Top Stories
Stories in Motivation that you’ll love, handpicked by our team.
The Other F-Word
A fail is one of life’s greatest teachers. I like to read about failure. I like learning about the lessons people took away from failure. Experiencing failure? Not so much.
JaynaPublished 2 days ago in MotivationWhy I Quit Working in a Not-Quite-Right Job Past its Use-By Date
Being a barista, wearing a face mask, and standing on your feet is no easy feat; also while making sure the milk does not overheat, and the hopper grinds the right amount of coffee beans for a 30ml espresso shot.
Justine CrowleyPublished 2 days ago in Motivation
Strong, Independent Woman
Note from the Author: To be completely honest, this is my sixth entry for the Members-Only Challenge. This contest has sparked something in me that I can hardly contain; which means I am also having trouble containing my thoughts. Every piece I write gets closer and closer to what I’m really trying to say, but it’s such a grand topic to cover in less than five thousand words. This time, though, I will focus my thoughts, feelings and desires, so that I can share with you the dream in my heart.
Maeple FourestPublished 3 days ago in MotivationYou’re Darn Smart Vocal: An Open Letter to my Fellow Creatives
Disclaimer: I am not being endorsed by Vocal in any way by publishing this article. These are 100% percent genuine insights and I feel really grateful for this platform.
Valerie RowePublished 7 days ago in Motivation
A Wood Phone Holder Kit as an Art Therapy Project, DIY.
My name is Stephen Pasco. I am new to the world of product design and as of last year, I knew very little about art therapy. About 18 months ago my sister, a Riverside County Police Officer in California, was badly beaten by a man after approaching him as a burglary suspect. To make a long story short, she almost lost her life that evening. She suffered physical and psychological damage from that beating of which she is still recovering. While she was going through therapy, I learned she was given art activities to help her heal. These art therapy projects were a bridge to help her deal with the depression, anxiety, and PTSD from that night. Although I could not relate to what she was going through I wanted to help in my own way. I was convinced I could make a wood kit my sister could use an alternate art therapy activity.
Stephen PascoPublished 8 days ago in Motivation
Creating: My Bliss
This inspired life I create what I love and love what I create. Friends and family, colleagues and strangers alike compliment me on being prolific. Who knows whether being prolific is what makes me happy, or if being happy is what makes me prolific? Either way, my maker's life is my bliss.
Christy MunsonPublished 8 days ago in Motivation
The Not So Glamorous Life of a Fashion Designer Who Never Really Cared About Glamour in the First Place
I looked like a boy. Granted, at age 8, this was highly intentional but nonetheless I was a girl choosing to wear exclusively boys’ clothing. I was deemed the token weird kid in my grade. As a child I loved playing basketball, my favorite color was blue, however stereotypical that is, and picking up worms or frogs when found was something I genuinely looked forward to. Frankly, to this day I still fight the urge deep, deep inside me to pick up a frog when I spot one, but alas, that’s an entirely different story. Bringing it back to the point, I struggled a lot when I was a kid. I couldn’t keep friends for more than a school year, I constantly felt like an outcast, and the comments made about my appearance weren’t always easy to ignore. But most of all I couldn’t, for the life of me, understand why I was expected to wear dresses and skirts and flowery things and ruffles and LIKE THE COLOR PINK. Why was that considered “normal” for a girl but my basketball shorts and oversized t-shirt weren’t? Ack. In all honesty, I’ve only recently warmed up to some of those things at age 25. I still rock oversized shorts and t-shirts on occasion though.
Heather BrackmanPublished 8 days ago in Motivation
Creating in Limbo
As I'm writing this I'm currently in another lockdown in Melbourne, Australia, so far this is the 4th one in the past year. In 2020 we were in lockdown for 8 consecutive months with various restrictions put on us such as a curfew, traveling no further than 5kms from home. Basically the harshest lockdowns other than Italy.
OliviaPublished 10 days ago in Motivation
What the Tuft?!
From childhood I have always been immersed in art. Any chance I could get, I would try a new way to create. Eventually I found a love for sewing in high school and with that passion I started designing clothing with the intention to go to school for fashion design. Unfortunately that didn't quite work out as my interest in fashion was so broad that I felt I needed to have more experiences than my college could provide. I began working in retail, studying cosmetology, studying graphic design, and studying the world always with how things translate into a more tactile art. I love textures and sculptural fashion more than anything.
Alicia TPublished 11 days ago in Motivation
Triangle
I never planned on becoming a textile designer—even graphic design wasn’t on my radar—but I knew from the time I could hold a crayon that I was going to be an artist in some form or another. Sure, my childhood plan actually included being an art-making professional soccer player who also wrote books, but drawing and painting were always on the forefront of my mind. I didn’t realize until I grew up how much the textile prints of my childhood influenced my vision and color sensibilities, and more to the point, my outlook on the world, even.
Kim SillenPublished 12 days ago in Motivation
A CRAFT THAT CHANGES LIVES....LITERALLY
I would never have imagined that a craft could literally change lives...but it has. A few years ago, I saw a beautiful sculpture of a mother holding a child’s hand which was so lifelike that it moved me to tears. The incredible detail that was replicated in each of their hands looked so lifelike that it was amazing. I could actually feel the love they shared just by looking at the sculpture. I couldn’t help but think how special this art piece must have been to both of them and how cherished it would be when the day came that this mother and child were no longer together on this earth. I also couldn’t help but think about my own mother whose beautiful hands I only got to hold for 18 short years before she lost her courageous battle with cancer at age 46. The sculpture I saw had such a profound impact on me that it motivated me to want to learn more about how it was created and to see if there was any way I could duplicate the process. Although I would never be able to create such a cherished memory with my own mother, I thought about what an amazing gift sculptures like these could be for others. I also thought that if I was able to create these beautiful pieces of art it would be a great way to honor my beautiful mom’s memory.
Lala DiBelloPublished 18 days ago in Motivation
7 Reasons GIFs Spice Up All Kinds of Motivation
What is a GIF? A lossless format for image files that supports both animated and static images. While many may disagree, I believe GIFs can not only motivate us, but are the superior form of communication in many different scenarios. Also, they just make me happy and it can't be wrong if they feel so right.
Corinne JenkinsPublished 18 days ago in Motivation
