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Creative Office Organizing Ideas: New digs for the litter box
Posted: Thu, 17 May 2012 13:40:53 +0000
Image credit: wikipedia.org
Litter boxes. They are the only real drawback to being among the millions of households who keep cats.
Unless you have taken the time and trouble to teach her to use the john – and there are training kits made to facilitate even that process – you have probably relegated the cat box to some discreet location – utility room or garage. Or perhaps you have the distinct privilege of sharing your home office with the cat box.
In the spirit of the old entrepreneurial adage, “find a need then fill it,” clever designers have created stylish, clever cat box concealers which you’ll actually want to show off. These range from oversized boxes and polka-dot Quonset huts to pieces of existing furniture which have been modified to house Kitty’s litter box in privacy and in style.
The ideas behind these witty adaptations are straightforward enough that a woman armed with a jig-saw and some contact paper could create her own purr-sonalized potty parlor in a morning’s time. For inspiration, I recommend a visit to: http://blog.sfgate.com/pets/2009/12/30/cool-kitty-litter-box-concealers. Kitty’s new digs have never looked so good!
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4 ways to release emotionally-charged items
Posted: Thu, 10 May 2012 22:14:22 +0000
Ever wonder why you avoid your space and prefer not to spend time in it? Consider what emotionally-charged items have ended up in your home office. Whether it’s your ex-spouse’s desk, a deceased relatives’ personal effects, or a collection of your grade school report cards and essays, these collect in your home office and can make it an energetically unwelcoming place to create.
Objects that are laden with painful or unresolved feelings are like a clogged-up drain. They slow everything down. They sap your strength and focus. They clog your creative flow. Even though you’re unconscious of it, the energy it takes to avoid them weighs on your heart. You’d rather be somewhere that is free from this powerful negative energy.
If you want a thriving business and a nourishing space, I highly recommend spending time doing the deferred inner work that is secreted away in your space.
What makes it so uncomfortable
Most of the emotionally-charged items in your space fall into 4 categories:
- Grief deferred
- Decisions deferred
- Honoring deferred
- Forgiveness deferred
We tuck these things away hoping we’ll have the time or energy to address them later. Sometimes later never comes. It’s courageous work to sit with the emotions we’ve deferred.
What you can do about it
If you want your space to feel light and welcoming, there are several things you can do to shift these emotionally-charged items.
First of all, step back. Look at what’s there and write down which items in your workspace feel emotionally charged. Write where they’re currently located. For example, here’s my list:
- Grandma’s collection of letters, clothes, and journals (bottom drawer of my closet)
- The file box of papers I wrote in college (closet)
- The book I started writing in college (closet)
- The box of old journals (closet)
- The box of old photos I keep meaning to put into an album (closet)
(See a theme?) Don’t do anything yet, just notice what’s there.
One insight before you move anything
My wish for you is a space that is energetically uplifting. But before you can create it, there are two assumptions to account for:
One of the questions people ask me is, “Is it okay for me to keep things even if I don’t love them?” The answer to this is yes. What good is it to force yourself when you aren’t ready? If your inner critic says you should just get rid of them, this just creates resistance. Take your time.
The other question is, “Is it okay for me to get rid of things?” The answer to this is also yes. No matter what intention was implied by the giver of these items, they now belong to you completely. They are yours. Because of this, you have full authority to decide what to do with them.
There are no “shoulds” — when you’re clearing, do only what feels true and resonant for you. The best way to achieve this is to…
Sit with each one
Some of the things you’ve been storing might be easy to remove. However, you’ll eventually run across something with strong feelings attached to it. When you do, take your time. Don’t push. Pick it up in your hands. Look at it. Open up to the feelings. Notice where you feel them in your body. Allow the memories to wash over you. Be present. There’s no need to rush on to the next thing.
This item has been waiting a while for your time and attention — give it what it needs. It is enough to sit with this one object and be present with it.
And do the deferred inner work that’s been concealed
Once you’ve spend a few moments with it, discern what inner work it needs.
