Today, we’re sharing some insights from my recent conversation with Camille Gerrick. Camille is a neurodivergent artist living in Charlottesville, Virginia. And while her narcolepsy and ADHD present challenges to running a business and doing all the normal things grownups are supposed to do, she prefers to think of these conditions as her artistic superpowers.

What does it mean when someone is neurodivergent?
Being neurodivergent or neurodiverse means that the brain is wired differently from everyone else’s. Some conditions that might fall under this spectrum of neurodiversity are ADHD, autism, and dyslexia. When you think about neurodiversity, it’s important to acknowledge that just because that brain is different, it doesn’t mean that it’s any less than a neurotypical brain. Instead, it’s more about focusing on the strengths that neurodiversity will bring to the situation. For example, people with ADHD may be notoriously bad with time management, but they can also be very passionate and driven. And when we’re interested in something, we can spend hours on it and not even realize it—thinking of our differences as strengths. 

You grew up as a kid in the 80s and 90s; how has that affected your art style?
I remember having a lot of really obnoxious outfits like these crazy patterns with squiggles and triangles and loud colors. The big scrunchies, the side ponytails, and I guess I just never really grew out of that, to be honest. Colors just make me happy. When I was a kid in elementary school, Lisa Frank was a big deal, and everybody had the folders with the cute rainbow animals and the trapper keeper for all their school stuff. And I just never grew out of that phase. Maybe it’s childish, but it’s fun. And it’s harmless.

I just started reading the Aesthetics Of Joy by a designer named Ingrid Fetell Lee. The premise of the book is that we’ve been taught through ancient traditions that the source of joy lies within us. But, a growing body of research is starting to support the idea that tangible objects can also spark that feeling of joy. In the book, Ingrid embarks on this study to find out what things spark joy, and color was one of her findings.

How did you get started?
It always sounds cheesy to say; I’ve been creative since I was a child. But there’s really not a time I can remember not being enamored with drawing or painting or the creative process. Growing up, we had this little kids’ table with chairs that had pockets on the back full of all our crayons and markers. I remember sitting at that table and coloring away. My dad is a writer and a musician, and my mom is a teacher, so it’s just something we grew up with, being encouraged to be creative. My mom was very anti-TV as well so that probably helped, if we can’t watch TV,  maybe we’ll make something. 

As a kid, I was always given craft special interest books like learning calligraphy or origami with a dollar bill, and oftentimes, they came with all the supplies you need to do what was in the book. Specifically, there was one book about macrame friendship bracelets, and I latched on to that book; I learned how to do all these different knots. I actually started my first business when I was in elementary school, selling macrame friendship bracelets on the playground. I would take my little box of embroidery thread and pull custom colors for people to make them custom color friendship bracelets during recess. Around this time, my grandfather, who owned his own landscaping business in South Florida – landscaping was a big deal – started having conversations with me about charging for my products. He’d say you need to think about how much it costs you to make it and make sure that you charge the right amount so that you’re not losing money. And then you need to decide what percentage of what you make you’re going to invest back into materials or growing the business and what percentage do you want to save. So from a very young age, those conversations about entrepreneurship were had through my grandfather.

You’ve mentioned throughout your story (you’ll have to listen to the podcast to find out more) that you also cope with chronic issues like pain; how do you do art while dealing with those issues?
Yeah, I have a lot of chronic pain from when I was in the military and art helps me cope with that. With art, I get into that flow state where your sense of time, like physical sensations from your body, kind of cease to exist, and you’re 100% in the moment, focused on what you’re drawing or creating. I need that in my life on a very regular basis. It helps me feel sane. It’s something that takes my mind off these health issues – it’s a mental escape from really anything adulty in life.

Where You Can Find Camille:

• Website: www.camilovescolor.com
• Facebook: camillegerrick
• Instagram: @cami.loves.color
• TikTok: @cami.loves.color
• LinkedIn: camille-gerrick

This podcast and all past episodes are available to listen to now. You can also subscribe to Get Under The Surface podcasts on all major platforms (Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, etc.).

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And the latest story that caught my attention (I bet it caught yours, too), was about Simone Biles pulling out of the gymnastics floor competition at the Olympics because the pressure was affecting her mental health.

This got me thinking about small business owners and the constant stress we are under on a daily basis. When things are going good, and cash flow is healthy, the consensus of the business owners I’ve spoken with is that stress levels diminish. And this is normal. As one of my mentors, Zig Ziglar, used to say, “money is important, it’s almost on the same level as breathing.”

So when there are cash flow problems, it’s natural for the mind to enter fight-or-flight mode, and for anxiety and worry to rise. Sure, there may not be a lion chasing us, but as Zig mentioned: for the small business owner, actually for most mortals, money is a necessary element of survival.

Now, add the stress of running a business, a pandemic, family responsibilities, and the general chaos that occurs in our world — and it’s easy to see why one’s mental health could feel pretty down and out.

This raises an important question …

How do you care for your mental health as a small business owner?

