There is not telling how many miles you will have to run while chasing a dream. — Anonymous
We all dream about things we want, places we want to go, things we want to experience, people we want to meet. For me, my business became my dream. When I first decided to open my doors for business, it was to earn some extra spending money and feel like I was contributing, since I was a stay at home mom.
My husband basically laughed at me and told me that it wasn't going to work. Many times when I first opened my doors for business, he told me to go get a real job. While it got me down, I wanted to prove him wrong. I was going to show him that I could be a success no matter what it took. I put in plenty of long hours surfing the web for information, putting my paperwork together, pounding the pavement, and the list of things I did was endless.
Having three kids and trying to run a household and business kept me tired many nights of the week, but I was bound and determined. I got my first client, who only needed me for a couple of hours, but it was still my first client. Then I had another client come on and then another. Over the years my business has taken off and I am able to enjoy many things, including my dream of a successful business. My husband doesn't laugh at me anymore or tell me my business is stupid or that it sucks. I get to be there for my children, while many other moms are out there working.
The miles I have run chasing my dream have been long and exhausting, but well worth it to finally catch my dream and hold it in my hands.
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Are you right or wrong?
It takes less time to do a thing right, than it does to explain why you did it wrong.
— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
I have seen it before in the work environment. People are in such a rush to produce more work and get their their list of things to do done, that they make mistakes and have to sit there and explain what happened and re-do their work. Of course we are not perfect and mistakes will be made, but if you take the time to go over your work carefully and follow the procedures set up, you will have more time to get things done and not spend the majority of it fixing your errors.
In life I have seen the explanations flow from my husband's mouth as well as my children's mouths. They are in such a hurry to get something done so that they have more time to do something else, that they have to go back and do it all over again after explaining to me why it was done wrong in the first place. I always tell them, "If you would just slow down and take the time to do it right, you would end up with more time in the end."
My mom's friend owns rental property. In the past she has hired the cheapest person to do the fastest job and in the end has had to go back and spend more money to get the job done right instead of just doing it right in the first place. Not only did she lose more money, but she lost more time. I always would tell my mom, "You get what you pay for." If she would have just put out the money in the first place, it would have been done the first time around. Doing it her way ended up costing her more in the end.
The next time you feel yourself rushing through something, take a moment to ask yourself if you are doing it right or will you have to do some explaining later.
— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
I have seen it before in the work environment. People are in such a rush to produce more work and get their their list of things to do done, that they make mistakes and have to sit there and explain what happened and re-do their work. Of course we are not perfect and mistakes will be made, but if you take the time to go over your work carefully and follow the procedures set up, you will have more time to get things done and not spend the majority of it fixing your errors.
In life I have seen the explanations flow from my husband's mouth as well as my children's mouths. They are in such a hurry to get something done so that they have more time to do something else, that they have to go back and do it all over again after explaining to me why it was done wrong in the first place. I always tell them, "If you would just slow down and take the time to do it right, you would end up with more time in the end."
My mom's friend owns rental property. In the past she has hired the cheapest person to do the fastest job and in the end has had to go back and spend more money to get the job done right instead of just doing it right in the first place. Not only did she lose more money, but she lost more time. I always would tell my mom, "You get what you pay for." If she would have just put out the money in the first place, it would have been done the first time around. Doing it her way ended up costing her more in the end.
The next time you feel yourself rushing through something, take a moment to ask yourself if you are doing it right or will you have to do some explaining later.
Do you force time or yield to it?
Who forces time is pushed back by time; who yields to time finds time on his side.
— The Talmud
In the Little House on the Prairie days, families would do all of their chores without the help of technology and yet they were able to have gatherings, visit with family and friends, and enjoy life. Later on, fathers worked all day outside of the home and mothers worked all day inside the home and yet they were able to have gatherings, visit with family and friends, and enjoy life. Nowadays, we have so much technology that it is overwhelming and yet we don't have time to get together or visit with family and friends or enjoy life.
When we try to force more than 24 hours in a day, we are pushed into a corner with all of our obligations hovering around us. When we use our 24 hours a day wisely, by saying "No" and outsourcing or delegating and using technology for good, and understand that those are the boundaries, we will find more time. Even buying time, by using errand and concierge services, can help you yield to time's boundaries.
We all want to sit down and relax, but never seem to find that time. We push ourselves and push ourselves. I love the Rascal Flatts song "Mayberry" because the lyrics below are so true.
Sometimes it feels like this world is spinning faster
Than it did in the old days
So naturally, we have more natural disasters
From the strain of a fast pace
Sunday was a day of rest
Now, it’s one more day for progress
And we can’t slow down
‘cause more is best
It’s all an endless process
If you are looking for time, it may be best to yield to it and not force it.
— The Talmud
In the Little House on the Prairie days, families would do all of their chores without the help of technology and yet they were able to have gatherings, visit with family and friends, and enjoy life. Later on, fathers worked all day outside of the home and mothers worked all day inside the home and yet they were able to have gatherings, visit with family and friends, and enjoy life. Nowadays, we have so much technology that it is overwhelming and yet we don't have time to get together or visit with family and friends or enjoy life.
