June 27, 2024 • 51 mins
If you’re curious about the secrets of fulfilled creative living, then ask Lauren Spangler. As a creativity coach she helps artists bridge the gap between their boldest visions and their everyday reality. A painter, writer, and musician herself, as well as a wife and mom of two, Lauren’s mission is to empower artists to enjoy the creative freedom they crave without giving up their other roles and priorities. She has helped hundreds of professionals set and achieve their goals, and now she’s here to help you unblock your inner artist and take big steps toward your biggest dreams.
Visit Lauren's Website: https://www.laurenspangler.com/
Follow Lauren on instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurenspangler/
Visit Tori's personal blog: https://toriblackmon.com/
Follow the Contagious Victories: https://www.instagram.com/contagiousvictories/
Follow Tori's Personal instagram: https://www.instagram.com/onceupona_tori/
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Victoria B. Glass (00:00):
Welcome to the Contagious Victory's
podcast. Each week, we talkinspiration, explore
possibilities, and shareinsights from creative creative
perspectives. I'm Tori Blackmon,and I'm here to remind you that
your purpose in life is tocelebrate the victories because
victories are contagious.
(00:22):
Hey, friends. I'm so glad to have you back for
another episode of theContagious Victories podcast. If
you're curious about the secretsof fulfilled living, then you're
gonna love hearing from ourguest today, Lauren Spangler. As
a creativity coach, Lauren helpsother artists bridge the gap
between their boldest visionsand their everyday reality. A
(00:43):
painter, writer, and musicianherself, as well as a wife and
mom of 2, Lauren's mission is toempower artists to enjoy the
creative freedom they cravewithout giving up their other
roles and priorities.
She has helped 100s ofprofessionals set and achieve
their goals, and now she's hereto help you unblock your inner
(01:05):
artist and take big steps towardyour biggest dreams. Y'all, this
episode really hit home for mebecause there's been seasons of
my own creative journey whereI've faced burnout and struggled
to unlock my potential. So ifyou've ever felt like that too,
you're not alone. And today'sguest, Lauren Spangler, is going
(01:27):
to help us gain invaluableinsight and give us a few
strategies to help us overcomeexcuses, inspiration blocks, and
she even shares a very simplebut strategic secret that helps
us find more time in the day forcreative work. Now I do want to
mention, we talk a lot intoday's episode about Lauren's
(01:50):
art.
And I don't just want you tohear us chat about her work, I
want you to see it. So if you'dlike to do more than just
visualize her pieces, then headover to YouTube and search for
contagious victories. That wayyou can watch the video version
of this podcast and see hertalent for yourself. She's a
painter, a musician, and so muchmore, and I really love her
(02:13):
paintings of animals andbotanicals. It's all just so
lovely.
But don't just take my word forit. You can tune in too and
watch our conversation onYouTube. Alright. Let's hear
directly from Lauren Spangler.
(02:38):
Hey. Welcome back to the Contagious Victory
Show. Listeners, I am so excitedto introduce you to our guest,
Lauren Spangler. She is acreativity coach, a artist and
creative, and I'm so excited tolearn more about her today. And
I know you're gonna get a lotout of this conversation.
Lauren, welcome to the show.
Lauren Spangler (02:58):
Thank you so much, Tori. It's a delight to be
here with you. I'm really,really glad and excited for this
conversation.
Victoria B. Glass (03:05):
Yes. And I have been exploring all the
awesome creativity that youshare online from reels to
podcast interviews like this 1and your artwork too of
beautiful, like, drawings andpaintings, digital art. Am I
saying that correctly? Is thatwhat you call it?
Lauren Spangler (03:24):
Yeah. Thank you so much. I like to work digital.
I also like do watercolor. Ilike to draw, work with pastels.
Yeah. All sorts of stuff.
Victoria B. Glass (03:30):
Thank you so much. And it's just beautiful
and it has such a positive andcheerful vibe that comes off the
page. So I've just enjoyedwatching all of the creation
videos and stuff that you'veshared. And I'm looking forward
to hearing more about yourcreativity journey. I want you
to start from the verybeginning. So how did you get
started as a creative and whatdid that look like growing up?
Lauren Spangler (03:53):
I always wanted to be drawing and making music.
That's what I was doing in anydown moment as a kid. That or
hanging out with my family. Iwas lucky to have amazing
parents and a wonderful sister,and we spent a lot of family
time growing up.
And so when I was a kid, therewere 2 things I always wanted to
be. I wanted to be an artist,and I wanted to be a mom. And so
(04:17):
through school and throughcollege, I studied music, and,
then after college, studied alittle bit of visual arts as
well. And I actually worked as aprofessional musician after
college for a little while. And,after after about a year or so,
I realized that the lifestyle ofa professional musician at that
(04:38):
place and time, was reallydifferent than the sort of
peaceful connected family lifethat I had sort of envisioned
for myself.
And that for for a long time wassomething I really wrestled with
and was trying to reconcile,like, how do I be an artist and
how do I be a mom? And it tookme a good decade or so to figure
out how those 2 things couldlive in peace together, and
(04:58):
where I could have this, like,creative drawing, making music,
painting
type of lifestyle, and also havethe financial stability and the
peaceful homeand the other side of it as well. So yeah, it's been a long road to figure out how to balance all of that.
But here I am now, and I get tocreate, I get to paint, But here
I am now, and I get to create. Iget to paint. I get to make
(05:18):
music. I get to coach. I'm astrategist. I get to be a mom. I
get to do all the mom things. II feel like I get to wear all
the hats that I want to wear,which is just, incredible. I'm
really grateful to get to do allof it.
Victoria B. Glass (05:32):
Well, I feel the gratitude from you your this
conversation. You talking aboutall of the wonderful
opportunities that you've had tocreate in this lifetime of
yours. I also feel it from yourfeed online, like your Instagram
feed and things which goes backto earlier. Just the excitement
that you have but also thetranquility that your post and
(05:54):
artwork and the things that I'veseen you share online just the
vibration that they give off. SoI wanted to let you know that as
an audience member, I reallyappreciate you taking the time
to figure that out.
I know it must have been ajourney to get to where you are
right now as far as having tobattle with those different
roles that you were explainingin your life, but the journey is
(06:14):
so beautiful when you watch ithappen from an outsider
perspective too. So just wantedto comment on that is that it
does that love that love forcreation comes through. You're
welcome. Well,
Lauren Spangler: It means a lot and I'm that's (06:25):
undefined
the piece I'm hoping iscontagious because I think we
have all these preconceivednotions of, like, what it has to
be like if you wanna be anartist. And so, if that's coming
through, then that that makes myday because that's what I'm
hoping to help show people andhelp teach people.
Victoria B. Glass (06:40):
Absolutely. It is. And I wanna talk a little
bit about your music backgroundjust a little bit because I see
the piano behind you and Iheard, you know, you talk about
being an a musician, musicalartist. I feel like there's so
many versions of art artists andthings like that, so I wanna be
specific. Now tell me a littlebit about the music part.
Do you play piano, it lookslike? What else? Tell me all
(07:02):
about that.
Lauren Spangler (07:03):
I play piano. I sing. I was a singer songwriter
for a while, and I studied musictheory and composition in
college. So I trainedclassically, studied opera,
studied classical music, and,but my heart is really in the
singer songwriter world.
So, for a while, I was recordingand performing music of my own,
which was a roller coaster, andI absolutely loved it. And these
(07:26):
days, I sing a lot morelullabies and nursery rhymes.
Not not on stage singing my ownmusic very much anymore.
Although I do write and andrecord some here in my little
studio. And, yeah, it's been abig part of my life forever and
something that's reallyimportant to me.
Victoria B. Glass (07:44):
Oh, that's amazing. I love hearing that you
are very, how do I put this,more than I thought. Like, I I
know that you said you were amusician and stuff, but like you
say, like, opera and then towrite music too, that is a true
true musician and an artist,like, in so many ways.
Lauren Spangler (08:02):
Thank you.
Victoria B. Glass (08:03):
So Thank you. That's that's really inspiring
to hear. To know that there'smany facets of your artistic
career and also life, it is soinspiring again to me that to be
like, oh, that's so awesome thatshe can not only play, but she
allows the creativity to flowher flow through her in so many
different different ways.
Lauren Spangler (08:21):
Well Thanks
Victoria B. Glass: You're welcome! (08:22):
undefined
Lauren Spangler (08:22):
For for a long time, I thought it was a bad
thing. For a long time, I feltlike I needed to pick 1. Like,
what's on my name tag? What am Iwhat am I saying? Am I am I
gonna be a musician?
Am I gonna be a painter? Am Igonna be a composer? Like, what
am I gonna do? And, it's I youknow, that's another piece where
I feel like there's more andmore room now for people to be
multipassionate and to sort oflean into all the different
(08:43):
things they care about. So,yeah, there's there's a lot of
room.
Even though right now I don't domusic professionally, I still
consider myself a musicianbecause I'm writing it and
practicing it and making itevery day. And so, yeah. Anyway,
there's a little philosophicalrabbit hole we could go down on
identity.
Victoria B. Glass (09:01):
Yeah. No. I mean, I think that's so good.
And if you bringing that up is agood thing too because we
recently talked about how on theshow, we talked about how my
husband got my art degreeframed. And for a really long
time, I was like, no.
That's just a piece of paper.Like, it's fine. But it does
make a difference when yourealize, hey, this part of
myself is still a part of thisstory even if it's not something
(09:25):
that is at the forefront rightnow. You know, this is who I am.
So I love that, and I can onlyimagine just how wonderful it is
to have a mom that will singlullabies and, like, that that's
so beautiful of a life thatyou've created for your kids
even to have that part ofyourself still shine through in
those intimate moments whenyou're with them at, you know,
(09:45):
singing lullabies at night andthings like that.
1 thing I love about the show,but I'm still kind of getting
used to is, like, just thesemoments of brave recognition
where it's like, oh, I see you.Like, that's awesome and, like,
kudos. So I guess I should justleave it at. That is a good
victory, like, claps. I'm havinga clap very softly.
Lauren Spangler (10:03):
Thank you. It's hard, you know, it's hard for us
to share our victory sometimesbecause we want to be humble. Do
you know what I mean? Like, wewe don't want to have an
inflated ego. We wanna remainaware of the fact that we're
still growing, and there's stilla lot of road ahead of us.
But it's important to pause andsay, this is what I did, and I'm
proud of it. And it went reallywell, and it's really cool
because when you say that andwhen you speak that victory out
(10:24):
loud, then someone else whohears you can see themselves and
see their ambitions reflected inyour reality and go, Yeah, I
wanna do that too. If she can, Ican! Like, look what they did. I
should go give it a shot and andbring my own desires forward
because it's possible. So, yeah,kudos to your kudos, to my
kudos, to all the kudoses. Thisis why this is important. Yeah.
Victoria B. Glass (10:47):
This is why this is important. Yes.
Absolutely. So now that you'reable to recognize these many
different versions of yourselfand and call them to existence
as for what they are, how do youtake those moments and put them
into your coaching career and toyour your season of being a
strategist right now? Can youelaborate a little bit more on
(11:09):
your personal experiences andhow you tie that into your
coaching with your clients?
Lauren Spangler (11:16):
1 way it serves me is that I have experience as
a musician. I've written. I havepainted. I've done all these
different things, and it allowsme to have, you know, a little
window into what thoseexperiences are like. And so the
creative process in general isactually there there's a lot of
commonality.
No matter what medium you'reworking in, no matter what, you
(11:37):
know, particular style or genre,where, like, the creative
experience and the process ofhaving an idea and bringing it
into reality and sharing it withpeople is pretty there's a lot
there's there's a commondenominator there. But there are
specifics within the world of,like, what does it look like to
do that as a visual artist? Howare you gonna use your tools
like social media? How are yougonna promote yourself? How are
(11:59):
you gonna conceive of yourcollections, you know, versus
doing that as a musician, whichcan be like a performance art,
you're live, you're with peoplein a real space, or how do you
use social media in a differentway?
