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.)
I am getting ready to go to Western Washington State from New Mexico on a two-week business trip, beginning January 9 and going through January 23. During the second week of this trip, I am looking to see if I can find someone with a spare bedroom where I could stay. I am traveling extremely low budget. I will be spending that week looking for work in the area East of Seattle, from Issaquah to Renton to Kent and Auburn Maple Valley and maybe Enumclaw. Issaquah is 20 miles East of Seattle, and the other communities are 20-50 miles south. As things stand right now, I don’t have a credit card; a debit card is on the way to me from my bank before I travel. I already know about hostel options in Seattle. I have been investigating couchsurfing and the site called airbnb.com. I have found some places that I could rent there for $200 per week, possibly. However, after I get done paying airport shuttle fees and gas for getting beyond the reach of the shuttle, that gives me about $200 or less, for the whole two weeks. And that’s scary. So if anyone knows someone, with whom I might be able to stay, that would be extremely helpful. The more I can trim expenses on this trip, the better.
I am a songwriter from TX now living in California, wanting to have my songs placed in film etc. I have received airplay in many countries but have not made the right connections for having my songs out into the world. I have tried various things over the years but just not the right one I suppose. Any help to open a door would be appreciated.
Nowadays you don’t need connections or door openers to get your music out in the world because there is YouTube. That’s where the big-shots go when they’re looking for new talent. Can you find a local singer or band to perform your music? And some film or animation students to make a short video? Or just an amateur self-filmed video can become very popular if there’s something unique or funny or quirky about it.
Also LinkedIn is generally the best place online for all kinds of professional connections. Use the search box with suitable keywords to find relevant groups and companies and people. It used to be mainly populated by conventional business people in suits, but now there are more and more artists and musicians and other creative people joining it.
Hi, looking forward to today’s #ideaparty!! I probably can’t start at noon but will join as soon as I can. Question: Are all my tweets going to be public to my Twitter followers? Is there a way to make them visible only to the “party people”? I’m not comfortable opening up all my wishes/comments to the world!
There is no way to restrict them to the party people, Carla. The upside of this is that everyone’s followers are likely to join in and bring ideas none of the rest of us have.
I tried to get it to work and couldn’t, and no one around here knows how either. I really wanted to participate! I still wonder if there is anyone I can stay with during my Washington trip’s second week, January 17-23, and I am wondering if there is any way I can borrow rather than rent a car to get to interviews. I guess people are just going to have to post stuff to here, because I can’t understand Twitter. I was able to set up an account, but can’t seem to send or receive messages.
I posted your request for a place to stay and use of a car on the Twitter Party. Skannie wrote back with another good idea:
u could try asking on Scanner Tribe & Success Teams Everywhere Facebook groups
I posted it in both those groups for you Mary Ann, because I don’t think you’re on Facebook. No offers yet though.
Yeah Twitter takes a bit of getting used to, and as soon as you get used to it, it changes.
@Webmaster — Thanks, that’s what I thought. Not to leave the impression that I have very many followers who would actually care, but you never know who’s listening. I guess that can cut both ways! Anyway, while on the one hand I’m reluctant to put myself out there in a Twitter Idea Party, on the other hand I just invited all my Facebook friends to join! Go figure!!
Love it!
Wish: I’ve been a career coach in higher education for many years. I launched a part-time career and executive coaching private practice this year and want to now take it full time, because there are so many people I’d like to help find a way to use their talents and so many executives I’d like to coach. Obstacle? I’m single and my sole source of support. I don’t feel like I can leave my full-time job to focus on this practice; I need to pay my bills and fund my retirement. I feel caught in the middle.
Hi, Tuffy –
I’m in NYC, and I need immediate help of the excellent kind I have a feeling you could offer (and I certainly can’t imagine I’m the only one who needs it, especially in this metro area).
This is feeling a little kismet-like because I have a project / launch I could really use some help with — and it’s … pretty time-sensitive (I don’t want to overstate the time-sensitivity and freak everybody out, but it always seems like these things take more time than they’d appear to at first blush) and I feel like I’m going through all three stages described here
http://barbarasclub.com/hangingout/wk009c/
all at once. Help!
Do you have a “throwaway” email address at which I could reach out to you to talk about it in a little more detail?
Hi! You can reach me at ca2055@bellsouth.net.
Hi, Tuffy –
I emailed you directly at that address as soon as I got the notice from here in my email inbox. It just occurred to me that I’d better respond back here as well b/c I wasn’t sure where you were going to check first.
