Unmute Yourself

Decision Day

February 2

Today is the day you decide,

Is your way narrow or wide?

Write me a limerick,

A winner I’ll pick.

Be sure I know where you reside.

February 1, 2018

A writer named “Do It Now”,

Was working on a list of “how”.

Her mind was confused,

As she quietly mused,

How will I know what to disallow?

A Limerick A Day to Keep You On Your Way January 31

January 31

You made it through the test of January,

But hear a word of urgent cautionary.

I’ll do it now!

I”LL DO IT NOW!

Say it morning , noon and night, fight the adversary.

A Limerick A Day to Keep You On Your Way January 30

January 30

There once was a gutsy gent,

He spoke wherever he went.

I’ll do it now!

I”LL DO IT NOW!

He speaks straight up truth, not bent.

A Limerick A Day to Keep You On Your Way January 29

January 29

There once was a sassy gal,

She turned her pen into her pal.

I’ll do it now!

I’LL DO IT NOW!!

She writes now at any locale.

A Limerick A Day to Keep You On Your Way January 28

January 28

There once was a grand tradition,

Start the New Year with a mission.

We begin with gusto,

And then the guts go.

Before long we are back to wishin’.

A Limerick A Day to Keep You On Your Way January 26

THEY GOT THE POWER!!

Can the power of money make you feel empowered?  What is it about money that so often dictates happiness, peace, or the opposite greed, fear of not enough?

Whoever said money doesn’t grow on trees had it wrong.  It takes a tree to make the paper the money is printed on.  Whoever said money doesn’t matter may have had some problem when they went to buy food, gas or a night at the movies.  Money matters.  It matters to you when you work all week and get your paycheck.  It matters to the electric company that you pay your bill.  It matters to the single mom or dad raising their kids.  Love is great but we need money.

Just for today ask yourself what empowers you?  If lack of money paralysis your ambition, your power to feel empowered, what small things could you do have more of it.  Now don’t start thinking this is about showing you some e-marketing plan.  It is about taking a true look at your present situation to see what you could do.  And maybe it isn’t even money that would be the empowering factor.  Maybe it’s feeling you never have enough time.  Maybe you want to feel more empowered by having meaningful conversations with someone.  Maybe you just want to write or paint or sing or be a better parent or spouse.

The only person who can truly make a change is you.  Do it now!

January 26

There once were four simple words of power,

Spoken morning, noon and evening hour.

I’ll do it now!

I’LL DO IT NOW!

They shifted complacency to empower.

A Limerick A Day to Keep You On Your Way January 25

January 25    Leave your behind behind. 

Is your past experience of failures causing you to sit down?

As the middle child of seven kids, three older sisters and three younger brothers I was caught between doing all the girly things and trying to fit in with the boy things.  It’s not so bad until your brothers realize you are a girl and they don’t want you being part of their toys.  Your sisters are okay but they can’t figure out why you want to be like their brothers.  Yes it was a bit confusing.

Most of my life up to my early twenty’s was centered around trying to fit into the male model.  My father supported my desire to become a toolmaker I think because my ultimate plan was to get into the best company in my local community.  Being raised with the mindset that a good job is all you need. You stay there until you retire and that makes a complete life.  I was way too restless for that.

I broke the model of this all-male toolroom in what was for sure a great company. For a time it satisfied my need to be in a boy’s world.  I will always be grateful for the skills I learned but some of those boys didn’t want me in their games either.  Stories of that will be in the book I am writing.

If I had stayed in that toxic environment until retirement I believe my life would have become bitter and resentful.  I am so grateful a day came when it was time to leave that behind.  It reminds me of a story found in Genesis 19. A man named Lot had a wife and two daughters.  Their city was about to be destroyed by fire and flaming sulfur. As they fled Lot’s wife turned for a moment to look back at the city and the story says she turned into a pillar of salt. She may have been thinking of what she was leaving behind and for that small hesitation it cost her, her life. How thankful we are our momentary hesitations don’t kill us but they could kill opportunities to truly live.

Just for today ponder what you need to leave behind. Use your behind to move your behind forward.

 

There once were two of the greatest minds,

Creating stories of different kinds.

They both heard,

Four little words.

Now they don’t just sit on their behinds.

A Limerick A Day to Keep You On Your Way January 24

January 24

There once was a fiery young man,

Who forgot it was okay to be human.

He tried his best.

With all is zest.

Until one day he said, “enough of you man.”

 

 

How often have you had to say to yourself, “enough of you man.”  And the man was you. Or in my case, woman.

Just today I was faced with the decision again to let one of my clients go.  At the same time appointments scheduled the following week were being disrupted by someone else’s scheduling conflict.  “Yeah, well why should I have to suffer loss of income because of someone else’s inability to plan better!”  I didn’t like how I was feeling or handling these situations.

Entrepreneurs are always faced with a higher financial risk. We try very hard to be flexible and available for our clients.  We build relationships on having people know us and like us before they trust us.  If they can’t trust us they won’t do business with us.  It is the same for me if I am the customer.  But what happens when your customers break the trust boundary?

In my 20 years as a business owner I had to grow a backbone.  I had to say, “enough of you man!”  It didn’t happen overnight and I caved many times because I believed I needed the money.  That thought can be very disempowering.  It’s not about just making money.  It’s about valuing my time.  That lesson is hard sometimes to learn.  How do you value your time over money? Do you feel pressure to cave in to a client/customer who doesn’t value your time because you believe you need their business? When do you say enough, man!

Let’s bring the value up on how we view ourselves and our services.  In the long run we will attract more business with those same values.  And yes there will still be times when it happens again but we can quickly recover when our mind set says it’s okay to let a client/customer go who is costing you your time.  Enough of the you man…be the man or woman you value.