My Word of the Year: Focus

True to my Libran self, I've been rather indecisive about my word for the year. I settled on the word mastery for a few days, but it just didn't feel right. Tonight as I was soaking on the tub, the word focus came to me.

Why focus? I've always been a self-professed ADD (attention deficit disorder) crafter. I love learning new things so I'm always trying new crafts. It's fun, but that means lots of unfinished projects and wasted money. Heck sometimes, I'll even buy supplies for a new craft and never touch it. Maybe decluttering my craft supplies will help too.

This past year, I've been meandering back to sewing. I'm going to pick a few areas I enjoy crafting and focus on mastering the skills in them. I want to be really good at a few crafts instead of a beginner in many. Sewing is definitely one of these. I'm not going to pick what other crafts I want to focus in. I think they'll present themselves to me.

Focus will be a good intention for my Passion Parties business too. I'm ready to take it to the next level. I just need to be consistent and to stay on task. I'm going to keep doing my mantras since they worked really well for me this past fall.

Other than that, I haven't really thought about what I want to accomplish in 2009. Setting my business goals are on the to-do list.

What about you? What's on your list?

photo by ihtatho via Flicker

A funny happened on the way to success

Since I've joined the coaching group that my Passion Parties upline set up a few months ago, I've become much more focused. It's a weekly call and I look forward to it. When it first started, I struggled to remember to call in and do the assignments. It just seemed like another thing on my plate that I never got too. It's hard to make changes even if it's just little ones. Now that the routine has settled in, I miss it when we don't have calls.

Wednesday, I escaped to Panera to have some quiet time (and their yummy sandwiches). Sophia's been sick all week and boy I have a bad case of cabin fever. It was so relaxing to have the call in Panera. No little child pulling on my shirt, climbing on my lap. Hubby had gotten off of work early and took over caring for the sickie.

Now this is the same group that got me started on my mantra. We create a new mantra every month and say it over and over (as much as I can remember to do it). I have to say, even if I didn't say it everyday 50-100 times last month, I definitely accomplished it! I sold over $6K last month AND we had 8 new people join our team! Woohoo! I don't always toot my own horn when it comes to Passion Parties, but dang that's good!

So the point is, after the call yesterday (in which we talked about creating a concrete plan to help grow our team), I felt energized. I usually do feel energized after our calls. I don't know if it was because I was in a different environment when I was on the call or the talk of our December mantras.

As I was walking back to my car, I truly believed, deep down, that I could make it to the top tier of our company, the Million Dollar Club (when your team sells $1 Million in a year). It sounds so simple and easy doesn't it? I would chime in with others when we talked about joining the MDC. But it felt so false, sounded so hollow. I knew the logistics of how I could get there, but never believe that it would happened to me.

My word of the year for 2008 was DESERVE. After that I call I knew that I had the means, the passion and the support to have a Million Dollar Team. I actually believe I deserved to be that successful. Crazy isn't it?

Hope I haven't lost you or bored you. I think this is a turning point in my life journey and wanted to share it with you.

It's time to start thinking about my word for 2009. What will your word be? What do you want to resonate for you during 2009?

Light at the end of the tunnel. photo by Szagi

Day 14: Changing your subconscious

photo by Another Pint Please...

Even though it's been rainy and blustery for the past 3 days, I've been feeling upbeat. No parties this weekend, so I have a chance to relax. I didn't intentionally plan to take the weekend off from work but it was well needed. Especially since next week will be super busy.

I love a good juicy steak. I usually don't go out for it because it's so expensive. Well, I decided to take matters in my own hands. I bought a decent cut of beef and cooked steaks for the entire family. I even managed to drag my hermit sister out of her apartment. It was great. Steak, baked potatoes, peas, and a great salad. The salad was made of field greens, dried cranberries, cashews, and shredded cheddar. I picked up this bottle of orange muscat champagne vinegar from Trader Joe's and made a dressing from it. Yum! (I apologize to all the vegetarians for the steak pic. I can't help it, I love meat)

It's funny how your inner thoughts can affect how you view things. Even something as tiny as steaks. I always feel like I can't go out and splurge on steak. I mean, I should be spending $50-75 on dinner for 2 right? Then I read a tip on the Whole Foods blog about buying your own meat and cooking your steak. It was like a smack in the head. Why didn't that occur to me? We used to do it all the time when I lived in Syracuse.

What else am I telling myself mentally that is holding me back? Besides thinking I can't afford good steak (I can!). Denise Linn calls these noble thoughts. You have to change how you word and ask the questions. For example, instead of saying "Steak is too expensive to eat often, " I should be asking myself "How can I get steak and stay within my budget?" It seems silly and so trivial but I think changing your inner talk makes a big difference in how you deal with the everyday things.

What do you say to yourself that keeps you from seeing the windows of opportunities?

Day 11: Relating to the world

photo by Moo-master

I had an amazing call with our weekly Passion Parties coaching group. Last week, we discussed mantras, or affirmations as Denise Linn calls it. So we all participated in an experiment. The theory is even if your brain doesn't believe your mantra, by repeatedly saying it out loud (up to 100 times a day), you start to trick your brain. Your brain believes it. Even if you feel silly saying it. We'd try it for the week and see what happens.

KS has had amazing results since last week. Her energy has tripled (I can tell just by reading her emails), and there has been measurable success in her business. Congrats KS! I used a mantra (without realizing that it was a mantra) for this past weekend's parties. I do feel a bit silly saying my mantras. I whisper them in the car, even though I'm all by myself. I guess I'm scared. What would happen if they actually came true? My mantra might have been more successful if I said them loudly and more often.

I will take Denise Linn's advice from Day 11: An affirmation that is mumbled, routinely droned, or lazily chanted will not change anything. An affirmation that is shouted, visualized with emotional intensity, or said out loud with passionate body movements can and will change your life.

The group discussed associating your mantra with an action that I do often everyday. KS has a note at her computer. Every time she sat at her desk (don't we check out email a gazillion times a day?), she says her mantra out loud.