Like, there there are a lot ofdifferent tactics and different
nuances within creativity ineach of those different worlds.
And so 1 way that it's helped tobe a jack of all trades or at
(12:23):
least a jack of several trades,is I can relate to my clients
who are musicians. I can relateto my clients who are authors. I
can relate to my clients who arepainters because, on some level,
I've been swimming in thatocean. Right?
And so, that's been reallyhelpful. And the coolest part is
when I get to meet clients whopractice something I've never
done before, like ceramics orjewelry making or dancing. There
(12:46):
are a lot of artistic worlds Ihaven't ever walked in. So it's
actually really fun to work withthose people too because then I
get to learn a little bit aboutwhat they do and what their
particular flavor of of art islike.
Victoria B. Glass (12:58):
Oh, I love how you put that. And I bet that
is so interesting, and it'llkeep you curious as an artist
because there will be things andpeople who have experienced the
same feelings but differentmediums and you can appreciate
their artwork and also helpguide them through some of those
those maybe troubles thatthey're having or experience in
(13:19):
that season. So I really seethat and how it would be such a
fulfilling life to live as acreativity coach. And you
mentioned a little bit when wewere talking before the
interview that you had a abusiness where you experienced a
little bit of burnout and I knowas an artist that can be like
(13:40):
the number 1 fear. At least Iknow personally, it's like I
will take, you know, being thethe artist who loves what I do
and never gets acknowledged forit over being someone who loves
what they do, gets acknowledgedfor it, and then doesn't wanna
do it anymore. So how did younavigate that? III wanna hear
that a little bit more and howyou navigated it. Can you
(14:01):
elaborate on on that a littlemore?
Lauren Spangler (14:04):
Yeah. 1st, let me say that what you just said,
Tori, is really healthy when yousaid you'd rather be the the
artist who loves what you do anddoesn't get acknowledged versus
the artist who burns out anddoesn't wanna do what they love
anymore, because they wereseeking that acknowledgment so,
like, frantically. That's abeautiful mindset. So just,
like, pat yourself on the backbecause sometimes it takes a lot
(14:24):
of work for artists to get tothat place. Yeah.
So my experience was maybecommon. I don't know. But I when
I first set out to be aprofessional creative, I was a
musician, singer songwriter,like I said, and I had every bit
of knowledge in the book abouthow to write a song, how to
(14:45):
record a song, how to perform asong. All the pieces of the
creative process were, like,locked down, ready to go. But I
had 0 knowledge of how to run acreative business, how to think
like an entrepreneur, how toposition myself in a market, how
to engage with the rapid firerejection that happens when you
(15:05):
step out of school and into thereal world.
I was totally underunderprepared, unprepared, 0%
prepared for that experience.And what happened was I
developed this really toxicrelationship with my creativity
because I was suddenly in thisenvironment where I didn't know
(15:28):
I didn't know how to swim. Iwound up sinking emotionally
creatively, creative healthwise, because of the strains and
pressures that operating as aprofessional creative put on my
creative process. Does that makesense?
Victoria B. Glass (15:45):
Oh, yeah.
Lauren Spangler (15:45):
And so my business went belly up
financially just, like,completely tanked because I had
no idea how to be savvy in abusiness at that point. And when
that happened, that was justsuch an enormous blow to my
creative to my inner artistbecause I took that financial
failure, and I took it as acreative failure. And I thought,
(16:09):
okay. Wow. I thought what I wasmaking was good.
I thought people liked it. Iguess I was wrong. I thought
this was what I was meant to do,but, like, obviously, it's not
because I crashed and burned.And it sort of triggered this
gigantic burnout because I lostthe connection to what really
drew me to being creative in thefirst place. And I lost the
faith and the trust that what Iwas doing was helpful and
(16:31):
purposeful.
And so for me, that looked like,you know, I did a a 180 turn,
moved back to my hometown, got ajob in corporate, totally
changed my entire lifestyle andthought, like, okay. I guess
this music thing isn't gonnahappen. I guess the art stuff in
general, like all that creativeliving, maybe it's not meant for
(16:53):
me. Maybe this isn't how I'mgonna actually support myself.
Because at that time in my life,like I mentioned, right, I had 2
dreams, be an artist, be a mom.
And being an artist was notfunding the lifestyle I wanted
to be a mom. It was like, how amI ever gonna have the financial
stability that I want if I youknow, how am I gonna be able to
(17:16):
support the family that I wantto have? And so so, yeah, that
was a that was a big moment ofit felt like this gigantic fork
in the road. And so at thatmoment, I decided, great. I'm
gonna choose stability.
I'm gonna put creativity to thewayside and keep it, you know,
as a hobby or whatever. And, andI did. And I spent about 7 years
(17:38):
sort of divorced from mycreative spirit because I was
just busy focusing on thatstability side. And then it
wasn't until, you know, 7 yearsin that I was realizing, okay.
This was actually creativeburnout.
I still wanna be an artist. Istill have gifts to offer here.
I still wanna go be creative.And then I had to figure out how
(17:59):
to reconcile and how to do allthe things in balance with each
other, so that I could allowboth sides of myself to come
forward and to serve and to, beseen and and be used. Right?
Does that make sense?
Victoria B. Glass (18:13):
Absolutely. Yes. Yes.
Well, I admire the journey. And when you
reach that fork in the road, itwasn't the end of the story. And
we know now that you have somuch that is coming out of you
lately, like all the thingswe've mentioned earlier. So now
(18:34):
let's paint the picture of whatyour day to day looks like as
the as the artist and thecreative that you are today
after you found the space to leteach part of that exist. The mom
dream and the artist dreambecause we know that with God,
anything is possible.
And a lot of times He lets us godown those roads and figure it
(18:56):
out because that's what the giftthat He gave us was, but we're
never alone as you know. And sonow that you have come back to
the art, the artist part ofyourself and the mom part didn't
go anywhere. She's still heretoo. It sounds like so can you
paint a little bit more of thatpicture of where you are today
and how you feel now that youlet both both versions exist?
Lauren Spangler (19:20):
Yeah. I am I am living a daily life now that I
didn't think was possible. Ireally I thought it was had to
be 1 or the other, and now Ifeel like I am enjoying this
really deep balance and purposeon both sides and that there
it's sort of harmonious. Right?The art piece came back up
bubbled back up to the surfacewhen I was in my 2nd maternity
(19:42):
leave with my with my secondbaby.
Yeah. So I have 2 kids, my my 2sons. 1 is 5 years old, 1 is 3
year old 3 years old now. And soit was 3 years ago during that
maternity leave with my secondson, that I sort of had this
creative, like, reawakening. Idon't know what else to call it.
It was like this urge this,like, really intrusive urge to
(20:05):
go paint things because at themoment, I was really busy. I was
kind of like, in the newbornphase and up all night long and
had a toddler running around andit was really an inconvenient
time to go, like, try to be anartist. But it happened, and I
just felt really I felt thispull to go paint and sing and
write, and I stopped eventuallytrying to avoid it. And I think
(20:30):
it was out of that desperationwhen maternity leave ended,
where I needed to go back towork. I needed to return to my
career as a strategist, which Iabsolutely loved and was proud
of.
So I didn't wanna step away fromthat career. But then I had
started to do this art stuffagain, and I also now had this
brand new baby who I adored andmy toddler who I adored, and I
(20:51):
didn't wanna step back. I didn'twanna step back or let go of any
of it. And I thought, okay. Ifthis has all been put on my
heart, right, like, then thenit's here for a reason, and I
like, I'm just going to expandmy capacity to be able to do all
these things that matter becauseI could feel like these things
are important to me, and I don'twanna let any of them go.
(21:14):
And so I sort of just started,like, I don't know, getting to
the ground truth of each ofthose. Like, as an artist, what
do I wanna feel? What do I wannaexperience? What do I wanna
bring forward? What do I feellike is my purpose beyond like,
this is not vanity metrics.
This is not revenue. This is notanything that's gonna go on my
resume. Like, why why with acapital W am I doing art? And
(21:39):
figure that out. And then, like,okay.
So how about my work as astrategist and a coach? Like,
why do I do that? Obviously,there's financial reward, and
it's a paycheck that supports myfamily and pays the bills. But,
like, deeper though, why am Ipicking that? Why is that the
way that I'm seeking financialreward?
Right? So I've got clear onthat. And then as a mom, like,
(22:01):
obviously, I know I wanna be amom, but like, what is the
experience I want in motherhood?Where do I want to really be
focused? And where do I want toreally anchor what I'm what I'm
providing to my children andwhat I'm receiving from my
children in that sacredrelationship of parenthood.
And so getting clear on each ofthose 3, the the values and the
(22:25):
priorities underneath of thoseroles was really beautiful
because then I started to justrebuild my daily life to make
sure that the things I was doingon, like, a minute to minute
basis were always tied back to 1of those deeper and more
important purposes.
Victoria B. Glass (22:40):
Oh, that's so.... I can tell that you are a
writer too because that is thisis so clear that what how you
said that and too and andgetting clear on yourself and
then making sure that everysingle moment, everything that
you are living for and workingfor and spending your time on is
tied back to those whys. AndI've never heard it put so
(23:03):
clearly of, like, I mean, I'veheard find out your why, but
I've never heard it with acapital W, you know? And I
really feel that you were Ididn't I don't know who you were
before, but I can feel theintentionality between who you
are, who you are, and whereyou're going to. And I love the
way that you put, I can holdthese things, and I don't have
(23:26):
to set them down. I can expand.
And isn't that just the thedream for anyone? Not even just
creatives or just artists, but Ifeel like we all want to be able
to take those walls and insteadof go around them just go
through them and then just have,you know, that that mentality of
like not look what I did in avanity way, but like look what I
(23:46):
did because God gave me thestrength to do it. And now I
don't have to use that excuseanymore of there being a, like,
a wall. Not that there's ever.... I mean, like, we have real
lives and things that happen,but I think that each 1 of us is
on a journey where we can decideto carry it with God and evolve
and and become expanded, likeyou said, or we can just, like
(24:08):
you said, go back.
And there's not a right orwrong, but we do have that
choice. And as a creativeartist, it's amazing to see and
to talk with and to know artistswho've been like, you don't have
to put it down. You can you canexpand. You can do it. You can
become something new anddifferent and also hold on to
who you are. You're like, thestory goes on.
Lauren Spangler (24:29):
YES! It's true. Absolutely.
Absolutely. And that reinventionof ourselves and of our story
and of our connection to our ourbigger purpose, like, that you
can rewrite that at any moment.Like, you can metamorphosize how
you're thinking about yourselfin your life without changing
all that much about your life.Like, if you look at my calendar
(24:51):
today and you look at the timethat I have blocked out for
coaching and the time I haveblocked out for art and the
family time I built in, like,the actual time blocking looks
pretty similar to how it didwhen I was feeling frantic and
overwhelmed, and it's likethere's a different energy.
(25:12):
Let's see.
Like, you can go about having itall in the energy of feeling
like you have to hold it alland, like, you're juggling all
these balls and you're, like, ifI was gonna paint a mental
picture, it'd be like thisballerina, like, up on her toes,
like, constantly upholdingeverything. Like, there's all
this tension and thisexpectation and, like, you're
trying to rise to meet all theseexpectations. Right? There's
(25:33):
that energy, and that's 1 way inwhich you can try to do all the
things and have a full day and afull life. Or there's this other
energy where you can still haveall of that, and you can still
be holding all those things, andyou can still have this gigantic
capacity to be engaged in allthese beautiful ways in your
life, but you can instead bejust, like, grounded and just
(25:56):
releasing into this knowing of,like, you know what?
There's a bigger purpose. I'mconnected to all of this
gigantic, beautiful beyond me,ahead of me, behind me, like
there's this beautiful, there'sthis beautiful, larger purpose
that I am living out all thetime. And it calls me to do all
(26:17):
of these different things. Andit supports me in doing all of
these different things. And thatplace is totally different
energetically.
