Create Your Traditions

Empowerment

2013-05-07T19:15:00.000-04:00

So I was at this conference over the weekend, Steve Wiltshire’s Life Line Coaches Million Dollar Protégé Leadership Retreat. It was an amazing experience. The conference is for leaders in direct sales, across many many companies, all brought together because they coach with Steve and his team. Being in direct sales, you get very used to hearing from “your” company, your home office. It’s interesting to get the perspective from leaders with other companies. In my case, it really did make me appreciate even more my company and all that our home office does for us.

What set this conference apart from many others is that it was us, the leaders who coach with Steve and the Life Line team, who were doing many of the presentations throughout the weekend. Of the roughly 200 people who attended, there were 21 of us speaking. My talk was on “Building Your Culture Through Empowering Leaders”.

Speaking in front of that many people, on a stage with an actual podium and microphone, would have been something that would have made me VERY nervous a few years ago. And I admit I was a little nervous before I stepped on stage. But once I was up there, all that melted away, and I was just IN the moment. It was a fabulous experience. And truly very empowering for me, because I DID it. And afterwards, to have so many women, both those I knew and those I had never met, coming up to me and telling me that I was a natural speaker, or how much my talk resonated with them, or that I was the best presenter they’d heard all weekend…well, that was absolutely an indescribable feeling. So ironically, my speech on empowering leaders actually empowered me. And that’s a beautiful thing.

Tampa Bay

2013-05-06T09:11:00.000-04:00

Tampa is beautiful to fly into. All the water, and the bridges. The places that, living here, you can’t always really appreciate up close because up close they’re just the spots where you get stuck in traffic, or the places that are just far enough away to be an inconvenience to have to travel to. But from above, they’re nothing short of extraordinary. Long stretches of road laying literally in the miles of water. Concrete and metal and other man-made marvels, where once there was nothing but water. God’s beauty, enhanced by man’s beauty.

Travel

2013-05-05T22:08:00.000-04:00

There is something so wonderfully delicious about travelling alone. Spending time in an airport, completely without any ties to anyone in the building. A certain anonymity. There is a whole complex world of restaurants, stores and other hidden gems just waiting for you to take the opportunity to explore them. Nobody else to answer to. Nobody to entertain, or be forced to compromise with on where to eat, what to buy, where to sit… As many times as I do it, I never tire of it.

A First!

2012-06-04T11:48:00.000-04:00

This was my first foray into cooking decorating. Seemed like a fun thing to do, and my friend Christy was teaching a class. Who knew I would get HOOKED??? So now over $100 in supplies later, I will be attempting to make some summer themed ones, on my own, without Christy’s help. Maybe later this week!! Wish me luck!

Wednesday Wisdom

2012-03-28T10:21:00.001-04:00

“If you don't go after what you want, you'll never have it. If you don't ask, the answer is always no. If you don't step forward, you're always in the same place.”

--Nora Roberts

Wednesday Wisdom

2012-02-01T13:38:00.001-05:00

"It's never too late to be who you might have been." - George Eliot

This was the quote that I sent out to my Thirty-One downline this morning, as part of my Wednesday Wisdom initiative. January is a hard month for direct sales, second only, IMO, to July. But that doesn’t meant that we all can’t reinvent ourselves in February and have an amazing month. If there is something in your life that isn’t as fabulous as you KNOW it can be, then change it. Only you have the power to make your life what you want it to be.

To Eat Or Not To Eat

2012-01-23T13:03:00.001-05:00

Lately my hubby has been on this whole “let’s try new recipes” thing. I’m fine with this, because any night that he’s cooking is one less night that I have to try to either cobble something together or hit the drive through.

Let’s get something straight – I can cook. I’m just currently in a phase where I choose not to. I used to cook a lot – think hand-stuffed manicotti with homemade meat sauce, garlic seasoned pastry pockets stuffed with four types of mushrooms, homemade eggrolls with (also) homemade fried rice. There was no end to my culinary wizardry, nor to the time I was willing to expend to put an elegant and delicious dinner on the table. Now? Not so much. I don’t know what has changed, but right now I just can’t work up the enthusiasm for spending hours in the kitchen.

So that brings us to now. A few months ago, Perry decided that twice a week he would whip up something inventive from one of his many, many cookbooks that up until this point have mostly gone unused. Most of the time, the things he comes up with are pretty good. There was a yummy mushroom soup a couple weeks ago that I could easily have eaten nightly, for example. Also several interesting salads, and various concoctions of cheese and meat that have been pretty palatable.

Last night, Perry took things a bit too far. He prepared duck. Duck. Quack quack. Duck. Now, I do the shopping, and so I purchased said duck. So it’s not like he sprung it on me. I knew it was coming. But yet when it was actually time to eat it, I honestly couldn’t get the image of the little feathered dudes down the street in the pond out of my head. I did not enjoy the duck. I plan to abstain from duck in the future. I may even have to go take a loaf of bread to the pond as penance.

