Who is Nick?

Asking all my life.

Author: Nick Kempinski

  • Sunday Check-In #2: The Week

    Big changes in my life. Back to school. As Danielle put it I went from “60 to 0″ and now I’ve gone from 0 back to 60. Very disorienting. This is the kind of week which is why I wanted the check-in. [ What happened? ]

    And based off of feedback, the asides stay, and the little links go.

    So here we go

    What happened between Jan 5 – Jan 11?

    What went well?

    School

    Monday was the first day back at school. Loads of laughter and high fives [ I’m sure there were even few dabs or pounds, or whatever they call them these days [man age kicks in from time to time] ]. It’s a good feeling to be back doing something I love.

    The Boss Man

    The way our Radio program works is that you have class as well as run the radio station [ insert plug here: www.evolution1079.com ]. Class in the morning, station in the afternoon.

    We get our assignments as to which department [ on air, production, news, writing, sales, promotions ] and who’s the director of each department. We then work out the schedule for the next six weeks. I am the Program Director (PD) for the next two weeks [ the big kahuna, the big cheese, the fix it man, … ].

    That’s a great thing.

    Here’s the part where I explain a little more about being the PD. So far it’s the one job that uses every aspect of my talents. I’m thrilled and frustrated by it. I feel on top of the world and like a nobody. In a single day there is a roller-coaster [ mostly of things going the way they should followed by something going wrong causing complete and utter havoc. ]. It is amazing! And I’m never bored [ ay, there’s the rub ].

    What didn’t go well?

    Too Much

    Perhaps here in lays the lesson of be careful what you wish for. Because being the one in charge has me on the rampage of meetings and fixing things and finding answers. Oh, did I forget to mention that I’m the web guy, and the designer guy? I keep my ear out for music, I help out sales, oh ya, and the PD also has a daily on-air show to do?!!?!!

    Now where do I fit my life in? How about the blogging and keeping up on feeds and tweets?

    On one hand, it’s all me. I’m pushing myself too much and too far [ I’m trying to be the ultimate warrior of radio ] On the other I’m going crazy because of it. I starting to feel at times there is no me only school.

    Enter in my next point

    No Balance

    Well in retrospect, this one stands out like smashing my thumb with a hammer and dipping it in acid. [ Yup, that’s a sore thumb ].

    I feel like I’m in constant catchup mode. And that’s not cool with me!

    Were is the line? I’ve got school and career. I’ve got personal and “work” [ school and work are kinda interchangeable. I treat both the same ]

    Ultimately my personal life is suffering. Which some might argue that short term pain is for long term gain. But if I don’t get my “me” time. I get very, very, very, cranky.

    What can I do better?

    Have some lunch

    I think something simple like walking away in the middle of the day would be good. If I think about it, I don’t do this often. Actually, I think in the week I only did this once.

    I need to walk away. For 30 minutes to a full hour. Just not to do it. To relax. To chill. To max and relax. Plus if I don’t, how will I sound on air?

    There is something rejuvenating about a real break. And I need more of them!

    Go Home

    Along with Lunch, I need to walk away at 5:00pm. I can’t be going until 6:00pm or 7:00pm. No matter how much I do, there is always more to do the next day.

    Hi I’m Nick Kempinski and I’m a workaholic

    [ FYI: being a workaholic has never really happened to me before, but I guess that would go under good thing, because it’s proof that I have passion ]

    And done.

  • Sunday Check-In #1: The First

    I’m taking a page from Havi Brooks. Every Friday she does a check-in. [ or should I say chicken. I don’t get the joke, but she and selma thinks its funny ] Now, I admit I haven’t gone back through all 22 yet, but what I have read has been a catalyst for me.

    How does it help me?

    • I get wrapped up in things. I forget to ask where I am.
    • I sometimes bounce-back too quick. I don’t register what I learned from the last thing.
    • I forget what I’ve done. Because I’ve moved onto something else, I don’t look back.