You you know, it's a much moregrounded, a much more centered,
present, mindful way of stillbeing, still holding all of
that, but without the tensionand without the pressure, like,
you have to do it all. It's likeinstead, you can just simply be
(26:41):
in it. Does that make sense?
Victoria B. Glass (26:43):
It does. And the whole time I was thinking
too because I even felt it asyou were describing it. You can
do it and breathe at the sametime. Like, isn't that
astounding? Sometimes we don'twe don't we're holding it and we
don't breathe, and I'm talkingto myself.
Lauren Spangler (26:59):
Oh, yeah. Me too. There are still days where
I'm the ballerina and I realize,okay. I'm holding my breath. I'm
up on my toes.
Like, I just need to take abeat. And, like, for me, it
start it sounds really cheesy,Tori, but I start with
gratitude. It's like if I'm inthat moment where I feel tense,
and I feel like I'm having tohold everything up, I just go,
wow, look at all this stuff.Look at all of this that I get
to experience. And look at allof these gifts that I'm getting
(27:21):
to use and like, yeah, mycalendar might be really full
today. Look at all this life Iget to live. You know? How nice
it is not to be, devoid of that.Right?
Victoria B. Glass (27:31):
It is so nice. I was gonna add the part
that you mentioned about havinga schedule that looks very
similar to the life before, onlynow you're grounded and you're
breathing and you're thankfuland you're filled with gratitude
and you can see a little bitclearer, it sounds like. And I
promise you, Lauren, I had thatthought this morning of this is
(27:52):
the first time I've ever batchedinterviews today. And I had this
moment this morning where Ilooked in the mirror and I was
like, yeah, but like these arepeople you wanna talk to. Like,
ain't that so different of a ofa air whenever you're doing
something?
And not that I didn't talk togreat people at the news
station, I did. But at the sametime, it was for someone else's
agenda. But, but I go all I gooff on that to say that when
(28:18):
you're in the space that youfeel created to be in and that
you are able to let go of thoseexpectations that you have for
yourself or that others may haveof you, and you just let God,
like, work with you. And andyou'll have I know as an artist
for myself, it's like you havethis dual creation in the moment
(28:39):
sometimes going on and it's likewhen you just allow that to
happen even if it's a littlemoment throughout your day then
it just all of a sudden hasagain this new energy about it
and it's so much more fulfillingand it it vibrates differently.
Lauren Spangler (28:54):
Absolutely. Absolutely. It's the
intentionality, and it's therecognition that it's a
privilege to get to do whatyou're doing. Right?
And that if you're doing thingsthat are aligned and that feel,
you know, like, congruent withyour purpose and your calling,
like, heck yeah. You might havea lot of interviews today, but
how cool is that? And it can beas simple as shifting the
(29:16):
phrase, like, from I have to toI get to. Like, I have to have
all these meetings today. I getto have all these meetings
today.
Like, it's a tiny change, butit's a huge change, and it
changes the entire way you movethrough that day. It changes the
way you're feeling during thatfull day. It changes the way you
feel after that full day. I lovethat. It it's it's it's subtle,
(29:38):
but powerful.
Victoria B. Glass (29:39):
It is. And I I wanna go back and just make
sure, like, I was so excited. Itmeans so much more to be able to
say I get to and it feels somuch better. And also, I'm not
it's not lost on me. Like, I wasso excited to have these
interviews and get or not have,but, yeah, get to get to
interview these people because,again, this is I feel the same
(30:02):
way you must feel too about,like, this is a dream that I'm
like, okay.
Yes. I'm I get to do this andit's such a privilege and I'm so
grateful and glad that it getsto happen. Well, I wanna talk a
little bit more ....oh, yeah. Goahead. Sorry.
Lauren Spangler (30:16):
Well, you know, on the topic of getting to
getting to expand our capacity,getting to have these really
full days, getting to do allthis stuff and, you know, sort
of do it all, have it all.Right? There's a there's an
important, maybe caveat, maybeaddition to that topic, which is
we also get to rest. We also getto allow ourselves. Right?
So, like, you have this full dayof batched interviews, which is
(30:39):
amazing, and what an opportunityand how many connections you're
making. It's also wonderful tobe able to tomorrow, if you're
recognizing that you're feelinga little tired from all that
external, right, like, from allthat output and all that
exchange with everyone,tomorrow, you get to say, okay.
Today, I get to rest. You know?And that's the same shift.
(30:59):
It's instead of, oh, I have torest. I'm exhausted. I overdid
it yesterday. I've just gotta gocollapse. Instead, you can say,
wow.
I get to rest today becauseyesterday, I went all out and I
did a great job, and now I getto
Victoria B. Glass (31:15):
Oh yeah!
Lauren Spangler (31:16):
So yeah, it's important because we can expand
our capacity and we can do a lotmore than we think we can do,
but only if we're still doing itin balance and allowing
ourselves to also have thosemoments of sanctuary and quiet
and solitude that we need torecharge.
Victoria B. Glass (31:32):
Yes. And I love the way that you reframed
that for me because it's 1 thingto reframe it in the front end
of it of, like, yes, I get to.But then, yeah, you're right.
And I've never thought about itthat way of, hey, now I get to
rest and I Did this and and youknow now this space is over
here.
So it's not- It always balancesout if you allow it to And I
(31:57):
need to get better of justhaving that mindset of when it
does happen, when I am allowingit to, not to focus on it in a
half glass empty kind of way,but in a glass half full kind of
way. You know?
Lauren Spangler (32:09):
I mean we all need to practice that.
That's a hard it's a hard shiftto make, but yeah, it's a good
1. Yeah.
Victoria B. Glass (32:14):
It is a great 1. Well, and I wanted to talk a
little bit about how you instillmoments of creativity throughout
your, like, day today and I knowthat it looks different for
everyone but do you have anyadvice to someone who might want
to instill differently. Can youelaborate about how to allow
(32:39):
those moments into your life?
Lauren Spangler (32:41):
Absolutely. So first thing I would recommend is
take a look at what you feellike you have to have, like, the
ingredient list that you feellike you have to have in order
to feel inspired or in order togo be creative. And there's
probably a lot of things on thatlist that aren't actually
necessary.
So, like, I used to think I hadto have a certain number of
hours all in a row. I've used tothink I had to have a certain
(33:03):
space. I had to have certain Ihad to feel inspired. That's a
really big 1. That's a really,really big 1.
It's like the biggest excusethat we use to avoid dipping
into creative work. It's like,well, I just don't feel
inspired. People who makeawesome work consistently within
the landscape of their actualreal life, will tell you that
you have to show up before theinspiration does. So if you find
(33:26):
yourself with time and you have20 minutes to go make something
and you're not feeling inspired,but it's still important to you
to go make something, go sitdown. Go jump in.
Go pick up your pen or pick upyour paintbrush or whatever it
is you do and start. And I wouldguess that probably 75 to 80% of
the time, your inspiration willstart flowing as soon as you sit
(33:47):
down and start getting into thework. So that's the first piece
is just don't close the doorbecause you have manufactured
this list of things that youfeel like, you know, the stars
have to align in order for youto get into a creative
headspace. It's actually a loteasier to to to jump into than
than that. But the other thing Iwould say is there is value if
(34:08):
you can find 30 to 60 minutes aday where you can arrange some
uninterrupted time for yourself,where you can focus and really,
really get into your creativezone, that's spectacular
because, you know, with an houra day, the amount you can
actually cover and the amount ofheadway you can achieve on your
(34:29):
creative projects is dramatic.
Like, that really stacks up, andyou'll be surprised how quickly
you are finishing the book orhow quickly you are done
painting the collection andready to put it in gallery,
like, whatever it is. And so ifyou can find uninterrupted time,
it's worth trading other lovedones in your home, bribing
(34:50):
people not to interrupt youduring that time, you know,
whatever you need to do. And ifyou have little kids like me, I
know there's a whole other setof challenges around what it
takes to get 60 minutes toyourself completely
uninterrupted. So there thereare strategies and tips and
tricks and tactics there to dothat. If you can't, though, if
it's impossible to finduninterrupted time, I love this
(35:13):
concept of confetti time.
I don't know who coined thatterm. I I really should look it
up. Someone brilliant called itconfetti time, and it's this
concept that your day is sort ofsprinkled with open space. And a
lot of times we fill that openspace mindlessly. So this could
be the 15 minutes when you'rewaiting to leave the house,
(35:33):
could be the 10 minutes atschool pickup, it could be the
time before your kids go to bedand you go to bed.
You know, there's all this openspace in our day. And a lot of
times, we just fill it withnoise. You know? We're scrolling
on social media or we'rewatching Netflix or, like, doing
things that maybe are enjoyable,but may not actually, if we
(35:55):
really ask ourselves, may not beas important to us as the
creative work that we wanna do.Like, if you are really called
to be an artist, like, there aresome people who are like, yeah.
I'll take Netflix over paintingany day, and that's fine, and
I'm all about that. But if youare the type of person who is
saying, okay. I really, really,really want to paint. I'm
desperate to find this time. Idon't wanna wait till my kids
(36:16):
move out.
I don't wanna wait till I retirefrom my job. Then ask yourself,
is painting more important toyou than an hour of Netflix? You
know? Or is there a way that youcould fit in 15 minutes of your
creative prep? Could you work onyour book for 15 minutes, you
know, in in the early part ofyour day when you have a little
chunk of time to work with.
So we take that confetti time,and we start to be mindful about
(36:40):
how we use it, then it'sactually pretty surprising how
much you can weave in some ofthese really enjoyable
activities without letting go ofa ton of the other stuff that
you have to give time to.
Victoria B. Glass (36:53):
Oh, I can see where that would be really
helpful to have 15 minutes here,5 minutes there. I mean, after
just a couple little moments,probably, like you said, that
are already in your day at theschool pickup or in the morning
or in the evening, right beforebed. If you just carved that
out, it will be an hour. Like, Imean, you know, like, it might
(37:14):
not be consecutive, but you canfind an hour a week that way.
And I've never heard of confettitime.
I'm just learning all littletidbits of sayings and
touchstones from ourconversation today because I
really like the visualization ofhaving the confetti because we
don't we don't think of, like, 2pieces of confetti being blown,
you know, at a birthday party.It's always, like, - It's
(37:36):
sprinkled everywhere!
Lauren Spangler (37:36):
Yes. Exactly. Exactly.
Victoria B. Glass (37:39):
And God knows that we have that time. Like, we
do. We we have it. And sometimesit might be making sacrifices,
like, saying I'm not gonna watchJeopardy tonight. I'm just not
gonna do it or whatever.
But I can but it means more tome to have the outline of this
thing I'm working on, like,written out.
Lauren Spangler (37:57):
Yes, YES.
Victoria B. Glass (37:57):
Or....I can go ahead and add a Piece of
color to this painting I'mworking on. And it might not be
the whole thing, but I also havethe confidence now that I've put
15 minutes towards that.
And then tomorrow, I'm gonna-
Lauren Spangler (38:08):
It feels so good.
Victoria B. Glass (38:09):
I know. It feels amazing, but I didn't know
that's what it was that's whatit was called.
Lauren Spangler (38:14):
Yeah. I love that term.
It's not my term. I really needto figure out who came up with
that so I can write them a thankyou note. But, you know, the
other thing is you figure outwhich creative activities match
which little slots of time. So,like, for example, if I have 10
minutes at school pickup, I'mprobably not gonna be trying to
get into any really deepthinking, creative, like,
massive projects, but I mighthave my iPad and do some digital
(38:37):
sketching while I'm sitting inthe car. Or if I'm let's say you
wanna watch let's say yourhusband's like, this is a killer
awesome episode of Jeopardy.You've gotta come watch this.
It's amazing. Right? Okay. Sogreat.
Can you take your sketch pad outto the couch and be sketching
thumbnail ideas while you'rewatching your favorite show? Or,
you know, like, how can you becreative about the way you
(38:59):
actually fit your creativeactivities into the little
confetti time pieces that youhave. And, you know, I will be
honest. The the confetti timestrategy is not going to be
fully satisfying if you neverallow yourself space to get into
the deep focus because I thinkthere's a lot of value in that
too. You know, having theability to really get into the
(39:20):
flow and be uninterrupted, isvery valuable.
