Drawing my dream

By Andrea Schroeder / April 20, 2023

Get the calendar of upcoming calls here. | Get your next Dream Book lesson here.

I drew my dream meeting this morning:

I drew it out and couldn't find a lot of words for journaling so I started doodling around it and then the doodle turned the drawing into something that really captures the feeling of my dream right now.

I don't really understand it, but it feels right.

I have a lot of "why bother?" feelings about sharing it, so I am going to take that into the Un-Sticking Station:

Why Bother sighs: I just think this is kind of dumb and I don't care about it.

Me: You don't care about it? Why not?

Why Bother: Oh. Well. Shit. Yeah I do care. You know I care. It feels REAL. I feels like.... I don't know, an energetic portal to our dream? It feels special and like people might not understand and also like maybe it's not actually anything.

Me: Yeah all of that can be true. Any particular thing we do within a practice could be important or not important, what's important is that we keep showing up. And then in my role in this space, my work is to share the ways I show up. Remember how it's helpful to share, even when it's a mess, maybe especially when it's a mess, because it helps other people remember it's fine to be a mess?

Why Bother: Yeah I remember all of that now. I see why we should bother. I feel kind of meh about it.

Me: Yeah it's especially vulnerable to share a thing that feels maybe-meaningful and maybe-magical but also it's so early in the process that maybe this will amount to nothing. But my dream asked me to start drawing my dream meetings and I feel inspired about it and this is what I want to do.

Why Bother: Yeah. I don't have to feel great about it every day, either.

Me: Of course! We get to feel how we feel AND keep showing up.

Why Bother: OK, let's do this then.

If you're looking for something to DO today in your own Creative Dream Alchemy Practice, I suggest....

Do the Meeting My Dream practice from the Dream Lab and see what that sparks for you

Want to try something different? Pop into the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find something helpful for where you're at today.

Or click here to get a journal prompt to get you started.

It can be so vulnerable to talk about our dreams!

If it helps, remember that you can let us know EXACTLY what kind of feedback you want. Just put a little note at the bottom of your post to say: What kinds of feedback I am looking for on this post: Then let us know if you would like encouragement, or to hear stories of what we're doing with our dreams, or whatever you'd like. You can also say what kinds of feedback you are NOT in the mood for, or if you don't want ANY feedback.

Drawing my dream Read More »

I love the pages I have written but I am struggling to put them all together.

By Andrea Schroeder / April 19, 2023 / daily practice

Dream Book

This is a common theme for me, because the process of Creative Dreaming is entirely non-linear.

And even when we say we know it’s non-linear, we all tend to approach it looking for a linear path.

I mean the metaphor most people use is the spiral path.

But the spiral path is both linear AND directional. The line goes in a smooth, calm spiral.

Creative Dreaming is more an explosion than a spiral.

And that explosion creates new possibilities and destroys others and it’s disorienting but also life-giving. It’s like the creation of our galaxy.

Really beautiful things can come out of the messiest places. And also - sometimes things die, sometimes things are hard. It’s messy.

It feels like there is this whole industry out there trying to convince us that we don’t need to be messy. We can just manifest everything we want without ever knowing how we actually feel about anything. Which I think is a manifestation of our deep collective fears of being in the mess of life.

But I can’t make a book that is in the shape of an explosion.

I need to have pages, and the pages need to be in some kind of order.

I can encourage you to just open it up to a random page and work through it that way.

But I still have to put them into an order. Unless I print them out and pile them up and pick pages, like picking oracle cards, and put them into order that way?

That’s interesting.

I could also make little maps that guide you through in different ways.

The thing about a Creative Dream Practice is that it’s ALIVE. Once you’re in it, you can follow it and it won’t steer you wrong.

BUT

Getting into and then staying in it when things are hard, that’s the challenge.

That’s what I help people do in Dream Book. I know this book can’t do everything I do in Dream Book, but I want it to offer a way in, a new way of connecting with your dreams and navigating possibilities.