When you  can’t — or feel like you can’t — stop working because you are the breadwinner for your family, and your clients/customers are depending on you?

I don’t know what the short- and long-term repercussions are for Simone for dropping out of that particular Olympic competition. Will she lose sponsors? Will she struggle financially because of it? Only time will tell. I believe she did the right thing, and set a positive example for the rest of us.

But here’s the thing, no matter what the result of her decision — “pushing through” and not addressing one’s mental health is not the right answer. Because, honestly, if we don’t validate our mental health as something important, who will?

Yes, you might feel that you simply “can’t stop” because of the stress of obligation and worry. Yet, stopping, and being able to come back to “fight another day,” is a much better option than falling apart.

To be candid, I’m writing about this because I’ve experienced a higher-than-usual amount of stress over the past few years — and I’ve been at the crossroads of pushing through, vs. taking care.

My wife got hit pretty hard with fibromyalgia a few years ago and it turned everything upside down. Work and home life needed a big revision, and fast. Luckily, at work I have a FABULOUS TEAM, so delegating more tasks to competent, caring individuals meant that my web design firm was just fine.

But I was spread thin. Cooking, cleaning, shopping, running a business, being a dad, caring for my wife, ALL had a direct effect on my mental health. And I soon realized that if I didn’t care for myself — if I didn’t make self care a top priority, I might not survive, let alone be good to anyone.

So, what did I do?

I got my self-care act together. I stopped drinking, as I didn’t want alcohol to become a coping mechanism for the stress I was under — there was no way I was going to set that kind of example for my kids.

I started meditating and exercising on a daily basis, joined a men’s group, and sought counsel with a trained therapist to help me work through the emotions and trauma of my wife’s illness — so I could handle “the new normal” in healthy ways. I also started talking with close friends more, which helped with a sense of community.

I share this, not to sound like a big shot, but hopefully to empower you to make self care a priority for yourself. It’s important to your long-term success as an human being, and a small business owner.

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It’s VERY easy to be distracted by the minutia of the here and now — what seems so urgent in the moment. The problem is, when we do this the important long-term stuff gets neglected and we wind up remaining where we are as opposed to where we want to be.

The good news is you can train yourself to look past the to-do lists of today and tomorrow, and start focusing some of your time on your mid- and long-term goals.

The First Step — Discovering Your Goals

Most people fall into one of three categories when it comes to goals:

1. You Know What Your Goals Are
   If this is the case for you, are they clear and well-defined? If they are, great! WRITE THEM DOWN — IN DETAIL.
2. You Kind of Know What Your Goals Are
   You have a general idea of what your goals are, but things aren’t so clear. In fact, they might be pretty ambiguous. You’ll need to do a little work to flesh them out.
3. You Have No Idea What Your Goals Are
   If you don’t know what your goals are, that’s OK! But you’ll need to discover them. And if you’re looking to discover your goals, it’s helpful to take a global view. You can do this by making a list of all the things you’d like to do personally and professionally. Think of it in terms of what you want to accomplish, short-, mid- and long-term.

Before you start writing out your list, even if you are very clear about your goals, ask yourself the following:

What is it that I love to do the most?

Things you “kind-of like to do” need not make your list. If you focus on doing what you absolutely love, you’ll be more apt to stick with it (even when things are hard) and do a great job at it. Once you complete your list, set it aside for a couple of days before going back to it and eliminating all but the most interesting things you are most passionate about. Now you have a list of goals to choose from — some big, some small, all awesome!

This is only the first step in the process, so don’t worry too much about the details — yet. That being said, if you are aware of some or all of the details connected to a goal, it would be a good idea to document them while they’re fresh in your head. The great thing about this list is that it’s flexible, so don’t stress about whether each and every goal or detail is exactly right!

If you’re having trouble figuring out your personal or professional goals, you’ll need to call upon the “magic if.”

What is the “Magic If?”

If you have no idea what your goals are, or if you’re having trouble thinking of anything at all, there’s a simple, effective question you can ask yourself.

In my research with clients, friends, colleagues, family and facilitating goals workshops, this very simple question melts away the feeling of “not knowing” nearly 100% of the time — and a clear answer manifests.

So what’s the question?

What if?

What if you did know what your goals are? Who would you be? What would your life look like five years from now?

This question actually comes from the famed director and teacher, Constantine Stanislavski, one of the greatest contributors to modern theater and film acting. It was a strategy actors used to get “into the head” of our characters.

In our case, this question has the ability to untether us from reality, at least for a moment. Now, when we ask ourselves “what if,” instead of worrying about whether our answer is going to be right or wrong, it becomes more hypothetical, a postulation of sorts.

I believe this simple question frees the subconscious mind, allowing the answer — that’s always been there — to become conscious. These answers can be VERY powerful, so write them down.

One Final Note

Sometimes when you’re thinking about goals (and the change that’s often associated with them), fear rears its ugly head. Thoughts like, “that’s too hard,” or “what if I fail,” may arise. There may resistance associated with embarking on a goal. But if you don’t try, there’s a good chance you’ll remain in the same exact spot you’re in.