And I haven't ever tried let methink about this. Have I ever
made something I'm super proudof where I only did it in 5
minute spurts? I wanna say no. Iwanna say I there's I just need
a little bit of deep focus nowand then. But, you know, it's a
(39:40):
balance between the 2.
Like, you know, just because youcan't always have the deep focus
doesn't mean you can't movethings forward with baby steps.
And so, yeah, it's worthexperimenting to find the
balance that fits in your dailylife and that feels fulfilling
and rewarding. Right?
Victoria B. Glass (39:56):
Right. And I think it's a great way to get
started on building thosemoments of deep focus in your
life. And if you can it's kindalike working out. Right? Like
where if you can, you know, showup for a little bit of time or
even even just drive to the gymor whatever, then at least
tomorrow, you can look back andsay, oh, well, I've done a
little bit here.
So now I remember how good thatfelt, and I'm gonna go and carve
(40:18):
out 20 minutes instead of 15today. And so you kinda build
that momentum up to somethingthat looks a little bit
different, but also it doesn'thappen in, like, an overnight
change where all of a sudden,you know, you've got 3 hours and
you're painting a picture, butyou can say, I can do that in a
little bit of time. But today,I'm gonna start with 15 minutes
and figure out what -
Lauren Spangler (40:38):
Absolutely.
Victoria B. Glass (40:39):
What I'm gonna be painting or whatever
today. And the reason I saidpainting is because I do wanna
segue into talking about nowyour your physical painting art
and how adorable it is. And Iwish I don't have any kids, but
I wish I did because I was,like, thinking of all the
different room ideas that Icould even just center around
just 1 piece of your of yourartwork.
Lauren Spangler (41:00):
Thank you.
Victoria B. Glass (41:01):
To have that in a kid's room or to have that
on display in a house.
So tell me about your art andhow do people find it to see it
and, just elaborate on that alittle bit more.
Lauren Spangler (41:12):
Well, right now and for the last few years, I
have absolutely been obsessedwith painting, parents and baby
animals, like mama and babyanimals. That all started in
maternity leave, and it reallycame out of this desire to
capture these tender momentsthat I didn't wanna forget, In
like, because with my first son,it felt like the newborn days
(41:35):
were just never ending becausewe were up all night long. We
had a challenging delivery. Hewas in the NICU for a while. It
was just like it was really,really disorienting, and I felt
like, oh, my gosh, this time isnever gonna be over.
I'm never gonna sleep again,right? And then all of a sudden,
I turned around and he was 2years old, and he wasn't a baby
anymore. And so when when I hadmy second baby, I in that
(41:57):
maternity leave, there was thisawareness like, okay, yes, I'm
tired. Yes. The house is acomplete disaster, and there's
spit up on every piece ofclothing that I own.
However, this is a sacred timeand it's a gift. And the fact
that he's this tiny preciouslittle itty bitty baby in my
arms is just gonna last a blink,and then it's gonna be gone. And
(42:21):
I don't wanna just remember thespit up and the sleepless
nights. I really wanna rememberthese moments of bonding and
play and sweetness and thethings that can kinda get run
over by the exhaustion of newparenthood. And so I started
painting these pieces that werejust based on, like, on any
given day.
Like, what moment did I enjoywith my children today that I
(42:43):
that I want to put in a jar andkeep forever? And I would paint
it. And now when I look back atthose paintings, they serve that
purpose, and they give me thatfeeling that I have at the time
or that I had at the time. Andthey're they're really probably
my most treasured work for mepersonally just because of what
they carry. And when I startedsharing them online, other
(43:03):
people started looking at themand going, Oh, my gosh, that
reminds me of my little 1 or,you know, this, my my friend is
expecting a baby and I wannagive this to her because it's
just the vibe of, like, youknow, cheerful hope and love
that I wanna, you know, gift.
And so that was really preciousto me also when people started
to resonate with the work. Andso yeah. So I share a lot of it
(43:26):
on Instagram. I'm at @LaurenSpangler, and also have a lot up
on my websiteLaurenSpangler.com, And it's a
blast. Every once in a while, Ieven do a commission.
I just finished a commission forsome friends who are expecting,
and so I made them a piece withtheir own little animal family
and their favorite animal. But,yeah, it's it's been a real
(43:46):
delight to build thatcollection.
Victoria B. Glass (43:49):
It is so beautiful and so sweet, and I
can see the moments now. Ididn't realize they were based
on real moments, but I can seehow they would be because
they're just so tender andlovely. I can't say anything
else just because they are. Theyare so lovely and
Lauren Spangler (44:05):
Thank you.
Victoria B. Glass (44:06):
Do you want to, I guess, make more of those?
Is that something you feel likefor the future? Like, is that
where you're going with yourartistic journey? How does the
future look like for you? Like,what is what does it all look
like longterm?
Lauren Spangler: Well, what I can tell you is I (44:22):
undefined
want to keep painting. Andbeyond that, I've gotten really
I used to try to map out so,like, in my work as a
strategist, it's all aboutplanning the future and, like,
charting the course and thenmoving down this planned path.
Right? And for a while, I triedto do that creatively.
Like, what am I gonna do with mywork? Like, what exact I was
(44:44):
trying to plan my collections,like, 3 collections out. Like,
what am I gonna be painting? Andthen I would never stick to the
plan ever. And so I painted 50of those during that first for
Victoria B. Glass (44:56):
OH WOW!
Lauren Spangler (44:57):
I've only shared maybe half of them
online. Well, no, I think Ishared sketches. I shared some
of the original ones onInstagram when I was first
working on them. But they'reonly they're only a handful of
those that I've actually, like,formalized and and sell within
that collection. But after I did50, I was like, okay.
I think I'm done paintinganimals for a while. Like, I
think I'm gonna go do flowersand some other things and
(45:19):
experiment with differentmediums, and I did. And then lo
and behold, I keep paintingparent baby animals. I just keep
going back to it. So if youwould ask me a couple years ago,
Tori, I would have said, yeah.
I'm all done with the animals,and now I'm gonna do botanicals.
But I right now, I'm painting apair of birds that is a mom and
baby bird sitting on a branch. Ijust can't seem to get away from
(45:40):
that theme. So the likelihood isI'll probably be painting them
for a for a good while.
Victoria B. Glass (45:45):
Well, they're cute. And if you have a baby or
if you have a gift that you needto buy someone who's expecting
or if you just want to have abeautiful picture of a mother
and baby or multiple babies ordaddy and baby. I think there
was a daddy shark that you didrecently that was so cute. It
was perfect for summer. And so,anyways, if you have any of
(46:06):
those things or if you justwanna have the heart to support
an artist, then head to Lauren'swebsite, LaurenSpangler.com.
Right?
Lauren Spangler (46:15):
That's right. Yeah. Yeah. If you're interested
in purchasing a piece of work, Isell reproductions on my website
in my shop, so head over toLaurenSpangler.com. And, if you
wanna see what I'm working onright now, then I'm always
sharing on Instagram.
So I'm @ LaurenSpangler there,and that's a really good place
to reach me too if you'd like tobuy an original piece or if
you're interested in acommission. And then if you, you
(46:38):
know, if you're listening tothis episode and the creativity
coaching piece is reallysticking out to you, and you
wanna take a pulse on your ownsort of creative balance and
well-being, I've put together a10 question or a 10 minute
questionnaire. It's a selfassessment that you can take.
And when you run through it, ittells you sort of where you
(46:59):
might be really balanced rightnow in your art life and your
art work life family balance,and then maybe some places where
you could fine tune to feel morefulfillment and enjoyment over
time. I call it my spark orsputter test, and it's
completely free.
You don't even need an email todownload it. It's just on my
website for free. It's atlaurenspangler.com/spark. If you
(47:23):
head over there and take it,then I hope it helps you.
Victoria B. Glass (47:26):
Awesome. That is so generous too, and I love
that it's completely free. Thatis very, very generous of you,
Lauren, to have the selfassessment that you can go
online and and take and, figureout where you fall on the
creative balance, chart andthat's completely free. So I
love that you you don't evenhave to put an email. That's
(47:48):
very generous of you to to putthat on your website.
Lauren Spangler (47:50):
Yeah. absolutely. So what it'll do is
when it gives you your results,it'll walk you through sort of
where you fall on this spectrum.And based on where you fall,
it'll tell you kind of thesupport that would be most
useful to you right then. And Ialways offer a free 15 minute
consultation. So if you take thequiz and you're like, yeah. I
really wanna understand moreabout, like, what I could do
(48:10):
next or what's next on the path,then just drop me a note or
there's even a link on mywebsite to just sign up for a 15
minute call.
So you can pop in anytime thatworks for you. And I'm always my
door is open, and I'm excited totalk with, you know, talk with
anybody about what creativehurdles you're facing right now
or what creative goals anddreams you have that you might
(48:30):
wanna move toward. So, yeah,people are welcome to reach out
anytime.
Victoria B. Glass (48:36):
Well, thank you so much for sharing that,
and I invite everyone who'slistening to go and take that.
You might even see me in therein just a few. I've taken it
because I've been I've beencurious about it and so I'm glad
that you explained it a littlebit more and, thank you for
coming on and just realigning mycreativity chaos that's been
going on a little bit over here.So I feel like we're kindred
(48:59):
spirits and we have a lot incommon in that way of, being
creatives who have who's gonethrough the burnout a little bit
and who knows what it's like tobe on the other side of it now.
So just thank you for coming onand sharing your victory story
and for all of the goodtouchstones and tidbits that you
shared with us today.
Lauren Spangler (49:18):
Thank you, Victoria. This has been a real
treat. I appreciate it. I hopethis conversation helps people
and I'm just glad to beconnected So thanks for having
me.
Victoria B. Glass (49:24):
Yes. Well, Lauren, you want us to go to
Lauren Spangler on Instagram oryour website, Lauren
spangler.com, to work with youand to to look at your art.
Lauren Spangler (49:37):
If you want to purchase a print, I offer giclee
prints, which are really highquality archival. It's archival
quality inks on this beautifulwatercolor paper. It's they're
gorgeous. They get themprofessionally printed here in
the US, and that's what you canpurchase on my website.
So if you go toLaurenSpangler.com/gallery,
that's where you can see a lotof those those pieces that are
(49:59):
available for purchase as aprint. I also although I don't
have a formal shop open whereyou can purchase original
pieces, I do have people whoreach out to purchase pieces on
Instagram. So if you ever see meworking on something that you
really love and feel connectedto, if you see me painting a
watercolor piece that justreally speaks to you and that
(50:20):
you'd like to have in your home,just drop me a message in
Instagram and just let me knowyou're interested in that piece.
And, and usually, I just selldirect to collectors, like,
through my messages onInstagram. So it's not really
formal.
There's no checkout page for thefor the original pieces, and
probably I should work thoseinto my online shop at some
(50:41):
point. It's on the bottom ofsome to do list somewhere. But,
yeah, if there's ever a pieceyou're interested in, just reach
out and I'll connect you withwhat you're interested in and
we'll, take it from there. Oh,yeah. Oh, yeah.
Then LaurenSpangler.com/gallery,and you can pick sizes too. So
you can get a a little 8 by 8 oryou can get 10 by 10, 12 by 12.
Like, there are a lot ofdifferent options for for the
(51:01):
sizes and the the different, youknow, qualities that you can
find on the website. So, yeah,check it out.
Victoria B. Glass (51:08):
Beautiful. Wonderful. Well, thank you again
for welcoming us into yourworld, and I will check it out.
And I hope that our listeners dotoo. Have a wonderful afternoon,
Lauren, and thanks again forcoming on and sharing your
victory story.
Lauren Spangler (51:21):
You too. Thanks so much. Talk to you later.
