The Arena is my process for approaching creative work from a place of aliveness and play. Every trip through The Arena lasts one week, and is guided by singular creative intention. Other than that, there really are no rules other than to follow the aliveness. These "logs" are just for me to document what I did during any given sprint, along with how I'm feeling about it.
Creative Intention: After five months of procrastination, write the final three posts about the Ungated Philosophy of business. Publish daily, and get the ideas out, however imperfectly.
Things I Published
Cultivating a community of courage
Unveiling the next iteration of the Ungated Collective
Rob Hardy
Bottom-up business
On the desire for certainty, the need to feel in control, and the power of letting go.
Rob Hardy
Subversive Creativity
On the downstream effects of being brave and calling bullshit.
Rob Hardy
Non-Coercive Marketing: An Origin Story
How learning to trust myself turned my marketing worldview upside down.
Rob Hardy
Reflections
- I intended to publish daily throughout this sprint, but ultimately called it quits after four days, because I'd done what I set out to do (publish the final three pieces of my core philosophy).
- There was a twinge of guilt for not publishing on all seven days, but this is really the first time I experienced giving myself grace and permission not to be a rigid hardass on myself. That's a hallmark I want to bring forward into all future trips to The Arena. Self-compassion is so important.
- Aliveness meter: 8 out of 10 - felt really good to finally publish these pieces, despite their imperfection.