate reason/sponsorship. The two main options for sponsorship I have are having an employment offer (though it may be a difficult process to get the visa for that), or attempting to win the green card lottery. I tried job hunting but as a foreigner with nothing more beyond graduating high school, it’s been quite difficult to find a permanent full-time job that’d be willing to employ a foreigner. I could try the green card lottery but with either visas I deal with a second obstacle which is funds. I’d need to pay for a flight ticket, likely get a doctor’s checkup, I’d need to make sure I have all the vaccines that are required and I have no proof of any I got as a child so that might end up being extra cost. The visa and green card are both additional costs I need, and during this pandemic it’s been quite difficult to get a passport.
Currently my strategy includes saving up money, though that’ll take years. I’m looking at any opportunity I can have to move out of town and get away from this toxic place (especially since it had me in a suicidal state of mind not too long ago), my concern is that I may not be able to have a job that pays as well as my current one, and my rent will be much higher. South Africa has a huge income inequality issue, and right now I have a job that is considered to pay well given my skill level. I’d likely not be able to pay all my bills in the new town. In the mean time I’m working on learning additional skills, especially video recording and editing, stuff like After Effects, and working on my art abilities. I’m working on learning everything I need for a possible future career in video production or character design/illustration. I may not have many opportunities now but I will still try and prepare for the future.
Hi Arnold, you’re very well spoken and sound quite motivated despite having so many obstacles. I think that bodes well for the outlook of your future. Learning video recording and editing is an excellent move because then you can apply to work on Upwork and make money doing projects for people online. Those skills are very desirable. And you can gain experience by keeping your hourly rate low at first and then increase it over time as you build a portfolio.
I understand this is only a small part of your overall wish, but if you can start earning and saving money now, it will remove some of the other obstacles you’re facing.
Best of luck to you!
Thanks for the reply!
That is one reason why I decided to learn video editing. The digital world has become so big, and videos are a huge part of people’s lives at this point. Besides, a YouTube career is my dream future 😛
It’s only a small part, but it’s something at least. A small step is better than no step 😀
Arnold, why not start a YouTube channel right now about life on a pig farm in South Africa? If you make it personal, educational, cheerful and upbeat, introducing us to pigs by name and describing their personalities and habits, etc., I bet you’ll get a following in no time! I understand the internet is bad, so it might take all night to upload a video, but that’s okay. (It’s like that here in Mexico, too.) Also, as soon as you get to the U.S. you will have better internet and can start making money online right away through Fiverr, Upwork, and other freelancing platforms (https://www.g2.com/categories/freelance-platforms). Without a college education but having worked on a farm, you might be able to get a job in landscaping, which pays well, or swimming pool maintenance. But first, what about moving somewhere closer and less expensive to get to, like Tanzania or Madagascar, where there are tons of U.S.-based projects you could work for and make contacts with Americans. Here’s one resource you can try: https://www.usaid.gov/careers (the directory of countries where they work is here, https://www.usaid.gov/mission-directory). There are volunteer organizations, too, and you wouldn’t be making money but you’d be out of your restrictive situation, gaining marketable skills, and making contacts. Here’s one I found with a quick search: https://tziva.org. The American Lutheran churches (Missouri Synod and ELCA are the two big groups) also do missions throughout Africa and yes, it’s a volunteer situation, but maybe they could bring you into a project and you could move away from home and make contacts who have the ability to get you set up with a passport and visa. I’m sorry it’s so difficult right now. The U.S. government is making it as difficult as possible to get into the country right now, so that’s another reason I suggest that you do it in steps. Maybe you can get to Australia, which is probably about the same cost as getting to the U.S. but possibly less restrictive in terms of visas and also you can go to school there and the credits will apply in the U.S. Finally, and this may be a weird suggestion—I know nothing about shipping routes—but there must be both cruise lines and freight shipping companies operating out of S.A. and if you could get a job on ships that go to the U.S., maybe that’s another way. Good luck!
I want to buy a home with some land near Prosper TX but I cannot afford it after 4 layoffs in 3 years. We need 4 bedrooms and room for this 100+ year old pool table that my husband inherited. We have to stay in this 30 mile radius due to my husband’s job.
Hi Lea,
I don’t know the financial details of your obstacles, so I’m generalizing a bit, but there may be some financial tactics that you could do to help with the not being able to afford it part.