Coming up this week, we have lamb. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about that, but I think I feel a little bit better about it than duck. At least I don’t drive by the little lambs every single day when I leave my neighborhood. Not sure what little woodland creatures will be on the menu next week, but if it comes down to it, I might have to take up cooking again. Maybe that’s all part of his plan.

Wednesday Wisdom

2012-01-18T22:00:00.001-05:00

"Time is like money, the less we have of it to spare the further we make it go."
-Josh Billings

I kind of find it funny how true that is. For example, my day was insane today (hence why you're getting a 10pm Wednesday Wisdom!) - a lot of running around for a variety of stuff, and then back to back to back kid's activities this evening. If you had given me a list on Monday of everything I was going to get done today, I would have said "no way, something's gotta go." Yet somehow it all got done. How does that happen? I personally think it's because I didn't sit down and analyze everything on my list - I just got started and did it. Maybe it's when we over think things that we become stagnant, overwhelmed, and afraid to move forward.
If you have tasks you're putting off because you're afraid of what the outcome will be, or overwhelmed because they seem like too large of a task to manage, I would suggest setting a timer for just 15 minutes and starting. When that timer goes off, you stop. Even if you're not done. Even if you're nowhere NEAR done. Just stop. Because when you are giving yourself permission ahead of time to only focus on that big scary thing for 15 minutes, it becomes so much more bearable. You've taken that internal pressure off, the little voice in your brain that's been telling you "if you start this, you better be prepared to finish it." You will finish it, eventually, just nothing says you have to do it all at once. Keep repeating those 15 minute segments daily until you've tackled the task. And I promise, after awhile, it'll get easier each time.

Wednesday Wisdom

2012-01-11T15:20:00.001-05:00

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off your bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." - Mark Twain

These are words to live by if ever there were any. Life is too short to live with the regret of "what if". Things move so quickly, you have to reach out and grab life and LIVE it while you can. Today I had to go buy a pair of shoes for my son, who is 10. I discovered that he is now in the largest kid's size - size 6. Next time I shop for shoes for him, I'll have to shop in the men's section. MEN'S! Where did my little baby boy go? Time has simply FLOWN by since I became a mom. I feel so blessed to know that I am in the position to be there for my kid's activities, their (endless) sporting events, their school functions. Thanks to Thirty-One and taking a leap of faith in myself, believing in myself that I COULD build a business, I can be there for them when they need me, and even when they think they don't. What if I had never taken that leap of faith? What if I had listened to people who told me "you're never going to make a living selling purses"? This isn't the career that I imagined for myself when I was a child, but that doesn't mean that I'm not exactly where I'm supposed to be.

Don't be afraid to dream big. It's from the biggest dreams that amazing futures can be made.

Woohoo for a good mail day!

2012-01-06T15:50:00.002-05:00

I am so excited – new Thermal Totes and Cinch Top Thermals delivered today! LOVE LOVE LOVE! Check out some of our new patterns for Spring:

Lil Mushrooms

Flutter

Painted Snakeskin

Awesome Blossom

Leopard Floral

Aqua Circle Spirals

Lotsa Dots

Circle Spirals

Not sure yet which is my new favorite, but I am leaning towards Awesome Blossom or Lotsa Dots! Yay! So ready for an amazing Spring!

Yes, it is tough being a woman.

2012-01-05T14:33:00.000-05:00

So I’ve been reading this book, Esther: It’s Tough Being a Woman by Beth Moore. Admittedly not my typical reading material (nary a vampire or witch in the whole book!) but I cannot believe how much I’m enjoying it! Beth Moore does an amazing job of making the Bible accessible, understandable, AND entertaining! The way Esther is set up, you do a little study section each day, and I’m definitely finding myself looking forward to it daily. I’ll be working through this one for awhile, but I’m already looking forward to finding a similar book to tackle other parts of the Bible. Any suggestions?

Wednesday Wisdom

2012-01-04T10:00:00.001-05:00

"We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives... not looking for flaws, but for potential." ~Ellen Goodman

Happy New Year! I hope the first few days of the year have been fabulous thus far! I love January - more than any other time of the year, it's a time when it seems the whole world is reflecting on where they've come from, and where they want to go. Many of you have probably done the same. I know some of you have been setting your goals for 2012 - THANK YOU to those of you who have shared them with me already. I LOVE reading your goals and working with you on how to achieve them!

Let's ROCK 2012, ladies!!

Wednesday Wisdom

2011-12-14T09:10:00.000-05:00

"Your big opportunity may be right where you are now." - Napoleon Hill

Are you making the most out of your Thirty-One opportunity? There has never been a better time to grow your team with Thirty-One! There is SO much potential out there for you AND your new team members.