    My format

    For the layout I’m taking a lesson from one of my favourite Leadership teachers. [ who doesn’t appear on the web anywhere, so she can remain a mysterious teacher. Think of her like an ancient wise one who ends up turning into smoke and vanishing. Was she real you might ask? ] She asked 3 questions at the beginning of every class: What went well? When didn’t go well? what can you do better?

    So here we go

    Sunday Check-In #1: The First

    What happened between Dec 29 – Jan 4?

    What went well?

    This Blog

    I’m really starting to feel a benefit from this blog.

    I’ve been dabbling with blogs for several years and haven’t felt I’ve been succeeding as a “blogger”. I’ve been trying to fit everything I do into one single blog. When I do, my marketing/radio mind says, “Hold up! You don’t have a point! People will get confused. [ Should that icon be corn flower blue? ]”

    In my mind it start a little war debating the freedoms of creativity and natural flow, against the logical targeted and purposeful direction for media and business professionals. Translation: I become a cat chasing my tail.

    So I broke the cycle. Spawning blogs as I feel the need. [ I feel like I could be the rabbit of the blogging world ] I’ve got a great webhost with loads of space, why not!

    I’m still not the awesomest blogger ever. I don’t have millions flocking to my every word. I’m still muddling my way through. But those don’t matter because ultimately

    I’m really starting to feel a benefit from this blog.

    ether+nick

    Tying in with the point of spawning [^], I’ve revamped ether+nick to my media mind. We’ll see where it takes me. I’m excited to see where it goes.

    Time Off

    I’m a full time student at BCIT. I’m taking the Radio Broadcast program. The tempo is lightning quick. And so you never feel like you’ve had a weekend or any time off. This holiday has been a wonderful, beautiful time to sit on my ass and do absolutely nothing. [ FYI: I love doing nothing – and I mean nothing. I’ve done week long meditations and fasts. So a day here and there … a walk in the park]

    The quiet has allowed me to jot down everything racing inside my head. All my master plans, and the minor ones too. Get them out so I can look at them on a piece of paper in front of me. [ Some surprise me when I see them written. In my head I thought they were brilliant. And no! there were no substances used in this process other then coffee. ]

    What didn’t go well?

    Time Off [ That damn double edge sword ]

    There is only so much nothing I can take. Sure I said I can last a week, but this is the end of a month. At some point this week [ let’s say wednesday ], I cracked. And instead of breaking out and doing something, I slid further and further into just-down-right-lazy. Did I even get out of my chair on friday? Did I eat? I know I drank some coffee? [ I am a koala wrapped around my tree high on eucalyptus. ]

    Lucky for me, I’ve got no choice but to brush off the cob webs. It’s back to school tomorrow. [ That’s not a “not going well”, that’s a f@#!’n great! ]

    Pains and Aches

    I believe that there needs to be balance in everything we do. The universe does it, we should to. But I struggle with the body part – always have. And something about 31, my body is smacking me upside the head. It’s breaking down with pains and aches I never thought could exist.

    Probably related to the koala like behaviour [^].

    Now that I think of it, it could also be the fall on the ice earlier this month.

    What can I do better?

    Remember “Baby Steps”

    I always need to remind myself of the classic lesson of baby steps. A little every day. I know of the lesson, and yet when I get to it, I get karmic road rage. I feel stuck behind a sunday driver. I peel by and honk my horn ( and yes, sometimes I give the finger.)

    [ and yes, I know that in this analogy I am both drivers in effect giving myself the finger ]

    Remember “Ebb and Flow”

    Just because I’m not going forward doesn’t mean I’m not moving. Again, classic lesson of one step forward three steps back, blah blah blah blah [ Hear the audio being muffled “Charlie Brown” style. I hear the volume being slowly turned down ( it’s a radio thing ) ] ( more karmic road rage on this one too )

    This check-in

    Well, in the sense of remembering [^], this weekly check-in is exactly the answer to what can I do better. If I forget the lessons or, I zoom by things in my rocket ship, then by stopping for a second to do this check-in, I won’t stray too far. I hope.

