Don't Wait for Opportunity. Create It.

I came across this quote the other day and instantly loved it. We can't always control things in our lives like covid and Brexit, but we can always adapt ourselves and steer our own ship by creating opportunities.

So often, we wait for the right moment to come our way. A better job, for someone to come along and sweep us off our feet, for the right moment to have a baby, for the right time to start a business, etc. Sometimes, the opportunity may present itself perfectly timed, but often, waiting passively for it to happen is unlikely to spark any change.

If there's one 'life lesson' that I have learned from the past covid year, it's that of adapting to our changing surroundings and innovating to do things differently in order to create opportunity. We have all had to adapt, whether we're a small business owner, teacher, parent, student, freelancer or employee and it's been so interesting to observe the different paths that many have taken.

Boutique owners who weren't online previously now have glossy websites, some businesses have completely pivoted to offer new products and even some pubs have turned into green grocers. Whatever it takes, right? Or perhaps, they're just lucky to be able to adapt?

I often think about luck and the part that luck plays in our lives. Is it random? Or can we actually create our own luck by creating our own opportunities?

Often, I believe the opportunity is already there. We just need to become aware of it. When I was little, my sister and I would play a game when we were in the car and we'd try and count as many cars in a particular colour. What always amazed me was that whenever I started looking for a particular colour, I'd see more and more of them. I now understand that this isn't magic or coincidence, but rather, a mental shift between the conscious and unconscious. In science terms, this is called the Reticular Activating System (RAS) and your RAS will determine what your brain will focus on. What's important to you.

Speaking about feeling lucky and creating an opportunity, for my next project, I'm very excited to partner with the incredibly talented illustrator and surface designer Victoria Fitton.

Living in the south west of England, Victoria is fascinated with and takes much of her inspiration from her natural surroundings. I was instantly drawn to her stunning watercolour illustrations and use of beautiful colours.

Together, we will be creating a little collection of original artwork, hand-drawn and hand-painted by Victoria, in beautiful, muted tones with graphite pencil pulled through. I can't say much more at this point but what I can say, however, is that the project is very much Work In Progress, so keep an eye out for some behind-the-scenes snaps and hold on super tight, because we've got something rather fun and special coming your way! 💗

Don't wait for opportunity. Create it.