Getting Work To Work Chris Martin Studios

There's something special about people who make decisions that go against the grain of societal expectations. Whether we make those decisions out of necessity, frustration, depression, or some other motivation is less important than the willingness to embark on a new journey. Today's episode is inspired by a quote from an excellent book by Patrick Bringley, All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me. In the book, Bringley documents the loss of his brother to cancer, how he quit a dream job, and became a guard at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for ten years. It's worth your time to help you examine your life, look beyond what is obvious, and find what is hidden.

I believe that people come across your path when you need to learn from them. Today's guest brings her tools and life story to Getting Work To Work to help those stuck and looking to create extraordinary lives. Maria Kellis is a leadership coach and teacher who is endlessly curious about the possibilities available to each of us. In this conversation, she dives into the four steps of what she calls "The Empower Game": 1) Intention, 2) Clearing, 3) Gratitude, and 4) Trust in order to receive. Maria also shares her lessons in the power of gratitude while recovering from a broken back, body, and spirit. Not to mention how she discovered patience through discipline, her approach to routines that aren't boring, systems of creativity and the power of teams, and scarcity versus abundance. Open your mind to the extraordinary life you want to create and listen in as Maria shares a lifetime of wisdom.

I had plans for a different monologue today, but my 3 AM creative brain had an idea it couldn't drop. I woke up from a dream feeling ready to mourn the losses of the past three years. It's not easy to admit, but I've been not so secretly punishing myself for how I responded to the pandemic. It was ugly, fraught with fear, trying to make sense of the internal and manage the external. I took care of those around me, but I stumbled deeper into debt, wrestled with depression, ate food to numb the pain, and gained weight. I knew what I was doing, and while my reactions were nothing short of vicious, I couldn't stop. Fortunately, I heard a different story playing in my mind as I stared at the ceiling, wondering why I couldn't fall back asleep.

Do you know your life's destiny? Are you actively doing the things you were born to do or wishing you could one day? Today's guest took his obsession with film and his need to diversify his services and fell into the rabbit hole of something unexpected. Steve Berry is the artist and photographer behind Robot Wig, what he calls "the Miniverse," a place for miniature pop culture creations. In this conversation, we obviously talk about movies and his journey to the Miniverse. But we also explore how he sees art in everyday objects, how he taught himself lighting by making mistakes instead of watching tutorials, creative patience (or lack thereof), and the challenges of turning his passion into a viable business. If you are a creative entrepreneur looking for a new way to see your business, this is the conversation for you.

I just got back from my first real vacation in six years. While there were plenty of late-night existential wrestling matches—"I don't know who I am on vacation anymore"—my mind was churring and whirring away underneath the surface. As I listened to the conversations around me, watched the truth emerge through body language, and paid attention to my feelings, I heard it clearly: "Go! Get it!" If you have a vision for your life and are afraid to take the first step of leaving the infinite labyrinth of modern society's expectations of you, then the message for you is this: It's not easy; it's going to be the most challenging work you'll ever do, but go! Bring your vision to life. It's worth it for you and the others you'll bring along on your journey.

I love how spaces can influence our creativity. Pioneer Courthouse Square in Portland, Oregon, has impacted many people, especially past guests of Getting Work To Work. Jack Kent once saw a man and a llama walking through the square at night and would turn that moment into a book cover for Sketchy People. Bill Will, a conceptual sculptor and installation artist, created a public art installation during the pandemic to promote safe gatherings in a public space. Today, my guests are here to talk about PDX LIVE, a series of concerts in the heart of the city, and how creativity can be a reinvestment in the city and help revitalize downtown. Lindsay Gay is the director of operations at Pioneer Courthouse Square. Trevor Solomon is the lead talent buyer at TrueWest. Together, we are ready to discuss creativity, collaboration, the challenges of managing events for an entire city block, and the joys of people-watching.