Because I have been doing this work for so long, and I’ve gone so deep into it, it can be hard for me to just keep things simple. I mean, Dream Book is a two year program and that’s if you’re going as fast as possible for two whole years. Most people take much longer, but by the time they get there, they’ve grown so much and so much has changed that it makes sense to start again at the beginning with their new dreams.

But this can’t be that!

I need this book to stay simple. A beginning book/journal about Creative Dreaming as a Practice.
How do I put this book into order, and give it some shape, and keep it simple?
Or am I not at that part yet? Should I just keep making pages and exploring my ideas?

Sometimes I end my practice with a few new questions and no new answers.

I love the pages I have written but I am struggling to put them all together. Read More »

My dream shows me my next steps

By Andrea Schroeder / April 19, 2023

Get the calendar of upcoming calls here. | Get your next Dream Book lesson here.

I am writing!

I have so many thoughts and ideas and I am having so much fun getting them all out. Spring is springing for me and I am here for it, like my brain is thawing.

I did get a little stuck on the "sharing my work on the Creative Dreaming As A Practice Book as I go" project. I wrote about on my public blog here and then I read that blog in a video on Instagram, here.

(Turns out I LOVE READING MY BLOGS IN A VIDEO!!! So fast, easy and fun. And it's a great way to share my writing with the people who never leave social media to read a blog. I know I could turn this into a podcast but I do not have the bandwidth for that right now.)

I feel good about the new process - sharing the blurbs on Instagram and writing on my blog about the process of writing. Writing always helps me find my way through. And I feel good about starting with one idea, having it not feel right, and making changes right away. This is how we build the path!

My practice today: Meeting my dream

It's kind of hard to get into it, I feel so much HIGH HAPPY GOOD ENERGY that I can't quite calm down and meditate with the video or without it.

So I just ask myself:

If I WAS meditating and calm and in the Field of Creative Dream Alchemy - what would that be like?

(And go with the first thing that comes to mind)

Sparkles everywhere. Everything feels like and like everything is possible,.

And then also I see myself, surrounded by sparkles, with my Dream Book, making art out of my daily practice.

And then my dream pops in as a yellow star and it's pointing at this image of me.

MAKE ART OUT OF YOUR DAILY PRACTICE!

OK that is very good advice.

I love when I do this, but I don't keep up with it. Which - maybe is ok? It's a thing I have gone in and out of doing for the last few years. And the last time I was REALLY into it I bought a new sketchbook and then didn't use it - I can put together an art kit so I can do this at home OR on the go, so everything is ready to go.

This feels REALLY good. Today I'll get ready and then start tomorrow 🙂

If you're looking for something to DO today in your own Creative Dream Alchemy Practice, I suggest....

Do the Meeting My Dream practice from the Dream Lab and see what that sparks for you

Want to try something different? Pop into the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find something helpful for where you're at today.

Or click here to get a journal prompt to get you started.

It can be so vulnerable to talk about our dreams!

My dream shows me my next steps Read More »

Your voice deserves to be heard

By Andrea Schroeder / April 18, 2023 / creative entrepreneur

I started blogging and sharing my work online around 2008. I turned that into a full time business in 2010.

It was easier then. There is no question about that.

There were enough people blogging and being on social media that there were opportunities for online business… but not so many people that it was hard to be seen in the crowd.

And the algorithms were just babies then. Not the full grown monsters they are today. I could go on and on about that so I’ll just say that I feel pretty UGH about social media a lot of the time…

But this is a place where people connect. This is a place where ideas are shared and your ideas deserve to be a part of the conversation.

Your voice deserves to be heard. Your ideas matter. Your work is important.

If you just stop sharing them in these places… that’s no good. It means these places become even more filled with even more of the inane nonsense that the algorithm likes to uplift.

+++++

I am offering Marketing as a Creative + Spiritual practice as a monthly call for this for all of 2023. Together, we are practicing listening to our deepest inspiration about how to put ourselves out there in a way that serves the soul of our work.

This is available to all members of Dream Book. Join us here.