Grief deferred
If you’ve tucked away a treasure because it reminds you of a loss, hold it in your hands and be present with it. Make space for the feelings of your grief – pain, sadness, regret, anger, relief and others. Allow some time to feel them fully. Despite what you may believe, it’s okay to feel sorrow many years after the loss occurred. It could be an actual loss (like divorce or death) or a symbolic loss (a job or a dream deferred). Our society is very good at avoiding grief, so you might feel a little uncertain about how to “do” this process. Stay with it. Trust what feels right to you. It’s okay to ask for support from a compassionate, supportive person.Decisions deferred
If you’ve deferred deciding what to do with it, your problem-solving brain wants to tell you all the reasons why you should decide one way or the other. Why to keep it. Why to get rid of it. This mental chatter can feel very confusing. It helps to simply ask yourself, “If I were to complete this thing I’ve left undone, would it help me get closer to the life I want?” Trust the first thing that comes up for you. Your wisdom and intuition are trustworthy guides for knowing your next step.Honoring deferred
If you’re proud of it and have kept it for a while, perhaps you’ve deferred honoring your own accomplishments. For example, I’ve kept several outstanding papers from college for which I received the praise of my professors, but I never let in that praise. It would be really valuable for me to reread those papers, allow the compliments in, and then praise myself. “I did this! I’m really proud of the work I did! Go, me!” You can do this with things like pay stubs, anniversary cards, certificates of achievement, and anything that signifies accomplishment. Most overachievers have a hard time with honoring themselves. The miracle in this practice is that once you honor the accomplishment in your own heart, keeping the object becomes less important. It becomes a part of you.Forgiveness deferred
If you have an item from a part of your life that is no longer relevant, you may need some self-forgiveness. Books, binders of materials, trainings, and notes are things we hang on to because they were once useful and we feel guilty for not doing more with them. You might think it was money or time wasted. If you’re keeping something that no longer serves you, hold it in your hand and say, “I forgive myself for not doing more with this information or material. I have used what I could given the circumstances of my life. I am thankful for what I learned and experienced. Now I choose to release this item and trust that it will fall into the hands of someone who can truly use and enjoy it. I trust that by releasing it, I will feel lighter and have more energy to use on things that satisfy me.”A truly clear space awaits
By going one item at a time and clearing the negative associations it holds, you can decide if your life is better with or without each item. In this way, your space becomes physically and energetically clear.
Learning to honor yourself and the significance of objects is a worthwhile practice. During Office Spa Days we do this very practice — moving through items one at a time and it feels like a kind of meditation practice. Over time, you start feeling confident about your abilities to remove objects you don’t need and courageously doing the inner work that goes with them.
Do you have items that feel emotionally charged? Feel free to share about it in the comments below!
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Creative Office Organizing Ideas: Online countdown clocks
Posted: Thu, 10 May 2012 13:32:15 +0000
Photo credit: online-stopwatch.com
We all know that work will gleefully expand to fill the time we’ve set aside for it. But setting a timer helps keep you on track and also prevents the unhappy tasks from oozing out of their time-block to engulf your entire day.
Toward that end, I recommend this handy, dandy online timing tool to help you keep unpleasantness in its place.
At Online Stopwatch, you can find delightful little timers which are not just accurate, but also jam-packed with whimsy. There are clocks which talk to you (since this one speaks with a British accent we expected it to need re-setting to US time, but it works just fine wherever you happen to reside), to clocks which calculate your time in dollars. I also recommend the dollar clock for time spent in those tasks for which you do not get paid. (Suggestions for this are: litter box duty, keyboard cleaning, disentangling paperclips, and Facebook noodling.)
You won’t be surprised to learn that I’m most fond of the burning dynamite-fuse time clock (it’s so cool!) in honor of the dynamic women whose explosive creativity we celebrate here.
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Creative Office Organizing Ideas: Teachers’ hangy bags!
Posted: Thu, 03 May 2012 00:01:35 +0000
Photo credit: amazon.com
When it comes to organizational genius, Copernicus was one of the titans! His re-organization of the universe putting planet earth somewhere other than at the center, of course, didn’t gain him much appreciation in his day, but what can we say? He was something of a trend setter.
Aptly, one of our newest fave organizational office products comes from the Copernicus Educational Project which generally supplies teachers with nifty ways to keep classrooms organized and humming along without a hitch. We think teachers shouldn’t get to have all the fun!
Here are sealable, see-through-able plastic hanging bags which can be purchased with their own little hanging bag stand (perfect for desk or credenza) in which the inspired home office diva may stash any number of her treasured belongings. What a great way to keep your medium-size red Avery dots from consorting with your large yellow Avery dots! The bags are perfect for sorting newspaper clippings, storing software driver and installation disks, and might even lend themselves to the business of keeping scrapbooking or other crafty supplies visible and readily available. Overall, the Copernicus Project’s hanging bags (and handy bag hanger stand) are worthy of the name.
