Happy Saturday evening everyone!
Hello! How was your day? Mine was excellent. I sure would love to hear all about what’s happening in your neck of the woods, so shoot me a text or drop me a comment, you always brighten my day when you reach out.
It’s been a fantastic last couple of days. Yesterday I was invited to attend an event called, A Day in Her Shoes.
“In the greater Southern California, women’s opportunities are limitless. Inspiring, encouraging, and motivating women is what this movement is all about. For some, inspiration may mean a new career, for others it may mean exploring leadership, volunteering, or running for public office. In addition to inspiration, providing opportunities for women entering or re-entering the workforce or choosing to do something different is not easy to find, until now. Created and developed by Lori Stone, A Day in Her Shoes is designed to provide motivation, inspiration, encouragement as well as career opportunities for women, empowering them to imagine themselves in new or different shoes and to connect with women that are already wearing them.
Local employers play a key role in the experience, connecting with women eager to learn and grow right here at home. Education, training, and mentoring are how our region builds a workforce that keeps and attracts state-of-the-art businesses and keeps families from long commutes.
Sometimes we need to learn to walk in new shoes, so attendees can register to be mentors or to be mentored, ensuring the support and personal growth last throughout the year. A built-in support system has been developed to ensure successful outcomes and experiences.
If you are ready to try on new shoes that can take you anywhere you want to go, this is the place to do it.”
“Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world.” – Marilyn Monroe
This event didn’t disappoint. From the moment I arrived until the time I left, I felt inspired.
When I arrived at the event I got in line to grab my lanyard and my name badge. As soon as I got my name badge, a really nice gal Lisa approached me and asked if I was by myself. Yup, all by myself. She said she was there by herself too. We chatted for a bit, then she asked if I’d like to walk around and look at the different vendor booths with her. So off we went and then, we were all asked to take our seats. Lisa and I ended up sitting together and I think it’s safe to say, we are now friends. We exchanged contact information and at the end of our day, we said our goodbyes and our see you again soon.
Lisa is a business owner, and I sure did appreciate her time and encouragement on starting my own business.
During the event I was beyond impressed by how uplifting and empowering the day was at the same time, there was no man bashing. It wasn’t about that. It was about helping women embrace their talents. It was about encouraging one another to not give up on dreams. We were also offered mentoring opportunities, both to be the mentor and mentored.
Different panels of women spoke on their careers and how they’ve worked to become the success story they’d always dreamt of. Some of the ladies are still working towards accomplishing more on their dream and vision path.
A Day in Her Shoes was uplifting, encouraging and everything positive. I was impressed and I can’t wait to go back next year.
From my experience I came home even more motivated to begin my new chapter in life. I want my dreams to become reality and let me tell you, I have a girl tribe that encourages me as well. They want to see me succeed and they believe in me and my writing abilities. I hope I never let them down.
I think the hardest thing for me was and continues to be, believing in myself. Believing I have what it takes to be successful and own my own business, it’s scary yet motivating. I won’t say the fear isn’t still there but knowing I have the support of John and my tribe, I know I can do great things. With prayer and faith in Him, I know He will guide my path.
I’m no longer negotiating with my potential; I’m executing it! Like one of the leaders said yesterday, “don’t look at mistakes or the need to change paths as failure, look at it as learning.” Something John is always reminding me of. So, tonight, I sat down with my computer and researched in depth what my next step is to begin my new writing adventure.
I’m learning to quiet my mind, so my vision becomes even clearer. Sharper, so my execution will indeed be, relentless.
I’ve got tons of work to do from now until my launch date. I’ve got so much more to learn, and that’s okay, if the business venture I have in mind works out, which I have faith that it will, then I will get to work with people, which I love. I’ll get to write, which is my passion and I’ll get to blend it all together and if I can do things the right way, if I can embrace His guidance, I know He’ll use me to help others, which is something I am called to do.