Your voice deserves to be heard Read More »

I am wildly successful

By Andrea Schroeder / April 18, 2023

Get the calendar of upcoming calls here. | Get your next Dream Book lesson here.

Remember when I was complaining so much about the weather in March? It’s been so unseasonably warm. It still is, but we are inching our way into spring weather.

Yesterday I felt SO HAPPY AND ALIVE. Like, ridiculously happy and alive. And I realized I have had some kind of seasonal depression this spring. It’s easier to see it now that it’s lifted and I see the difference.

So - I FEEL ALIVE.

And I want to do AFFIRMATIONS.

This morning in my Dream Book I wrote: I AM WILDLY SUCCESSFUL and starting listing all the reasons why this is true. I held the feeling in my body. I thought: what would it mean to only act when I am in this feeling?

(Here is a meditation for working with affirmations and exploring all of your reactions to them. Having an uncomfortable responsive to an affirmation is just as good as having an uplifting response, you just work with it differently.)

I went to the coffee shop and did a bunch of writing. Not for anything in particular, just writing out my thoughts, which may become blog posts or something else. But it just felt so good to be in the flow.

If you're looking for something to DO today in your own Creative Dream Alchemy Practice, I suggest....

Do the Meeting My Dream practice from the Dream Lab and see what that sparks for you

Want to try something different? Pop into the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find something helpful for where you're at today.

Or click here to get a journal prompt to get you started.

It can be so vulnerable to talk about our dreams!

I am wildly successful Read More »

Making changes along the way

By Andrea Schroeder / April 17, 2023 / daily practice

Last week I said I was going to start sharing the book I am writing, as I go. I said I would post it on my social media and blog.

I did that last week, I did two posts and both times I wasn’t happy with the process of putting it on my blog.

Posting on Instagram felt great. I have a bunch of drafts ready to go in there, and the process of getting those drafts ready felt flowy and fun. Posting the drafts felt great.

But then going over to my blog, to share the same thing there, didn’t feel great. My body felt heavy. The work felt annoying. Even though it was the same work! Which is fascinating to me.

So I sat with that feeling and asked “Is this a sign I shouldn’t do this? Not share these things on my blog?”

And in the grand scheme of things, who even cares?

But, I care. I wanted to share it on my blog to have it on MY website and not just out in the social media ethers. And I always like to do what I said I would do, and I said I would do this.

But when I check in with how this feels in my body, my body does not care about either of these things. It cares about how uncomfortable it has been to get these blogs together, and how much it would rather be doing other things. It’s just giving a big NO.

That was the first post. I decided to try again for the second post, and see how that went. It went the same, and now here I am.

My head says: OMG this takes like two minutes, just do it. In all the work you’ve done to build your business this is hardly the most annoying thing! And you always ENJOYED doing even the annoying admin tasks because you’re doing it in service to your work! Where’s that attitude now?

I say: I don’t appreciate the attitude or you trying to boss me into doing it, but that is a good question. Why don’t I want to do this in service to this project?

The thing about approaching Creative Dreaming as a PRACTICE is that there is space to explore all of this, there is space for ALL thoughts and feelings.

You don’t just push through and focus on the outer work and getting things done, making visible progress. You make space to find YOUR way of creating YOUR path.

You try your ideas to find out how they fit and work for you!

This idea is not working for me.

If I stop doing it, that’s not a “I tried to do it, got uncomfortable, and gave up, and I am sure I will never get my dream now” kind of thing.

If I stop doing it, it’s a “I tried my idea, I processed my thoughts and feelings about it, I listened to my intuition and the soul of my dream, together we learned from these steps I took and used that learning to map out different steps to try next” kind of thing.

And THAT is how you make the magic happen.

THAT is how you practice your way there.

So, when I do all of this, here is the next idea that emerges:

I’m going to stop posting the little-book-blurbs-in process on my blog. I will keep posting them on Instagram. On my blog, I will write about the process of writing the book.

Write about the writing!

