how I made a card deck for deep creative immersion
while I’m a big lover/super-fan of Notion (and paper notebooks), in order to combat my feelings of overwhelm and work amnesia as a solo entrepreneur, I’ve always had a compulsive urge to make and interact with a more tangible, tactile project management system.
here’s what I came up with — a card deck system, which I’ve played around with in the past, but created a more developed version of and used it only for a few weeks — which has felt incredibly effective and life-changing (for me)
why this system feels like magic
it’s a modular experience — allowing me to focus on ONE THING at a time instead of being overwhelmed by the tyranny of the LIST. also, its modularity allows me to be flexible, to move projects around depending on how the day flows.
it’s physical and interactive — it’s a different experience to touch and pick up and feel in my hands which projects I want to focus on for the day — which one “calls” to me, almost like a tarot card. and then I put it on my desk for the day — where I can see it.
it represents the whole — even when I focus on a few things, I know I haven’t forgotten about the others. I group my tasks into ritual practices or reoccurring projects, and into categories — so that I can soothe the sneaking anxiety that “i’m missing/forgetting something.” I used to make lists upon lists of “everything” — and now, I know how all the pieces fit together. I just need to look through all the cards.
it’s infinitely expandable — I’m sure this is just the beginning. I added the purple deck to represent “life” things — because my work/life boundary can feel so fluid. I can also create another color to capture “mantras” or “reminders” or “guiding questions.” not to mention — I can jot notes on the back of the cards for “best practices.” I can retire cards. make new ones. use them for reviews and reflections. draw on them.
it’s self-defined and freeing — this one is obvious, I think.
how to start your own work deck
Gather cardstock and cut them into the shape you want your deck to be.
Write down all the projects that take up space in your work life — you can do this first on a piece of paper, then see if some projects condense into 1 thing. the goal is to only make a card if you will repeat the task often — so you’ll have to define how broad or specific the card.
Organize into sub-categories, if you wish - by creating a code or symbol (or use a different color card!)
How I organize my artist-entrepreneur life
My categories are:
creative practices — or how I nourish and channel my universe. my core practices are writing + visual. then I also do 3 journaling practices — a daily freeflow, depositions, & process journaling. more on this some other time.
digital ecosystems — or how I share my work: website, podcast (coming imminently!) and 3 newsletters: guide.notes, artist digest, and patrons letters.
offerings — or how I make money. this is divided into clients (services) and courses.
in my deck, I gave each category a symbol (CIRCLE = creation, SQUARE = ecosystem/sharing, TRIANGLE = offering). some tasks (for example redesigning my website — would be both creation + ecosystem.
how I use the deck for a daily ritual
more often than not, I ground my days in a ritual so that I can feel like I’m not missing something. rituals and systems help me spend less energy planning + recovering from disorientation, and more energy totally immersed in the work.
early morning — creative practices
mid-morning — wellbeing practices
late morning / early afternoon — ecosystems
afternoon / evening — clients & offerings
night (sometimes) — ecosystems + creative practices
above is my example of what I did (literally) today.
I’m super excited for how this system will continue to evolve as I use it.
for me, it almost feels like a talisman of sorts. the way I work best is by doing deep, focused, scorpionic dives into projects. usually, I’ll totally forget what I’m supposed to do next — and need to make a gazillion lists each time. this system helps keep me anchored to the surface — the big picture of my work — and it helps me get prepared for the next dive.