Project | Faith & Science in Dialogue: Rheticus Forum

I received the following information from the client, Saint Andrew's Lutheran Campus Center:
 

An evening lecture series looking at the challenges individuals meet when approaching the integration of scientific disciplines and religion. This series seeks to create dialogue rather than debate, share personal experience rather than philosophical polemic, affirm harmony in places of havoc, & invite learning across the generations.

Purpose: Faith & Science in Dialogue: Rheticus Forum starting the fall semester 2011 is a statement of who St. Andrew's Lutheran Campus Ministry is here at the University of Illinois (they take questions about life seriously). The lecture series will continue for many semesters to come.

Goals: Demonstrate how dialogue (as expressed in designed flyer) puts Faith and Science in a creative tension for the twenty-first century; Campus ministry can be a vital part of that dialogue.

Our Market: The broad "university community" and the town(s) communities with a campaign to appeal to both groups

I created the following marketing plan & look:

Since the client wanted their target market to be "everyone" I broke "everyone" down into different categories. My suggestion to them is going to be to focus their time, energy & funds on the first 3 general categories. Each marketing piece is labeled with which target it would focus on. The client will be refined the originally presented plan to fit their needs. The starred category is anyone who is already passionate about the series &/or St. Andrew's & therefore, will be an ambassador for this event.

11 inch x 17 inch Poster

5.5 inch x 2.125 inch Ticket (front)

5.5 inch x 2.125 inch Ticket (back)

Are you interested in attending the lecture series? Like Saint Andrew's Lutheran Campus Center on facebook for the most up-to-date information.

Jessie Marie Studio, LLC

We filed the paperwork to become a LLC today. Awesomeness is sure to be ahead.

Are You Still a Vegetarian?

August has hit & New Year's Resolutions have been long forgotten by many. Except me. I have this pesky habit of seeing my resolutions through until the end of the year. The question "Are you still a vegetarian?" has been asked a lot in the eighth month. My answer, "Yup. But I'm not going to stay this way!"

What I've learned a lot from this journey thus far:

Lesson #1: I miss Brats
Grilling out boca burgers is just not the same. For this fact alone I do not want to keep meat out of my diet forever.

Lesson #2:  CSAs are Amazing
A CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) is offered by local farmers to the buyer for a set amount per share. We bought a half share from Tomahnous Farm in Mahomet for $200. Every Tuesday for 16 weeks I go & pick up a bag of in-season produce. Lettuce, tomatoes, eggplant, potatoes, onions, strawberries, blueberries, pears, celery, kohlrabi, okra & more. This simple addition to our household has made the vegetarian diet easy during the summer months. You can learn more about CSAs here.

Lesson #3 Traveling as a Vegetarian Can Be Difficult
This one is especially true when you go to Wisconsin every other weekend where cheese, brats & beer are the staples. Granted I can have two of those three options, but it isn't the most wholesome diet. And picking a dish off most restaurant menus is tricky. I have been learning from other vegetarian friends during the year to make this easier. Burger King has a veggie burger on their menu. Who knew?

Lesson #4 Protein Comes in More than Meat 
Nuts, peanut butter, veggies & black beans are just a few. I will admit I can tell when my diet isn't balanced more now than before taking meat out of my diet.

Lesson #5 Don't be Afraid to Try New Recipes
Even if it means you start your kitchen on fire. For real. I was trying to make Fried Okra with Crispy Parmesan Coating & the oil must have gotten too hot. I took the lid off, oxygen was added to the hot oil & suddenly there were flames! Jarrod & I both acted quickly & only ruined dinner. If you would like to try some of the new recipes I have this year check out February, March & June's recipes on jessiemariestudio.com.

Rhythm & Rules

Dancing to a new beat.

Since becoming an entrepreneur, (me! an entrepreneur! wow.) at the beginning of June, I've been struggling to find my creative rhythm. While working in the corporate world I forced my creative rhythm into my employer's schedule. Now with full control of the on/off switch of how & when to work the lights have been flickering rapidly on & off at Jessie Marie Studio.

The piece of my day that throws a wrench into most anything I've learned from Tony Schwartz, Todd Henry & other work energy experts is a certain blonde 2-year-old. You have to expect the unexpected as a Mommy Freelancer. And the unexpected doesn't always fall into a nice, neat rhythm. The following questions had to be answered: What will my new creative cadence be? And how will my sweet Cadence join in on the new beat?

