"Free Coffee - Next Exit!" What's your motivation?

Hello everyone!

Ever been to a seminar and when you come back to the office or home, you’re ready to change everything? Yep! That’s your brain tingling with inspiration. When you’re inspired from inside and actually do something with it, you’re experiencing intrinsic motivation. It’s the best kind of motivation because it leads you down a path that is natural for you, capturing your internal enthusiasm.

I’m not talking about the ‘what’s in it for me?’ type of motivation. That’s transactional where both sides get what they need/want. And sometimes it seems a little one-sided anyway, right? Having said that, it’s practical and necessary for day to day life.

Intrinsic motivation stems from the meaningfulness of the work you do. You are driven by what you yearn to do even if there is no reward or compensation. –Tom Rath

But wait! I do want a reward! I want to be recognized or sell some of my work or have students sign up for my class or receive the ‘Best in Show’ award or be juried into the exhibit. All true. But those are outcomes from what you did. You can’t do recognition (sorry, social media). You must do the work.

Do the work.

So, where do you start? Be inspired and let that inspiration feed your imagination. Learn from others about how to be excellent and bring your imagination to life.

Workshops and classes offer a way to learn about different viewpoints on the same topic. Attending talks or lectures is another great way to learn about the personal journeys of people in your field of inspiration. Join a group. For me, I love reading articles and books as a first place to research ideas.

To aid in unleashing your intrinsic motivation, I created a starter list. I researched arts centers, shops, folk schools, museums and individuals in the Midwest that teach and/or exhibit fiber arts. The links go to their workshop (and exhibit) calendars depending on the place.

This list is a work in progress; I’ll keep adding to it. Use it as a guide for opportunities as a student, teacher and potential exhibitor/vendor. I hope it will get you started. You will know when you are ‘Best in Show’.

Go, explore!

Jenny

https://www.fastcompany.com/3047370/the-only-type-of-motivation-that-leads-to-success
https://craftcouncil.org/resources/Schools-with-Craft-Workshops-and-Courses

The above photo is of Terry Lichtenfelt, preparing for a wet felting workshop at the Baraboo Arts Building in 2018. In the newsletter, the photo was incorrectly captioned as Christy Skuban. Thanks, Terry, for quickly sending me the correct info!