"Mommy are we there?" "Not yet." "Excuse me Mr. Boss Man, is it time for that promotion?" "Not yet." If no matter what you ask these days, it seems like "not yet" is the answer, read on. "Not yet" has been my life story for..well, probably my whole life. Once I became an adult and started working, "not yet" was often the answer when it came to living my dream - or what I thought was my dream at the time. I am finally starting to live my dream after years and years of "not yet". It hasn't been easy getting here. But now I realize all those "not yet" answers happened for a reason. Some of those things I wanted then are not at all what I would want now. Some of them, I did get, just at a different time than expected. No matter how much you 'know' you want something right now, if the answer you're getting is a "not yet" there is good reason, even if you don't know it yet. Have I lived out all my dreams? "Not yet." Is my career exactly where I want it? "Not yet." While I do enjoy what I do, there are still some related things I want to pursue, such as expanding upon my network of sites, getting the RV going again for a F/T travel writer's life, and so much more. But instead of dwelling on the "not yet," I am enjoying the here and now, in realization that there is a reason and a season for everything. Enjoy what you have while you have it and make the best of it. The "not yet" you are hoping for could happen any second or another "not yet" that's even more awesome could be right around the corner. Listen to Corrine Bailey Rae. "You're gonna find yourself somewhere, somehow." If it hasn't happened yet, there's a reason. Relax and let it flow.
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It's no secret to all who know me how I make my living as a momtrepreneur. But those of you just crossing my path may be interested in using my story to your benefit. How do you become a momtrepreneur? Writing worked out extremely well for me. However, if writing is not your thing, figure out what works for you. The key to being a successful momtrepreneur is figuring out what you are good at that you can do while spending as much time with your kids as possible. For some, it may mean working from home. For others it may mean working a part time job that allows them to be available at all times the kids are not in school or otherwise occupied. The current definition of it for me is combining my family life and my career to make both awesome. I homeschool my kids and write for a living from the convenience of my own home. Much of my writing is centered around what I learn and do in my family life. My family life is wonderful because of the flexibility and knowledge I gain in my writing career. If you're a parent who can write, I highly recommend it. If writing is not your thing, I definitely don't. It's hard work when you know what you're doing -- and even harder if you don't. When you read my articles, blog posts, book, and more, perhaps writing seems easy. I do enjoy my work, but I wouldn't say it's easy 100% of the time. Sometimes the words do just flow. But if you're looking for a get rich quick scheme or an easy way out, this is not it. There are days I can write seemingly nonstop and there are other days where I can't even get out a paragraph. There's money to be had, but like any other legitimate opportunity, it takes hard work and dedication. Look inside your heart and find out what your personal momtrepreneur (or dadtrepreneur) definition is. If it happens to be writing, I highly recommend getting started with Write W.A.V.E. Media to get some samples out there. If you do, be sure to ask me for help if you need it. I'm the founder, one of the owners, and also a Community Manager. I won't get too personal here. But those who are close to me know that I have been going through a storm of sorts for a while now. That could be an understatement. But still I have the courage to press on. Why? My family. My career. My life. Even when things are not going the greatest in your life, there is always hope for the future. No one knows for sure what will happen in a month, a day, or even in the next second. But one thing is certain. The future will hold both good and bad. I will always embrace the good parts and have the courage to sustain the negative. As George Custer said: “It's not how many times you get knocked down that count, it's how many times you get back up." It takes an enormous amount of courage to keep getting up, despite what the world throws at you. But remember that no matter what hurdles are in your path, only you have the power to jump them. Once you do that enough times, you will be a powerful force to reckon with. Use that strength to inspire others and give them the same courage. You will be surprised at the courage your experience can help others find. If You Believe You Can Do Something, it Will Happen Ever had so many responsibilities drop into your lap that you're too overwhelmed to do even 1 item on the list? Perhaps you're like me and on top of that happening, you're crazy enough to assign yourself even more.
Don't let the stress get to you. Just believe it and do it! If anyone knows how well this works, it's me. On top of the normal mom duties, I had to go and make things harder by throwing homeschooling into the mix. On top of that, I had to throw a full time work-at-home career into the pile. I freelance full time, write for and manage my own network of websites (like this one), and even mentor fellow writers just for fun. Each of these things has its own free list of tasks. Many (or even most) people would have a heart attack if assigned even half of the tasks I do in a day. But yet, I get it all done, most of the time with a smile on my face. How? Simply by believing it and doing it. If you sit around all day stressing over where to begin, whether it will all get done, and come up with all these elaborate plans on how you are going to get it done, guess what? You've wasted all your time on worrying. Just believe it and do it! Trust me, it works! Those of you who know me know how much I love animals. So it should be no surprise that this week was filled with animals for me.
There's of course our gazillion hamsters that I get to play with on a daily basis. OK, so currently there are 3 of them, plus a guinea pig, and my mom's cat. As if we don't get enough animal fun with just that, we have to go and add animals to other aspects of our lives too. At least 3 times per week (usually more), the kids and I go give attention the local shelter kitties. We went almost every day this week. We like to give them attention so they know they are loved no matter how the rest of their life ends up being. We're also working up to starting an official hamster rescue after our experiences rescuing hamsters in need. More animals? Why, of course! I did say they were everywhere. As if I don't get enough of the cute little fuzzy creatures, I have to go and write about them, too. I also just found out that my animal obsession has earned me a spot in the Yahoo! Featured Contributor Program. I even earned a shiny new YFC badge in Lifestyle (the parent category of Pets). Yahooooo! Apparently, for me, animals are everywhere! |
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