How To Start A New Project, Routine Or A Creative Journey

This mini course is crafted for anyone who feels stuck or overwhelmed at the start of a new project, creative journey, or life change.
Through guided reflections, you will explore the common resistance and inner critics that hold us back. You’ll learn to recognize and work gently with these feelings instead of fighting them.

With practical exercises and compassionate strategies, discover how to cultivate the right timing and alignment with your true values.
The course also introduces ‘nicipline,’ a gentle discipline approach balancing commitment with kindness to yourself.

By the end, you’ll have a supportive framework to begin gently, stay connected with your passion, and nurture steady progress without overwhelm or perfectionism.

Transcript

Hello!

Welcome to this mini course about the gentle art of beginning.

My name is Verena and I'm deeply grateful that you're joining me today and I wish you a lovely time with this course.

So as I said this mini course is about the gentle art of beginning.

So I mean with that a mindful and compassionate approach to start something new.

So whether you want to start a creative project,

A life change or a fresh routine,

We all know these starting points where we want to begin something new and maybe have holding back for a while.

There were many reasons why not to start and today I would like to explore with you what makes it really hard to begin.

I would also like us to encourage to listen inwardly to our inner voice and truth and then discover how to invite gently lasting change.

Changes we want in our life,

Changes we feel like we have a calling for.

So yeah let me start with a personal story.

So for a long time I struggled to show my art,

Share my thoughts or even begin a project that deeply deeply mattered to me.

So in my context it was really about exploring my artistic calling,

My expressive calling and I had so many reasons to not do it,

To procrastinate and yeah honestly I was held back by so many self-doubts,

By perfectionism and all of the shoulds I've gathered over the last months.

And yeah if you can emphasize this feeling and you feel maybe resistant at the prospect of beginning,

I just want you to know that you are not alone.

It took me a long time to share my thoughts with you now in this form,

To share my art,

My meditation,

My dance.

But I can say looking now back some weeks of doing it,

It just feels so right and I know that life gave me these challenges to overcome,

To grow,

To learn.

So I'm now grateful for all the self-doubts,

Perfectionism,

Thought,

The inner critics,

The shoulds and but yeah it's always easier to say afterwards.

So I just want to share openly with you that you are not alone and I was on that journey and still don't get me wrong,

All of these doubts will stay.

It's just a way of handling them and giving them too much spice on the stage or letting you decide what is really important to you.

So and sometimes also the weight of like not doing something,

Not starting comes also from wanting the timing,

The thing or even ourselves to be perfect as I said,

Perfectionism.

And in reality I have to say there is rarely a perfect moment,

Only a certain readiness.

But this readiness grows from ourselves,

So the more we connect with ourselves the readiness will come.

And I want you to just take a moment now to reflect.

Let's take a deep breath together and if it feels right and you're in a safe space at home,

Place a gentle hand on your heart and just ask yourself,

What are you longing to begin and what feels so heavy about it?

Just this single question,

What are you longing to begin and what feels heavy about it?

Just observe,

Allow the answers to surface,

No judgment,

Only curiosity.

And maybe there is something new which is immediately coming up because you know exactly it's the thing or you are just waiting for answers which are a bit more hidden.

That's absolutely fine,

Just take your time.

If it feels right also pause here this course and just listen to your inner voices.

And when you have found the one thing,

This one longing to begin and what feels so heavy about it,

That's a really good starting point.

And I just want to share three thoughts or questions for these beginnings.

Because through trial and error,

Honestly only trial and error,

I found these questions that helped me ease into new beginnings.

And the first question and thought is around the timing.

So is the timing right or am I forcing anything?

So sometimes projects stall because the energy isn't right.

And what I learned is that it's completely okay to pause,

To reflect and gently prepare myself for the right moment instead of pushing through frustration.

So it's a very fine line because of course we can always say like there is never the right moment,

There is never the perfect moment.

But what I truly believe is that when you are not in the right energy,

The universe will not know what to send to you because you are sending strange signs with a strange energy maybe.