Victoria B. Glass (51:28):
Thanks for joining us for this week's
episode of the ContagiousVictory's podcast. If the show
inspired you to share your ownvictory story, I'm here to tell
you the world deserves to hearit. Submit it to me online at
ToriBlackmon.com. Review andsubscribe if that feels right.
Telling a friend about the showhelps contagious victories to
(51:48):
grow.
Plus, we all appreciate a littlesunshine. I'm Tori B. Thanks for
listening. I'll catch you soon.
Welcome to the Contagious Victory's
podcast. Each week, we talkinspiration, explore
possibilities, and shareinsights from creative creative
perspectives. I'm Tori Blackmon,and I'm here to remind you that
your purpose in life is tocelebrate the victories because
victories are contagious.
(00:22):
Hey, friends. I'm so glad to have you back for
another episode of theContagious Victories podcast. If
you're curious about the secretsof fulfilled living, then you're
gonna love hearing from ourguest today, Lauren Spangler. As
a creativity coach, Lauren helpsother artists bridge the gap
between their boldest visionsand their everyday reality. A
(00:43):
painter, writer, and musicianherself, as well as a wife and
mom of 2, Lauren's mission is toempower artists to enjoy the
creative freedom they cravewithout giving up their other
roles and priorities.
She has helped 100s ofprofessionals set and achieve
their goals, and now she's hereto help you unblock your inner
(01:05):
artist and take big steps towardyour biggest dreams. Y'all, this
episode really hit home for mebecause there's been seasons of
my own creative journey whereI've faced burnout and struggled
to unlock my potential. So ifyou've ever felt like that too,
you're not alone. And today'sguest, Lauren Spangler, is going
(01:27):
to help us gain invaluableinsight and give us a few
strategies to help us overcomeexcuses, inspiration blocks, and
she even shares a very simplebut strategic secret that helps
us find more time in the day forcreative work. Now I do want to
mention, we talk a lot intoday's episode about Lauren's
(01:50):
art.
And I don't just want you tohear us chat about her work, I
want you to see it. So if you'dlike to do more than just
visualize her pieces, then headover to YouTube and search for
contagious victories. That wayyou can watch the video version
of this podcast and see hertalent for yourself. She's a
painter, a musician, and so muchmore, and I really love her
(02:13):
paintings of animals andbotanicals. It's all just so
lovely.
But don't just take my word forit. You can tune in too and
watch our conversation onYouTube. Alright. Let's hear
directly from Lauren Spangler.
(02:38):
Hey. Welcome back to the Contagious Victory
Show. Listeners, I am so excitedto introduce you to our guest,
Lauren Spangler. She is acreativity coach, a artist and
creative, and I'm so excited tolearn more about her today. And
I know you're gonna get a lotout of this conversation.
Lauren, welcome to the show.
Lauren Spangler (02:58):
Thank you so much, Tori. It's a delight to be
here with you. I'm really,really glad and excited for this
conversation.
Victoria B. Glass (03:05):
Yes. And I have been exploring all the
awesome creativity that youshare online from reels to
podcast interviews like this 1and your artwork too of
beautiful, like, drawings andpaintings, digital art. Am I
saying that correctly? Is thatwhat you call it?
Lauren Spangler (03:24):
Yeah. Thank you so much. I like to work digital.
I also like do watercolor. Ilike to draw, work with pastels.
Yeah. All sorts of stuff.
Victoria B. Glass (03:30):
Thank you so much. And it's just beautiful
and it has such a positive andcheerful vibe that comes off the
page. So I've just enjoyedwatching all of the creation
videos and stuff that you'veshared. And I'm looking forward
to hearing more about yourcreativity journey. I want you
to start from the verybeginning. So how did you get
started as a creative and whatdid that look like growing up?
Lauren Spangler (03:53):
I always wanted to be drawing and making music.
That's what I was doing in anydown moment as a kid. That or
hanging out with my family. Iwas lucky to have amazing
parents and a wonderful sister,and we spent a lot of family
time growing up.
And so when I was a kid, therewere 2 things I always wanted to
be. I wanted to be an artist,and I wanted to be a mom. And so
(04:17):
through school and throughcollege, I studied music, and,
then after college, studied alittle bit of visual arts as
well. And I actually worked as aprofessional musician after
college for a little while. And,after after about a year or so,
I realized that the lifestyle ofa professional musician at that
(04:38):
place and time, was reallydifferent than the sort of
peaceful connected family lifethat I had sort of envisioned
for myself.
And that for for a long time wassomething I really wrestled with
and was trying to reconcile,like, how do I be an artist and
how do I be a mom? And it tookme a good decade or so to figure
out how those 2 things couldlive in peace together, and
(04:58):
where I could have this, like,creative drawing, making music,
painting
type of lifestyle, and also havethe financial stability and the
peaceful homeand the other side of it as well. So yeah, it's been a long road to figure out how to balance all of that.
But here I am now, and I get tocreate, I get to paint, But here
I am now, and I get to create. Iget to paint. I get to make
(05:18):
music. I get to coach. I'm astrategist. I get to be a mom. I
get to do all the mom things. II feel like I get to wear all
the hats that I want to wear,which is just, incredible. I'm
really grateful to get to do allof it.
Victoria B. Glass (05:32):
Well, I feel the gratitude from you your this
conversation. You talking aboutall of the wonderful
opportunities that you've had tocreate in this lifetime of
yours. I also feel it from yourfeed online, like your Instagram
feed and things which goes backto earlier. Just the excitement
that you have but also thetranquility that your post and
(05:54):
artwork and the things that I'veseen you share online just the
vibration that they give off. SoI wanted to let you know that as
an audience member, I reallyappreciate you taking the time
to figure that out.
I know it must have been ajourney to get to where you are
right now as far as having tobattle with those different
roles that you were explainingin your life, but the journey is
(06:14):
so beautiful when you watch ithappen from an outsider
perspective too. So just wantedto comment on that is that it
does that love that love forcreation comes through. You're
welcome. Well,
Lauren Spangler: It means a lot and I'm that's (06:25):
undefined
the piece I'm hoping iscontagious because I think we
have all these preconceivednotions of, like, what it has to
be like if you wanna be anartist. And so, if that's coming
through, then that that makes myday because that's what I'm
hoping to help show people andhelp teach people.
Victoria B. Glass (06:40):
Absolutely. It is. And I wanna talk a little
bit about your music backgroundjust a little bit because I see
the piano behind you and Iheard, you know, you talk about
being an a musician, musicalartist. I feel like there's so
many versions of art artists andthings like that, so I wanna be
specific. Now tell me a littlebit about the music part.
Do you play piano, it lookslike? What else? Tell me all
(07:02):
about that.
Lauren Spangler (07:03):
I play piano. I sing. I was a singer songwriter
for a while, and I studied musictheory and composition in
college. So I trainedclassically, studied opera,
studied classical music, and,but my heart is really in the
singer songwriter world.
So, for a while, I was recordingand performing music of my own,
which was a roller coaster, andI absolutely loved it. And these
(07:26):
days, I sing a lot morelullabies and nursery rhymes.
Not not on stage singing my ownmusic very much anymore.
Although I do write and andrecord some here in my little
studio. And, yeah, it's been abig part of my life forever and
something that's reallyimportant to me.
Victoria B. Glass (07:44):
Oh, that's amazing. I love hearing that you
are very, how do I put this,more than I thought. Like, I I
know that you said you were amusician and stuff, but like you
say, like, opera and then towrite music too, that is a true
true musician and an artist,like, in so many ways.
Lauren Spangler (08:02):
Thank you.
Victoria B. Glass (08:03):
So Thank you. That's that's really inspiring
to hear. To know that there'smany facets of your artistic
career and also life, it is soinspiring again to me that to be
like, oh, that's so awesome thatshe can not only play, but she
allows the creativity to flowher flow through her in so many
different different ways.
Lauren Spangler (08:21):
Well Thanks
Victoria B. Glass: You're welcome! (08:22):
undefined
Lauren Spangler (08:22):
For for a long time, I thought it was a bad
thing. For a long time, I feltlike I needed to pick 1. Like,
what's on my name tag? What am Iwhat am I saying? Am I am I
gonna be a musician?
Am I gonna be a painter? Am Igonna be a composer? Like, what
am I gonna do? And, it's I youknow, that's another piece where
I feel like there's more andmore room now for people to be
multipassionate and to sort oflean into all the different
(08:43):
things they care about. So,yeah, there's there's a lot of
room.
Even though right now I don't domusic professionally, I still
consider myself a musicianbecause I'm writing it and
practicing it and making itevery day. And so, yeah. Anyway,
there's a little philosophicalrabbit hole we could go down on
identity.
Victoria B. Glass (09:01):
Yeah. No. I mean, I think that's so good.
And if you bringing that up is agood thing too because we
recently talked about how on theshow, we talked about how my
husband got my art degreeframed. And for a really long
time, I was like, no.
That's just a piece of paper.Like, it's fine. But it does
make a difference when yourealize, hey, this part of
myself is still a part of thisstory even if it's not something
(09:25):
that is at the forefront rightnow. You know, this is who I am.
So I love that, and I can onlyimagine just how wonderful it is
to have a mom that will singlullabies and, like, that that's
so beautiful of a life thatyou've created for your kids
even to have that part ofyourself still shine through in
those intimate moments whenyou're with them at, you know,
(09:45):
singing lullabies at night andthings like that.
1 thing I love about the show,but I'm still kind of getting
used to is, like, just thesemoments of brave recognition
where it's like, oh, I see you.Like, that's awesome and, like,
kudos. So I guess I should justleave it at. That is a good
victory, like, claps. I'm havinga clap very softly.
Lauren Spangler (10:03):
Thank you. It's hard, you know, it's hard for us
to share our victory sometimesbecause we want to be humble. Do
you know what I mean? Like, wewe don't want to have an
inflated ego. We wanna remainaware of the fact that we're
still growing, and there's stilla lot of road ahead of us.
But it's important to pause andsay, this is what I did, and I'm
proud of it. And it went reallywell, and it's really cool
because when you say that andwhen you speak that victory out
(10:24):
loud, then someone else whohears you can see themselves and
see their ambitions reflected inyour reality and go, Yeah, I
wanna do that too. If she can, Ican! Like, look what they did. I
should go give it a shot and andbring my own desires forward
because it's possible. So, yeah,kudos to your kudos, to my
kudos, to all the kudoses. Thisis why this is important. Yeah.
Victoria B. Glass (10:47):
This is why this is important. Yes.
Absolutely. So now that you'reable to recognize these many
different versions of yourselfand and call them to existence
as for what they are, how do youtake those moments and put them
into your coaching career and toyour your season of being a
strategist right now? Can youelaborate a little bit more on
(11:09):
your personal experiences andhow you tie that into your
coaching with your clients?
Lauren Spangler (11:16):
1 way it serves me is that I have experience as
a musician. I've written. I havepainted. I've done all these
different things, and it allowsme to have, you know, a little
window into what thoseexperiences are like. And so the
creative process in general isactually there there's a lot of
commonality.
No matter what medium you'reworking in, no matter what, you
(11:37):
know, particular style or genre,where, like, the creative
experience and the process ofhaving an idea and bringing it
into reality and sharing it withpeople is pretty there's a lot
there's there's a commondenominator there. But there are
specifics within the world of,like, what does it look like to
do that as a visual artist? Howare you gonna use your tools
like social media? How are yougonna promote yourself? How are
(11:59):
you gonna conceive of yourcollections, you know, versus
doing that as a musician, whichcan be like a performance art,
you're live, you're with peoplein a real space, or how do you
use social media in a differentway?
Like, there there are a lot ofdifferent tactics and different
nuances within creativity ineach of those different worlds.
And so 1 way that it's helped tobe a jack of all trades or at
(12:23):
least a jack of several trades,is I can relate to my clients
who are musicians. I can relateto my clients who are authors. I
can relate to my clients who arepainters because, on some level,
I've been swimming in thatocean. Right?