Don’t forget to join the BIG once-a-year Twitter Idea Party on New Year’s Eve. Thousands of people will be ready to offer ideas, information, know-how and encouragement to help make your dreams come true. (You can warm up by helping them do the same.)
Why will they do this? No one knows for sure, but they always do, especially on the internet. We are problem-solving animals so I guess It’s human nature. (You’ll want to do the same.) Take a look:
https://twitter.com/search?q=%23ideaparty&src=hash )
Starts (New York time) on December 31 at noon and ends when the ball drops in Times Square (but the truth is, we can keep going as long as we like).
Simple instructions: head to Twitter.com and search for #ideaparty . Then read a bit, and toss in ideas or tell your wish and your obstacle.
IMPORTANT; Don’t forget to write #ideaparty in every tweet or we’ll miss it.
(or just head over to Tweetchat , search search for #ideaparty and you won’t have to remember to include #ideaparty in every tweet, because it’s done automatically.
Now, start thinking of a nice, short way to tell us your wish (W:) and your obstacle (O:) (Yes, you can do more than one Wish and Obstacle, but don’t do them at the same time. You’ll have at least 12 hours to go after them all.)
Then, wait for December 31, New Year’s Eve day, and hold on to your hat. This will be good fun!
I write here in the international forum of Wishcraft because I feel so much more connected to the original books of Barbara Sher (I also read them in English) and not in German, although I am from Germany. Maybe because I lived long time abroad…
I have a big dream: I want to be a success team leader, a personal coach who coaches with the techniques and understanding of what Wishcraft teaches and an alternative practitioner for psychotherapy who is able to work with people with e.g. eating disorders and depressions. I started to study for the alternative practitioner and also for holistic health advisor, so I will be qualified by the beginning of 2015 for these two areas but still will not have any practice really. But I want it as fast as possible and to make a living by it. Currently I am again jobless but quite happy with it because I have valuable time for all the preparations I am doing. I discovered Wishcraft three years ago and worked through it three times now. Also, I worked through Teamworks! Which inspired me even more.
I am a very creative person and I want to have the things as I want them, that’s why I started to get together a group of 5 people for a “Wishcraft”-workshop I will start in January. It’s based on Wishcraft and Teamworks! and I am soooo inspired!! I started to design this workshop all by myself with the help of these books and other books and my own 15-year-experience from all kinds of self-help- seminars, therapy, reading, studying and watching videos on YouTube and movies, and I wrote some guided imaginary programs in which I wove some of the wonderful exercises from Wishcraft. It’s an experiment, so I don’t charge any money for it. Well, my real working experience is just as an office assistant and secretary (and I hated it)…
The problem is, that I am very afraid of not succeeding in being self-employed. I had the idea of getting self-employed already two times and always I got so afraid and also I didn’t know how to do it (although I studied Business, but I am somehow stuck there, it’s as if I’d never studied anything of that (!)).
Sometimes I think I could just find out how to advertise and then start to coach other people but I am afraid that I am not qualified enough for it and that I will harm them. But also I am afraid that they will find out that I am not qualified enough and that they will give me a bad reputation and of course, not pay me. I also thought about alternative ways of studying something more official in the social sector to get the “social acceptance”. But actually I don’t want that and I have no motivation for it. But also this I think won’t get me where I want to be and I’m already 36..
That’s why I don’t find out how to advertise or get the whole thing started. I hide behind my books and my trainings to be done, I know…
Still I have some strengths:
I can sell myself very well to the wrong jobs (the jobs I hate and where I am very unhappy) – those jobs always paid the rent and a bit more but didn’t make me rich nor happy (not sure if this is a strength now or a weakness…?)
I am very disciplined
I am intelligent
I am creative
I am honest
I strive for living in harmony with myself and other people
I have a success team for myself, but it’s only me and another person and we only met twice up to now
I know what I want
And I also have weaknesses:
I sell myself to the wrong jobs
I worry a lot a lot a lot
I worry a lot
I worry a lot
I worry a lot and then I’m easy to manipulate
I don’t know how to get what I want although I know it from the books and still don’t know it for myself (isn’t that weird???)
And then I turn back to what (somehow) worked in the past (another job as a secretary etc)
I think I need a Coach who tells me what to do
Please help!
Hi Anna. It’s great you’re starting a group in Jan. Maybe after working with people in that group your confidence will build up. It seems like a good way to start–to experiment with a workshop. Then you’ll meet people who might decide to hire you in the future.
Also maybe once that group gets going you could start another self-help support group for people who are unhappy with their current job (or a group for people with eating disorders or depression.) After a while, if people coming to that group decide they need more help than they can get from the group they might ask you for individual one-on-one sessions? Or maybe you can start asking for donations to cover the cost of running the group?