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Rethinking fast
Posted: Tue, 01 May 2012 13:03:33 +0000
I’ve been noticing lately how fast I think I should complete things. In my mind, I imagine how long a task or project will take — and it’s not pretty.
So I’ve developed a new rule: double it.
If you think that doing social media should take you 20 minutes a day, double it. If you think that clearing your desk should take an hour, double it. If you think finishing your taxes will take a few more days, give it a week.
A recent example:
Dear Jen,
If you think it will take 15 minutes to get to downtown Salem, give yourself 30. The journey will be song-filled, not curse-filled. You will bless the person who vacates a parking spot instead of ranting about the lack of them. You’ll arrive at your destination calmer and happier and ready to enjoy your day. Double the time. Make a note.
Love, your wiser self
If you want to reclaim your sanity, pull back on your expectations. Every time you say (through gritted teeth) ” This shouldn’t be taking so long”, you just make yourself crazy. It’s a lie — it *does* take that long. Take a breath. Make peace with it. This is how long it takes.
My suggestion? Try doubling your guess and see how your sanity improves. Let me know how it goes!
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The cost of living at the edge of your energy
Posted: Fri, 27 Apr 2012 00:03:20 +0000
It’s been a rocking week! First I presented the NICER Process to 25 landscape designers and contractors. Then I taught 17 small business owners (from jewelry artists to web designers) about creating systems for their social media. Since many of my friends are entrepreneurs, I talk with my peers informally, you know, for fun.
Of these 50 or so people, one theme has run through every conversation:
- Where will I find the time to do all this?
- Do I have to get sick for some down time?
- How on earth can I stay on top of it all?
Sound familiar?
These are hectic times. Money is as short as time for many people. There’s the drive to get ahead, to stay afloat, to keep up. We think we’ve got to fit in as much as we can.
I’m not immune either. I’ve had times where I’m not just unconsciously busy, I’m 100% confident that the next thing I add to my calendar will be my undoing, complete with padded cell.
Yikes!
In the midst of this self-generated chaos, we also long for peace, balance, and rest. We long for it — and we also deserve to have it.
Here’s the thing: Peace doesn’t happen on its own. Carving it out takes intention and effort.
Where energy and attention go
We have 9 areas that we’re managing in our lives:
- work
- home
- money
- primary relationship
- friends and family
- body and health
- spirituality
- recreation
- contribution
Within each area are different projects, intentions, and goals. If you’re unconscious of these, it all just feels like one big snarl of to-dos.
If you’re conscious of them, you can start choosing where to focus. Although you can’t do all 9 areas at 100%, you can be mindful about where your focus is going.
What are your top 3 right now?
A humbling lesson and then a happy one
Last month, I received a heart-wrenching email from a dear friend who asked me point blank: Are we still friends? With everything I’ve had going on, I forgot to stay in touch. For 4 months. And although my work is important, what good is it without friends to laugh and share with? As important as she is to me, I’d forgotten to carve out friendship time.
More flatteringly, I’ve received a bunch of compliments on the quantity and quality of the ebooks I’ve developed this year (thanks!). It wasn’t a miracle or even late nights that made them possible — I made a very hard decision to stop working with 1-on-1 coaching clients until summer. Terrifying? You bet. Coaching is my most expensive offering, so I took a significant pay cut. Could I have juggled all that writing plus coaching? Possibly. With consequences. Since coaching is also the most energetically demanding work I do, by stopping temporarily I gained energy and put it toward my writing.
I could have ended up really stressed out and depleted. Instead I’m feeling pretty good — and I’ve made plans with my dear friend.
Living at the edge
You probably know the consequences of living at the very edge of your energy capacity. Stress, depression, disagreements, illness, and ill-timed words all come from being stretched to the very edge.
When you’re at capacity, a surprise event or demand added to the mix can throw life into chaos.
You can choose
You might feel painted into a corner. You might feel uncomfortable or guilty about changing plans, but in reality, all commitments are negotiable.
How do I know? Because if (God forbid) you died tomorrow, everything you were supposed to do would go undone. Someone would pick up the slack or it would be forgotten.
