Need ideas for my new website

Encouragement from my bloggers to "stay true to who you are" led me to redesign my website. Here is a pencil drawing of the new layout (click on it to enlarge). I want to help people dream through thier career moves by helping with questions like:

1. Who Am I?
2. What's Out There?
3. How do I get there?

I'll still do resumes since that often leads to these three questions above. I just need to come up with a photo idea for the centre to replace the very "corporate" looking photo in my old website.
Any ideas?

Literaly...making a living from a sailboat

One of the bloggers, Danielle, said "why don't you literaly make a living on a sailboat by taking people on the boat for a day or weekend to think through their career dreams". I just stared, like a deer staring at headlights, and after a long pause said "Cool!".
It was successful when I took teenagers on 7-day canoe trips to dream about their futures. There is just something about getting away from the hussel-and-bussel of daily life in order to step back and take a look at your life.
Danielle, who is trained in art therapy, suggesting taking time on the sailboat to read, write, and draw. Again, something I find extremely beneficial as I sit, here, in my sailboat every morning. I think the drawing would be a lot more therapeutic anchored in a cove off Georgiana Island in Lake Simcoe.
Would you spend a day on a sailboat just to get an idea of your work dreams and future?

Sailancer experience

I don't think I'll use Elance for resume writing service. My first online client found it a lot of work setting up an Elance account, confirming partial payments for each resume draft, confirming final funds release to me, and providing feedback. I liked the feedback part, but it was a hassel for the client (the picture is iStockphoto, not the client...although...she looked like this explaining her troubles) . To confirm her identity Elance issued two small refundable credit card charges for her to confirm. Consequently her credit card provider cancelled her credit card since they were suspessions of the mulitple small charges from Elance.
Elance is very good for large projects spanning several weeks or months, but for one-time resume writing I'll just offer a Paypal payment method on my website.

Dying to Change

My Web Designer, Rachelle Maynard, asked me "what does your web site do?". My drawing of dying grass, near the Nottawasaga River, came to mind. I journaled on the drawing:

"I watched, over the months, this grass sprout up, grow, and now die. All parts of God's creation experience cycles. Yet, the river still flows, birds still sing, rains still come. I guess there is a time for everything. I hear the rain coming, God always seem to provide signs of change."

I want my on-line career counselling business to help people who know it's time for a change in their lives. An article titled "How I lost my Bay St. job and found true happiness" is a good example of the people I want to help. They don't have to be "Bay Street" professionals, but, anyone that has a dream.
I beleive it's dreams that keep people motivated for life. How about you?

Niggles out of Fear

I drew this picture of ice stuck in the river's ebb circle since Carole related life to this image. Her reply on March 15th summed up a great observation that we can not ignore the "Niggles" that move us beyond fear. Well, this week I experinced seveal very strong "Niggles" to move on with my dream to make a living from a sailboat.

1. Carole mentioned "I ignored the Niggles to my perile....years can go by"
2. Time spent in nature last weekend confirmed how I need that in my life.
3. Some online clients told me "your help is the energy I need to keep going"
4. Today's Pray As You Go challanged me to face my fears

For the past month I have done nothing to move closer to my work dream. I need to do what I recommend to so many people, to use others to hold yourself accountable. So, I'm going to hold myself accountable to you Bloggers to come up with a new website design by the end of this month.

Connect with Nature

I took some time for photography and sketching during my visit to the Black River. I just love the look of white snow and evergreens back dropped by a blue sky. Laying on a warm rock and just stared at the sky and trees. There is something about being so close to nature, it helps me connect to how God designed me.

I remember my camp counsellor in Agonquin Park say “once you pick up a paddle you’ll never be the same”. It’s true. It's kind of like the connection that the early Celtic people had in 400A.D. They saw God’s design and wisdom in nature….like Jesus said “even the rocks will cry out”. How do you connect with your design?

Break the Fear of Change

Spinning in circles, around and around. That's how ice trapped in an eddie, flows at the bottom of a waterfalls. During my weekend at Black River I could see for three days, from the cottage, the same piece of ice trapped in an eddie. It made me think about life’s routine and how difficult it can be to break out of a safe routine.
Walking down to the edge of the eddie I pushed a log with my foot to see if it would escape ebb circle, but it got pushed back by the force of the river.
I think it takes a strong push for people to break the fear of change. That push can come from the “inside”, a value or need not being met, or "external", by a person or event that makes you wake up. I think my need for solitude and my constant work with people is pushing me to find a different work environment. What kind of pushes have you experienced?