And so, that's been reallyhelpful. And the coolest part is
when I get to meet clients whopractice something I've never
done before, like ceramics orjewelry making or dancing. There
(12:46):
are a lot of artistic worlds Ihaven't ever walked in. So it's
actually really fun to work withthose people too because then I
get to learn a little bit aboutwhat they do and what their
particular flavor of of art islike.
Victoria B. Glass (12:58):
Oh, I love how you put that. And I bet that
is so interesting, and it'llkeep you curious as an artist
because there will be things andpeople who have experienced the
same feelings but differentmediums and you can appreciate
their artwork and also helpguide them through some of those
those maybe troubles thatthey're having or experience in
(13:19):
that season. So I really seethat and how it would be such a
fulfilling life to live as acreativity coach. And you
mentioned a little bit when wewere talking before the
interview that you had a abusiness where you experienced a
little bit of burnout and I knowas an artist that can be like
(13:40):
the number 1 fear. At least Iknow personally, it's like I
will take, you know, being thethe artist who loves what I do
and never gets acknowledged forit over being someone who loves
what they do, gets acknowledgedfor it, and then doesn't wanna
do it anymore. So how did younavigate that? III wanna hear
that a little bit more and howyou navigated it. Can you
(14:01):
elaborate on on that a littlemore?
Lauren Spangler (14:04):
Yeah. 1st, let me say that what you just said,
Tori, is really healthy when yousaid you'd rather be the the
artist who loves what you do anddoesn't get acknowledged versus
the artist who burns out anddoesn't wanna do what they love
anymore, because they wereseeking that acknowledgment so,
like, frantically. That's abeautiful mindset. So just,
like, pat yourself on the backbecause sometimes it takes a lot
(14:24):
of work for artists to get tothat place. Yeah.
So my experience was maybecommon. I don't know. But I when
I first set out to be aprofessional creative, I was a
musician, singer songwriter,like I said, and I had every bit
of knowledge in the book abouthow to write a song, how to
(14:45):
record a song, how to perform asong. All the pieces of the
creative process were, like,locked down, ready to go. But I
had 0 knowledge of how to run acreative business, how to think
like an entrepreneur, how toposition myself in a market, how
to engage with the rapid firerejection that happens when you
(15:05):
step out of school and into thereal world.
I was totally underunderprepared, unprepared, 0%
prepared for that experience.And what happened was I
developed this really toxicrelationship with my creativity
because I was suddenly in thisenvironment where I didn't know
(15:28):
I didn't know how to swim. Iwound up sinking emotionally
creatively, creative healthwise, because of the strains and
pressures that operating as aprofessional creative put on my
creative process. Does that makesense?
Victoria B. Glass (15:45):
Oh, yeah.
Lauren Spangler (15:45):
And so my business went belly up
financially just, like,completely tanked because I had
no idea how to be savvy in abusiness at that point. And when
that happened, that was justsuch an enormous blow to my
creative to my inner artistbecause I took that financial
failure, and I took it as acreative failure. And I thought,
(16:09):
okay. Wow. I thought what I wasmaking was good.
I thought people liked it. Iguess I was wrong. I thought
this was what I was meant to do,but, like, obviously, it's not
because I crashed and burned.And it sort of triggered this
gigantic burnout because I lostthe connection to what really
drew me to being creative in thefirst place. And I lost the
faith and the trust that what Iwas doing was helpful and
(16:31):
purposeful.
And so for me, that looked like,you know, I did a a 180 turn,
moved back to my hometown, got ajob in corporate, totally
changed my entire lifestyle andthought, like, okay. I guess
this music thing isn't gonnahappen. I guess the art stuff in
general, like all that creativeliving, maybe it's not meant for
(16:53):
me. Maybe this isn't how I'mgonna actually support myself.
Because at that time in my life,like I mentioned, right, I had 2
dreams, be an artist, be a mom.
And being an artist was notfunding the lifestyle I wanted
to be a mom. It was like, how amI ever gonna have the financial
stability that I want if I youknow, how am I gonna be able to
(17:16):
support the family that I wantto have? And so so, yeah, that
was a that was a big moment ofit felt like this gigantic fork
in the road. And so at thatmoment, I decided, great. I'm
gonna choose stability.
I'm gonna put creativity to thewayside and keep it, you know,
as a hobby or whatever. And, andI did. And I spent about 7 years
(17:38):
sort of divorced from mycreative spirit because I was
just busy focusing on thatstability side. And then it
wasn't until, you know, 7 yearsin that I was realizing, okay.
This was actually creativeburnout.
I still wanna be an artist. Istill have gifts to offer here.
I still wanna go be creative.And then I had to figure out how
(17:59):
to reconcile and how to do allthe things in balance with each
other, so that I could allowboth sides of myself to come
forward and to serve and to, beseen and and be used. Right?
Does that make sense?
Victoria B. Glass (18:13):
Absolutely. Yes. Yes.
Well, I admire the journey. And when you
reach that fork in the road, itwasn't the end of the story. And
we know now that you have somuch that is coming out of you
lately, like all the thingswe've mentioned earlier. So now
(18:34):
let's paint the picture of whatyour day to day looks like as
the as the artist and thecreative that you are today
after you found the space to leteach part of that exist. The mom
dream and the artist dreambecause we know that with God,
anything is possible.
And a lot of times He lets us godown those roads and figure it
(18:56):
out because that's what the giftthat He gave us was, but we're
never alone as you know. And sonow that you have come back to
the art, the artist part ofyourself and the mom part didn't
go anywhere. She's still heretoo. It sounds like so can you
paint a little bit more of thatpicture of where you are today
and how you feel now that youlet both both versions exist?
Lauren Spangler (19:20):
Yeah. I am I am living a daily life now that I
didn't think was possible. Ireally I thought it was had to
be 1 or the other, and now Ifeel like I am enjoying this
really deep balance and purposeon both sides and that there
it's sort of harmonious. Right?The art piece came back up
bubbled back up to the surfacewhen I was in my 2nd maternity
(19:42):
leave with my with my secondbaby.
Yeah. So I have 2 kids, my my 2sons. 1 is 5 years old, 1 is 3
year old 3 years old now. And soit was 3 years ago during that
maternity leave with my secondson, that I sort of had this
creative, like, reawakening. Idon't know what else to call it.
It was like this urge this,like, really intrusive urge to
(20:05):
go paint things because at themoment, I was really busy. I was
kind of like, in the newbornphase and up all night long and
had a toddler running around andit was really an inconvenient
time to go, like, try to be anartist. But it happened, and I
just felt really I felt thispull to go paint and sing and
write, and I stopped eventuallytrying to avoid it. And I think
(20:30):
it was out of that desperationwhen maternity leave ended,
where I needed to go back towork. I needed to return to my
career as a strategist, which Iabsolutely loved and was proud
of.
So I didn't wanna step away fromthat career. But then I had
started to do this art stuffagain, and I also now had this
brand new baby who I adored andmy toddler who I adored, and I
(20:51):
didn't wanna step back. I didn'twanna step back or let go of any
of it. And I thought, okay. Ifthis has all been put on my
heart, right, like, then thenit's here for a reason, and I
like, I'm just going to expandmy capacity to be able to do all
these things that matter becauseI could feel like these things
are important to me, and I don'twanna let any of them go.
(21:14):
And so I sort of just started,like, I don't know, getting to
the ground truth of each ofthose. Like, as an artist, what
do I wanna feel? What do I wannaexperience? What do I wanna
bring forward? What do I feellike is my purpose beyond like,
this is not vanity metrics.
This is not revenue. This is notanything that's gonna go on my
resume. Like, why why with acapital W am I doing art? And
(21:39):
figure that out. And then, like,okay.
So how about my work as astrategist and a coach? Like,
why do I do that? Obviously,there's financial reward, and
it's a paycheck that supports myfamily and pays the bills. But,
like, deeper though, why am Ipicking that? Why is that the
way that I'm seeking financialreward?
Right? So I've got clear onthat. And then as a mom, like,
(22:01):
obviously, I know I wanna be amom, but like, what is the
experience I want in motherhood?Where do I want to really be
focused? And where do I want toreally anchor what I'm what I'm
providing to my children andwhat I'm receiving from my
children in that sacredrelationship of parenthood.
And so getting clear on each ofthose 3, the the values and the
(22:25):
priorities underneath of thoseroles was really beautiful
because then I started to justrebuild my daily life to make
sure that the things I was doingon, like, a minute to minute
basis were always tied back to 1of those deeper and more
important purposes.
Victoria B. Glass (22:40):
Oh, that's so.... I can tell that you are a
writer too because that is thisis so clear that what how you
said that and too and andgetting clear on yourself and
then making sure that everysingle moment, everything that
you are living for and workingfor and spending your time on is
tied back to those whys. AndI've never heard it put so
(23:03):
clearly of, like, I mean, I'veheard find out your why, but
I've never heard it with acapital W, you know? And I
really feel that you were Ididn't I don't know who you were
before, but I can feel theintentionality between who you
are, who you are, and whereyou're going to. And I love the
way that you put, I can holdthese things, and I don't have
(23:26):
to set them down. I can expand.
And isn't that just the thedream for anyone? Not even just
creatives or just artists, but Ifeel like we all want to be able
to take those walls and insteadof go around them just go
through them and then just have,you know, that that mentality of
like not look what I did in avanity way, but like look what I
(23:46):
did because God gave me thestrength to do it. And now I
don't have to use that excuseanymore of there being a, like,
a wall. Not that there's ever.... I mean, like, we have real
lives and things that happen,but I think that each 1 of us is
on a journey where we can decideto carry it with God and evolve
and and become expanded, likeyou said, or we can just, like
(24:08):
you said, go back.
And there's not a right orwrong, but we do have that
choice. And as a creativeartist, it's amazing to see and
to talk with and to know artistswho've been like, you don't have
to put it down. You can you canexpand. You can do it. You can
become something new anddifferent and also hold on to
who you are. You're like, thestory goes on.
Lauren Spangler (24:29):
YES! It's true. Absolutely.
Absolutely. And that reinventionof ourselves and of our story
and of our connection to our ourbigger purpose, like, that you
can rewrite that at any moment.Like, you can metamorphosize how
you're thinking about yourselfin your life without changing
all that much about your life.Like, if you look at my calendar
(24:51):
today and you look at the timethat I have blocked out for
coaching and the time I haveblocked out for art and the
family time I built in, like,the actual time blocking looks
pretty similar to how it didwhen I was feeling frantic and
overwhelmed, and it's likethere's a different energy.
(25:12):
Let's see.
Like, you can go about having itall in the energy of feeling
like you have to hold it alland, like, you're juggling all
these balls and you're, like, ifI was gonna paint a mental
picture, it'd be like thisballerina, like, up on her toes,
like, constantly upholdingeverything. Like, there's all
this tension and thisexpectation and, like, you're
trying to rise to meet all theseexpectations. Right? There's
(25:33):
that energy, and that's 1 way inwhich you can try to do all the
things and have a full day and afull life. Or there's this other
energy where you can still haveall of that, and you can still
be holding all those things, andyou can still have this gigantic
capacity to be engaged in allthese beautiful ways in your
life, but you can instead bejust, like, grounded and just
(25:56):
releasing into this knowing of,like, you know what?
There's a bigger purpose. I'mconnected to all of this
gigantic, beautiful beyond me,ahead of me, behind me, like
there's this beautiful, there'sthis beautiful, larger purpose
that I am living out all thetime. And it calls me to do all
(26:17):
of these different things. Andit supports me in doing all of
these different things. And thatplace is totally different
energetically.
You you know, it's a much moregrounded, a much more centered,
present, mindful way of stillbeing, still holding all of
that, but without the tensionand without the pressure, like,
you have to do it all. It's likeinstead, you can just simply be
(26:41):
in it. Does that make sense?
Victoria B. Glass (26:43):
It does. And the whole time I was thinking
too because I even felt it asyou were describing it. You can
do it and breathe at the sametime. Like, isn't that
astounding? Sometimes we don'twe don't we're holding it and we
don't breathe, and I'm talkingto myself.
