Intentionality Spotlight: Blog Love: Crystal Whitlow

Today for Intentionality Spotlight, we talk to Crystal Whitlow about starting a business, resources she uses, and how she stays motivated and preserves balance in her life!

First some easy stuff: Tell us a bit about yourself. What is your work, passions and interests?

Thank you so much for featuring me on your blog! I’m so happy to be here and talk about my life as a graphic designer and creative entrepreneur.

I currently call Kansas City my home and have grown fond of the Midwest culture.

During the day I work for Champion, the collegiate clothing company, and at night I spend my hours building up my creative profile through my online blog CW Design, Etsy shop, and Spoonflower store. I’m excited to turn my side hustle into a full-time adventure in the next few weeks.

I love being a graphic designer. I think of it as my super power! I see how good design as the power to motivate people to buy goods and build organizations. I enjoy studying marketing and how I can help grow my own business and help other businesses with my knowledge.

Outside of business ventures, I love paper crafting. I have a Silhouette Cameo machine that I absolutely love. A Silhouette Cameo is a machine that can read illustration files and cut them out of paper. It saves a bunch of time so that I can make many fun crafts for parties, Sabbath School, holidays and home decor.

Until now I have only made cut files for myself. Starting in June 2018, my mom and I will be opening an Etsy shop together to sell craft files.  It is our goal to inspire other people to flex their creative muscles to make their own projects. 

You are a talented graphic designer and crafter. Were these always interests of yours and did you always want to go the entrepreneur route? How did you decide to start CW Design?

I definitely feel that I was born to be a creative entrepreneur. I have always enjoyed my art classes more than any other subject, and it’s a skill set that I have always felt more confident in.

I was the type of kid who would sell my holiday candy to my classmates in elementary school... until my dad found out and told me to stop. So, I have always been entrepreneurial minded. I love the thought of having control over my work schedule and finding my own opportunities to grow in my career.  I believe that I will feel more satisfaction through running my own business than working for someone else.

As an entrepreneur, I imagine you have to be quite disciplined in certain areas. How do you stay organized and motivated? What are some resources that have helped you with this?

Having discipline is easier some weeks than others. I often struggle with feeling burnt out, and that I’m not achieving enough. What helps me the most is to take my goals and break them down into smaller goals, so I  feel like I am moving in the right direction.

For example, when I start freelancing, I will obviously need clients. So, I take the goal of finding clients who would benefit from hiring a graphic designer on a monthly retainer and try to find networking opportunities in my area. I can search on Meetup.com, Chamber of Commerce events, and co-working/office rental buildings. By physically showing up and making connections will lead to this goal. I can use Facebook Groups for Entrepreneurs and Upwork.com for online referrals.

I think giving myself permission, not to overwork is healthy too. It’s easy to get so wrapped into working on tasks and projects that it takes discipline to walk away from it too. I think it’s safe to say that overworking will lead to burn out too.

Most of all I focus on my main goal - Successfully running my own design studio and designing a lifestyle that financially provides for my family and creates new opportunities.  Naturally, I’m pretty driven toward making this goal happen.

Tools I use that make my life easier are:

• Tailwind for maintaining my Instagram and Pinterest profile
• MailChimp for emailing and automated emails
• Facebook Groups for learning and networking
• Dreamhost for hosting my website -their customer service is the BEST!
• Wordpress for the back end of my website
• My iPad Pro so I can work remotely - with the Apple Pencil for drawing
• Printful to sell my pattern designs on products
• Etsy to sell other goods such as my Hand-Lettering Workbook with my Free Workshop

I have a pretty cheap budget, so I keep things pretty simple. I would like to invest in Skillshare to learn new skills and other training workshops for small businesses. However, I feel that there is enough free information already available to learn new skills without having to pay for them. I really enjoy spending time in libraries vs paying for an online course.

What is one other specific area in your life you find that intentionality is absolutely critical? How do you exercise mindfulness in it?

Balance. There is a time to work, time to rest, and time to reflect. I think having another hobby that isn’t design related is healthy for my mind. I love fitness, so I enjoy starting off my day with weight training and running in the evening. (On an ideal day.) I recently just signed up for my first half marathon, so that helps me to get moving from my stationary career.

After my morning workout, I love to take a few minutes to write in my prayer journal. Writing my prayers helps me organize all my wandering thoughts, and gives me peace in how I feel and what is going on in my life.