When we try to force more than 24 hours in a day, we are pushed into a corner with all of our obligations hovering around us. When we use our 24 hours a day wisely, by saying "No" and outsourcing or delegating and using technology for good, and understand that those are the boundaries, we will find more time. Even buying time, by using errand and concierge services, can help you yield to time's boundaries.
We all want to sit down and relax, but never seem to find that time. We push ourselves and push ourselves. I love the Rascal Flatts song "Mayberry" because the lyrics below are so true.
Sometimes it feels like this world is spinning faster
Than it did in the old days
So naturally, we have more natural disasters
From the strain of a fast pace
Sunday was a day of rest
Now, it’s one more day for progress
And we can’t slow down
‘cause more is best
It’s all an endless process
If you are looking for time, it may be best to yield to it and not force it.
Friday, December 14, 2007
What do you overlook?
The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook. — William James
When we wake up every morning, it is a new day of people we see, places we go, and things we do. Sometimes we are okay with it and sometimes we are not. It is up to us to decide what to look at and what to overlook.
My husband and I have had this discussion over and over when it comes to our teenage son. I have told him that sometimes he needs to overlook things our son does and pick his battles wisely. His dad was very strict and overbearing with him and he tends to have those same issues. I didn't have the same strictness when I was growing up. My mom is still a pushover to this day.
I did not have brothers growing up so I am learning firsthand what it is like to have a house full of boys. Some things I overlook and chalk up to boys being boys. There are other situations that I will step up and deal with because I have to in order to raise my son right. I can't stand my son having his pants hang down past his butt and neither can my husband. I choose to overlook it as a trend he is going through, as he has gone through many during his 15 years of life. I do get on him about it when we are in public, but I do it in a kind way. My husband chooses to be irritable about it and is always yelling at my son about picking up his pants.
My daughter and I were at the grocery store the other evening. As we were heading down the soda aisle, I noticed a woman in a store wheelchair/shopping cart struggling to put some boxes of soda in her cart. I tapped my daughter on the arm and asked her to help the lady out. We ended up putting several boxes in her cart and she was grateful. My husband on the other hand, although he probably would have helped, would have overlooked it because he is not as observant as me when it comes to little things like that.
Some people tend to go through life looking out for themselves and do not notice what is going on around them. I see it everyday when I am driving and people cut other drivers off or turn in front of others suddenly or grab a spot in the parking lot without looking to see if anyone else was there. I see it when I am out in the stores and people don't watch where they are going or just grab things off of the shelf or cut in line. They aren't paying attention to the world around them.
I tend to overlook most of these things as I don't want to have health problems at the expense of these other people's rudeness. Why stress out over something so insignificant? What you need to not overlook are the things that can harm you or your family. It takes a really wise person to decide which situations are the ones worth overlooking. Maybe that is why I have so much gray hair!
When we wake up every morning, it is a new day of people we see, places we go, and things we do. Sometimes we are okay with it and sometimes we are not. It is up to us to decide what to look at and what to overlook.
My husband and I have had this discussion over and over when it comes to our teenage son. I have told him that sometimes he needs to overlook things our son does and pick his battles wisely. His dad was very strict and overbearing with him and he tends to have those same issues. I didn't have the same strictness when I was growing up. My mom is still a pushover to this day.
I did not have brothers growing up so I am learning firsthand what it is like to have a house full of boys. Some things I overlook and chalk up to boys being boys. There are other situations that I will step up and deal with because I have to in order to raise my son right. I can't stand my son having his pants hang down past his butt and neither can my husband. I choose to overlook it as a trend he is going through, as he has gone through many during his 15 years of life. I do get on him about it when we are in public, but I do it in a kind way. My husband chooses to be irritable about it and is always yelling at my son about picking up his pants.
My daughter and I were at the grocery store the other evening. As we were heading down the soda aisle, I noticed a woman in a store wheelchair/shopping cart struggling to put some boxes of soda in her cart. I tapped my daughter on the arm and asked her to help the lady out. We ended up putting several boxes in her cart and she was grateful. My husband on the other hand, although he probably would have helped, would have overlooked it because he is not as observant as me when it comes to little things like that.
Some people tend to go through life looking out for themselves and do not notice what is going on around them. I see it everyday when I am driving and people cut other drivers off or turn in front of others suddenly or grab a spot in the parking lot without looking to see if anyone else was there. I see it when I am out in the stores and people don't watch where they are going or just grab things off of the shelf or cut in line. They aren't paying attention to the world around them.
I tend to overlook most of these things as I don't want to have health problems at the expense of these other people's rudeness. Why stress out over something so insignificant? What you need to not overlook are the things that can harm you or your family. It takes a really wise person to decide which situations are the ones worth overlooking. Maybe that is why I have so much gray hair!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
