Savvy Women

I bought my first home, in Texas, a couple of years ago. Up until that time, I’d always been a renter or had had housing provided, free of charge, through my employer. I had never been an actual home owner, mostly because I had lived (and continue to live) such a nomadic lifestyle. The only way I was able to swing the deal this time was to have a member of my family hold down the fort while I’m off gallivanting around.

Since purchasing my house, I have noticed a change in my psychology. I now feel rooted in place even though I’m not. I think knowing that I have a place all my own to come to has provided me with a sense of security. I guess I’m trying to say that my home has begun to feel like a retreat.

But what happens when the desire to nest comes up against today’s hard economic realities? That question can best be answered by watching the two videos I’m blogging this week. Both show versions of tiny, affordable houses.

I think I’d feel a bit constricted in some of those, especially the first house shown. I applaud Austin Hay. A fellow that young, with that much spunk and imagination, has probably got a bright future ahead of him.

The next video is interesting because it demonstrates how the feeling of spaciousness has more to do with perception than reality. Though the “penguin home”—does it look like a penguin to you?—is indeed small, notice how large it seems, just because of the tricks used by the architect.

If I were going small, I think I’d try for a hybrid design, a blend of the American and Japanese approaches. It might be hard to put wheels on that penguin, though.

Final thought: I guess size does matter, but in this particular case, small is what you want.

With New Year’s Day right around the corner, it’s time (once again) to make those yearly resolutions. This time, though, you’re going to stick to them, right? Right!

There are lots of good videos out there on how to set self-improvement goals and then achieve them. I chose this one because the visuals were kind of cute and funny. Plus, it included a couple of interesting factoids, like a person “greatly increases” her chance of success in any given endeavor if she can persevere for three weeks because that’s how long it takes to break bad habits and establish new, good ones.

I thought the advice in the video was pretty sound, especially the part about setting goals that are achievable. If I had to guess, I’d say that a great many people fail to keep their resolutions because they were overly ambitious in the first place. If you are absolutely determined to set goals that are really BIG, let me suggest that you simply change the way you view those resolutions and your approach to realizing them. Break the whole thing down into smaller, more manageable units of action. Thus, when you set out to achieve something that’s really ambitious, don’t begin by asking yourself how to finish the project. Instead, ask yourself what the first step is and how to go about getting started doing it. Just remember this Troy Headrick maxim: Starting is the first step in finishing.

I’d also like to suggest that you look for ways of being inspired as you set out to achieve your goals. Watching videos and reading books that tell success stories can be very motivational. The more you see that great things are possible, the more possible great things become.

This week I want to blog about a really talented Dutch documentary filmmaker named Bregtje van der Haak and one of her more recent creations, a movie entitled California Dreaming. The film begins with a very simple premise, as an examination of the current economic crisis and its aftermath in Los Angeles, California, but it quickly becomes about much more as van der Haak deftly examines a number of universal themes, such as work, family, responsibility, community, injustice, resilience, and empowerment. I strongly advise everyone reading this blog to watch the entire film. If you do and you’re like me, you’ll find it very moving.

For me, the key moment of the movie comes right at the end when van der Haak asks Laura Burkhalter, a visionary architect who dreams of founding a commune and transforming the urban experience in the process, if the American dream is kaput. She quite simply answers “no” and then reinterprets the concept, stressing that it has always been more about “self-expression” and “freedom” than about the acquisition of material goods. She then goes on to describe the “American character” in a way that provides a feel-good conclusion to the documentary.

I don’t want to spoil the film by writing too much about it. Just take a look and you’ll find yourself among optimistic, likeable people who tell very interesting stories about what it’s like to dream big while living in “the Golden State.”