Lauren Spangler (26:59):
Oh, yeah. Me too. There are still days where
I'm the ballerina and I realize,okay. I'm holding my breath. I'm
up on my toes.
Like, I just need to take abeat. And, like, for me, it
start it sounds really cheesy,Tori, but I start with
gratitude. It's like if I'm inthat moment where I feel tense,
and I feel like I'm having tohold everything up, I just go,
wow, look at all this stuff.Look at all of this that I get
to experience. And look at allof these gifts that I'm getting
(27:21):
to use and like, yeah, mycalendar might be really full
today. Look at all this life Iget to live. You know? How nice
it is not to be, devoid of that.Right?
Victoria B. Glass (27:31):
It is so nice. I was gonna add the part
that you mentioned about havinga schedule that looks very
similar to the life before, onlynow you're grounded and you're
breathing and you're thankfuland you're filled with gratitude
and you can see a little bitclearer, it sounds like. And I
promise you, Lauren, I had thatthought this morning of this is
(27:52):
the first time I've ever batchedinterviews today. And I had this
moment this morning where Ilooked in the mirror and I was
like, yeah, but like these arepeople you wanna talk to. Like,
ain't that so different of a ofa air whenever you're doing
something?
And not that I didn't talk togreat people at the news
station, I did. But at the sametime, it was for someone else's
agenda. But, but I go all I gooff on that to say that when
(28:18):
you're in the space that youfeel created to be in and that
you are able to let go of thoseexpectations that you have for
yourself or that others may haveof you, and you just let God,
like, work with you. And andyou'll have I know as an artist
for myself, it's like you havethis dual creation in the moment
(28:39):
sometimes going on and it's likewhen you just allow that to
happen even if it's a littlemoment throughout your day then
it just all of a sudden hasagain this new energy about it
and it's so much more fulfillingand it it vibrates differently.
Lauren Spangler (28:54):
Absolutely. Absolutely. It's the
intentionality, and it's therecognition that it's a
privilege to get to do whatyou're doing. Right?
And that if you're doing thingsthat are aligned and that feel,
you know, like, congruent withyour purpose and your calling,
like, heck yeah. You might havea lot of interviews today, but
how cool is that? And it can beas simple as shifting the
(29:16):
phrase, like, from I have to toI get to. Like, I have to have
all these meetings today. I getto have all these meetings
today.
Like, it's a tiny change, butit's a huge change, and it
changes the entire way you movethrough that day. It changes the
way you're feeling during thatfull day. It changes the way you
feel after that full day. I lovethat. It it's it's it's subtle,
(29:38):
but powerful.
Victoria B. Glass (29:39):
It is. And I I wanna go back and just make
sure, like, I was so excited. Itmeans so much more to be able to
say I get to and it feels somuch better. And also, I'm not
it's not lost on me. Like, I wasso excited to have these
interviews and get or not have,but, yeah, get to get to
interview these people because,again, this is I feel the same
(30:02):
way you must feel too about,like, this is a dream that I'm
like, okay.
Yes. I'm I get to do this andit's such a privilege and I'm so
grateful and glad that it getsto happen. Well, I wanna talk a
little bit more ....oh, yeah. Goahead. Sorry.
Lauren Spangler (30:16):
Well, you know, on the topic of getting to
getting to expand our capacity,getting to have these really
full days, getting to do allthis stuff and, you know, sort
of do it all, have it all.Right? There's a there's an
important, maybe caveat, maybeaddition to that topic, which is
we also get to rest. We also getto allow ourselves. Right?
So, like, you have this full dayof batched interviews, which is
(30:39):
amazing, and what an opportunityand how many connections you're
making. It's also wonderful tobe able to tomorrow, if you're
recognizing that you're feelinga little tired from all that
external, right, like, from allthat output and all that
exchange with everyone,tomorrow, you get to say, okay.
Today, I get to rest. You know?And that's the same shift.
(30:59):
It's instead of, oh, I have torest. I'm exhausted. I overdid
it yesterday. I've just gotta gocollapse. Instead, you can say,
wow.
I get to rest today becauseyesterday, I went all out and I
did a great job, and now I getto
Victoria B. Glass (31:15):
Oh yeah!
Lauren Spangler (31:16):
So yeah, it's important because we can expand
our capacity and we can do a lotmore than we think we can do,
but only if we're still doing itin balance and allowing
ourselves to also have thosemoments of sanctuary and quiet
and solitude that we need torecharge.
Victoria B. Glass (31:32):
Yes. And I love the way that you reframed
that for me because it's 1 thingto reframe it in the front end
of it of, like, yes, I get to.But then, yeah, you're right.
And I've never thought about itthat way of, hey, now I get to
rest and I Did this and and youknow now this space is over
here.
So it's not- It always balancesout if you allow it to And I
(31:57):
need to get better of justhaving that mindset of when it
does happen, when I am allowingit to, not to focus on it in a
half glass empty kind of way,but in a glass half full kind of
way. You know?
Lauren Spangler (32:09):
I mean we all need to practice that.
That's a hard it's a hard shiftto make, but yeah, it's a good
1. Yeah.
Victoria B. Glass (32:14):
It is a great 1. Well, and I wanted to talk a
little bit about how you instillmoments of creativity throughout
your, like, day today and I knowthat it looks different for
everyone but do you have anyadvice to someone who might want
to instill differently. Can youelaborate about how to allow
(32:39):
those moments into your life?
Lauren Spangler (32:41):
Absolutely. So first thing I would recommend is
take a look at what you feellike you have to have, like, the
ingredient list that you feellike you have to have in order
to feel inspired or in order togo be creative. And there's
probably a lot of things on thatlist that aren't actually
necessary.
So, like, I used to think I hadto have a certain number of
hours all in a row. I've used tothink I had to have a certain
(33:03):
space. I had to have certain Ihad to feel inspired. That's a
really big 1. That's a really,really big 1.
It's like the biggest excusethat we use to avoid dipping
into creative work. It's like,well, I just don't feel
inspired. People who makeawesome work consistently within
the landscape of their actualreal life, will tell you that
you have to show up before theinspiration does. So if you find
(33:26):
yourself with time and you have20 minutes to go make something
and you're not feeling inspired,but it's still important to you
to go make something, go sitdown. Go jump in.
Go pick up your pen or pick upyour paintbrush or whatever it
is you do and start. And I wouldguess that probably 75 to 80% of
the time, your inspiration willstart flowing as soon as you sit
(33:47):
down and start getting into thework. So that's the first piece
is just don't close the doorbecause you have manufactured
this list of things that youfeel like, you know, the stars
have to align in order for youto get into a creative
headspace. It's actually a loteasier to to to jump into than
than that. But the other thing Iwould say is there is value if
(34:08):
you can find 30 to 60 minutes aday where you can arrange some
uninterrupted time for yourself,where you can focus and really,
really get into your creativezone, that's spectacular
because, you know, with an houra day, the amount you can
actually cover and the amount ofheadway you can achieve on your
(34:29):
creative projects is dramatic.
Like, that really stacks up, andyou'll be surprised how quickly
you are finishing the book orhow quickly you are done
painting the collection andready to put it in gallery,
like, whatever it is. And so ifyou can find uninterrupted time,
it's worth trading other lovedones in your home, bribing
(34:50):
people not to interrupt youduring that time, you know,
whatever you need to do. And ifyou have little kids like me, I
know there's a whole other setof challenges around what it
takes to get 60 minutes toyourself completely
uninterrupted. So there thereare strategies and tips and
tricks and tactics there to dothat. If you can't, though, if
it's impossible to finduninterrupted time, I love this
(35:13):
concept of confetti time.
I don't know who coined thatterm. I I really should look it
up. Someone brilliant called itconfetti time, and it's this
concept that your day is sort ofsprinkled with open space. And a
lot of times we fill that openspace mindlessly. So this could
be the 15 minutes when you'rewaiting to leave the house,
(35:33):
could be the 10 minutes atschool pickup, it could be the
time before your kids go to bedand you go to bed.
You know, there's all this openspace in our day. And a lot of
times, we just fill it withnoise. You know? We're scrolling
on social media or we'rewatching Netflix or, like, doing
things that maybe are enjoyable,but may not actually, if we
(35:55):
really ask ourselves, may not beas important to us as the
creative work that we wanna do.Like, if you are really called
to be an artist, like, there aresome people who are like, yeah.
I'll take Netflix over paintingany day, and that's fine, and
I'm all about that. But if youare the type of person who is
saying, okay. I really, really,really want to paint. I'm
desperate to find this time. Idon't wanna wait till my kids
(36:16):
move out.
I don't wanna wait till I retirefrom my job. Then ask yourself,
is painting more important toyou than an hour of Netflix? You
know? Or is there a way that youcould fit in 15 minutes of your
creative prep? Could you work onyour book for 15 minutes, you
know, in in the early part ofyour day when you have a little
chunk of time to work with.
So we take that confetti time,and we start to be mindful about
(36:40):
how we use it, then it'sactually pretty surprising how
much you can weave in some ofthese really enjoyable
activities without letting go ofa ton of the other stuff that
you have to give time to.
Victoria B. Glass (36:53):
Oh, I can see where that would be really
helpful to have 15 minutes here,5 minutes there. I mean, after
just a couple little moments,probably, like you said, that
are already in your day at theschool pickup or in the morning
or in the evening, right beforebed. If you just carved that
out, it will be an hour. Like, Imean, you know, like, it might
(37:14):
not be consecutive, but you canfind an hour a week that way.
And I've never heard of confettitime.
I'm just learning all littletidbits of sayings and
touchstones from ourconversation today because I
really like the visualization ofhaving the confetti because we
don't we don't think of, like, 2pieces of confetti being blown,
you know, at a birthday party.It's always, like, - It's
(37:36):
sprinkled everywhere!
Lauren Spangler (37:36):
Yes. Exactly. Exactly.
Victoria B. Glass (37:39):
And God knows that we have that time. Like, we
do. We we have it. And sometimesit might be making sacrifices,
like, saying I'm not gonna watchJeopardy tonight. I'm just not
gonna do it or whatever.
But I can but it means more tome to have the outline of this
thing I'm working on, like,written out.
Lauren Spangler (37:57):
Yes, YES.
Victoria B. Glass (37:57):
Or....I can go ahead and add a Piece of
color to this painting I'mworking on. And it might not be
the whole thing, but I also havethe confidence now that I've put
15 minutes towards that.
And then tomorrow, I'm gonna-
Lauren Spangler (38:08):
It feels so good.
Victoria B. Glass (38:09):
I know. It feels amazing, but I didn't know
that's what it was that's whatit was called.
Lauren Spangler (38:14):
Yeah. I love that term.
It's not my term. I really needto figure out who came up with
that so I can write them a thankyou note. But, you know, the
other thing is you figure outwhich creative activities match
which little slots of time. So,like, for example, if I have 10
minutes at school pickup, I'mprobably not gonna be trying to
get into any really deepthinking, creative, like,
massive projects, but I mighthave my iPad and do some digital
(38:37):
sketching while I'm sitting inthe car. Or if I'm let's say you
wanna watch let's say yourhusband's like, this is a killer
awesome episode of Jeopardy.You've gotta come watch this.
It's amazing. Right? Okay. Sogreat.
Can you take your sketch pad outto the couch and be sketching
thumbnail ideas while you'rewatching your favorite show? Or,
you know, like, how can you becreative about the way you
(38:59):
actually fit your creativeactivities into the little
confetti time pieces that youhave. And, you know, I will be
honest. The the confetti timestrategy is not going to be
fully satisfying if you neverallow yourself space to get into
the deep focus because I thinkthere's a lot of value in that
too. You know, having theability to really get into the
(39:20):
flow and be uninterrupted, isvery valuable.
And I haven't ever tried let methink about this. Have I ever
made something I'm super proudof where I only did it in 5
minute spurts? I wanna say no. Iwanna say I there's I just need
a little bit of deep focus nowand then. But, you know, it's a
(39:40):
balance between the 2.
Like, you know, just because youcan't always have the deep focus
doesn't mean you can't movethings forward with baby steps.