But if you’re looking to boost your confidence, it seems to me that what you’re doing–starting a workshop, is the best thing for that. You’ll learn a lot about people, what their goals and dreams are and as you start working with them, you’ll think of more ideas for helping people and people will start to come to you looking for those ideas.
Yeah, that’s actually true. Just by designing the workshop and having had feedback from our pre-meeting (where I chose the ones who really mean it), I already got so many new ideas and also insights…
Thanks for your response! I think you’re right, I just have to do it and then things will develop..
I ran a self-help support group once. (Didn’t charge for it as it was a labor of love and a way for me to also get support.) I learned a lot about the issue as well as how to run a group and manage people.
One thing that helped me is I had a mentor. I knew a guy who ran a similar group in a different state. We corresponded via e-mail. He gave me lots of advice and tips for running my group. I also attended other self-help groups (Alcoholics
Anonymous, etc.) to get an idea of how they ran their groups. Anyone can attend most of those groups. You don’t need to be an alcoholic or whatever, just respectful of others in the group. I learned a lot about how to structure a group and how to manage potentially difficult people (a problem if your group is open to the public and free of charge, as anyone can just walk into your group.)
Anyhow, it sounds like you know what to do but are just looking for reassurance. I hope it goes well for you. Maybe you can keep us posted?
Yes, I think it’s a good idea to stay in touch and let you know how things develop. Today I will hopefully finish my workshop preparations… Thanks again for your comment, it’ good to know that there are people who know what I’m up to, so it’s more difficult to flinch from it..
Hi, Anna!
I can identify with what you’re saying, entirely. I want to combine life coaching with traditional psychotherapy too, and I have this pervasive fear that no one wants me, no one will like me, and no one will want to hire me. Screwy fears, I know, but this is what Barbara calls Resistance, and this week, in particular, it is waving red flags and blaring trumpets. I am about to go on a 1400+ mile journey to go look for work where I haven’t lived in 10 years. I’m going to look for work as a psychotherapist. And suddenly, I’m scared to death. Of the things that I just mentioned. And there seems to be no way to tame the fear. I wake up sweating, from nightmares, with insomnia, at 4:20 a.m. Many parts of the trip planning are incomplete. BUT IM GOING AHEAD ANYWAY!
I’m scared, oh, so scared, and I’m scared they’ll smell it on me when I go to interview, and even before, when I make the calls to set appointments. And I worry like heck too. I’ve decided I wouldn’t be normal if I didn’t worry, but I seem to have worryitis! But I’m Going Ahead Anyway!
I am so glad you’re starting a group in January. I’m sure it will fly, and you’ll get greater support for extending and expanding your dream. I can see it possibly coming together in pieces. It’s not such a huge jump to get from there to being a Success Teams trainer. One of the main things is that there needs to be a radius of 1 hour travel time, or so, between you and another trainer, so that you’re not overlapping the marketing territories. And then, you need $600+ for the training materials. As best as I understand it, the marketing strategies are built right into the program.
I don’t know how it is in Germany, but I’ve been self-employed most of my adult life, and it’s easy here. I’ve started several businesses, beginning in 1976. What I needed at the simplest was to go get a business license, so I could function legally. This was obtainable for a small fee from the local licensing authorities. I talked to someone who was already doing it, and she was willing to share ideas about how to succeed. She didn’t view me as competition at all. She was glad to share. She even helped me learn how to advertise, and I followed her advice and set up some advertising at about the same time I got the license. And shortly after that, boom! The phone rang, it was my first customer, and I was up and running! The dollars I made I plowed into newer equipment that I needed, so the business fed itself, as well as feeding me. I have never been very good at advertising. But I began out of nothing, and kept the business running for 6 years. It’s that easy here in the U.S. It’s a lot, lot harder than that if you are intending to become a psychotherapist, which I now have the training for. I am presently experiencing a lot of licensing frustrations and licensing difficulties, even though I have a master’s degree.
I am the granddaughter of pioneers, and they had a saying, as they were crossing this country in their covered wagons in the 1800’s–“Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”
I know of Success Teams leaders who are making a living at it. I think doing it, beginning in January, is going to energize you further, and I can certainly tell that you’re a gifted teacher, because you’ve given so much personal energy to this project already. Also, I bet, for someone like you, being a papershuffling secretary is boring as heck, and maybe demeaning to boot. I felt this way when I did it, but I knew it was paying my bread and butter. But, looking back on it, I learned valuable skills on that job.