For one, not sure if you have any debt, but if so, the first place to start might be hunkering down and trying to get rid of it as fast as possible and also replace the habits that earned you the debt so that you won’t get back into debt. And if you’re barely making ends meet with all the debt, look in to bankruptcy. There’s no shame in admitting that you’re in over your head and that you need help getting things in order. Just make sure to do the money management work to help things go better the next time around.
But if those aren’t issues for your, or at least in the meantime while you work on that, while you might not be able to buy, there might be a good rental option available. Websites like this might help: https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_rent/house,townhouse_type/4-_beds/?searchQueryState=%7B“pagination”%3A%7B%7D%2C”usersSearchTerm”%3A”Prosper%2C%20TX”%2C”mapBounds”%3A%7B”west”%3A-96.89747193228247%2C”east”%3A-96.72546723257544%2C”south”%3A33.16661067456171%2C”north”%3A33.2896706297492%7D%2C”mapZoom”%3A13%2C”isMapVisible”%3Atrue%2C”filterState”%3A%7B”beds”%3A%7B”min”%3A4%7D%2C”con”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”pmf”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”fore”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”apa”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”mf”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”ah”%3A%7B”value”%3Atrue%7D%2C”sort”%3A%7B”value”%3A”paymenta”%7D%2C”auc”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”nc”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”fr”%3A%7B”value”%3Atrue%7D%2C”land”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”tow”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”manu”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”fsbo”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”cmsn”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”pf”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”apco”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%2C”fsba”%3A%7B”value”%3Afalse%7D%7D%2C”isListVisible”%3Atrue%7D
Or working with some kind of rental agent.
Best Regards!
I’d like to find of those encounter groups Barbara was talking about in her TEDTalk about 5 years ago. I live in Tampa but may be relocating in the near future. A Zoom/Skype,etc. type group would be fine given the state of things. Trying to work out my dreams.
Obstacles: Asperger’s, ADD, a general frustration with the state of environmental systems and the times we live in, contempt for employee treatment and inefficient work systems, social isolation/ surrounded by neglect and helicopter pilots* Often with overlap.
Hi Adam,
I would love to be in a succes group also. I live in Barcelona and zoom or skype is a good choice for me.
If you can organise it mi email is toni.arba@gmail.com.
P.D: I’ve been working with people with Asperger’s syndrome for quite a long time so if it’s an obstacle for you, I’m pretty used to it 😉
http://shersuccessteams.com or find some friends and follow the instructions in Barbara’s book, Wishcraft.
Count me in Winstonsiveroni@gmail.com. Im from Perú
I’m interested! Jennie@jennieoconnor.com. Thanks for offering to organize, Toni.
Sorry Toni, I read that wrong and then tried to edit my comment. In any case, I concur, if you are able to put something together, Adam, I’d love to be a part of it.
I’m very interested in joining /starting a group as well!
Hi Aud L, for the 2nd obstacle, perhaps you can start by checking the official state websites. I am in Europe and I found a lot of useful information on starting a business on the local chamber of commerce website, including step by step guides and videos.
For the lack of support: I found Barbara’s idea of imaginary ideal family a great solution to deal with it. She talks about it in chapter 4 of Wishcraft (which you can access online for free).
My dream is simply to travel around the world,meet different people and see different cultures,be adventurous,try as much new things as I can
Hi, Nicole! (◠‿◠)
What are the obstacles that are preventing you from doing so?
I expect that https://www.couchsurfing.com/ will be up and running again at full capacity soon to help with this.
I had founded & ran an International Club in Tampa, Fl for 5 years – check out Beyond Culture – E.T. Hall and rRckSteves youtubr TRAVEL AS A Political Act (not that much on politics) about 80 min. Greg S
I want to open a successful rock climbing gym! I’ve always loved bouldering and everything that comes with it: the community, staying in shape, new challenges, and pushing boundaries.
What’s holding me back are:
my lack of funds
not knowing how to start up a business on my own
lack of support from the people around me (particularly family)
having to care for my young toddler
having to focus on work
One of the best ways to get started on any small business is to work for someone who runs such a business or a different business that serves the same crowd (e.g., another type of gym). You will learn so much without risking your own funds to do so. You’ll also meet people who share your interests and will support you when your family cannot (because when you take any risk, they hold their breath and hope you come back to boring quickly, because your risks affect them and we all like to feel in control of our risks). And you’ll probably earn just enough to pay someone to help with toddler care while you test your interest in this dream the easy way. And when you are prepared to open your own business, your child will be in school during the day, and your banker or investors will see you know enough to be trusted with the loans you’ll need to get started. Your family might even be getting used to the idea by then.