This blog is going to be more personal than usual and will discuss the power of making a commitment, how important we are as brands of our own companies, as well as the importance of setting goals. I want to share a story and experience with you that put me on a journey of self discovery. I’d like to start with the picture below.
My 5 year old son came up to me and said, “Mommy, I found this picture of you. Who’s that dog?”. Clearly he was holding the picture of me and Snoopy above. When I looked at the picture I had a wave of emotion hit me and thought, ‘Wow.’ In a split second it reaffirmed everything I have been working towards over the last year. Now, let me explain….
The picture on the left is me, as I remember me, for many, many years. The picture on the right is what you could consider the ‘new’ me. I am writing this because it is the anniversary of me setting out on a journey of feeling better, doing better and looking better. I had an incident in which I felt terrible. It was an encounter with a colleague that made me feel gross inside. The incident played out on a large enough scale that I was embarrassed and mortified. Within a few short days I had a life changing epiphany. I knew that I would never allow someone to make me feel the way this person did, ever again. Period.
While this incident wasn’t a personal attack on my appearance in any way, I knew walking away from this that I needed to make a change. I needed to get myself together mentally and to do that I recounted my former days as a high school athlete. I remembered how being outdoors and exercising had some sort of calming effect on me. So on August 22, 2012 I stepped into a gym for the very first time. I had literally never had a gym membership before. I was nervous as hell, afraid that I wouldn’t know how to use the machines the right way. I remember vividly sitting in my car texting with a friend about my anxiety level. Then I said ‘Eff it, if I am going to do this I need to take the first step and get my ass in that gym.’ And I did.
The purpose was focused very much on mental clarity at first. If I were just to give my mind an hour a day to focus on my health and well being, then surely the rest would follow. I was right. As I started to regain focus on the important things in life, such as my family and finding that delicate balance between business ownership and being a mom and a wife, it all started to come together. I realized that keeping people in your life that are causing you unneeded stress and anxiety needed to go. I was committed to making a change, mentally, emotionally, physically – for my family and for my business.
I first began by putting my foot down and being very deliberate about not tolerating anyone who wasn’t on board with the new direction of my life. There is no room in my life for friends, colleagues or clients who were un-supportive naysayers. This was the most rewarding and freeing experience. To rid myself of the baggage that many people brought to the table was liberating as I realized it wasn’t worth it.
I began setting goals for my physical well being and for my business. When I began the physical goals I had doubts and beliefs in my head that were simply untrue such as ‘I can’t fit into a size 7, last time that happened I was 13.’ This was true of the business goals as well. I had beliefs of ‘I couldn’t possible drop this large client because I can’t afford it.’ For the record: I kicked both of these goals asses by a long shot and I am proud of it.
It has been a journey of self discovery, as cliche as it sounds. It started off with me wanting to feel better mentally and what has happened is that I’ve lost 42lbs and my business is doing amazing. I’ve opened myself up to the world and really put myself out there in this last year and it’s fantastic. I’ve made many great new friends through my endeavors on this blog and through all of my social media outlets. I really sincerely appreciate you. I continue to strive to provide you with good content each and every week because you deserve it and I want to be the person who can deliver that to you.
I have some amazing things that I am working on right now that I feel so confident you are going to love. I’ve put every ounce of my being into the development of these things – taking this last year of knowledge and experience in an effort to help you be better and stronger, whether that’s in your business or in your life personally. As business owners we are the images of our company. We are the faces and personalities that people trust. Life is too short to just allow anyone into your life that isn’t 100% on board with what your goals are, both personally and professionally.
For me what started out as a need for some mental clarity to determine my next steps in life, turned out to be a life changing experience. The key takeaway I have for you is that if you believe something and you make the commitment to yourself that you are going to do it, it will happen. You may think it sounds like some crazy pipe dream, but it’s not. The power of believing that you can do it is enough to make it a reality. It is working for me and I know it can for you too. If you need help with this transformation I am always accepting new coaching clients. I can help you make this massive shift in your personal and professional life. You just need to commit to it.