This feels curious and inspiring. My body feels open, light and sparkly. No part of me is against this idea. The soul of my dream is cheering for it.

So this is what I’ll do next.

And maybe I’ll do this two times and be all “oh wow this sucks” again or maybe this will be a really great thing for me. The outcome of any particular step doesn’t matter because I know I will stay in the process long enough to get to where I want to go.

It’s so much easier to stay in the process when you embrace and make space for all feelings and reactions. And it’s kind of ironic that pushing yourself to get to the finish line often pushes the finish line to far away it gets impossible to get there.

PS: I just posted the next blurb.

Making changes along the way Read More »

Having a practice

By Andrea Schroeder / April 14, 2023 / daily practice

Having a practice means to do something regularly or repeatedly.

In the most practical sense practicing improves skills.

So once you are practicing, anything is possible because you keep improving.

You show up, do a thing, make mistakes, get inspired to try new things, learn and grow.

A Creative Dream Practice is all this and more.

It is a container for:

✨Healing
✨Creativity
✨Transformation
✨Magic

It holds space for new possibilities to emerge.

++++++++

I am writing a book/journal about how we need to PRACTICE our creative dreams. Which includes practicing the healing and growth and creativity that gets us there. And then how once we have a practice, that practice becomes a CONTAINER for healing, growth, creativity and magic. Once we have a practice, that practices helps us access everything we need.

When I say I've been writing a book - I mean by hand, drawing each page. It's a slow process but I am having so much fun. As I do this, I'll be sharing posts on Instagram and here on my blog.

Having a practice Read More »

Vibing with my dream (Weekly Dream Status Report)

By Andrea Schroeder / April 14, 2023

Get the calendar of upcoming calls here. | Get your next Dream Book lesson here.

What are you up to today? Let us know in the comments!

Tell us what you're working on, struggling with, ask questions, share your goals, etc, in these daily posts. This is a great way to put stuff "out there" where only people who "get it" are going to see it.

On Fridays I post my Dream Status Report which is a series of prompts I use every week to help me have more clarity, momentum and groundedness on my path. The prompts are here. You can do them with me, or do your own thing.

My Dream Status Report:

PART ONE: (sometimes these can stay the same for months at time, sometimes they change often)

My dream is: BEING the artist + writer I want to be. This is the "big picture" dream - this includes lots of different inner + outer things.

I want it because: This is what feels most enticing and interesting to me. I'm also noticing how BEING who I feel I AM is important for my mental health.

When I have it I will feel: Just a little more ME, more energized. More stable/sturdy. Excited about the new work I am doing.

My new moon intention: Focus on the book project.

PART TWO: Invite your dream in (using the Dream Lab practice) to help you with the rest of the prompts.

My dream shows up as a star in the sky with rainbows streaming down from it.

PART THREE:

Last week’s focus was: START THIS NEW THING! (Sharing the book/journal I am writing as I go)

What happened in the last week? I started the thing! First, I had a lot of resistance and felt... not ready, too foggy, too tired, etc. After sitting with the resistance, I had more space to be with my excitement for this idea and then it felt natural to do it.

What am I learning/How do I feel about this? I feel ALIGNED. This place where I was wanting to do a thing but not knowing how to start felt so uncomfortable to be in, the discomfort of DOING IT ANYWAY was big too... but now that I am just DOING IT, it feels fine that I don't know exactly how to do it. Just keep taking the little step that's in front of me to take.

What do I need now? At the start of the week my dream sent me routines, boundaries. Reminders of how much I need these things. ALL the self care, especially early bed time and planning the night before, which I had been a bit lax about.

I am remembering that the last two years, coming out of winter's hibernation I felt great in the spring but by summer and fall I had a lot of anxiety, like the world was too much. This year I would like to be out in the world and taking really good care... not that self care is a cure for anxiety, but I do feel like in this situation, some parts of my anxiety are just how my body is operating right now and some parts can really be helped by having more supportive self care routines. And I want to do all the things to take care of myself.

