HomeHomehttp://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012-05-25T14:54:42ZSquarespaceAdapthttp://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012/5/25/adapt.htmlJim Couchenour2012-05-25T11:36:16Z2012-05-25T11:36:16ZSometimes when you're involved in a creative endeavor things don't go quite as you planned. I suggest 3 steps that have helped me when this happens:

   1. Step back - get away physically or at least mentally and try to gain perspective. Create some space between you and the situation. If you have the time, set it aside and come back to it after a brief period.

   2. Give thanks - this implies that there is someone to give thanks to and as a follower of Jesus I give thanks to God. This isn't because I think I "should" or because I'm trying manipulate the situation. It's simply because I know that God loves me and has a plan that is perfect for both for Him and for me. I can rest in that.

   3. Create again - think of plan B. Talk to those who are involved if you have a team. See if there is a way to complete the project differently than you envisioned in the beginning, because most likely there is.

I was co-director of a theater production recently and one of our lead characters, Brian Moore, did the show while he was battling cancer. He actually performed in the midst of weekly chemotherapy sessions. The other director and I decided to ask a couple characters to understudy in case he wasn't able to perform on show night. It would have been way less than ideal - Brian is an excellent actor – but we had plan B if necessary.

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

I could almost feel the sun drawing this corn up out of the ground when I took this photo.

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]]>RAW vs COOKEDhttp://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012/5/19/raw-vs-cooked.htmlJim Couchenour2012-05-19T15:52:51Z2012-05-19T15:52:51ZRAW

 

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]]>"You are a Writer" quotes - part 2http://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012/5/18/you-are-a-writer-quotes-part-2.htmlJim Couchenour2012-05-18T13:51:16Z2012-05-18T13:51:16Z More excerpts from Jeff Goins book You are a Writer.

On Passion

“Every writer experiences this. At some point in your journey, you find yourself writing for the approval of others, not for pure love of the craft.”

“You’re no longer satisfied with your passion, and there’s nothing you can do about it. All these royalty checks, all this blog traffic — you’re stuck.”

“Whether you’re starting to tackle writing for the first time or a lifelong veteran, rest assured. There is better work you’ve yet to create. If you will make one important choice: Stop writing for accolades, and start writing for passion.”

On Standing Out

“Experts say you’re supposed to imagine a specific person and write for him. This is a trick marketers use to find their ideal customer. They choose someone, give him a name, and focus all communication efforts on reaching that person. I did the same. I chose to write for one — and only one — person: myself.”

“It’s time to stop waiting to be asked and start creating.”

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

I drove to VA for a business meeting and saw this little church on a back road enroute. There's alot of history represented when you see the stained glass and cemetery grave markers.

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]]>"You are a Writer" quotes - Part 1http://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012/5/11/you-are-a-writer-quotes-part-1.htmlJim Couchenour2012-05-11T12:10:56Z2012-05-11T12:10:56ZHere are some great excerpts from Jeff Goins book You are a Writer.

On Writing

“It’s a choice, writing is. One that belongs to you and me. We get to choose it (or not) every single day. So whether or not the world hears your message — whether you leave the impact you were born to make — is entirely up to you.”

“Make no mistake. All of us at some point wonder if what we’re doing matters. The answer taunts us. It whispers from afar. Keeps us wondering and waiting. All the while, deep inside our hearts, something dangerous stirs. Something we’re afraid to admit.”

On Confidence

“Until you acknowledge this — that you are a writer — you are depriving the world of a gift it longs for. One that stands the test of time. One that could leave a legacy.”

“Anyone can do this. All it requires is a simple, scary solution: Believe you already are what you want to be. And then start acting like it.”

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

Sometimes I hate to post the "RAW" version of a photo because it's so bad. But I love seeing what can emerge from it by "COOKING" it out.

