"Be yourself. People don't have to like you and you don't have to care." - Jeff Bell
I wish I had learned this when I was a teenager. Or even when I was 23 or so. I didn't always realize the strength in myself, but it's something I care about other people seeing in themselves.
What do I mean?
Read MoreI didn't write once in July, and I felt it. My goals were work related, but I hadn't created space in the midst of those goals for writing.
[wait... scratch that….
Read MoreI can't go to the store if I don't leave my home.
I can't go to Wisconsin if I don't leave Minnesota.
I can't go home if I don't leave the party.
I can't go into my future if I'm not willing to
When 5 rules your day, you might as well write about it.
It's 5 days 'til my financial class online.
The class is 5 weeks long (identifying your thinking, building a workable and adjustable budget, creating a plan to get out of debt, growing into the "why" God has for you, and creating multiple streams of income to support to the future we're building).
The 5 people closest to you determine…
Read More"Ps1611"... Because I didn't have space for "You [God] make known to me the path of life."
I was reading an interesting book (and by "reading" I mean "strategically skimmed 1/3 of the chapters", but I digress), and that verse was in there. The rest of the chapter was one I didn't need, but that one verse was one that grabbed me. I spend a lot of time trying to figure out what I'm doing with my life.
Read More"You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head." - Psalm 139:5
I cannot tell you how many times I have quoted this verse over the last couple weeks in conversations with other people. So just in case you are in a situation that involves taking a step of faith that you don't fully understand...
Read MoreMy two sons are very different in their approach to failure. My oldest will not give up. He was the kid who tried stairs over and over and OVER again until he finally mastered getting to the top without falling. To him, failure was a sign that something absolutely MUST be accomplished. As he's gotten older, this is still the case... BUT he only wants his "practice" to be done in private so that people only see his 100% success.
My younger son is much different.
Read MoreI used to love the word "liberality" in terms of generosity. It meant being willing to give freely, and this was GREAT! I loved that idea! However, I did not have the income to "give freely," so I would put pressure on myself to give out of my own ability. And if I didn't have the ability, I would work to create the ability.
And then I started writing Simple Generosity.
I've been working on my business goals the past few days, and here is what I'm thinking: Inauthentic why's create disingenuous goals.
It doesn't matter how great, noble, or beautiful your why sounds.
I once told my husband I didn't like my middle name because it literally means "bitter". I don't WANT to be bitter. He laughed and said "You're like coffee - bitter but good". Being that I am an avid coffee drinker, I was happy... until he continued with "...and just like coffee, some people will love you, some people will hate you, and some people just aren't going to understand you at all."
He was right.
That's how I feel about that woman from Proverbs 31. She has so much stuff going on that she often comes across as someone we just cannot relate to, so we have to look for the thread of her story more than the details.
Read MoreI was watching one of those home-shows on HGTV (y'all, it gets me through my workouts at the gym) and a couple were arguing about which house they wanted. The husband was talking about the future and what their needs were going to be while the wife literally said "I don't care about the future! I'm living right NOW!" And then I punched the treadmill...
Ok, that was a lie.
I did groan, though, as I watched them choose a house that would not work for them the moment they had their first kid (which was in their near-future plans). Yes, they can make their own decisions. Yes, it might have been the best decision for them. But gosh, if you're going to choose a short-term game...