Here is the potential for your new recruits by enrolling on December 13th (or later):
- $99 Enrollment Kit (this includes an adorable kit with business supplies to get them started)
- FREE $40 Spring Add-On Kit when they have $400 in sales December 13th-31st
- Submit 6 parties in their first 60 days and earn 1,000 Dream Rewards points
- FREE Start Swell Kit when they have $1800 in sales in their first 45 days
- Earn 500 Dream Rewards points when they enroll their OWN recruit(s) (enrollment date of 12/13/11 or later) and they qualify (submit their first $1,000 in sales)
- FREE $80 Spring Add-On Kit when they submit $800 in sales January 1st-15th.

Who do you know that could benefit from the amazing opportunity that Thirty-One offers? It all begins with just $99 and a dream.where do you want your business to take you?

Wednesday Wisdom

2011-12-07T15:30:00.001-05:00

There is nothing noble about being superior to some other man. The true nobility is in being superior to your previous self.
Hindu Proverb

I love this quote, because I do believe that each of us has a path that is ours alone to travel, and the way you get to point B might not be the same way that I did, or anyone else did, but you'll be a better person for making the journey.

You know it’s summer when….

2011-07-08T22:44:00.001-04:00

BIG BROTHER IS BACK! Woohooo!!! Seriously, while LOST may be my favorite show overall, Big Brother is definitely my favorite reality show (and I’m a girl who appreciates quite a few reality shows!!)

If you’re a BB fan and watching it three times a week on TV just isn’t enough for you, be sure to go check out BBDish – that’s where you get the REAL deal on what is going down in the house. A whole LOT has happened since the premier last night!

Here’s to a fabulous new season! Woo!

TONIGHT ONLY

2011-05-18T19:26:00.002-04:00

Hey, special online exclusive fashion show going on tonight only over at www.mythirtyone.com/bethreed - complete with product bundles at discounted prices, and our Mini Zipper Pouch for $2.31 with every $31 you spend! Come on over, see the video of hot looks for summer fun, and then hit Shop to take part in the fun! Just til midnight, then it's over. Hope to see you there!

iPad

2011-04-01T15:26:00.000-04:00

So I’ve had the new iPad 2 for a couple weeks now. I’m digging it. Granted, it’s not the most practical purchase in the world (but in all fairness, I didn’t purchase it, I earned a gift certificate to Apple for my Fall sales with Thirty-One, and I chose to get an iPad). BUT it is fun. And I’m getting used to it. It’s hard, switching back and forth from my iPhone 4 to my iPad 2 – some things don’t translate so well into the larger size, and on the flip side, once you DO get used to reading emails on the iPad, it’s tough to go back to reading them on the iPhone. Clearly I just need to have both devices on me at all times. And the Kindle. Can’t forget the Kindle. <sigh>

Continuing Education

2011-03-31T21:06:00.004-04:00

Lately I am all about the online classes. Not “real” classes, per se, but fun stuff, like classes on getting organized, classes on marketing your business, classes on blogging, etc. They are just too fun!!
At the moment I am in the midst of a blogging Q&A Webinar series, which is a follow-up to a 10 week blogging class, Smart Blogging Skills that was AWESOME!! So far so good.

And then my current favorite is a Kimberly Medlock Organization workshop. Love Love LOVE! I am all about getting organized, in every aspect of my life, and Kimberly is absolutely amazing. Google her, you’ll love her! We’ve gone over organizing your physical filing cabinet as well as your Outlook, and I can’t wait to see what is next!
So what have YOU learned lately? Recommend me a class – clearly I will need something to do once these current ones end…

Linky Love

2011-03-30T18:05:00.000-04:00

I found a new friend’s blog, http://doadiecut.blogspot.com/ which centers around scrapbooking. A passion of mine. And she posted some adorable photos of stuff she’s made, which totally sucked me in. She makes adorable stuff, and has an Etsy store in which she sells it, so check it out. Much cuteness awaits.

Some Photos from the fun

2011-03-29T17:54:00.000-04:00

So in February (during which time we’ve already established I was away from the blog-world for no good reason) I went on a retreat weekend put on by my Director for myself and some other of HER Directors. This was just way too much fun and SUCH a productive weekend. AND we had a professional photographer come and take pictures of us, too (she was great – see her logo on all the photos and check out her site!!). So here are a couple of me and a couple of myself with the other women from the retreat. All of us are Thirty-One ladies, and definitely spent the weekend embodying the Thirty-One Celebrate | Encourage | Reward motto!!

Wow, welcome to 2011

2011-03-28T17:52:00.001-04:00

Yeah, okay, so it’s almost April and I haven’t blogged since like the early 1800’s or something, but let’s go ahead and see if this thing is still on, eh?