In other words, there is nothing you can’t step out of. And it’s okay to.
Just like in my example about coaching, when you’re living under your capacity, tension slips out of your life. You’re present for the truly important things.
Graceful exits
If you want to live within your time and energy budget, taking action is important. It won’t happen on its own.
1. Start by assessing everything you have coming up — appointments, commitments, projects, agreements, people you’re responsible for/to. Get it all down in front of you so you can see it and create some perspective.
2. As you look at what you’ve written, do a gut check. With each item, ask:
- Does this add to my quality of life or detract from it?
- Does this put me over or under my energy budget?
3. Then decide to yourself: “I’m not going to do this (fill in the blank).” Physically cross it off your list.
4. If your decisions impact other people, say to them, “I’m sorry, but I changed my mind. I’m not going to do what I said.” Take a deep breath after you say it and wait for a count of 5. Let it really land.
You may feel uncomfortable at first, but wait for it… soon after you’ll feel a lightness settle over you.
Most importantly: You
If you feel stretched and depleted, I recommend replacing some of the activities you’ve just crossed off your list with things that nourish you.
This can’t be overstated. By investing time and energy in you and filling up your spiritual gas tank, everything will seem clearer and easier.
Are you living at the edge of your energy?
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Sacred Spaces: My “I’m going to Spain” altar
Posted: Wed, 25 Apr 2012 13:03:22 +0000
My “I’m going to Spain” altar
This might look a mess, but all I see is that beautiful scallop shell.
Next year I’m planning to walk 500 miles along an ancient pilgrimage route through France and Spain. Before it was called the Camino de Santiago, this route was sacred to the Celts as a route to the end of the world. The rays of the shell fan out like shafts of light from the setting sun. Today, the story of the scallop shell, the Celts, the Atlantic Ocean, and St. James are all commingled so that every pilgrim carries this shell on their pack, telling the world of their seeking.
One day, I’ll wear this one on my own pack. It was a gift to me from my aunt, Elaine, who walked the Camino in 2008.
It is a dream to go. A stretch. A calling.
Every time I see that shell, I’m reminded: I will go too, like millions have before and walk in their footsteps.
What about you?
Is there something you keep in your space to remind you of where you’re going?
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Guest blogger Regina Mountjoy: Organizing your digital photos
Posted: Wed, 18 Apr 2012 15:11:24 +0000
This guest post is by photographer and organizer, Regina Mountjoy. I’m excited to feature her because she’s a guest speaker in the Creative Haven on April 27th. Would you like to be there? Check out the Haven. And enjoy!
Introduction
I’m a professional photographer who produces and archives on average about 10,000 images a month. By necessity I’ve created a system that allows me to efficiently file, archive and retrieve those images for myself and for my clients. The system I have developed over the years has worked well for me professionally and is the same system I use for my personal images.
Why is it worth having a filing system for your digital photos?
The whole point of taking pictures (in my opinion) is to look at them after the moment has passed and to recreate special memories. A filing system allows you to keep your visual memories in order and easily accessible. It also keeps you from feeling buried with yet another task lurking around the corner draining you of creative energy.
If you do not consistently edit, file and backup your files, your beautiful images will be lost in the mass of the unfiled and unidentified. Guilt will gradually creep in around the edges of your thoughts and even begin to take away your joy in having made the images in the first place. Worse yet, if not sorted and backed up, you may lose your files if/when your computer crashes or CF card is corrupt or phone is dropped in a toilet.
Take heart! Creating a good working system is not as daunting as it might seem. And once you create it and put it in place organizing your images will become so easy it will be habit forming!
Categorizing (or organizing) your digital photos
I keep my files in chronological order. We have enough family and personal events that I have an individual folder for each event/shoot. Each individual event folder is named with the date and event.
Inside each folder I have at least 2 folders: one for the original images and one of the final edit (or processed images). If I’m really on top of it there is also a folder for my very favorite images to use in the year’s slideshow. I always number the folders so they are in order. I really don’t like to think much when I’m sorting!
Along with the event folders inside the main yearly folder I also have one “catch-all” folder for all the miscellaneous photos. Just as it is essential to have a “junk” drawer, I have a “misc.” folder for each year. It contains the same interior folders as the individual event folders with a few extras. Note: if looking through all the misc. images I see a group that can be put into its own folder I do so.