Mindfulness to me is being aware of how I feel physically, emotionally, and spiritually. It’s impossible to be mindful when running around trying to accomplish the next goal. Within all the noise in my head reminding me of the tasks I need to do and new ideas I should try, I remember that God said in Psalms 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God.” Therefore, I don’t think that the term “mindfulness” only applied to yogis and Eastern Religions. I believe that God calls everyone to be still. Whether that be in meditation, prayer/ prayer journaling, stretching or nature walks etc., God knows that we need a balance of work and rest for a healthy life.

It’s not always easy, but with God’s grace, I can try my best for Him.

If you could give one piece of advice about [this area of intentionality] to someone who struggles with it, what would you tell them?

My advice for someone who is struggling with intentionality is to find a way they enjoy helping others. When someone understands how they can help someone it gives them a sense of purpose and passion. Everyone has their own skill set that can be used to bless others and be beneficial. If someone doesn’t know what their skill set is, I suggest trying new classes, figure out what you enjoy doing for fun, and think how you can take the joy to help someone else.

For example, I really enjoy hand lettering, but more so, I enjoyed encouraging other people to be creative too. So, I began teaching hand lettering workshops with the focus that, honestly, anyone can hand letter, even if you have bad handwriting!

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You can find Crystal at her blog, CW Design, and on Instagram!

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Intentionality Spotlight: Blog Love: Madeline Hall

Today we continue with Intentionality Spotlight! Similar to Women of Intention, different bloggers will be featured in an interview style. Unlike Women of Intention, the focus will be more on their blogs themselves, as well as an area of intentionality in their life.

I am excited to invite Madeline Hall to talk with us today. I've been following her beautiful blog for over a year and am always inspired by her!

First some easy stuff: Tell us a bit about yourself. What is your work, passions and interests?

Right now I am pursuing photography and blogging full time! It is actually really scary, but exciting at the same time! Things that I love include my two dogs, coffee, being outdoors, Tex-Mex, and of course, creating in my kitchen.

You have a beautiful blog filled with so many inspiring photos, stories and food! What made you begin your website and what was your initial goal with it? How has that focus shifted over time, if at all?

Aw thank you!!!! That is so kind! Let’s see - I started my blog about three years ago when I lived in NYC. I was working my first job out of college as a marketing assistant and needed a creative outlet outside of my 9 - 5. Initially, it began as a way to practice my love for photography as well as connect back home with our family and friends in Texas, but it evolved into an obsession with food. I think now that my focus is more on food and developing unique flavor combinations and recipes! Food brings people together unlike anything else. Plus, we all have to eat!

What is one other specific area in your life you find that intentionality is absolutely critical? How do you exercise mindfulness in it?

I think it’s super important to exercise the creative side of your brain, every day if possible. This is why I love cooking so much. I love going into my pantry or refrigerator, and making a meal out of what is available. It is relaxing and freeing!

If you could give one piece of advice about exercising your brain to someone who struggles with it, what would you tell them?

Whatever makes you feel alive, pursue it! We all have a creative side and I truly believe it is so important to exercise that as an outlet for self-expression. It can be scary sometimes trying new things or putting yourself out there. The only thing holding you back is yourself. Try something new and go for it!

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Find Madeline at her website, on Instagram, and on Facebook

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Intentionality Spotlight: Blog Love: Worried Sapling

Today we continue with Intentionality Spotlight! Similar to Women of Intention, different bloggers will be featured in an interview style. Unlike Women of Intention, the focus will be more on their blogs themselves, as well as an area of intentionality in their life.

I am excited to invite Callie of Worried Sapling to talk with us today.

First some easy stuff: Tell us a bit about yourself. What is your work, passions, and interests?

I’m Callie, an English teacher, graduate student, rambler, jogger, and reader. I’m passionate about all things English-related (including English Language Learner education!), learning to be passionate about healthful living, and uh…an overly detailed long list of over things. I’m intensely interested in blessing others in tangible ways, too. I think Jesus has given me gifts in writing, speaking, and teaching, so I try to use those often!

I'm so glad you started a blog so I can enjoy your writing regularly! How did you come to begin Worried Sapling, and what is your goal for it as a blog? Did you always intend this to be your blog’s focus?

Well, thanks! I have General Anxiety Disorder with Panic, and I could never find balanced resources on it—I either needed to meditate and take lots of medication, or I just needed to “pray it away.” Though all three of those options can be part of the answer, I don’t feel like it answers it completely. I believe the Bible holds the answers to many anxieties because I’ve found much of my anxiety is rooted in unhealthy thinking patterns.

People with mental illnesses are largely overlooked and marginalized within the Christian context, and I think this has a lot to do with ignorance and fear. In Worried Sapling, I try to show the vulnerable side of anxiety while also explaining my experience so people can grasp it. There are a lot of devotionals, too, and principles of healthy relationships; relationships are a huge source of anxiety for me, so it goes along with the overall theme.

