Off the Record, On the Path

What I’ve learned from the drafts I hated, the mess I made, and the courage it takes to keep going.

Let’s get one thing straight:
Not everything you create is supposed to be a masterpiece.

Some things are just meant to move the needle.
To stretch the muscle.
To teach you what not to do again.

Creativity isn’t about churning out perfection on demand—it’s about showing up to the process, especially when it’s clunky, ugly, or wildly off-course.

But we live in a world that only rewards the shiny stuff.
Social media has trained us to share the “after” without the messy middle.
You’ll see the perfectly lit studio. The curated caption. The finished painting.

What you won’t see?

• The failed attempts.

• The drafts that made you want to set everything on fire (I’ve done it).

• The days you doubted your own voice.

• The breakdowns between brushstrokes.

• The blank pages and abandoned files.

• The months that felt creatively numb.

The truth is, creativity evolves. We evolve.

What once lit us up might not anymore—and that’s not failure.
That’s growth.
That’s the signal.

To shift.
To soften.
To surrender.
To dare something new.

Some pieces are stepping stones, not showpieces.
Some ideas are compost, not fruit.

But even the compost is sacred.
Because without the mess, there is no magic.

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And here’s where I tell you the truth:

I’ve been in the compost.

Over the past few months, I’ve been spread across multiple callings:
🎬 Working on a film and a television show
🧠 Training to guide adult artists with disabilities through art and filmmaking
🎨 Opening a few art shows and producing new work
🌊 And underneath it all—trying to stay anchored in the truest part of me: this space of self.

Skewed North isn’t just a blog or a podcast to me.
It’s a living journal.
A navigation system.
A spiritual survival kit.

It’s the thing that keeps me honest, keeps me inspired, and keeps me connected—to you, to myself, to the work I know I’m meant to do.

And yet… sometimes, to stay aligned with your North Star, you have to pause.
Not to quit.
But to recalibrate.
To realign before you drift too far from what matters.

So that’s where I’ve been.
Recalibrating.
Listening.
Resisting the urge to post just for performance.

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I’m not disappearing. I’m deepening.
I’m making space for what’s next.
And I think it might be better than what came before.

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Now, let’s talk about the podcast.

If you’ve been following Skewed North, you know it’s never just been about storytelling. It’s about inspiration through chaos. Signs that speak. Living life with intention. Making meaning from the mess.

But lately, I’ve felt a shift.
And when inspiration whispers—I listen.

The truth?
The current podcast format… not doable while working on a movie and television show.

It’s beautiful. It’s soulful. But it’s outgrown its frame and I’d be a fraud to keep squeezing it in for the sake of consistency.

So here’s what’s happening:

I’m not throwing it away.
I’m reimagining it.
Into something more sustainable.
More intimate.
More alive.

I want the next evolution of this podcast to feel like:

• A voice note from the edge of a breakdown (or a breakthrough).

• A story told from a dusty backroad or a chaotic film set.

• An invitation into the process—not just the product.

Less polish. More pulse.
Field notes.
Audio journal entries.
Backstage life detours.
Spiritual breadcrumbs.
Realness.

I want it to feel like you’re sitting across from me—with coffee in your hand as I pick paint off my jeans because I am nervous.

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I don’t want to grow an audience. I want to engage with people who are really invested in what it means to live an inspired life, even when the ground shakes underneath you and you don’t know which way to go.

That’s always been the point.

So thank you—
For sticking with me.
For trusting me when I’m quiet.
For showing up even when I’m off-course.
For being part of this nonlinear, inspired, sassy, soulful adventure.

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See you next week (and maybe in your earbuds soon),
With grit, grace, and creative compost,
—Jolene

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