What does my dream need now? It just wants me to VIBE WITH IT. It loves all the things I am doing and wants me to stay in a chill, open, receptive place.

Taking all of this into account, my focus for the next week is: Keep working on the things I am working on, while vibing with my dream.

If you're looking for something to DO today in your own Creative Dream Alchemy Practice, I suggest....

Do the Meeting My Dream practice from the Dream Lab and see what that sparks for you

Want to try something different? Pop into the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find something helpful for where you're at today.

Or click here to get a journal prompt to get you started.

It can be so vulnerable to talk about our dreams!

Vibing with my dream (Weekly Dream Status Report) Read More »

In the beginning it’s like this…

By Andrea Schroeder / April 13, 2023 / daily practice

When you look to where you want to be, there is no path.

Just an impossible chasm and no way to cross it.

This is how dreams begin.

When you're not engaging with your dreams it easy for them to feel impossible.

Once you are engaged, the magic happens and possibilities begin to emerge.

How do you engage with a thing that feels impossible?

Practice.

++++++++

When I say I've been writing a book - I mean by hand, drawing each page. It's a slow process but I am having so much fun. As I do this, I'll be sharing posts on Instagram and here on my blog. This is the first one.

In the beginning it’s like this… Read More »

Magic Happens

By Andrea Schroeder / April 13, 2023

Get the calendar of upcoming calls here. | Get your next Dream Book lesson here.

I’ve been working on my routines, like my dream said to do on Monday. I am setting intentions and planning ahead and just feeling so much more steady all around. Last night I planned to ride my bike downtown this morning (for the first time this year when the roads were clear enough so I could get to my favourite spot!) so I got my clothes ready and bag packed because being prepared makes less space for resistance to take over.

One of the things I talked about on the Slow the Fuck Down call 2 yesterday is the part of my life that I want to speed up - my social life. I want to see my friends more and get involved in groups like I used to be.

And we talked about allowing things to come to us without rushing, worrying and doing all of the work ourselves…. (Also we are doing the Being OPEN + RECEPTIVE to your dreams call on April 27, for more of this)

And this morning I was riding my bike downtown... and then I saw a friend walking on the sidewalk! Turns out he gets to work early to get a coffee and go for a walk. So we went for a walk together and got to catch up a bit!

And then I got to my favourite spot for journaling and drawing, and I feel SO GOOD.

I feel clear about my next steps - it’s time to share sharing this book/journal I am writing. And I can’t/won’t have a plan for this, which is what I’ve been stuck with. I’m just going to follow my own advice and do the parts that are right in front of me and let the bigger picture come into focus when it comes into focus.

Update: I did write about this on social media + my blog - that I am getting this process started!

If you're looking for something to DO today in your own Creative Dream Alchemy Practice, I suggest....

Do the Meeting My Dream practice from the Dream Lab and see what that sparks for you

Want to try something different? Pop into the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find something helpful for where you're at today.

Or click here to get a journal prompt to get you started.

It can be so vulnerable to talk about our dreams!

Magic Happens Read More »

This is the start of my next phase

By Andrea Schroeder / April 12, 2023

My "post" pandemic, peri-menopause "I am too sensitive for this world", running-a-micro-business-in-late-stage-capitalism-while-the-climate-is-changing-in-terrifying-ways self has a harder time getting things organized than my pre-2016 self.

I did a whole therapy session last week outlining these differences, the events that happened that changed things for me, the things I learned and the ways I grew, and what I want to DO with all of this now.

I'm also feeling inspired from watching The Last Of US and thinking of all the different ways of living we can create post-collapse. Ten years ago, when I thought about the economy falling apart, I didn't know how I could contribute to re-building. I thought that all of my REAL skills, the work I do with the Creative Dream Incubator would be needed but not urgent and I might focus on making things, like sewing clothing for people out of salvaged materials.

But now I see how urgent it is that we, collectively, get better at listening to our inner truth and having the courage and capacity to live our values.

It will be the difference between dystopia and building a better world for everyone.

