Love the Working People

Today started off rough Mike and I had a debate on bills. Now the fun begins with balancing the checkbook and the life of a business owner. Of course on my drive in this morning I couldn’t help but notice all of the average citizens working. For a second the thought crosses my mind wouldn’t it be easier just to be average.
It was about 7:00 am when I left the house and as I drove to work I noticed all these random people working; the dry cleaning lady, the garbage men, the gas station attendant, and that guy who is always in his real estate office super early working away? I often wonder if he ever leaves. Today was different than any other day I am starting to look at the world and its people differently. I recently read a book called Rich Man and a Poor Man, which is why I am looking at things so differently. The book talked a lot about the middle class and the rich. The author stated that those who go to work everyday are shooting themselves in the foot every time they get up and go to work. There’s a lot to the book but this statement stuck with me and stood out especially today. Those of us who choose to work for someone else are basically making the bosses/share holders richer. I love watching people in their profession and admire everyone’s strengths, but this morning was different. I made my first business cards today, and will have the first meeting tomorrow with my long time client BC Global. Emily said something to me today that cracked me up, she said Mom you must of misunderstood yourself. Yes you must have misunderstood yourself, you said I could ride my scooter back and forth twice down the street. Both the kids say such innocent things that crack me up and keep reminding me why I am doing this. More time with them is what I’ve wanted for a long long time.

Say What you Need To Say

I need to just sit back and watch the fireworks, some great advice I've been given when making this transition. I begin training my replacement next week and I asked the boss what he'd like me to focus on in training. The answer was a little less than I expected. The answer given was pretty much to "just wing it". See what she's good at and go from there. I cringed to hear this but this is where I need to just watch the fireworks. I have to leave all of my expectations behind and just do what my employeer asks. I am struggling with this because over the past 13 years I have created alot of assest for the company. If not maintained they could go away quickly. I would like to focus on these money making responsibilites because once part time I will not be able to maintain them with my part time schedule. I shared my thoughts and said what I needed to say. So I will give it my best and move forward on my journey.

Love Life

Today I picked up the kids from school and was home by 4:00 what a difference this makes! A pot roast is in the oven and I have done one hour of work all in my home before 5:00. Gosh this is great, I am loving life. Now the hard part in my mission/journey begins. Next week I will be preparing to pass off my job and train our new employee! I have so many mixed emotions about it all, but it's exciting. I am doing exactly what I planned to do. I have to say it took me an entire year to make this decision to go part time and open my own business. My business plan is in the works, I have been making my business calls on the way home from work to get things rolling. So it’s official on November 5th I am part time. I have been asking a lot more questions these days. Mike and I are having fun brainstorming about all the possibilities of the business. It's so important to keep it fun. I am learning more and more everyday. I recommend to anyone wanting to do this to listen to the book on tape, "Rich Dad Poor Dad". This book has helped me see many other opportunities for income or assets to supplement my income. In today’s world there are so many options for generating income online, the traditional 9-5 job is a thing of the past.

Simply Found

I am sitting here today in my home office at 4:00 getting things together and organized to send out my first e-mail. I want to let my friends and family know what my business plans are. The business name is going to be "B There Marketing" and the slogan will be Simply Found.... It fits the services I will be providing. Basically getting a company in the right place at the right time. In the sea of information online I will help companies be simply found.

Experience Life to enjoy the simple things

As I look around I wonder if those on the playground realize how lucky they are to be able to pickup their kids from school. I have experienced Life’s Pain to enjoy a simple thing in life such as picking up my kid from school. For years now I have rushed home to pickup the kids up from daycare and after school programs, then once home its diner time, then time to cleanup dishes then baths. Our family schedule did not leave much time to truely enjoy the kids.

I tried to involve the kids in the dinner time routine. however, it never really felt like I was giving them the attention after a long day. Yesterday was the first day that I was able to pickup Emily from school and Jake and I were home by 4:00! Wah Who. It was interesting to see all of the Moms picking up their kids, and then after the kids came out of school the Moms just gabbed with each other while the kids played. It's been a long hard road to this point but it sure does make me appreciate that moment of picking them up from school. I was ahead of most of my friends in having kids so it wasn’t until recently that a few of my “Mom” friends said that they realized what I had been going through with leaving their babies at home. So I will continue on with my quest to make ends meet and develop my own business.

Follow your heart

This is a short and sweet entry today. It's the last full day of work here :) As I follow my heart in taking this chance today I am reminded of the true importance of this. Today I found out that one of my friends has cancer and another might have a brain tumor. Life is short; never know when your time is up.

No More Watching from the Sidelines

Last night I went to my first parent teacher conference, and learned a tremendous amount about the 1st grade curriculum. It was so fun to sit at my daughters desk and see all the work she has done in her first few weeks. This helped me see where I need to work with her. I am so excited to be able to have more time to devote to her and developing these critical skills of reading and writing. I am affraid she might have inherited her Dad dislexia. Her numbers and letters are ofter written backwards, her eraser was almost all used up:) Her unorganized desk and used up eraser was so cute to me. She is somewhat of a perfectionist. Learning all about what my daughter will be doing was enlightening. I look forward to being more involved this year. In the past I have wished I could be more involved, no longer will I be watching from the sidelines as my kids go to school.