The part you refer to as “weird” near the end of your post sounds like Resistance to me. Like me right now. I’d rather curl up and hide in bed, and hibernate for 12 hours or more, than make the preparations for my trip and do the job applications I must do before I depart! UGH, Horrors! And what will happen if I make a damn fool of myself, and get so scared that they can smell it coming and don’t hire me? Scared of failure? You Betcha! It’s a funny thing. When I grab my ten page list and start making cold calls to agencies, to see if they hire therapists or not, a sense of competence starts to creep over me. And so I call. Been working on it every morning for 3 days. It helps to know that I can stop at a certain hour, too. And not have to do it all day long.
A final word: Don’t go studying something you don’t want to study, in order to gain “Social Acceptance.” Phew! Graduate school is fiendishly expensive (at least in this country) and it is a painful grind. Even when you know that it fits with your purpose, and you’re hell bent to do it, like I was when I started it. Picture having to study 117 hours a week, just to keep up with the assignments! No time for much sleep, eating rapidly on the fly, and barely enough time for an occasional bath. No time at all for doing laundry. No time at all for any kind of a life. Not at all. For two years. This is what it took me. I wanted it so bad that I was willing to go to these lengths to get it. I did get it, but it was because this fit into my greater Purpose, and not because I’m trying to gain some sort of Social Recognition, or become Socially Correct, or I would have dropped out of school in the first semester! The rigor of the studying was incredible!
But I see in you a person who is creative and who wants to go this route. Barbara says that “Isolation is the dream killer.” So, beginning in January, you’re creating circumstances for success. Here’s to yours!
Mary Ann, I love how you write, you are an angel! Thank you so much for writing this long text full of understanding and power! Isn’t it funny, that we are soo much able to motivate our fellows and that it’s so difficult to tell us these things ourselves?
By the way, I came to a further conclusion for my project: I hired a Coach for myself. She, herself, is a success team leader in Germany and she is a health practitioner too and guides women to successful own businesses. Although it will be quite expensive for me, I decided that now it’s the right time to do it! I need someone who pushes me right into the water and shows me how to swim! And I’m ready for it. I had two more interested people and we already met for a pre-meeting. They both have dreams and they were so inspired during the meeting, so that they already went on doing something for their dreams. I let them do stuff for each other, which is so cool, as they are fulfilled while doing it and also help the other with the results of what they are doing! Ha! And they’re inspiring each other! They went off the meeting totally excited about their new projects and smiling from one ear to the other! It will be fun working with them!
Mary Ann, some weeks ago I came across a book from a motivational speaker, his name is Noah St. John. He offers an interesting technique: Just find reasons for WHY your project will work. Nothing else. List them all. Find more. List them. etc. Probably you already know this, but I didn’t. And simply asking this question made my thoughts turn upside down… Of course, fears and resistance and all those stay, but it’s harder for them to keep the power, because your brain will strike back with “I can do this, because I have this and this and that…” So the fight between them becomes more balanced… Anyway, it’s just an idea I had reading through your text. You’ve got sooo much already, which is great! A Master’s Degree, experience of being self-employed, life experience, all ready to go! I’m sure you will succeed with it! I would love to read how it goes. Lots of luck and fun to you!
I’ve recently become very interested in high school teaching, but I don’t know where to start. I have a law degree and a Ph.D. and have been a university professor, and I would love to teach social science and history at a private, independent school. (As a former Catholic, I’m not as interested in working at a parochial school, and having spent a lot of time in graduate school, I don’t want to invest in getting a teaching credential right now). I have about 15 years of classroom experience, and I absolutely love teaching and working with kids. But I’m wondering how to go about applying for this kind of job. Does anyone happen to know where I could find models for resumes and other application materials? Or how I’d request informational interviews to find out more about this career option? I tried applying to one of the big agencies, but they turned me down — apparently because I don’t already have experience teaching at this level. Thanks very much for your help!
I think it all depends on where you live and what the requirements are for teachers in your state. Social Science is a competitive field for high school teachers. At least it is in my area (central California). Math and Science teachers are in high demand, however, and you might find more success in those subject areas, if that is an option for you. In Science, sometimes they even pay you a teacher’s salary (or close to it) while you are doing your student teaching. You can prove subject matter competency by taking the CSET test(s) in the area(s) you wish to teach. You might also find schools in certain low population areas are more lenient about credentialing requirements, because they are so desperate for teachers. You could get classroom experience by being a substitute teacher or volunteering in a nearby school. Also, I’d do a lot of research on the new Common Core standards. Good luck!