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]]>RAW vs COOKEDhttp://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012/5/5/raw-vs-cooked.htmlJim Couchenour2012-05-05T13:24:00Z2012-05-05T13:24:00ZRAW

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]]>Hit Ratiohttp://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012/5/4/hit-ratio.htmlJim Couchenour2012-05-04T11:27:09Z2012-05-04T11:27:09ZMy wife Lynette and I were in a plane coming back from a trip to the Grand Canyon. We happened to be looking at the photos we took and a man next to us said they were very nice photos. Then he said “You have a very good hit ratio”. I thanked him figuring it meant he thought there was a high percentage of good photos in the collection.

Over the last four years or so as I’ve embraced photography I’ve learned that to build a good hit ratio you have to have a lot of hits. I don’t mean hits in the sense of good photos. I mean the more you photograph, the better your hit ratio, as long as you learn as you go.

I’m sure this applies to any creative endeavor. Do it a lot. Practice it often. Risk wasting a canvas from time to time. I’m not sure if it really takes 10,000 hours to become an expert, but if you are passionate about what you’re doing much of the fun is the process of improving your hit ratio.

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

One of my favorite sunset subjects is this farm just outside the town I live in.

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]]>Pace Yourselfhttp://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012/4/20/pace-yourself.htmlJim Couchenour2012-04-20T11:29:31Z2012-04-20T11:29:31ZThere’s a lot of talk about diving into your creative work – getting it done – making sure you “ship”. All that is good advice and it’s essential that you do something if you want to create something. But as with anything balance is the key, especially when you begin to get in the zone and do what you are created to do. Time gets lost. Hours go by. And when I do that I tend to eventually hit a brick wall where I run of juice. All of a sudden I don’t have anything else to give.

So remember to pace yourself and take breaks as you work on your projects. Some people find it better to go from one thing to another before they’re complete. Others, stick to one thing until it’s totally finished. However you work, take time every once in a while to get away and recharge. Someone once said “Divert daily, withdraw weekly and abandon annually.”

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

Rarely do I take an image and post it straight out of the camera. I enjoy post-processing as much as taking the photograph - working toward the image that was in my mind when I took the photo.

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]]>10 Commandments Of Creativityhttp://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012/4/14/10-commandments-of-creativity.htmlJim Couchenour2012-04-14T11:07:31Z2012-04-14T11:07:31ZBelow is a list of things to remember when it comes to your creativity.


I. THOU ART CREATIVE

II. THOU SHALT GET OUT OF THY COMFORT ZONE

III. THOU SHALT CHANGE THY ENVIRONMENT

IV. THOU SHALT TRY DIFFERENT THINGS

V. THOU SHALT HONOR THY INTUITION

VI. THOU SHALT SEEK SEVERAL OPTIONS

VII. THOU SHALT JUSTIFY THY EFFORTS

VIII. THOU SHALT SEEK INPUTE FROM OTHERS

IX. THOU SHALT BELIEVE THOU WILT SUCCEED

X. THOU SHALT TAKE ACTION

By David Goldwich. To learn more about each one, click here.

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

Another drive by as I was on my way to an early morning photo walk at Beaver Creek State Park.

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]]>Creative teamshttp://www.jimcouchenour.com/home/2012/4/6/creative-teams.htmlJim Couchenour2012-04-06T11:51:50Z2012-04-06T11:51:50ZI’ve been involved in a number of productions with very creative people. In my experience, when creative people come together they really want to make the project work. They want to do their very best. And it’s surprising to me that they will trade hours and hours of their time to help make the project a success.

One of things I’ve learned is that if you’re leading a group of creative people (or any group for that matter), you need to allow for messiness.  You need to allow for the fact that we all bring emotions, perspectives, health issues, relational difficulties and a thousand other things that make us human. Sometimes I want to develop a plan, tell everybody how it’s going to work and then just “plug and play”. But you can’t ignore the humanness of us all – the need to relate and connect and communicate. And through it all it is very possible to have a project that ends up being so much more than you imagined, especially if you:

  1. cast a clear and compelling vision
  2. respect and encourage individual creativity
  3. anticipate what our humanness brings to the process
  4. keep working toward the best possible outcome

 PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

I know the "single, lone tree" theme is probably overworked, but there's still something appealing about it.

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