I wanted to write a book before a blog occurred to me (still working on that book…). I was actually going to make a teacher blog; but once I started framing my content, I realized it was overwhelmingly anxiety and mental health related. After my initial launch, I was overwhelmed with the positive response I received by both people with anxiety and those without it! I was not expecting that. I thought only my mom would read it (haha!). I’m just thankful that my ramblings have blessed people.

I love how you write so passionately and intentionally about your faith and the lessons you learn from everyday life. How do you draw parallels from your life into spiritual lessons? Does this come easily to you, or did it/does it take practice?

Honestly, it comes pretty easy to me. I see life through a filter of patterns and principles, and the blog posts generally reflect that. I’m a sucker for object lessons, parables, parallels, and “moral of the story.” It’s definitely become easier with practice, though, and I notice that I start to lose the filter when I’m not writing as regularly. But in general, I just live life, talk to Jesus about the life, and principles and patterns emerge through prayerful reflection. The hardest part is writing it down. Anxiety makes it hard to be productive (actually working on a blog post about that right now!)

What is one specific area in your life you find that intentionality is critical? How do you exercise mindfulness in it?

HEALTH. Mental, physical, spiritual, social, emotional…all of it. I exercise intentionality, especially in physical and mental health. When I’m not physically healthy—regularly exercising, eating balanced meals, sleeping 8 hours, and drinking mucha agua—my mental health deteriorates, and then everything is thrown. It’s as predictable as the sunrise. I also need intentional mental space for myself: silent, alone time, time to read, time to write, time to breathe. Without these two, I can get nothing done. Having GAD, I still have anxiety attacks sometimes, but they are largely managed by self-care and prayer.

 

If you could give one piece of advice about this to someone who struggles with it, what would you tell them?

"The reason you feel so awful is because you need to fuel and move your body." I laugh at myself thinking of how terribly I was treating my body and yet wondering why I felt tired, irritable, and just…awful. Oh, man. Praise God for healthy living. But this affected my anxiety so much, too! Everyone’s anxiety is different and requires different solutions, but mine is deeply rooted in intentionally taking care of myself.

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Find Callie at her website, Worried Sapling and on Instagram

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Intentionality Spotlight: Blog Love: Transparency Blog

Today starts a new segment on Maple Alps: Intentionality Spotlight! Similar to Women of Intention, different bloggers will be featured in an interview style. Unlike Women of Intention, the focus will be more on their blogs themselves, as well as an area of intentionality in their life.

I am excited to kick off this series with Hanha of Transparency Blog. It has been a blast getting to know her enthusiastic self (and doing an interview with her over at her blog here too!) and I am excited to introduce her to all of you. Stay until the end to find out how you can follow her amazing blog as well!

First some easy stuff: Tell us a bit about yourself. What is your work, passions, and interests?

Hi, my name is Hanha and I am the writer behind Transparency Blog! To fit everything in one nutshell, I am basically super passionate about encouraging others and sharing the love of Christ - like I met Jesus and now there’s no turning back like the old hymn says haha. I graduated from the University of National Champions—Go Heels!— and I’m currently pursuing plans to become a physician in the near future, either in family medicine or pediatrics.

A few fun facts? I’m addicted to Grey’s Anatomy. I have a special place in my heart for tacos, and podcasts are my present obsession. In my spare time, I daydream about places I can travel and I love connecting with friends on Instagram. Come say hi!

You write a beautiful blog on faith. How did you come to begin Transparency Blog, and what is your goal for it as a blog? Did you always intend this to be your blog’s focus?

Thank you so much! Beginning Transparency Blog was a process. A PROCESS! I started writing when I got to college in 2012, and when I say writing, I signed into my google account and used it as an expressive means to write prayers and talk to God. I would literally throw on some worship music and just write, or should I say complain? Haha (Freshman year was rough, okay?!)

But it wasn’t until I saw a friend share a post from her own blog that I thought about the idea. So then there was the whole battle with whether or not to make my blog public. I fought insecurities like, “What if no one reads it? What if my friends judge me? And how will mine be different since everyone and their mom is blogging nowadays?” You can read more about that here, but somehow I did it, and it took about 2 years to take that leap of faith.

A year of on-and-off posting, and then pride set in. I started to research all the ways that I could make my blog famous, and lost sight of the sole purpose of my why, which was to talk about how great Jesus is. So I stopped - out of nowhere and for awhile. I basically gave up, and decided to just leave it alone.