What’s sad is, I constantly preach consistency in all you do, and then here I am not picking up a pen (or keyboard, as it were) in six months. <sigh>

So I could promise to do better, but you’ve heard it all before. So let’s just say that I’m working on trying, and working on putting some schedules and systems BACK in place that will allow me to keep up on things in a whole lot of other areas of my life. Wish me luck. Cause clearly I need it.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T10:42:00.001-04:00

From my ghouls to yours.

Go Sharks!

2010-10-30T21:41:00.000-04:00

My son’s team played their bowl game today and won 25-6. At his age, they do not do playoffs, just a bowl game, so that officially signifies the end of our football season. Woohoo! As much as I LOVE it and will be looking forward to next season in a few months, it’s still a relief when it’s over. We’re onto soccer now, which is FAR less time intensive. It’s almost like getting a break.

Here’s Owen with his head coach and the trophy the team won for winning. They also all received medals with the name of the bowl they played on them. Super cute.

Dog Park

2010-10-28T13:55:00.001-04:00

So today I decided to do a play date for the pups at the dog park with one of their doggie friends. Moose had fun and wore himself out:

Rico spent most of the time chasing squirrels. It continues to amaze me that squirrels even hang out there, honestly. Luckily my dog hasn’t yet learned how to climb trees, or those guys would be in trouble:

I suck, and some hate mail

2010-10-02T23:00:00.001-04:00

Hey blogland. Where have I been? Dunno…slacking, busy, not posting. Not sure why. I do suck. Sorry. In a nutshell, here’s what you’ve missed: my son turned 9, I had a cold, Thirty-One kept me busy. That’s pretty much it.

As for the hate mail – not directed at me, but from me. To my stupid useless CDD board that I hate with a white hot intensity that could sear the very computer I type this on if I’m not careful. Stupid and useless, the whole lot of them. Anyway, here’s my latest letter to the head moron:

I am writing in regards to the supposed violations you say are occurring on my property.

1. We received a violation notice saying we needed to mow based on an inspection done on 9/1. So we mowed. Then on 9/23 we received a violation notice saying we still needed to mow, based on an inspection done on 9/1 and a re-inspection done on 9/1. Seriously? Our property had been mowed twice between the time of the first inspection notice and the second notice. I fail to understand the value of doing an inspection and a re-inspection on the same date, prior to us ever receiving a notice in the first place.

2. We received a violation notice regarding an inspection done on 9/16 saying we needed to clean and paint. First off, I don’t know if you took the photo attached in the dark or if you were just using world’s worst camera, but it took serious study to decode that that was even a picture of the trim over our garage. Once we figured it out, I took the time to both pressure wash and paint the trim, as requested in the letter. Then today I receive another letter saying a re-inspection was done on 9/30 and we’d failed to comply. Really? Because I distinctly remember being out there on a ladder on 9/20 painting the trim, and I dare say there are probably white paint droplets on my driveway to prove it. I’m sure the letter complaining about them will be coming next week.

Honestly, have you nothing better to do with your time and the money of the community than things like inspections and re-inspections on the same day, and harassing people about violations that have already been fixed? How about handling the foreclosed homes with weeds taller than the palm trees, or homes with mailboxes falling off their post? Where do those letters go?

It sincerely doesn’t benefit you to aggravate those of us that do still remain in this community. We’re the ones sticking it out and trying to make this a nice place to live and raise our families, rather than giving up and going into foreclosure like so many others. The sheer volume of people completely fed up with the disorganization and mismanagement of this community is staggering. I hope you’ll take a close look at what you’re doing and how you’re doing it when you’re sending out the next round of unnecessary violation letters.

So there. We’ll see what TweedleDum and TweedleAsshole have to say when/if they respond. Truthfully, I am sure they are going to suggest that our entire exterior needs to be repainted, but that’s just not financially feasible, so they’re going to have to go ahead and continue to levy their fines against us. Apparently we’re at $650 and counting. Bastards.

Create Your Traditions

Empowerment

Tampa Bay

Travel

A First!

Wednesday Wisdom

Wednesday Wisdom

To Eat Or Not To Eat

Wednesday Wisdom

"Time is like money, the less we have of it to spare the further we make it go." -Josh Billings

Wednesday Wisdom

Woohoo for a good mail day!

Yes, it is tough being a woman.

Wednesday Wisdom

Wednesday Wisdom

Wednesday Wisdom

You know it’s summer when….

TONIGHT ONLY

iPad

Continuing Education

Linky Love

Some Photos from the fun

Wow, welcome to 2011

Happy Halloween!

Go Sharks!

Dog Park

I suck, and some hate mail

"Time is like money, the less we have of it to spare the further we make it go."
-Josh Billings