In 2016, in the aftermath of the election of Donald Trump, I started to learn what white supremacy really is and how it's functioning in our world today, and I pulled back from a lot of the work I was doing.

That's when I started to see it, how we needed new ways of doing things if we want a new world. I started to see how all of the training and development I put into growing my skills for this work was done from within extremely problematic ways of being. That the white supremacist, ableist, capitalist, colonialist ways of seeing the world that our culture was built on are just as present in healing circles and coaching programs as they are anywhere else. These are the invisible systems that hold up our culture and they will remain there until we learn to see them and work to tear them down.

I learned to start to see the ways my work was rooted in all of these things that I, myself, never wanted. It's like a fish not knowing what water is. We're swimming in it, and it takes work to cultivate an awareness of it.

So in 2016 I started to look for a better way to offer Creative Dream Coaching.

I still believed that getting better at LISTENING to own selves and having the tools, skills and support to be BRAVER in how we live our values is one of the things that is going to help save the world.

But some of the tools I learned for this work were about spiritual bypass even while I was consciously trying to not do that, some were about leaning unconsciously into privilege and calling it grace, many were ableist and all were appropriated, cherry-picked from other cultures and taken completely out of context.

From 2016 to 2019 I worked on finding better ways, and that culminated in the Dream Book program. Essentially, Dream Book helps you create a PRACTICE for Creative Dreaming to help you navigate the space between where you are and where you want to be.

While I've been thrilled, moved, healed and delighted to do this work every day with the people in Dream Book, I've been flailing around trying to figure out how I want the Creative Dream Incubator to show up outside of this program.

I mean, I pulled back in 2016. The internet was a different place back then. The world was a different place back then.

So diving back in to "being more visible online" has been tricky.

But, after all of this flailing, I am now feeling clear and somewhat sure about how I want to do this.

I've been writing a book. So far it's called

SHOW UP FOR YOUR CREATIVE DREAMS
and
CREATIVE DREAMING IS A PRACTICE

And who knows how many other names will come to me as I work on it and what name it will end up with.

It's about how we need to PRACTICE our creative dreams. Which includes practicing the healing and growth and creativity that gets us there.

And then how once we have a practice, that practice becomes a CONTAINER for healing, growth, creativity and magic.

Once we have a practice, that practices helps us access everything we need.

What I want to do is share this book as I write it.

In the past, when I would do any kind of free offering I had it all planned out in advance. I stepped into it feeling like I knew what it was and I knew what I was doing.

I want to do this different.

I want to be in the magic of it. And share as I go even though I don't know exactly WHERE I am going, I do trust the process.

When I say I've been writing a book - I mean by hand, drawing each page. It's a slow process but I am having so much fun and I can't wait to start sharing the drawings.

I'll start by sharing posts on Instagram and here on my blog. And then see where this takes us.

This is the start of my next phase Read More »

My dream is hard to find today

By Andrea Schroeder / April 12, 2023

Get the calendar of upcoming calls here. | Get your next Dream Book lesson here.

Yesterday's Dream Lab meeting was SO helpful! Today, not so much.

As I start working on the new routines my dream suggested yesterday - today my dream is just nowhere to be found.

I've been sitting with it, and it's just... nothing.

It does feel like resistance, so I am doing the When You're In Resistance meditation for my practice today.

Ugh, in the meditation my resistance feels just gross. Heavy and slimy in my body. And unwanted intruder.

Oh no wonder I have been playing dumb little games on my phone, because I am just looking for anything to NOT be with this feeling.

Staying with it though...

My resistance is SO slimy, like a worm wiggling around in my body, crawling towards my head.

It's interesting as I listen to myself in the video talk about how I was feeling resistance that day, today it's a completely different feeling.

When I bring in my feelings of how much I want to do the thing I am resisting... this feels like heartbreak. Heartbreak that I feel resistance to doing this thing, heartbreak that I am not already doing the thing.

