Blog! « The Communications Distillery

Teeny-Weeny, Mini-Bookmarks

On March 23, 2012 / Blogged / 1 Comment

Guess what?!

I WON A CONTEST!

I’m a big sucker for contests, it’s true. I try to hold back as best as possible so as to avoid ridiculous amounts of spam but when I know I can trust the source, I’m all over that action.

My most recent entry into a contest was too good to be true. The great peeps over at Kind Over Matter teamed up with the printing and card company, MOO, for a great giveaway — 5 winners would receive 100 MOO MiniCards.

I had a good feeling about this one. Not only was the original draw date on my birthday but I had also been dilly-dallying for way too long on a print job perfectly suited for the MiniCards.

The reason I was dilly-dallying on the job is that I’m shy. Self-promotion doesn’t come naturally to me. In fact, part of why I do so well with The Communications Distillery is that my job is to make others sound attractive. As a friend recently said, I “turn To-Do Lists into Tah-Dah Lists”. Nowhere in that statement does it say, “toot my own horn”.

Anyway, this girl (I mean me) is just starting out and really needs to start attracting more attention. For the last month, two months?, I have been working on a schmancy “Letter of Introduction” to send out to Toronto prospects. It’s lighthearted and occasionally witty. It’s a no-pressure kind of thing. I want people to know that there is an understanding person behind this company, a person who can help with the writing, editing, and overall creatively-frustrating parts of entrepreneurial ventures. Gentle souls, I can help.

Winning this contest means I can send out my letters with a teeny mini-bookmark to keep the pages of amazing reads and to remind these potential Distillery-ites that any time they need a little hand-holding through their entrepreneurial To-Do List, I’m here.

I won’t get the bookmarks for another couple of weeks but here’s a sneak peek as to how they’ll look.

What do you think? Leave a comment below.

Front:

Back:

Luck and light,

Helen

Hooray for a Giveaway!

On February 21, 2012 / Blogged, Contests! / 19 Comments

I recently had the great fortune to work with Firefly Creative Writing, one of my favourite writing resources in the city. Firefly is the brainchild of Chris Kay Fraser, a wordaholic who gently coaxes stories out of writers and (self-proclaimed) non-writers through retreats, classes, coaching, and kiss maps.

Her most recent e-class comes straight from the heart. This one is designed to address those pesky issues that hold us back from writing — Six Reasons for Six Weeks and I relate to at least five of them …

‘Six Reasons (why you aren’t writing right now)’

Here’s a blurb from the website:

“I would write more, but I’m just too busy”
“I only really write when I’m travelling or in the midst of a crisis, which hasn’t happened in a while”
“I like the idea of writing, but my work never feels good enough to continue”

‘Six Reasons’ is designed to make you feel good about the writer you already are, and to let go of your judgments around the writer you aren’t. Through short audio workshops, tiny projects, and radical permission slips, you will have the chance to identify your blocks and work with them, to move towards the creative life you deeply want.

Sounds amazing, am I right? Sounds perfect for you? Absolutely.

How to enter the contest:

Leave a comment below describing your favourite (or most active) writing block and I’ll choose one lucky winner (this Friday!) to receive this brand new sparkly e-class in their inbox. Just in time for the weekend.

I already have an arbitrary number in my head, folks, so get writing!

Need a prompt?

“One reason I don’t write is …”

Wishing you love and luck and kindness,

Helen

Pssst.

If you don’t end up winning (even though I really really really want you to) but you still want to take the class — or think it’s perfect for a friend — check this page for more information on how to order.

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. THANKS FOR READING/APPLYING/BEING AMAZING. KEEP IT UP!

In Essence …

On February 13, 2012 / Blogged / 4 Comments

Sometimes it feels like the earth moves at a faster pace than usual. Recently, life has been going at an unsustainable pace of progress. After what amounts to a year of frustration and challenge, I find myself sitting in my home office, drinking tea, and listening to the occasionally disgusting sounds of the cats bathing each other beside my desk. It may look like peace and quiet (and bath time) but in all this solitude, there is a business being born; a business I am proud to create.

I had a dream the other night…

I was protecting some sacred objects — an ancient book and an intricately carved box containing keepsakes and an old cyanotype of two people — when a very tall man dressed as a bellhop decided to teach me how to walk through walls. He was part of a secret society whose mission it was to protect such objects as the ones I was holding. I was to become one of them. In our first lesson, he showed me how he pushed the corners of reality to bend them into a light-filled tunnel. I walked ahead of him through this Dr.-Who-meets-The-Fringe plasticized hallway. I felt peaceful and curious.

This is how I feel about The Communications Distillery. I feel as though I’ve been recruited into a secret society to protect the truth and the personal history of each person who walks through my doors. I feel as though my job is to move in-between the walls of what each person says in order to find out the real meaning, the real heart of the message, and then convey that as carefully and lovingly as possible. A message detective; an inner wisdom cheerleader; a Word Nerd with heart.

The Communications Distillery isn’t just about words; it’s about people and kindness.

Starting a business is really, really, really difficult. The dream told me that I’m not alone in all this; this blog post is to tell you that you aren’t either.

I can’t actually walk through walls and I don’t know any 8-foot tall bellhops, but I sure am grateful for the message.

I’m a lucky girl.

What have you been dreaming recently? Leave a comment below.

Wishing you love and luck and kindness,

Helen