Oh, I know you guys are wondering what I’m up to. Well, I have some preliminary work to do this coming week. I need to ensure that the business name John helped me come up with is available. I need to get my business license in place and of course, I need to make sure I have my business plan done and done right.
I have been blessed with the most wonderful girl tribe, and these friends of mine are the absolute most supportive and encouraging group of ladies. One friend in particular is my go-to when I need to bounce ideas off of someone. Of course, John’s always encouraging me too, but right now, he’s busy not only with work, but with helping Grant get studied up and ready for his next big test in his field of interest, so I hate bothering him.
With yesterday’s event and today’s research, I’m ready to fire all my doubt and launch my dreams and visions into reality. I’ve even given myself a start date. I’ve downloaded templets with check boxes to keep myself accountable. I want to set realistic goals at the same time; I want to be diligent in my pursuit.
When I was younger, I was a GM assistant manager for Albertsons, therefore, I was in charge of writing the schedule for my department, so I’m familiar with how schedules work. Guess what. I’m going to write up a schedule and stick to it. No interruptions, just work related to my business idea. This means no doing laundry. NO distractions. Just working on my business plan and putting my portfolio together. I will treat this new adventure as my job. To succeed, I must treat it as my job, not as an option.
My pay scale to start? Satisfaction for a hard day’s work, even if it begins with lots of research.
Oh guys, I can’t wait to share with you what I’m going to do. I know you’ll all love the idea and I’m looking forward to getting ideas and encouragement from all of you.
Monday is the first day of my new career, but tomorrow, after the St. Patrick’s Day event my club is hosting, I’ll be putting together my schedule of course, along with my daily to-dos for the coming week. Accountability is a must.
Monday I will begin the climb.
Miley Cyrus has the perfect song she sung a long time ago that ties in right on point to how I’m feeling right now, and it seems fitting to share it with you as the ending to tonight’s blog post.
The Climb
“I can almost see it
That dream I’m dreaming
But there’s a voice inside my head saying
You’ll never reach it
Every step I’m taking
Every move I make feels
Lost with no direction
My faith is shaking
But I, I gotta keep trying
Gotta keep my head held high
There’s always gonna be another mountain
I’m always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be an uphill battle
Sometimes I’m gonna have to lose
Ain’t about how fast I get there
Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
It’s the climb
The struggles I’m facing
The chances I’m taking
Sometimes might knock me down, but
No, I’m not breaking
I may not know it
But these are the moments, that
I’m gonna remember most, yeah
Just gotta keep going
And I, I gotta be strong
Just keep pushing on, ’cause
There’s always gonna be another mountain
I’m always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be an uphill battle
Sometimes I’m gonna have to lose
Ain’t about how fast I get there
Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
It’s the climb
Yeah
There’s always gonna be another mountain
I’m always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be an uphill battle
Sometimes you’re gonna have to lose
Ain’t about how fast I get there
Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
It’s the climb
Yeah, yeah
Keep on moving, keep climbing
Keep the faith, baby
It’s all about, it’s all about the climb
Keep your faith, keep your faith
Whoa”
This song and the meaning behind it fits me perfectly.
“Miley Cyrus’s “The Climb” is about life as a challenging but beautiful journey, emphasizing perseverance, self-belief, and finding purpose in the struggle rather than just the end goal, encapsulated by the lyric, “Life’s a climb, but the view is great“. The song, featured in Hannah Montana: The Movie, encourages listeners to keep going despite obstacles, learning from failures, and appreciating the process of striving for dreams, not just reaching the destination.”-AI Overview
Well guys, it’s time to say goodnight. Hey, don’t forget, tonight is daylight savings, so spring forward. Yup, you’re gonna loose and entire hour, but think of how incredible our evenings are going to be. Spring and summer weather that we get to enjoy for an extra hour every evening, I can’t wait. Time to fire up the grill and enjoy some outdoor style eating. It’s going to be an incredible year and I’m thankful and excited for this new adventure.
Thank you for stopping by and taking the time to read tonight’s blog post.
Don’t forget, Love Life++ Hugs.
Love Life with Dawna 