Underneath that - all of the love, joy and enthusiasm I feel for DOING the thing. But then also... the dozens of questions I have about HOW to do the thing... all the fears... now it's like I am feeling it all at once, and every feeling turned up to full volume.

But suddenly I get clear: I need to create an OBSTACLES PAGE in my Dream book. (this is from month 2 of Dream Book so if you're brand new you won' have access to it yet)

AND I see: there are two dreams I am working with right now which are super connected, but I do need to work with them more separately. They each need different things, and working with them as a group is not working for me right now.

OK WHOA now I feel clear and excited/enthusiastic about taking my next steps.

If you're looking for something to DO today in your own Creative Dream Alchemy Practice, I suggest....

Do the Meeting My Dream practice from the Dream Lab and see what that sparks for you

Want to try something different? Pop into the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find something helpful for where you're at today.

Or click here to get a journal prompt to get you started.

It can be so vulnerable to talk about our dreams!

My dream is hard to find today Read More »

My dream sends me structure and boundaries

By Andrea Schroeder / April 11, 2023

Get the calendar of upcoming calls here. | Get your next Dream Book lesson here.

Today in the Dream Lab:

My dream shows up first as fences and then as building blocks which arrange themselves into rows of stacks.

Structure. Order. Boundaries. Routine.

I am so not any of that today. Joseph and I hosted our families for Easter this weekend. It was so fun, and even the prep was so calm because I made lists for each of us, to do a few things in the days before so we were more prepared the day of. But still. I’m just feeling pretty tired and easily distracted and structure-less.

So, this is my clue.

We are finally in above! Zero! Temps! And snow is melting and I can shift into “spring mode”. I’ve always loved living somewhere with really distinct seasons and how this impacts my life. This weekend Joseph and I watched the documentary on Netflix about the universe and whoa… we watched the episode on how earth got it’s seasons. It was from another planet crashing into earth, and knocking it off it’s axis, tilting it just a little which is what creates the seasons.

This documentary showed a recreation of the planets colliding and all of the chaos of that. It’s amazing that these orderly repeating seasons came out of that chaos.

I mean - this is the creative process!

But back to me and how I create some structure, order, routine…

I am going to take this to my journal:

What are the things I want to include in my morning routine to start the day?

What are the things I want to include in my “starting the workday” routine?

What are the things I want to include in my “ending the workday” routine?

What are the things I want to include in my end-of-day routine?

Oh wow. I feel a big ZING about this, this will be good to explore.

If you're looking for something to DO today in your own Creative Dream Alchemy Practice, I suggest....

Do the Meeting My Dream practice from the Dream Lab and see what that sparks for you

Want to try something different? Pop into the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find something helpful for where you're at today.

Or click here to get a journal prompt to get you started.

It can be so vulnerable to talk about our dreams!

My dream sends me structure and boundaries Read More »

Not feeling ready and doing it anyway(Weekly Dream Status Report)

By Andrea Schroeder / April 7, 2023

Get the calendar of upcoming calls here. | Get your next Dream Book lesson here.

What are you up to today? Let us know in the comments!

My Dream Status Report:

PART ONE: (sometimes these can stay the same for months at time, sometimes they change often)

My dream is: BEING the artist + writer I want to be. This is the "big picture" dream - this includes lots of different inner + outer things.

I want it because: This is what feels most enticing and interesting to me. I'm also noticing how BEING who I feel I AM is important for my mental health.

When I have it I will feel: Just a little more ME, more energized. Excited about the new work I am doing.

My new moon intention: Focus on the book project.

PART TWO: Invite your dream in (using the Dream Lab practice) to help you with the rest of the prompts.

Same as yesterday, my dream shows up as flowers growing out of the snow and being with my dream feels like it is safe to trust it.

PART THREE:

Last week’s focus was: Dream Book journaling + processing as my #1 priority and the thing I do FIRST every morning.

Also: Taking all these ideas that are floating around in my head about the Creative Dreaming As A Practice book and how I want to share my ideas and how I want to be showing up - and write them all down together, don't rush it but see if I can come up with some kind of plan.