And instead of forcing things in times where the energy is not right,

You will get frustrated,

You will run out of energy,

Your self-doubts will be even bigger.

So I invite you to just always pause and reflect.

Is it the right time now?

It's not about doing it not or doing it.

It's about is it the right time or am I forcing anything?

And that was a really important question to myself because I knew for example last year I was forcing things.

It was not right.

I can now see it very clearly after some months and looking back.

Honestly when I would have been honest to myself last year I would have seen that I'm in this energy of forcing.

That was not me,

That was this hard part of myself who wanted to push,

Who wanted to get it done no matter what.

But I knew for the thing that I wanted to start a very soft,

Gentle project which exposes all my vulnerabilities,

My soft side.

How can I be hard and pushing for that?

And I think life just told me in these moments,

Evelina it's not the right time now.

And this is something I invite you to to listen to.

Is it the right time or are you forcing something right now?

And then of course the second question or consideration is about is this thing really your calling?

I want you to check in with yourself and really ask yourself is this thing which came up for you,

Your longing,

Your one thing you want to change in your life that truly matters to you?

Or are you maybe following someone else's should?

Because I think we all know that we have done things in our life where we haven't really listened to our inner calling,

Our inner truth,

And we're more considered about what we should do,

What others expect from us.

And as it's a very important thing and you want to start something,

It's worth to have the double check in.

Does it come from your inner truth and origin?

Or is it something you are trained into,

You think that is your thing but it isn't?

And for me personally,

Meditation helps so much.

Or just in my case,

It was over a long time,

It just the thing didn't go away.

I was longing for dancing,

Meditating,

My art,

I was longing so much for it every day.

So there is a high chance that when you're in a situation like that,

That you're deeply passionate about that,

That it is your calling.

But also your calling can be something more quieter,

Which just comes like in a really small shape.

And it's so important that you have these moments where you are connected to yourself.

So through meditation,

Through dancing,

Movement,

Walking in the nature,

Painting,

Whatever it is for you,

Enjoying your tea,

Just moments where you are mindful in the certain moment.

And just listen to the answers that are coming up.

So a bit like what we did before,

Just take a moment,

Breathe in,

Breathe out,

Hand on your heart and just ask the universe,

Is this my calling?

And you might not get the answers immediately,

But if you do that more often and really,

Really be very true to yourself,

You will get the answers,

I promise.

And the third question or consideration before we want to start things or not,

Because we're holding back,

Is ask yourself,

Who is speaking?

Is it my inner critic or is it my true self?

So personally,

I can tell you a lot of things about these words of I'm not being good enough.

My perfectionistic side always said like,

Who are you to share your thoughts?

Who are you that anyone might want to see your art or dance?

Like,

Who are you?

Or it was also very often a fear of voices from our past.

So what would my parents say?

Do they appreciate me in doing another way?

What would my friends say?

Is it what they expect from me?

So I think you get an idea of the voices I try to explain you or give you examples for.

I think we all have them,

We all have them in different shapes and forms.

And meanwhile,

I'm somehow grateful for them,

Because I know that they are my inner children and they are my team and they want to protect me.

They know me so well from early,

Early years and they served me so well for a long time.

But there's also a moment where I can decide,

Am I still guided by this I'm not good enough thought or you need to be perfect before you go out thought?

Or is it me now saying,

Hey,

Dear inner child,

I hear you.

I thank you for having a double check with me to really make me sure that I'm on the right way.

I give you a hug mentally,

Physically,

Whatever that means to you.

But you know what?

I decide,

I continue the way.

I know it's fearful.

It's something new.

It's not the comfort sound.

It's something really,

Really uncomfortable.

It's new.

And of course,

In these moments,

The voices are strong,

Of course.

But when you're clear with that,

What is coming from your inner critics,

Your inner children,

You might distinguish between,

Is it your true self speaking or are these inner beliefs,

Old systems we are trained to believe?

And also here,

Take a moment,

Meditate,

Just pause,

Reflect.