If you don’t really have “events” and are just snapping randomly a few here and there on any given day, it might be best to keep your files in monthly folders. Then you can edit at the end of each month. (I would recommend putting the month’s number at the beginning of each title so the folders stay in order. But I would personally also include the name of the month. I like to label things as clearly as possible so I can quickly identify the folder I need.)
Editing your digital photos
Putting your images in folders labeled by date is very straightforward. It seems that the editing part is where most people get hung up. The big issue seems to be the getting rid of. “How can you delete your images??!” people ask me. It is really hard- I agree! So I don’t!
I edit from the other direction. My first sweep is to select the strong shots. I don’t think about it or use this time to even enjoy the image that comes later. I go through and take the strongest images and put them in their own folder. Then I look through those images and if there are shots that are similar, I decide on the best of the set and move the others back into the “original files” folder. So I’m not deleting anything. I’m just putting the strongest images into one place. I’m separating the awesome from the okay. From the final selection set I choose a few of my absolute favorites – the ones that really make my heart go pitter-patter – and open them up in Photoshop to tweak a bit.
Extra tip about color conversions: If you are interested in converting some of your final edits/favorites to BW, here is my philosophy: If your reaction to an image is a “wow- that color is gorgeous!” then it should stay in color. Otherwise it should be converted to a high-contrast black and white image so that the colors don’t distract the eye from the shapes, expression, texture and emotion of the image.
How often to edit/file you digital photos
If I don’t keep on top of my professional files weekly I am buried. Yuck. My personal photos, however, require only monthly attention.
Just like doing bookkeeping, laundry, dishes, processing email, etc. it is MUCH less daunting to edit as you go. I encourage friends and clients to at least file their digital photos as soon as they have finished shooting a set and ideally take the extra 30 minutes to edit also. And if you are just shooting intermittently I recommend copying images from your phone/laptop/camera at least once a month.
Edit as you feel inspired. I love to do this while we are watching a favorite movie or traveling or on a quiet night with a glass of wine and great music.
You are much more likely to use your photos and can access them super quickly when they’ve been sorted. If you have a system that makes sense to you, you will much more likely to keep up with it. If the system I use is not intuitive and/or does not flow for you or if it does not inspire you to create a system that works for your unique creative brain, schedule a session with Jen. She can gently and adeptly guide you through the process of creating a system that works for you. I’m speaking from personal experience here!
Backing up your files
It is essential that you realize that your computer IS going to crash. (Jen here: Agreed. It’s just a matter of when.) I have lost more images than I care to mention due to carelessness and CF card + laptop failure. So I am very disciplined about filing my images consistently and ALWAYS having my images in at least two places. It only takes losing your images once to kick this habit into gear. I personally have a mirrored RAID system. My best friend uses an external drive and “time machine” for her mac setup. Definitely peruse Jen’s blog post about preventing a backup debacle. Or do a Google search for backup solutions. Get your images on a cloud. So many great options. I am using Dropbox quite a bit these days for sharing photos with family and clients.
Use your photos!
I feel like we are experiencing a bit of withdrawal and are starting to crave tangible forms of the images we love. Here are a few ideas for getting those pretty pics off the computer into the “real” world. Don’t over-think it! Just play a little!
Photo Books (http://www.mpix.com/products/photobooks/photoalbums)
Canvas Gallery Wraps (http://www.mpix.com/products/homedecor/gallerywraps)
Charm Jewelry (http://www.kimbrastudios.com/)
Tipsey metal art (http://www.alittletipsy.com/2011/11/pictures-on-metal-11×14-metal-art.html)Regina Mountjoy has run her own fine art photography business, Recherche Photography, for over ten years and has a thorough working knowledge of the wedding & portrait photography business. She’s been passionate about organization her entire life! She’s read books about it for FUN! It is her favorite thing to do at home and for others. She’s always helped friends and family declutter their homes and implement organizational systems.
What photo organizing techniques do you use?
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Sacred Spaces: Miniature feng shui arrangement
Posted: Mon, 16 Apr 2012 13:03:17 +0000
My mini feng shui arrangement
I love this collection. It’s sits just next to my monitor on an apple crate.
Apparently, the center space of any room is the good fortune gua and is associated with earth colors and the earth element. Ask me what this means — I won’t be able to tell you. But knowing this inspired me to create this tiny altar of earth-toned, earth-made objects.