    And done.

    [ Question: My brain works with the asides, and I like them. Are they distracting? Is there a better way to format them? Leave a comment and let me know. ]

  • ABC 3D

  • Hello 2009

    If the we all talked about change and reflection like we do now, the world would be a much different place.

    Why just when a year changes? How about the seasons? How about the month, the week or the day?

    To those that keep the conversation going all year. Thank You.

    I’m sure there are loads more ( it is the internet ). Leave a comment and let me know who’s keeping the dialogue open all year round

  • Synesthesia

    Vilayanur Ramachandran shares some neurology lessons. Particularly synesthesia (starts at 17:50). The mixing between senses, i.e. colour and numbers, tone and colours, etc.

    Synesthesia is 8 times more common among artists, poets and novelists and other creative people then in the general population. Why would that be?…

    He continues to note some other interesting aspects:

    • A heredity in genes. It’s passed down!
    • The linking in metaphorical thinking.
    • The ability to connect “seemingly unrelated ideas”.

    Let me repeat. “seemingly unrelated ideas”

    Maybe we are all (as he put) synesthedes. I wonder if we could do the same brain tests on renaissance, generalists, and scanners, that there might be something similar?

    Source: https://www.youtube.com/

  • When I say “faith” do you think religion?

    After posting Faith in the Process I came across Richard Dawkins.

    He uses the term faith synonymously with religious and that surprises me. I use that word a lot, but I don’t think of it in the same way.

    Dawkins has said

    Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence. Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because of, the lack of evidence.

    Is that with a capital “F”?

    I don’t mean religion when I say it. I mean a deeper sense of trust.

    What else do you call that driving feeling when going against the grain of the world?

  • The life of a creator

    The life of a creator is not the only life nor perhaps the most interesting which a man leads. There is a time for play and a time for work, a time for creation and a time for lying fallow. And there is a time, glorious too in its own way, when one scarcely exists, when one is a complete void. I mean / when boredom seems the very stuff of life.

    Henry Miller

  • The Fallow

    The life of a creator is not the only life nor perhaps the most interesting which a man leads. There is a time for play and a time for work, a time for creation and a time for lying fallow. And there is a time, glorious too in its own way, when one scarcely exists, when one is a complete void. I mean / when boredom seems the very stuff of life.

    Henry Miller

  • Your tools, not my tools

    Something that I’m always looking for are my tools. What do I need to be creative? I have a few tools I use:

    • Scrivener – for writing on my laptop. I love it because there is a full screen mode which blocks everything out. Plus I can choose the background colour depending on my mood.
    • Moleskine(s) – a reporter style for tasks, regular lines for creative writing and journals, and a blank paper for mind mapping and brainstorming. ( it maybe excessive, but needed )
    • Office – I never had an office, but now that I have it, I’m in love. You might consider this more of a place. But what’s the difference between a place and a tool? Do I use it? Hell ya. Sometimes I fight using it, because I know if I just sit in it, I’ll get something done. Sometimes I like being lazy.
    • Creative hat – (see photo) not always needed, but oddly helpful. Don’t know why. Maybe it’s the orange? They say it’s a creative colour.

    Now these are just some of my tools. And chances are they won’t do you a lick of good. The Moleskine might be handy, but I bet you’ll use it differently then I do.

    My teacher, Dari, needs a classic style keyboard with weight to the keys. One that goes “clunk” and pushes back. It’s chunky and heavy. They way it needs to be for her. I’ve tried to help her on her computer from time to time, and then thing drives me nuts! But she loves it.

    How do you find new tool?
    Something that might happen from time to time, is your tools might need to change. What worked yesterday, might not work today. And so we need to be on the look out. I haven’t yet perfected this art. Generally I get to a point where I know I’m not doing something, and have to stumble through the process of elimination to figure out, “well, I need a smaller pen.”

    How do you find your tools? How do you know they are still working for you?

  • Mockingbird

    A performance to aspire to.

    Source: https://www.youtube.com/