And what I learned is that it's so important just to acknowledge these voices,

Accept them,

Show them compassion,

And not,

I was working so hard to push them away,

Really,

Really hard,

Wanting them to go.

And I think it's obvious what happens.

They come even stronger.

So meanwhile,

Whenever I hit the record button or publish something,

Wherever,

I always,

Always have this inner voice of like,

You think you should do that?

Is it really good enough?

And meanwhile,

I can smile a little bit and be like,

Thank you for having the double check,

I usually say to my inner child.

And I'm saying,

I really appreciate you.

And it's good that you're here.

And you know what,

Let's hit the publish button together or go out having this conversation,

Whatever it is.

So yeah,

Distinguish clearly what are your inner critics and what is your true self.

So these are the three questions you might want to ask yourself or considerations,

However you call it.

You want to ask yourself to understand,

A,

Is it the right thing you're longing for?

And B,

Is it the right time?

And if this is like,

Yes,

It's the right time,

Yes,

It's the thing,

Who are the inner voices who maybe hold you back?

And as I said,

I think through pausing,

Through meditation,

Through gently,

Me time you give to yourself,

You will get all the answers,

I'm sure.

It's just sometimes we need to understand that the timing is,

We are all guided,

Aren't we?

So we are all guided.

Sometimes we are too not patient enough,

We want it now.

And we want to force things.

But I think when we invite the life to really guide us,

And we're riding the waves when they are coming,

We can create an even bigger flow and can achieve so much more than we would if we would just force something.

And yeah,

After you had maybe a little bit of clarification on that,

Or some ideas came around these three questions and considerations,

Maybe you can just close your eyes,

Or wherever you are,

Soften your gaze a little bit.

Again,

Inhale deeply,

Exhale slowly.

And with each exhale,

Imagine to release one small expectation or fear.

With every exhale,

You let go a little bit more of this fear,

Or this expectation you have created for yourself.

Just let go of that,

You're safe.

And if you want,

You can repeat silently as well.

I give myself permission to begin gently and imperfectly.

I give myself permission to begin gently and imperfectly.

I give myself permission to begin gently and imperfectly.

You might want to take this sentence and affirmation after this course,

And you just might want to repeat it in the morning when you start your day.

Whenever you feel like fear is coming,

Thoughts are coming,

Inner critics are coming,

Just repeat this affirmation and remind yourself that you have done your check,

You know that it's your calling,

You know it's the right time,

What you're dealing now with are the inner critics,

The fears,

The self-doubts,

And that's absolutely perfect.

You are so close before beginning.

Encourage yourself by just giving you these affirmations on a regular basis.

And yeah,

Before we go to concrete action steps,

I wanted to introduce you also to my new creation,

Which is called Mycipline.

Mycipline is a mix of discipline and being nice,

So kind to yourself.

And you might have heard between the lines that I can be a very hard person,

Very hard in the sense of like achieving person,

I can be very disciplined.

I know there is also quite a harsh discipline,

And I was educated like that,

This was my understanding,

If you just do it disciplined enough,

Hard enough,

You will have success,

So that was a bit the trigger.

What I didn't know as a younger woman was that when you wait for these moments,

For the flow,

Then beautiful things can happen,

Not out of forcing things,

But of also allowing the universe energy to support you.

And that's where I came up with Mycipline.

And Mycipline is for me that you of course stay focused and disciplined to whatever you want to start your project,

But you do that with the right energy.

So you have a gentle check-in and being compassionate with yourself.

So I give you an example,

You want to do your morning routine every day,

You have your program,

You have your routine,

And then there is a day where your body and soul just tells you,

I need something different today,

I really need something different today.

And then there is this decision of like,

I can't just miss my routine,

I'm failing,

I'm not disciplined,

I need to stick to that,

And you might decide to just do it.

The output is that you have done your routine in an energy which didn't serve your body and soul at that day.

You know that with this routine,

You follow a certain idea,

Maybe you want to ground yourself,

You want to be in your body,

You want to be tune yourself into the day,

Whatever it is.

