hanspetermeyer's Blog

2010 - looks a lot different from 2009

hanspetermeyer — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 23:30:25 -0800

I lose track of this conversation with myself (and yes, there are a couple of other folks who've read this stuff and commented to me, but mostly it feels very singular). But I do want to leave an update.

As I went into 2009 I faced a dramatically diminished income stream. Somehow, with the help of savings and some investments that finally "arrived," I made it through the year. Not only that, I had a wonderful time doing it!

I learned a lot. A LOT. I wrote a lot. A LOT. I learned to do new things viz my interest in telling and recording stories. I played a lot. I created a lot. I listened a lot. And, I managed to eat, drink, and dance my way through many, many happy days, weeks, and months. 2009 was a great year!

2010 looks different. I'm hoping it'll be a great year too, but it already looks like a much more lucrative year. And so, that means I'll be working more.

I'm going to miss the play time and creative time. But it'll be good to sock some $ away for the next opp I get to explore, change, do new things.

hpm
February 1, 2010

Social media: How a little virtual conversation juices my life

hanspetermeyer — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 23:08:42 -0700

When this challenge to write about the change in my life came up several months ago I had no idea where I'd be heading. Yes, I thought maybe I'd get some more writing. I thought I'd focus on some of my personal writing/foto projects that were being neglected because I was so busy the last couple of years.

Funny thing is, I got sidetracked by "social media." No, I don't while away the hours, days, weeks poring over others' profiles and playing inane games (there a lot of inane games on fB; after playing along with a few I've decided that I have absolutely NO TIME for this). My sidetracking has been about learning how to use these new communications tools to do what I am passionate about. And, to keep connecting with the folks who are important to me.

You see, a little while ago, at a very "important" and cerebral conference, old school storytellers (ie. print folks and movie-makers) asked of the new school media, Whither narrative? "It's all an Attention Deficit world now," they said. "How do you tell a story when it's so distracted?"

Hmmm... Yes, the story is fragmented. But that's kind of like real life. The pattern and meaning, if there is any, is only apparent in the rearview mirror. For me, the "story" of my family unfolds in various social media online, involving several generations. This could never have happened when I was a teenager. My mother is blessed (and cursed): she gets to see, more or less in real time, what her grandkids are up to, the story they're making. And vice versa. Very cool.

What this means for me is that I'm busy writing and posting and creating a series of fragments that connect. But not in a linear fashion. I've always been more comfortable in a chaotic, "field" of material. My pleasure comes from creating various stories or streams from this chaos. But it's always an improvisation (one of the reasons I love Argentine tango, btw).

My projects are still languishing. But I'm having a great time, writing and posting and engaging with folks and generating more material for the field of my dreams.

Being short-listed...

hanspetermeyer — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 14:23:51 -0800

It was very nice to get the email the other day, telling me my changeeverything 2009 resolution blog had been short-listed. Not sure how many were in the running, but I let that thought go easily enough. It reminds me of the first time I swam as part of mini-triathalons in my home town. After the event one of my partners called up with joy in his voice: “Hey dude, we got the bronze medal!” I was impressed. My first competitive outing as a swimmer, and a bronze medal to show for it! And then he gave me the punchline: “There were, of course, only three teams in our age category.”

I still have that bronze medal, and the silver from the next year (there were still only three teams in our age group, but we’d moved ahead in the rankings). They don’t speak to me about my athletic prowess so much as they speak about the fun we had, and the short, sweet ego-rush of getting a medal.

When I got the changeeverything news I did exactly as Kate suggested: I enlisted the help of my friends and families and colleagues, as well as my various dance partners. I urged them to vote, and bought their votes with promises of martinis or dances or whatever cheap and easy way I had to cajole them into visiting the site. I felt a bit of excitement. I got a bit of the rush, the competitive spirit of the thing.

The best part of the whole experience so far, however, has been the funny exchanges I’ve had with folks. Some have actually read the blog. Not sure if anyone has looked at the competition. It’s a bit of a personal popularity contest. And that’s cool. It’s given me another opportunity to connect in a positive way with people I’ve been out of touch with for a few months.

And I’m learning a few things about publicity and marketing, about how much fun it can be. All good things as I continue to plug away at the writing projects that I’m supposed to be making the centre of my attention in this time of less work, less money. (The reality has been that ever since realizing I had some time on my hands, small projects have fallen into my lap, keeping me pretty busy...)

Hasta luego...

Having Fun With the Re-invention Process

hanspetermeyer — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 10:50:20 -0800

One of the great things about re-invention is that I get to re-connect with a lot of people I’ve enjoyed working with in the past. Yes, the current re-invention is driven by necessity: I need to find new ways to put more flow into my current cash stream. But that doesn’t mean I have to be a dull boy about it. Quite the opposite.

This, more than any other, is the time get together with like-minded folks to chew on ideas, cobble together some projects, share some information, and encourage each other to step outside the boxes we’ve been living in during the past few years of relative busy-ness and wealth.

Last week was a banner week for me. One friend treated me to a couple of glasses of whiskey while we mulled over several projects that are in pre-development (ie. projects that need serious thinking and planning before they’re floated for investors and sponsors). No paying work here, but lots of opportunity. And she’s a dynamic character whose energy and enthusiasm are as valuable to me as any offer of paid work. That will come.

With another former client who’s hung out her shingle as a consultant, I got another dose of learning and thinking-forward. Also, along with lunch came the offer to make a referral and to coach me through a book proposal process.

