I Did It!

Mary Mikawoz in 2020

“I did it! I did it! I did it!” I excitedly exclaim with glee in my voice!

I am so happy to have set up what seemed like an insurmountable goal and yet I accomplished it! I have been doing photography seriously for about 40 years and creating artwork for my entire life pretty much. I have had my website for over 10 years but did not display my work very often which was unfortunate.

So, this past year in 2020, I had it in my mind to do baby steps each day with posting my photography, abstract art, mixed media and digital artwork – one each day.

There have been many difficulties along the way along with computers not working, cords not working and the internet not working. Despite that and with the constant support of my husband, David Elliott Atwell, I was able to succeed.

2020 was a leap year and so for 366 days, I was able to post a creative image each day.

If I were to give advice to someone who is setting out to accomplish a similar type of goal, it is to not want or need perfection. I would have been happy having done 5 out of 7 days instead of 7 out of 7. It was a layer of undue pressure that I did not need to place on myself. Towards the end of the year, the pressure became very overwhelming because I had come so far and was so invested in “just making it happen” to completion.

I will continue to post more pictures but it will not be as frequently. If you would like to follow me on Fine Art America, there is a button where you can join up and get weekly announcements. I would appreciate your support.

Here is the link to see my work according to the collections – https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/mary-mikawoz

If you would like to see a chronological view of the images posted from most recent and going backwards, here is the link to where they are https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/mary-mikawoz?tab=artwork

I have also had my Creative Pursuits WordPress Blogs for 10 years. If you would like to follow me there, I have creative work, as well as book reviews, so please join up. Here is the link – https://mikawoz.wordpress.com

Thanks so much for reading, looking and supporting me in whatever capacity you are able to do so.

I really do appreciate it! All my best to you as we enter a New Year!

Mary Mikawoz

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Goal Mapping Book Review

Book: “Goal Mapping: A Practical Guide to Turning Your Dreams into Reality,” Brian Mayne, Watkins Publishing, 2020

Book Review by Mary Mikawoz

Book available: May 12, 2020

I read this book awhile back when the Corona Virus was taking root in North America and we started lockdown in many areas of the world. It was a good book and I am sorry I have not reviewed it sooner but felt I needed to give it some more thought.

I am encouraged by the personal story of Brian Mayne and the things he had to do to overcome his educational problems and learning difficulties. That itself, is an inspiration.

Brian puts a number of good and appropriate quotes throughout the book, however, I read it on a Kindle and so there was just a jarring of quotes in a haphazard format that intruded on the flow of the actual text of the book. I do not know if the physical book is formatted differently. It is do-able though. You just need to read and remember where you were at and what the last point was.

If I were to glean the main points of the book are, I would have to say that it is important to use your left and right sides of your brain. Brian Mayne has developed a way to write words from the logical, left side of the brain and then incorporate images or drawings by using the right side or creative side of the brain. It is a way of reinforcing goals in a way that makes it more impactful. In this regard, the author provides some drawings to explain his point, however, I would have appreciated more drawings with accompanying explanations of what they meant to illustrate and really bring home the point of how the goal mapping system works. It would have added so much more to the book.

You can try your own by going to Brian Mayne’s website at https://goalmapping.com

I give this book a 3.5 out of 5 for effort and for his explanations. It is a good starting point for someone who would like to reinforce their vision with words and images.

Tags: Goals, goal mapping, Brian Mayne, school, education, learning disabilities, left brain, logical, right brain, vision, images, drawings, creative, quotations, success, Mary, Mary Mikawoz, book review, teacher, author, illustrator, impact, importance, explanations, system