Oh, also look into getting an emergency credential!
Thanks, Jennifer! That’s really helpful. I’m in CA too, but farther north: the San Francisco area. I’ll definitely look into all the options for credentialing — very encouraging.
I have been a teacher, and I have been a school librarian. I am Board Certified, K-12, because of my school library experience. And I’m afraid that you will pretty much have to have the teaching credentials if you intend to teach high school. I also have a friend who is a math teacher at a nearby high school, who also happens to have a PhD. The school district feels that they are lucky to have him. Teachers with graduate education usually make superior teachers. The various states have state laws heavily regulating who can and cannot be a teacher, and those laws stipulate the teaching credential. It requires going back to school for a year at a university that trains teachers to get it. That’s how I got in. I had a BA in English first, and then went back for my “5th year” of Education courses, plus my student teaching. This was in Washington State. After that, I was granted a Provisional License so that I could start teaching. I looked and looked for work. Our university had a placement office, which had job listings for qualified applicants. So I went there, learned of openings, and went interviewing. Once I got hired, I had to work for 3 years and earn a certain number of hours, and once that was done, I could get a Standard Certificate, which was good for as long as I taught plus 5 years thereafter. In Washington, in my day and age, you had to at least have a Provisional Teaching Certificate before you could be a substitute teacher. No one could attempt to teach at all in the schools without being credentialed. I was credentialed in English and Library Science, because these were the areas of my study. I had majored in English, and gone on after the 5th year, for an additional year where I got half a master’s in Library Science–enough credits to be able to become a school librarian. I second what Jennifer says about finding out all you can about the new Common Core standards, that have to do with the No Child Left Behind Act. It’s going to take the credentials to really be a teacher at the elementary, middle school, or high school levels. In Washington, I could not teach outside of my areas of study. For example, I could not teach History or Social Studies or Science. I had to stick with English and Library Science. So, if you want to be a math teacher or a physics teacher or a science teacher, you would need major study in those areas. Some people major in Education, and spend 4 years at it, and graduate from the College of Education. I didn’t. So, where I’m from, there were two ways to become a teacher. Major in Education or get a 5th year, get the credential, and get into the field. State laws do require the credentials, and things have become stricter than ever since No Child Left Behind was implemented. I hope this helps.
I’m in my 50’s and still looking for my Christian soulmate.
Obstacle: I don’t know where he is. I live in Tucson, AZ.
Your question jumped out at me because I was once a single girl living in Tucson, AZ, looking for my soul mate. My advice is pretty unconventional, so I’ll start by saying that I assume you’ve done all the usual stuff: looking for available partners at church, school and work, asking friends, and joining groups to pursue your various hobbies and to get you out of the house. Here’s my crazy advice: start driving a vintage car. I know this is nuts, but here’s why I recommend it. All an otherwise eligible person needs to find love is to get noticed, and a vintage car is a wonderful conversation starter — especially for men, and particularly for men of a certain age. (The beauty of this plan is that old cars are cheap and plentiful in Arizona, which is why I drove one when I lived there). In my vintage automobile, I found that my everyday errands and daily commute turned into meeting opportunities because friendly people were always complimenting me on my unusual car and wanting to talk a little about it. These encounters had the potential to open up new relationships (whether friendly, romantic or professional) simply because they allowed me to talk to strangers in a socially-acceptable and low-stakes way. (Basically, it’s a mobile version of the idea party). If you don’t like someone who engages you, you can give a brief reply and politely go about your business. But you can pursue the conversation wherever anyone piques your interest. (“Oh, do you know much about these things? I just got it and I’m looking for a good mechanic.”) Now, obviously, the key here is just to adopt something that can serve as a conversation piece so that men you don’t already know can have an excuse to talk to you — people do the same thing with unusual hats or with dogs. But in a city like yours, where the car is king and it’s very hard to meet new people in general, I wanted to share the more wacko version of this idea with you. Good luck!
Brilliant,Betty!!! Delightful!
On New Year’s Eve, let’s move this Idea Party over to the 5th yearly Idea Party on Twitter! You’ll add a whole lot of additional viewers who want to hear your wish and overcome your obstacles.
You must include #ideaparty in every tweet, however, so it will show up where everyone can see it!!
Or
you can do something much easier:
Once you have a twitter.com account, sign into TWEETCHAT.COM and #ideaparty will get put in automatically. When the ideas start flying, it’s easy to forget.
I recommend ‘TWEETCHAT’
Checking in a few times a day to make sure no one’s having any trouble. 🙂
Well done, Skannie!
(Interesting fellow!)