What happened in the last week? I did make more space for Dream Book and processing my feelings and thoughts. I had an intense therapy session where I reflected on all the ways I've changed since 2016, and how this feels like another turning point connected to that one.

I worked on my ideas for Creative Dreaming as a Practice and like always, I get to a point where it's maybe too much, this is maybe becoming two different things or even a series of things. BUT ALSO thanks to all of the Dream Booking and journaling I know that it's time for me to be putting things out there more boldly.

What am I learning/How do I feel about this? Ehhhh. It feels heavy. Probably partly it's the damn April snowstorm. Spring was already VERY late but we could see it coming and now everything is covered in thick thick snow again. That feeling like someone came in and destroyed all progress.

BUT yesterday I was working on a plan for how to start PUTTING IT OUT THERE and I felt energized, inspired, clear and excited. So I want to trust that.

What do I need now? Validate my experience that it IS hard to get focused right now, for lots of reasons. Validate my wish to be focused and creative. Do all the things that support my creative process.

What does my dream need now? I check in with my dream, I see sun shining and snow melting and the flowers growing, I see how the snow turns to water that feeds them. And it feels like it's saying to me "You need to just do it"

There is this way I want to be, in terms of how I put myself and my work out there, and it is taking a while for me to ease into it. This feels like a message to just do it, go with the ideas I have, I don't have to have it all figured out or "feel ready".

Taking all of this into account, my focus for the next week is: (oh wow this feels scary in a good way) START THIS NEW THING.

If you're looking for something to DO today in your own Creative Dream Alchemy Practice, I suggest....

Do the Meeting My Dream practice from the Dream Lab and see what that sparks for you

Want to try something different? Pop into the Library of Creative Dream Alchemy to find something helpful for where you're at today.

Or click here to get a journal prompt to get you started.

It can be so vulnerable to talk about our dreams!

Not feeling ready and doing it anyway(Weekly Dream Status Report) Read More »

🦄Something changes when you approach a thing as a practice, as opposed to approaching it as a task.

By Andrea Schroeder / April 6, 2023 / creative entrepreneur

Let’s say I want to create marketing content for my social media.

If I approach it as a task, I’m thinking about the strategy, what I want it to look like and what I want it to say, and I am just trying to meet my goal in the most direct way possible. Create the content.

For many reasons this approach can become boring, overwhelming and/or stressful.

But if I approach it as a PRACTICE, I’m getting into my flow. I’m BEING WITH the soul of my work and exploring all of the ways it wants to shine out via this social media content.

PRACTICE GENERATES FLOW.

Then I am using this flow as the fuel for my creative flow, and start playing with ideas. Colours. Patterns. Images. Writing. Just creating and expressing this light, without trying to corral it into marketing content. This way, my ideas iterate quickly, new ideas emerge, and as I follow all of the rabbit holes my inspiration throws me way, I can see my writing and art improve right in front of my eyes. The first few things I started with feel clunky compared to what I have in the end. This is the magic of practice.

Then, THEN, after I’ve followed that creative flow and have a pile of images and writing, THEN I corral it into marketing content. Take these words and add it to this image and you’ve got a post. Rinse and repeat until you have all of the content you need.

**This is how it works for me, how it works for you can be completely different because when you start with connecting to the soul of your work, and listening to your own inspiration and unique creative voice and give yourself some space to practice your ideas - then you create YOUR way **

And then, because ALL OF THIS is a practice, you put it out there and notice what happens and use that information to help inform your next steps. You bring your questions and your needs into your practice and work them out in there. A practice is a container for new ideas, transformation, creativity + magic.

Doing your marketing YOUR OWN WAY is the only way that actually does service to the soul of your work. I can’t give you a three step system for this, but I am offering Marketing as a Creative + Spiritual practice as a monthly call for this for all of 2023. This is available to all members of Dream Book. Join us here.

🦄Something changes when you approach a thing as a practice, as opposed to approaching it as a task. Read More »