The Anderson Pottery chickadee has been a family treasure and was given to me by Inspired Spouse. The heart glass is from my mom. And the quartz stone was carefully polished by my dad-in-love.
Just looking at this collection makes me happy, even if I know squat about feng shui.
Do you have any feng shui remedies in your home office?
What are they?
Feel free to share below how they came to be and what’s in them. I’m no feng shui expert, but I love learning about you!
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Your daughter’s grief: An open letter to moms
Posted: Fri, 13 Apr 2012 02:56:01 +0000
Dear mom of an adult daughter,
It’s happened enough times now that I just had to write. After you’re gone and she’s begun to sort through your things, your tearful daughter tells me how hard it is to go through all of your belongings and decide what to keep, what to pass on, and what to give away.Missing you tears at her heart. Her grief is deep and throbbing and complicated. She loves you with a bond that is like nothing in the world, no matter how much you disagreed or how much was left unspoken between you.
Even decades after you’re gone, she holds on to ugly, threadbare possessions she doesn’t love because they were precious to you. She still holds the childlike magical belief that if she has something of yours, you might come back for it. She keeps your papers, journals, and the cards from your funeral. She keeps photos of people she doesn’t know because you knew them — and she can’t just throw them away, can she?
She won’t admit it to most people, but your daughter tells me that she keeps boxes of your things, unopened, in the middle of her living room. For years. She can’t move them. The fear and anticipation of pain from opening them is just too great. She is exhausted from grief. “I can’t open them,” she tells me. “I just can’t cry anymore.”
She knows. She knows your belongings will never bring you back. But having to let it all go is a painful weight I just know you wouldn’t wish on her.
So I’m asking you, from the bottom of my heart, please, please prepare.
Ask your daughter what she wants. Ask her now while you’re still alive so that she can tell you the things that are significant to her. She may be shy at first, but if you give her time to think about it, she will tell you. You might be surprised it’s not the things you expected she’d want.
If you love her, take the time to empty your closets and your file cabinets and your garage and your basement. Go through photos and toss out the ones that mean nothing to you. I know it’s a lot of work. I know it’s hard and emotionally draining. I know these are decisions that you dread and you don’t want to part with some of these treasures. It’s just… you’re the only one who can free her from having to make those decisions for you while she’s also grieving you.
Take the time to weed. We all keep an odd assortment of things we don’t really like or use. Old Mason jars, magazines for someday, dead pens, random automotive bits, valueless hand-me-downs from ancestors now gone. Weed through it occasionally and give things away. Ask your daughter to help you. She may not love it — she has stuff of her own to sort through — but spending time together with this kind of project presents a great opportunity to share stories and talk about the things we mean to but never do.
Live lighter. Stop adding to your collection. This might mean you need to think about whether buying and owning things is a substitute for the life you wish you had. Be honest about whether collecting more things helps numb some kind of pain. Living lighter takes courage because we end up facing the pain that lies underneath our habits. If it’s true for you, I’m so sorry you’re in pain. Still, I know you can do it. And you may feel younger and lighter than you have in years.
When it comes down to it — I want to assure you of this — we need so little to be happy. When you are living your last days, you will know that no possession, no thing is more valuable than a genuine connection with the ones you love.
Get your papers in order. I’ve met your daughter as she’s going through your papers and she finds it very frustrating and confusing and complicated. While you’re living, even though you don’t feel like it, get the advice of as many experts as you can afford and create an airtight plan. Once it’s created, give your daughter and your other children unsigned copies. Tell your her where the signed copies are stored and make sure she can access them without any trouble.
I know this is a lot to ask. I know you have a lot going on in your life and you’d rather not think about what I’m saying.
If you don’t do it, I want you to know that I’m happy to console her as I walk her through the process of clearing out your belongings. I’m deeply honored to sit with her while she sobs. I consider it a blessing that she trusts me to help her.
But it would make my heart glad if I knew she would be spared the overwhelming complexity and lingering pain of sorting through your treasures. I would be so happy to know you chose to give her the gift of freedom to focus on how much she loved you and feel how much you’re missed.
I know you want her life to be full of possibility, not weighed down by the past.
If reading this moves you, please pick up the phone and call her or send this to her to read. Ask her what she thinks. If you’d like assistance, I’d love to help. Let me encourage you to start taking steps today toward the future you want for your daughter. It might be the greatest gift you ever give her.
With much love,
Jen
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