Get to The Otherside

This is my last full week here, next week my schedule goes to 30 hrs a week. Everyday as I drive to work I have my favorite artist of the day just blaring on the radio. I love music! As if the drive down Michigan Ave. isn't entertaining enough. Some of my best Marketing ideas come to me while driving. Music has helped me make tough decisions. I guess knowing I am not the only one pondering every detail while feeling overly emotional makes me feel better. It took me an entire year to finally make this huge career change. I still am looking forward to it all.
As Carrie Underwood says "I guess it's gonna have to hurt, I guess I'm gonna have to cry, And let go of some things I've loved, To get to the other side, I guess it's gonna break me down, Like falling when you try to fly, It's sad, but sometimes moving on with the rest of your life, Starts with goodbye. I know there's a blue horizon, Somewhere up ahead, just waiting for me, Getting there means leaving things behind, Sometimes life's so bitter sweet.
This song just summarizes everything.

Appreciation

I was told yesterday that "it's nice having you around". This was a big Wow for me. I've been in an environment where little is said about appreciating the work one does. As with my kids I've found that a little praise goes a long way. I have been very lucky in my career to have others mentor and teach me what makes one successful in life. I have worked with so many talented individuals and appreciated them for their unique talents. Sylvia has been a great mentor to me and was patient enough to listen to all of my questions when i was a green intern. Linzie was the most confident young women I've ran into, no one could squash her. Jodee was very positive, energetic, and organized. She helped me understand the importance of writing things down. Pete who has worked in a family business environment helped me understand when to say nothing/bite my tongue. Rachael who keeps the company on track, taught me to just stick with the facts, I admire a hard worker like her. Colleen is well spoken and definitely speaks her mind. She has taught me a lot about self respect and I so appreciate that. Chris my boss/brother who taught me an unbelievable amount about selling. He pushed me to the limit in many ways and I learned so much words cannot summarize it. One thing that sticks in my head that he always stressed was, learn how to tell a story, capture people, tell them why things should be important to them. I can appreciate his relentless nature. I can't forget Ellen, her and I made a great team and made remarkable strides in marketing, she taught me loyalty, respect. Dennis who can become friends with anyone in minutes, I appreciate his sense of humor. Loren who was like a big brother constantly reminding me that it’s important to use positive words, never say I will try say I will do. Frank who has so much courage and animation, he has shown me what passion for your business can do. I appreciate his courage and Frankness. This is just a few of the people I have evolved me and my life; we all want to do a good job and want to be appreciated. I find good in almost every person I meet. Everyone has their niche or talent, my big debate these past few days has been what area do I focus on to develop the business.

Building My Wings

Today I will go home and write a job description for what it is I have been doing here for 14 years. I have been writing down all of the procedures and things I need to go over when training my replacement. I heard a great quote today, "Sometimes you just have to take the leap, and build your wings on the way down. " This is exactly what I am doing.

Bitter Sweet

We exceeded our internet sales goal for the month of August! I have been trying to prove this for atleast seven years, not to mention the marketing departments overall value. So today has been bitter sweet. The internet leads previously were not in one contact management system. This effected the ability to track leads and severely impacted our ability to track sales. No one knew the status of the leads and fingers got pointed. I truely believe that we mistakenly abandon some of our best marketing programs.

This information came the week after I announced I would like to step back from my Management position. Talk about kairos. I am finally able to show the ROI due to having an accurate system. We have reached our goal! I am confident in saying that we've met this for years, however the tracking system was not in place until this month. So this is why it was bitter sweet, I can now show my worth. Something I've struggled with for years. I will continue with my quest this week to pass the torch to someone; I will continue to have the company’s best interest at hand. Some say I'm crazy and to let it go, but it’s kind of like my baby I want to make sure it is taken care of the way I have for 14 years now.

It was my daughters first day of school today, I wasn't able to walk her to school :( I will do whatever possible to be present during these special moments like the first days of school in the future. Bitter Sweet it is.

Reactions

I have been a very traditional girl for years now with the typical 9-5 job living the average American life. I've been following the path of what people say is normal for years. So when I told various people what I planned on doing I got some pretty great reactions. My Dad was the best of all, after I told him I was going to take a step back from my career he said, "we'll you better be ready to find yourself a cabin in the woods and hunt your own food, and chop wood. Knowing my Dad came from a rough childhood where he was one child of 12 living on bread and tomatoes I can understand. I took it for what its worth. My Mom just shook her head and said "MhhMhh" . I think she understands more than anyone what I am trying to do. She's been the one that I've called on the way to work as I am sobbing because I didn't want to leave my kids everyday. She is my best friend she here's it all and is my sound board. Gosh I love her, she's a great person:) Then there was the reactions from my friends, most of them were so excited for me and wished me luck. Except for Tammi who asked 100 questions, "what if they fire you?" Playing the devils advocate I could appreciate, she always makes me think about the side that I try to avoid. However this one was already thought of, what if they fired me? She of course wished me the best and was happy for me.

The moment that I told my boss (brother) and the VP of the company not much was said. We sat in the conference room the lights were dimmed and nothing was said for about 5 minutes. I was explaining how I thought it all could work, and they just looked at the proposal I handed them. Then my brother asked "what do you want to get paid hourly?" Then the VP said "well I guess we can't make you work full time." I wanted to say so much but I knew I had to keep things simple, to keep my composure and not end up blubbering. After all I had worked with these two for 14 years, and the waters ran deep.