Stumbling Toward Genius

In this episode of Stumbling Toward Genius, I share how a critique session completely changed the way I think about writing and creating. 

You’ll hear: 

• What happened when I signed up for late night critique at a writing conference
• What late night really means
• Two valuable things I learned from the critique
• Creative competency: compassionate regard.

If only the glorious genius of our ideas matched our skills! But the truth is, there’s a lot of repetitive and humbling work that goes into making things.  

In this episode of Stumbling Toward Genius, you’ll hear how I faced the reality of my skills. You’ll see how I took feedback that told me an uncomfortable truth about my art.  

You’ll get the scoop on: 

• How being in a creative cocoon can feel great but may not yield great results
• How to insist on constructive criticism
• How to not let perfectionism ruin your process
• Creative competency: Kneel at the altar of your craft

In this episode of Stumbling Toward Genius, you’ll hear about a big moment in my creative career and how it challenged me to my limits. You’ll see how I abandoned myself for the sake of others. And what that taught me about our genius.

In this episode: 

• How I chose faith over fear
• How I coped with a serious system malfunction
• How fulfilling a creative dream wasn’t what I thought it would be
• Creative Competency - Stay true to yourself

Have you ever had an experience early in life that determined your path? Even if that wasn’t your path, a comment or a person directed you away from an essential part of you. In this episode of Stumbling Toward Genius, you’ll hear the story of how I reclaimed my artist and why this was so vital to my well-being.

There comes a fork in the road that happens at least once - probably many times - in a creative project. It’s the moment when it seems like a much better idea to just freaking abandon your project. To just ditch it and all the difficulties and start something new. Something fresh. Something EASY. To pop back to the beginning of a creative project where everything is all rosy and fun and exciting! 

In this episode of Stumbling Toward Genius, I share a moment where I, like many of us, just wanted to find my place. To find a place for my book and for me. And how that didn’t seem likely to happen.

In this episode of Stumbling Toward Genius, you’ll hear how I overcame a massive technological mountain to publish my first book. I will share the story of my very first ebook and how it almost didn’t make it to the world. This is for you if you have given up or are considering giving up on something because you can’t get the pixels to line up.

In this episode of Stumbling Toward Genius, you’ll hear why it took so dang long to write my novel, Chasing Sylvia Beach. I share the secret tool that kept me going when I wanted to give up. 

You’ll get the skinny on: 

• Why it took so many drafts
• How I coped with the difficulty of writing a novel
• What kept me going even when it would have been easier to give up
• The creative competency: dedicated persistence! Staying with it even when we don’t want to.

In this episode of Stumbling Toward Genius, find out how I started my coaching business 20 years ago. It was without a clue, with a dose of brio and with a lot of help from my friends. In this episode: 

• You’ll hear the strategies I used to get the word out about my coaching
• The income streams that floated me while I built my coaching client roster
• How I coped with feeling incompetent at the beginning

Tune in to find out how I used the power of bold innocence to leap into my business.

Subscribe now. Coming October 16th.

Stumbling Toward Genius is a storytelling podcast for creatives hosted by writing and creativity coach Cynthia Morris. It’s your haven for when it seems like a good idea to give up your creative dreams. Tune in weekly for actionable inspiration to feel less alone and more empowered as you stumble toward your genius.