Later, a client who hasn’t been using me much in recent months treated me to many drinks at our local “urban type” bar (I was nursing a cold so the treat was inexpensive and very appreciated: several generous glasses of grapefruit and soda). She also turned some work my way, and gave me some direction with regard to a possible strategy for re-invention. And, like the colleague earlier in the week, she offered to coach me through the process. ¡Todos buenos!

And all the time I was having a good time. I certainly put forward the current “opportunity” to put more time into their projects. But it was also fun to hear about what was happening in their lives and their work. Sometimes when I’m very busy, these kinds of conversations just don’t happen often enough. Now that I’m less busy with paid work, I get to put energy back into the relationships that have helped me thrive in the busy times.

It’s one of the things I love about how I work: it’s not just the product or the skill that I offer, it’s the way I get to work with clients. I’m not the right guy for every client or every job. But when it works, boy does it work. I’m reminded of that now as I go through this re-invention process: there are people who’ll want to work with me no matter what I do, so long as it relates to their work in some way. We just have so much fun together!

As my father loves to say, “Every day above ground is a good day.” And that's as true for the days when the cash is flowing but conversation is scarce as it is for the days when conversation is flowing but cash is scarce.

Living on sponge cake...

hanspetermeyer — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 17:24:23 -0800

OK. It’s about two weeks into my current reality show: the life of Hans as he re-invents himself for the (how many times is it now?) in his life.

That’s one of the realities about being a chronic “learner:” I’m just never satisfied with the pre-packaged versions of how life should be lived. As one friend put it recently, listening to how I did grad school as a “Special Arrangements” MA in Applied Sciences (with a focus on History, Literature, and Sociology/Communications between two major universities), “You’ve lived your life by ‘special arrangements.’” Indeed.

I have to remember this as the cat whines about the little pile of food in the dish, and the collaborators I’ve previously hired go away empty-handed: the ups and downs of the creative, “learning” life are about proverbial “salad days,” and days when there is only salad -- or sponge cake as Mr. Buffet (not Warren) once lamented -- on the plate.

Today was a good example. I’ve decided that I have to go for coffee, buy a burger, or otherwise spend some face-time with almost anyone from the past few “salad” years to generate some creative juice. Because I’m a chronic learner, I’m in it not just for the conversation and the possibility of collaboration that’ll lead to lucre, I’m also listening with my “third ear” for the lessons to be learned.

So I met with my very beautifully-preggers friend who has always inspired me with her glowing attitude and sharp mind. Yes, she owed me a couple of bucks from a little job I did for her a while back. But mostly I was hungry to learn. This woman has a keen nose for opportunity. And she’s quick with ideas. By the end of our luncheon I had a game plan for a project I’ve been sitting on for a while (too busy during the salad years to do much more than sit on it), she’d offered to make a key intro, money had crossed our palms and our debt/credit balance was almost square (I owe her some fotos for some work she’d done for me -- it’s a scratch your back world in my life), and to top it all off, she paid for lunch. Seems she thinks I bought her lunch last time (that’s what I do during the salad days: treat people as well as I possibly can, not because I expect it returned some day, but because I think we all deserve to be féted at any and all opportunities).

Anyway, it’s back to living on spongecake. No money for booze (or a blender). But I’ve got a plan. And I learned a thing or two. And the cats are still whining... time to shake a little kibbles their way.

Hasta entonces..... h.

learning to live with the flow...

hanspetermeyer — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 10:44:29 -0800

Several months ago my major client let me know that there’d be “changes” in 2009. I’m not someone who welcomes change, and I tend to get fretful when “change” means less work, less money, less stability. Not so unusual I suppose (which may be why I’m attracted to people who live happily on the edge of these things called “stability” and “security” -- I’ve got a few things to learn, and who better to teach me than those for whom the concepts of stability and security are foreign, even unwelcome entities?).

No matter how long I’ve learned from my mentors, however, change on the horizon means a little time in the fret-house of my mind. The squirrel cage approach to managing stress and disequilibrium. Etcetera.

After a couple of weeks of this, I settled down. And then the market went hysterical.

As we rolled into the early weeks of 2009 I’d made peace with “change.” I had a couple of potentially big jobs that looked strong. I’d adjusted my expectations and re-focussed myself. Not enough it looked like: within a couple of days the biggest project folded (“until cashflow picks up”) and the big client cut their needs for my services even deeper than anticipated. Hmmm.... squirrel cage time? Or???

I am no stranger to financial and career “creativity” (my current euphemism for not having anything resembling a regular job since... just after high school?). In part that’s because what matters to me in life rarely includes making lots of money. Yes, I’ve had a family to raise, and that did involve “lots of money.” But the kids are, for the most part, looking after themselves and the cats are relatively low maintenance. Having had my moment of anxiety some months ago, the latest news turned me away from the squirrel cage of worry and towards a more optimistic vista: with so much more time on my hands, I’ve actually got one of the biggest resources I need to work on some personal projects that have been languishing as I’ve worked so hard these past 3-4 years.

Another interesting note: As this opportunity opens up to me, all of a sudden there are people entering my life who are creative, used to living with financial uncertainty, and who know the importance of working on your own projects.

Change. I’m generally not one to throw open the door and welcome it into my house. But it’s here to stay, and I’m actually excited about where it will take me.

Stay posted!

more dancing in 2007

hanspetermeyer — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 20:39:53 -0800

That's it: more dancing -- more dance classes, more dance partners, more nights out dancing -- for fun, friendly, social exercise.

Does this change the world? I know that dancing teaches me a lot about working with someone else to make something seem effortless and beautiful -- and fun! A great metaphor for most anything else I want to see happen in my life, my world.