That’s not a way to double your business revenue, get healthier, free up time to spend with family, or accomplish any other goal on your list.

And what if you DO fail at attaining your goal? Well, failure is sometimes part of the process. It’s what we do with what appears to be failure that defines our future.

It took Thomas Edison over 10,000 “failures” before he invented a working light bulb. It took Colonel Sanders (Kentucky Fried Chicken) 1,009 “failures” before he received his first yes from a restaurant to sell chicken with his secret recipe.

If they’d have given up, we’d all be eating grilled chicken in the dark!

So what are you waiting for? Get out that notebook, or laptop, and get started making your list.

I hope this article helps you discover your goals. In the next installment of the series, we’ll talk about how to clearly define them.

Related Articles

• Running a Small Business & the Art of Balance
• Running a Small Business & the Art of Defining Goals
• Running a Small Business & the Art of Setting Goals
• Running a Small Business & the Art of Overcoming Obstacles
• Running a Small Business & the Art of Setting a Date on Your Goals

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Running a small business is not an easy task. It’s time consuming, and requires a lot of brain power to make countless decisions, big and small.

Even if you don’t have a family, this can be challenging. But what about if you do have a family? Especially if you have young children and a spouse that need your support, too? Or maybe you’re a single parent?

All of a sudden, running your business — not to mention focusing on business growth — just got exponentially harder.

Why? Because it’s very difficult to balance work, family and self in a way where something (or someone) doesn’t suffer from lack of attention.

In our Running a Small Business series, we going to be focusing on many topics including, discovering, defining, setting and accomplishing goals, as well as overcoming obstacles. But first I’d like to address the topic of balance, or what I like to call “Foundational Balance.”

The reason I start with Foundational Balance is because if you don’t have it — it becomes increasingly hard to handle your business and your family life. And when this happens, you may start to feel like a failure, or that you’re “lame.” The truth is you are not a failure — nor are you lame. You are simply struggling with your time and energy, like many other individuals running a small business.

Although you may feel you’re the only one struggling with these issues, that’s simply not the case. But realizing it’s not just you isn’t enough to fix the problem. You’ll also need to make improvements to your Foundational Balance.

Going Beyond Work/Life Balance

Before we dive into Foundational Balance, let’s quickly review the tried-and-true (and flawed) work/life balance philosophy. Why is it flawed? Because often times, a “work/life balance” philosophy is only two dimensional. But true balance comes down to more than balancing work life and home life. When we stick to only these two dimensions, there’s a third dimension that’s going completely unnoticed — YOU!

Creating a Strong Foundational Balance

Foundational Balance puts YOU and YOUR NEEDS front and center in the equation to attaining balance. Which makes sense when you think about the fact that if you’re not in a good place, how can you possibly take good care of your business or your family?

As the name implies, Foundational Balance is literally the foundation we stand on while we’re juggling all aspects of our lives. We need our Foundational Balance to be exceptional as opposed to acceptable. And yet many colleagues, clients and parents I speak with feel they are just getting through each day — just getting by — instead of moving in a positive direction.

What is Your Foundational Balance?

They’re the things you need in order to function optimally. Notice the wording there. Your foundational balance is not comprised of the things you MUST do every day, like work and dropping the kids off at school. Instead, they’re the things you need to do to have a strong mind, body, spirit and emotional life.

Although how each of us works on our Foundational Balance can vary wildly, what we’re working on is typically the same. To follow are the “basic” things you need to excel:

1. Sleep
2. Exercise
3. Meditation/Spirituality/Religion
4. Quality time with spouse/loved ones

A short list, for sure, but also a highly important one.

You are like a car …
A good, real-world example of how this works is your car. Think about the pistons in your car. They pump up and down — with great assistance from the motor oil you put in the engine. Now if I take the oil out of the car, will the pistons run? Yes. Will they pump? Yes. Will they eventually break down? Yes.

The pistons can accomplish their goal of pumping and getting you somewhere, at least least for a limited amount of time. But they are not going to be working efficiently.

They are not going to be anywhere near optimal.

You are the same. Without having a solid Foundational Balance — having your oil changed, your tires rotated, having enough gas and receiving timely tune-ups — you are going to run like a clunker!

Assignment

Take a few minutes and sit down to assess where you’re at with the four Foundational Balance areas listed above. Are there any other things you need to add to your list?

Next, set a plan of action in place to begin working on each of these areas. And start small with attainable goals you can accomplish on a daily basis. There’s only so much time in the day, so be kind to yourself so you can consistently address each of the areas that make up your Foundational Balance.

While you’re at it, grab a cup of coffee (or two) to celebrate the fact that you’re actively creating a stronger Foundational Balance!

Related Articles

• Running a Small Business & the Art of Discovering Goals
• Running a Small Business & the Art of Defining Goals
• Running a Small Business & the Art of Setting Goals
• Running a Small Business & the Art of Overcoming Obstacles
• Running a Small Business & the Art of Setting a Date on Your Goals

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