And so, yeah, it's worthexperimenting to find the
balance that fits in your dailylife and that feels fulfilling
and rewarding. Right?
Victoria B. Glass (39:56):
Right. And I think it's a great way to get
started on building thosemoments of deep focus in your
life. And if you can it's kindalike working out. Right? Like
where if you can, you know, showup for a little bit of time or
even even just drive to the gymor whatever, then at least
tomorrow, you can look back andsay, oh, well, I've done a
little bit here.
So now I remember how good thatfelt, and I'm gonna go and carve
(40:18):
out 20 minutes instead of 15today. And so you kinda build
that momentum up to somethingthat looks a little bit
different, but also it doesn'thappen in, like, an overnight
change where all of a sudden,you know, you've got 3 hours and
you're painting a picture, butyou can say, I can do that in a
little bit of time. But today,I'm gonna start with 15 minutes
and figure out what -
Lauren Spangler (40:38):
Absolutely.
Victoria B. Glass (40:39):
What I'm gonna be painting or whatever
today. And the reason I saidpainting is because I do wanna
segue into talking about nowyour your physical painting art
and how adorable it is. And Iwish I don't have any kids, but
I wish I did because I was,like, thinking of all the
different room ideas that Icould even just center around
just 1 piece of your of yourartwork.
Lauren Spangler (41:00):
Thank you.
Victoria B. Glass (41:01):
To have that in a kid's room or to have that
on display in a house.
So tell me about your art andhow do people find it to see it
and, just elaborate on that alittle bit more.
Lauren Spangler (41:12):
Well, right now and for the last few years, I
have absolutely been obsessedwith painting, parents and baby
animals, like mama and babyanimals. That all started in
maternity leave, and it reallycame out of this desire to
capture these tender momentsthat I didn't wanna forget, In
like, because with my first son,it felt like the newborn days
(41:35):
were just never ending becausewe were up all night long. We
had a challenging delivery. Hewas in the NICU for a while. It
was just like it was really,really disorienting, and I felt
like, oh, my gosh, this time isnever gonna be over.
I'm never gonna sleep again,right? And then all of a sudden,
I turned around and he was 2years old, and he wasn't a baby
anymore. And so when when I hadmy second baby, I in that
(41:57):
maternity leave, there was thisawareness like, okay, yes, I'm
tired. Yes. The house is acomplete disaster, and there's
spit up on every piece ofclothing that I own.
However, this is a sacred timeand it's a gift. And the fact
that he's this tiny preciouslittle itty bitty baby in my
arms is just gonna last a blink,and then it's gonna be gone. And
(42:21):
I don't wanna just remember thespit up and the sleepless
nights. I really wanna rememberthese moments of bonding and
play and sweetness and thethings that can kinda get run
over by the exhaustion of newparenthood. And so I started
painting these pieces that werejust based on, like, on any
given day.
Like, what moment did I enjoywith my children today that I
(42:43):
that I want to put in a jar andkeep forever? And I would paint
it. And now when I look back atthose paintings, they serve that
purpose, and they give me thatfeeling that I have at the time
or that I had at the time. Andthey're they're really probably
my most treasured work for mepersonally just because of what
they carry. And when I startedsharing them online, other
(43:03):
people started looking at themand going, Oh, my gosh, that
reminds me of my little 1 or,you know, this, my my friend is
expecting a baby and I wannagive this to her because it's
just the vibe of, like, youknow, cheerful hope and love
that I wanna, you know, gift.
And so that was really preciousto me also when people started
to resonate with the work. Andso yeah. So I share a lot of it
(43:26):
on Instagram. I'm at @LaurenSpangler, and also have a lot up
on my websiteLaurenSpangler.com, And it's a
blast. Every once in a while, Ieven do a commission.
I just finished a commission forsome friends who are expecting,
and so I made them a piece withtheir own little animal family
and their favorite animal. But,yeah, it's it's been a real
(43:46):
delight to build thatcollection.
Victoria B. Glass (43:49):
It is so beautiful and so sweet, and I
can see the moments now. Ididn't realize they were based
on real moments, but I can seehow they would be because
they're just so tender andlovely. I can't say anything
else just because they are. Theyare so lovely and
Lauren Spangler (44:05):
Thank you.
Victoria B. Glass (44:06):
Do you want to, I guess, make more of those?
Is that something you feel likefor the future? Like, is that
where you're going with yourartistic journey? How does the
future look like for you? Like,what is what does it all look
like longterm?
Lauren Spangler: Well, what I can tell you is I (44:22):
undefined
want to keep painting. Andbeyond that, I've gotten really
I used to try to map out so,like, in my work as a
strategist, it's all aboutplanning the future and, like,
charting the course and thenmoving down this planned path.
Right? And for a while, I triedto do that creatively.
Like, what am I gonna do with mywork? Like, what exact I was
(44:44):
trying to plan my collections,like, 3 collections out. Like,
what am I gonna be painting? Andthen I would never stick to the
plan ever. And so I painted 50of those during that first for
Victoria B. Glass (44:56):
OH WOW!
Lauren Spangler (44:57):
I've only shared maybe half of them
online. Well, no, I think Ishared sketches. I shared some
of the original ones onInstagram when I was first
working on them. But they'reonly they're only a handful of
those that I've actually, like,formalized and and sell within
that collection. But after I did50, I was like, okay.
I think I'm done paintinganimals for a while. Like, I
think I'm gonna go do flowersand some other things and
(45:19):
experiment with differentmediums, and I did. And then lo
and behold, I keep paintingparent baby animals. I just keep
going back to it. So if youwould ask me a couple years ago,
Tori, I would have said, yeah.
I'm all done with the animals,and now I'm gonna do botanicals.
But I right now, I'm painting apair of birds that is a mom and
baby bird sitting on a branch. Ijust can't seem to get away from
(45:40):
that theme. So the likelihood isI'll probably be painting them
for a for a good while.
Victoria B. Glass (45:45):
Well, they're cute. And if you have a baby or
if you have a gift that you needto buy someone who's expecting
or if you just want to have abeautiful picture of a mother
and baby or multiple babies ordaddy and baby. I think there
was a daddy shark that you didrecently that was so cute. It
was perfect for summer. And so,anyways, if you have any of
(46:06):
those things or if you justwanna have the heart to support
an artist, then head to Lauren'swebsite, LaurenSpangler.com.
Right?
Lauren Spangler (46:15):
That's right. Yeah. Yeah. If you're interested
in purchasing a piece of work, Isell reproductions on my website
in my shop, so head over toLaurenSpangler.com. And, if you
wanna see what I'm working onright now, then I'm always
sharing on Instagram.
So I'm @ LaurenSpangler there,and that's a really good place
to reach me too if you'd like tobuy an original piece or if
you're interested in acommission. And then if you, you
(46:38):
know, if you're listening tothis episode and the creativity
coaching piece is reallysticking out to you, and you
wanna take a pulse on your ownsort of creative balance and
well-being, I've put together a10 question or a 10 minute
questionnaire. It's a selfassessment that you can take.
And when you run through it, ittells you sort of where you
(46:59):
might be really balanced rightnow in your art life and your
art work life family balance,and then maybe some places where
you could fine tune to feel morefulfillment and enjoyment over
time. I call it my spark orsputter test, and it's
completely free.
You don't even need an email todownload it. It's just on my
website for free. It's atlaurenspangler.com/spark. If you
(47:23):
head over there and take it,then I hope it helps you.
Victoria B. Glass (47:26):
Awesome. That is so generous too, and I love
that it's completely free. Thatis very, very generous of you,
Lauren, to have the selfassessment that you can go
online and and take and, figureout where you fall on the
creative balance, chart andthat's completely free. So I
love that you you don't evenhave to put an email. That's
(47:48):
very generous of you to to putthat on your website.
Lauren Spangler (47:50):
Yeah. absolutely. So what it'll do is
when it gives you your results,it'll walk you through sort of
where you fall on this spectrum.And based on where you fall,
it'll tell you kind of thesupport that would be most
useful to you right then. And Ialways offer a free 15 minute
consultation. So if you take thequiz and you're like, yeah. I
really wanna understand moreabout, like, what I could do
(48:10):
next or what's next on the path,then just drop me a note or
there's even a link on mywebsite to just sign up for a 15
minute call.
So you can pop in anytime thatworks for you. And I'm always my
door is open, and I'm excited totalk with, you know, talk with
anybody about what creativehurdles you're facing right now
or what creative goals anddreams you have that you might
(48:30):
wanna move toward. So, yeah,people are welcome to reach out
anytime.
Victoria B. Glass (48:36):
Well, thank you so much for sharing that,
and I invite everyone who'slistening to go and take that.
You might even see me in therein just a few. I've taken it
because I've been I've beencurious about it and so I'm glad
that you explained it a littlebit more and, thank you for
coming on and just realigning mycreativity chaos that's been
going on a little bit over here.So I feel like we're kindred
(48:59):
spirits and we have a lot incommon in that way of, being
creatives who have who's gonethrough the burnout a little bit
and who knows what it's like tobe on the other side of it now.
So just thank you for coming onand sharing your victory story
and for all of the goodtouchstones and tidbits that you
shared with us today.
Lauren Spangler (49:18):
Thank you, Victoria. This has been a real
treat. I appreciate it. I hopethis conversation helps people
and I'm just glad to beconnected So thanks for having
me.
Victoria B. Glass (49:24):
Yes. Well, Lauren, you want us to go to
Lauren Spangler on Instagram oryour website, Lauren
spangler.com, to work with youand to to look at your art.
Lauren Spangler (49:37):
If you want to purchase a print, I offer giclee
prints, which are really highquality archival. It's archival
quality inks on this beautifulwatercolor paper. It's they're
gorgeous. They get themprofessionally printed here in
the US, and that's what you canpurchase on my website.
So if you go toLaurenSpangler.com/gallery,
that's where you can see a lotof those those pieces that are
(49:59):
available for purchase as aprint. I also although I don't
have a formal shop open whereyou can purchase original
pieces, I do have people whoreach out to purchase pieces on
Instagram. So if you ever see meworking on something that you
really love and feel connectedto, if you see me painting a
watercolor piece that justreally speaks to you and that
(50:20):
you'd like to have in your home,just drop me a message in
Instagram and just let me knowyou're interested in that piece.
And, and usually, I just selldirect to collectors, like,
through my messages onInstagram. So it's not really
formal.
There's no checkout page for thefor the original pieces, and
probably I should work thoseinto my online shop at some
(50:41):
point. It's on the bottom ofsome to do list somewhere. But,
yeah, if there's ever a pieceyou're interested in, just reach
out and I'll connect you withwhat you're interested in and
we'll, take it from there. Oh,yeah. Oh, yeah.
Then LaurenSpangler.com/gallery,and you can pick sizes too. So
you can get a a little 8 by 8 oryou can get 10 by 10, 12 by 12.
Like, there are a lot ofdifferent options for for the
(51:01):
sizes and the the different, youknow, qualities that you can
find on the website. So, yeah,check it out.
Victoria B. Glass (51:08):
Beautiful. Wonderful. Well, thank you again
for welcoming us into yourworld, and I will check it out.
And I hope that our listeners dotoo. Have a wonderful afternoon,
Lauren, and thanks again forcoming on and sharing your
victory story.
Lauren Spangler (51:21):
You too. Thanks so much. Talk to you later.
Victoria B. Glass (51:28):
Thanks for joining us for this week's
episode of the ContagiousVictory's podcast. If the show
inspired you to share your ownvictory story, I'm here to tell
you the world deserves to hearit. Submit it to me online at
ToriBlackmon.com. Review andsubscribe if that feels right.
Telling a friend about the showhelps contagious victories to
(51:48):
grow.
Plus, we all appreciate a littlesunshine. I'm Tori B. Thanks for
listening. I'll catch you soon.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Special Summer Offer: Exclusively on Apple Podcasts, try our Dateline Premium subscription completely free for one month! With Dateline Premium, you get every episode ad-free plus exclusive bonus content.
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!