But most important thing is that we listen to our body and soul,

That we really carefully listen,

Are compassionate with us,

Gentle with us.

It's not about if we're not doing something,

We fail.

It's more like when you take this example,

When there is a day where your inner voice is saying,

I need something different,

I need just this morning to sit down and drink my tea.

It's okay not to do yoga,

It's okay today,

Because what I want to achieve with my routine,

I'm still focused,

I'm still 100% committed to what I want to have out of it.

But today I'm choosing another approach.

And sometimes it's,

Yeah,

Maybe easier to stick to the known things.

But it's also very,

Yeah,

It's sometimes uncomfortable to do something different.

But here's the thing.

If you stay true to yourself and your focus is clear in what you want to have out of it,

Then you also can adjust from day to day a little bit the approach.

So that doesn't mean like,

I'm not saying don't be not disciplined at all,

Just see how it's going.

No,

Don't get me wrong.

I want you to be focused,

I want you to be disciplined.

But the approach,

The way how you do it,

I want you to be always in tune with your body and soul.

Be compassionate,

Be flexible,

Be gentle.

And that is what I mean with non-discipline.

So just try also this,

Because sometimes when we are like,

Okay,

We start this new routine,

We start this new project,

We are so,

So,

So disciplined and focused.

And it's so easy to get in this energy which we learn from society,

Which makes it harder and harder.

And sometimes we need this energy,

It's a good energy.

But sometimes we also need the very soft energy.

So it can change from day to day basis.

I want to encourage you just to stay true to your project and your routine,

But at the same time also try to explore what does that mean today exactly?

What do I need to do to stay true to my project focus?

Because it's always the underlying thing,

What do we want to have out of this routine?

What do we want to have out of this project?

What is the clear picture?

What is the focus?

And then we can allow ourselves to be a bit more flexible,

Compassionate and gentle to ourselves when needed.

And yeah,

That's my discipline.

It helped me a lot personally.

So maybe it's something for you.

Just wanted to share it.

And I just want to wrap up the last ideas with you just to have a gentle summary.

So when you are in situations where you feel you are before something,

Before this change,

Before a new project,

You have identified it.

That's clearly your first step.

And the second one is then you have a check.

Is the timing and the intention right?

Are you doing this for you or for someone else?

So the three questions we had.

Is it the right time?

Is it the right thing?

And yeah,

Also like understanding your inner voices.

And then commit to a single small gentle step today or this week.

Be nice about it.

Have your clear focus.

You don't need to run the marathon tomorrow.

You can prepare for that.

Just get it started gently,

Compassionate.

And each day ask yourself like,

What is my focus?

Why am I doing that?

How can I shift the approach if needed?

And anytime there are inner voices,

Critics coming up,

Try to accept them,

Acknowledge them.

And also be grateful for them.

They are like your double check,

Your safety net,

So to say.

And you can always say like,

Hey,

Thank you for reminding me of that.

I still do it.

Thank you.

And align with your authentic self or allow your authentic self to take the lead on that.

And yeah,

Always remember that beginnings are always sacred,

Subtle and sometimes soft.

They don't need to be super loud or perfect or meaningful,

Just very gentle.

And with this gentle first step,

I know that you will find your flow in time.

When you have done your check-ins and when you do them regularly,

You will find your flow and you will be surprised when the flow of the universe and energy supporting you is like being carried away on a beautiful big wave.

And you will know it's the right time,

It's the right thing,

And you're connected with your truest self.

So thank you very much for joining this mini course about the gentle art of beginning.

I hope you enjoyed it.

And whenever you have any questions,

Just comment on that,

Give me feedback.

I'm curious what you think about it.

And I wish you a beautiful next step,

Whatever you're doing.

Just always remember to check in with yourself,

To pause,

Not to force anything,

And you will be guided by a beautiful flow.

Thank you very much.

Have a beautiful day.

We'll hear us next time.

Thank you.