I entered into my summer quarterly retreat with with these questions as my main focus. Old systems had carried over from my time in the corporate world. I never knew anything else. Conflict & struggle of what to do & when resulted daily. Mommy Freelance world is different. Much different. I had to start over. New rules were needed.

After an in depth reflection of the first six weeks as a Mommy Freelancer I created some new rules:

1. Ditch my Daily Record Sheet

2. Add a simple notepad that holds my to do list for the day

3. Open gubb (project manager) & iCal (schedule) in the morning, review often

4. Fully engage with Cadence for 30 minutes, then work on my personal agenda for 30 minutes

5. Only guarantee myself 2 hours of work time during Cadence's nap 

(I was trying to cram my 8 hour corporate day into Cadence's 2+ hour nap. Opps.)

6. Pre-plan what I will do during those 2 hours during Super Why! in the morning (go PBS!)

7. Move quiet time out of work time

After week one of creating these new habits I have worked less hours, but have accomplished more. Funny how that works. I must be finding my creative cadence with Cadence's help.

Embrace the Process

"You are not a creativity machine. Remember that creativity is rhythmic." -Todd Henry

I don't sweat when I'm working. Well, unless I'm nervous. Yet design work is hard. 

When using your brain to crank out awesomeness you need a plan. My Professional Plan Maker is Todd Henry, the founder & CEO of Accidental Creative, a consultancy that helps creative professionals generate brilliant ideas. And he just published his first book - The Accidental Creative: How To Be Brilliant At a Moment’s Notice. I received my pre-ordered copy over the weekend. 

Unfortunately, I wasn't the first one to crack it open. Cadence was.

 

Because of creative habits Todd taught me; ie. unnecessary creating, strategic ideation, purposeful stimulus, daily recording, quarterly retreats and more; I have recently accomplished the following:

- Finished the children's book Adventures with Ranger Roy: Acadia National Park
- Started thinking about another book for the Adventures with Ranger Roy series
- Quit my corporate job & went 100% freelance
- Became a stay-at-home mom

You too can embrace the process of creativity & watch your distant dreams come into focus. 

Wanna know more?

Check out this video about the book:

The Accidental Creative: How To Be Brilliant at a Moment's Notice from Accidental Creative on Vimeo.

Or listen to this podcast.

And finally, just buy it. You won't be disappointed.

Storytelling through Photography

The Beautiful Wedding of Josh Repovsch & Nicole Logan

Location: Riu Negril Resort in Jamaica

Family & friends traveled from afar to enjoy...

... sun, sand AND...

... swimming!

Yours truly was asked to photograph the special event. Enjoy!

Cheers to the new Mr. & Mrs. Repovsch!

May you enjoy living happily ever after.

Purposeful Shifts

A post of the letter from the Jessie Marie Studio Spring 2011 Newsletter sent on June 7, 2011.

 “All the world’s a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages”
 

- William Shakespeare

For the second time the Scheunemann family is making a Purposeful Shift in their life. Some of you may remember Purposeful Shift #1: Project 2007. We quit our perfectly good jobs in Oshkosh, Wisconsin and drove to Alaska & back. After a job search, we landed in Champaign, Illinois and I began my career as a graphic designer at Horizon Hobby.

Purposeful Shift #2: The Scheunemann Switch
Since the day after our daughter, Cadence, was born in January 2009, Jarrod has been working on his masters in Park & Recreation Management at the University of Illinois. His flexible schedule allowed him to be home with Cadence most of the week. However, as of June 1st Jarrod was hired on full-time as the Community Services & Education Coordinator for the Office of Recreation and Park Resources at the University of Illinois. And I have left Horizon Hobby to focus solely on Jessie Marie Studio & Cadence Rose. All three of us are excited for the upcoming transition.

These kinds of Purposeful Shifts don’t happen overnight. In both cases we had a vision that formed into a tactile plan that we reviewed often. Teamwork & daily sacrifice were needed to keep us moving toward the future goal. And let me tell you, when a Purposeful Shift occurs it tastes so sweet because of all the hard work that was put into it.

Do you have a Purposeful Shift you would like to make in your life? What small step could you take today to make it happen?

Here's to transition!
Jessie Marie 

Interested in getting the Jessie Marie Studio Quarterly Newsletter in your inbox? Sign up here.