That was in 2015, but something changed this year. I made it one of my personal goals to get back into blogging, and this time I wanted to be more consistent and have the right intentions. I battled with another round of insecurities, but it only took about 3-4 months because God and some friends basically encouraged me by saying it didn’t matter if my blog grew or not, or if people read it. What mattered is that I was being obedient to what God was telling me to do, which was to write what he placed on my heart.

I originally wanted to focus my time on Instagram - posting consistently and engaging with other people, but 3 weeks in, I felt led to write more. Some captions were just entirely too long to be captioned, and it was difficult to place all the links I wanted to share. So here I am! It’s June 2017, and I finally feel like I’m exactly where God wants me to be. And I also feel like I’m walking boldly in my calling as well.

Transparency Blog has always been about writing about my faith because it’s purpose is to give Jesus all the glory that He righteously deserves. It’s why I chose the name Transparency because I want to be transparent about my life in order to encourage other believers to pursue Christ with their whole heart.

My primary goal is to honestly be obedient to whatever God has for me. But secondary to that, it is my prayer to inspire other Christians by reminding them that they are deeply loved, that they are important, and that someone cares about them. I want them to know that they aren’t alone on this journey, and that there is a community for them if they ever find themselves needing one.

I love how you write so passionately and intentionally about your faith and the lessons you learn from what you read in the Bible and your life. How do you decide on what topics to share about?

Believe it or not, I honestly do not know. HA! Plot twist. Sometimes, I write what God has placed on my heart and other times I share stories and try to figure out how I can connect them back to faith. And I love sharing stories about the lives of other people. I think that we can all learn from each other, because we each have something unique to offer! Even at church, testimonies are some of the most powerful examples of God’s grace and faithfulness.  

Seriously, anything that talks about the power of God and how amazing He is, is fair game. And what’s even better is that God is alive! The lessons keep coming, and the more we seek Him, the more He will transform the renewing of our minds so that we can become more like Him. So being led by the Holy Spirit is the best way I decide on what to write about. But then again, because I’ve just recently started to get back into blogging, I’m beginning to find my niche and figure out what topics my readers want to read more about.

What is one specific area in your life you find that intentionality is critical? How do you exercise mindfulness in it?

PRAYER! Prayer is absolutely huge for me, and I would say worship is too. I truly believe that we are called to have a heart of worship, and I think the best way to worship is through prayer. I think that it is through prayer that God speaks to us, connects with us, and shows us just how much He cares for us.

For me, I make an effort to spend time with the Lord in prayer at least every 2 days. I’m constantly talking with God throughout the day, but I’m talking about truly taking 15-20 minutes to sit, meditate, and worship Him. That has honestly been life-changing for me. I’ve cried my hardest tears sitting at the feet of Jesus, and they are the same moments where I have found restoration and redemption through Him.

We get to witness how sufficient His grace is through prayer, and it reminds me of my favorite quote, “Once a man was asked, ‘What did you gain by regularly praying to God?’ The man replied, ‘Nothing… but let me tell you what I lost: anger, ego, greed, depression, insecurity, and fear of death.’ Sometimes, the answer to our prayers is not gaining but losing, which ultimately is the gain.”

 

If you could give one piece of advice about prayer to someone who struggles with it, what would you tell them?

Get yourself a prayer journal. That has also been completely life-changing for me. In my prayer journal, I write down everything, and I mean EVERYTHING! From sermon notes, to my personal prayer requests, other people’s prayer requests, my dreams, and the visions God has given me for my life.

The best and most humbling part is that God has answered every single one of the prayers that I have wrote down. Even with the specific job that I was looking for, God answered it and I sit in awe of His power. I will note that most of my prayers have dealt with the posture of my heart, but I do believe that God is extremely faithful in all things.

So if you’re struggling with spending time with God everyday and being intentional with your prayer life, then I think a prayer journal is a great incentive to start. It may be difficult at first, but as you look back on the things you’ve wrote, you get to see God’s faithfulness and provision. You also get to see how much you grow over time, even in areas that you forgot you even prayed about.

Everyone always talks about creating a vision board at the beginning of the year, but those visions and dreams do not have to stop after January 1st. Habakkuk 2:2 says, ‘Then the LORD replied: "Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.” He says that His mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:23), so why not write what God shares with you each and every day and be a witness to His power?

When you have something to write down, it holds you more accountable to your habit. For me, it’s definitely a little awkward when I notice I’ve missed a few days. And honestly, that feeling of witnessing God provide over and over again becomes addictive. The more He answered my prayers, the more I wanted to write everything down. So I challenge you to activate your faith because God really can do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us!

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Find Hanha at her website, Transparency Blog and on Instagram

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