Why Do You Want More Money?

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Let me be clear: I do not want to be rich!  Working as an assistant to a tax attorney, I recognize the financial headaches behind too much disposable income.  BUT I do think that having the security of your needs being met allows you to more freely pursue the passion you have in life; the purpose you feel you are called to.  You could more freely offer your time instead of wondering if you could have made one more connection in the day, if you are witty enough, pretty enough, cool enough for people to notice you and hire you.

My purpose for money is this: I am tired of worrying if my electric bill is going to get paid this month.  I am tired of worrying if there is a school activity coming up that my girl may not be able to partake in.  I want to be able to breathe easier without the noose of what if XYZ does not come through.  To be able to say NO to the crap gigs where I am working for menial wages.  I want freedom.

Action Moment:

Why do YOU want more money?

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Who's Your Hero?

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Whose Dream is it?

I have begun listening to the archives on Monica Lee's website Smart Creative Women. 

I go back and forth on listening to these types of podcasts because I am so struck by how many people seemed to have had a bit of an advantage moving into a career as a creative entrepreneur but minimizing that fact a bit.  How many stories have you heard of someone trying to do it with family in tow, no backing from family, refusing to go into credit card debt and no creative community around them. Those are the stories I would like to start hearing about.  

What I have found refreshing about Monica's podcast is that I have stumbled upon a few creative entrepreneurs who did not have the rosy beginnings or who are NOT giving advice such as it's just because I am afraid of having financial abundance in my life.  um.... well I will resist the urge to get snarky.

OK so for this week's Linger question:

The dream that you are working to see come true - have you forgotten whose dream it is?  Are you allowing others to tell you all the must dos to bring it forth, has the dream been pushed and flexed and possibly even gotten so huge that you have forgotten the beauty of why you started to pursue it in the first place? 

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Any Time You Can Make the Choice Be Sure to Take the Stairs

 

The climate around the internet can be overwhelming.  You look around and you see all the shiny happy people taking the most beautiful pictures and offering the most wonderful portrayals of these fantastic lives.  So fabulous are these portrayals that you start to wonder if the recession is over?  Has everyone found a job?  Have we all gotten back to that magical lucrative place where we can buy buy buy without any thoughts of budget or future earnings?  

And if you are running a business online you would think that this magic kingdom is THE PLACE to make so much money.  Get on board!  Buy this information product! Run your ad here!  Connect with this person or tweet at that person and PRESTO you have a successful track in place and most importantly you will be set for life monetarily.  

I have been online since 2008 and have seen some average people become media superstars.  And I KNOW that this did not happen overnight.  They worked hard and make sound strategic decisions and yes had some chance conversations with people who saw something in them and it helped them to move along on their course slow and steady.  I remember when Tara Gentile took over Scoutie Girl.  I actually had an ad running on the blog the month she took it over.  I remember when the buzz began to build around Danielle LaPorte. 

This past week I made a commitment to going back to the basics in my writing.  I think a writer's greatest asset is to read other works and continue to challenge one's thinking so that we have a fresh perspective.  I picked up a book called Take the Stairs by Rory Vaden because the title alone struck a chord in me.  Quite frankly I think we have forgotten how to do the hard work, put in our paces, live lean and do the grunt work to really build something of value in the online world.

For me this is helping me to hone what my life coaching services look like.  I will not take a gig with someone when I know I am not the best fit for them.  The life coaching space is way too sacred for me.  I want to do good in the world with my work but not at the expense of my core values.

What about you: 

In what area of your life do you need to hunker down, steel up, do the hard work and take the stairs?

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Build a Fire Under Your Desire

 This week's Linger Question is inspired by a quote by Napoleon Hill: 

"The starting point of all achievement is desire.  If you are lacking in persistence, you need to build a stronger fire under your desire."

Under what desire do you need to build a stronger fire?

Check out the video to hear how I applied this question in my life. 

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Nobody Talks about the The Let Down of Creativity

Linger Question: 

Are you ready for the let down that happens at the end of a project? 

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Ready to See More Beauty in Your Life?

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Milestones

This has been a whirlwind of activities over the past 3 weeks.  Decisions were made and celebrations happened.  The highs and lows of time that has passed and sins forgiven and things that could have caused our demise turned into good. Jesus talks about living waters that flow so freely when you trust that the mistakes you make are not the end of the story.

I am beginning to feel a deepening in the "why" of the tasks I take on, the connections I have made and continue to make. The mystery is lifting and I am settling into the me that I am meant to be.

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The Good Thing About YOU is...

Welcome to this week's Linger Question: 

The good thing about YOU is... 

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Is Authenticity Sexy?

Welcome to this week's Linger Question: 

Is Authenticity Sexy? 

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Do you Struggle with Self Rejection?

"The greatest trap in life is not success, popularity or power, but self rejection, doubting who we truly are." - Henri Nouwen

I have this habit of moving from project to project. Starting well, finishing well.  Looking back over the last 7 years I have at least a page full of accomplishments.  Things that I moved into that helped me to become a competent blogger, run a pretty good social media campaign, create many online businesses.  But I am finding lately that these have become trappings.  I feel like a web of accomplishments are now moving in and threatening to squash while I really want; who I really am.  What if all these things were simply diversions as opposed to stepping stones toward something? What if what I am really longing for which is to become the one God sees me to be has been lost in the activity?  Why am I afraid to stop and take an account of who I really am?  The answer for me is self rejection.

I wonder how you define self rejection and how it might be manifesting in your life today.

So here is the Linger question:

Do you struggle with self rejection?  If so in what area of your life does it have its grip right now?

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Self Portrait

I was listening to a podcast over the weekend about photographing yourself.  This is something I have talked about on the blog before.  Some of the comments made in the podcast remembered me of the reasons I challenged myself to do monthly self portraits - though I am pretty sure I have missed a few months.  Part of this had to do with the rough edges that encircled the summer months and really having no desire to record how bad that season was.  But I do realize that I could have gathered some valuable insights had I stayed true to my commitment.  I will talk more about this tomorrow when I offer you this week's Linger question.

These pics were taken at Canyon Lake about two weeks ago.  Hubby was home for a visit from the military and we decided to take our girl fishing.  It was a whopping 113 degrees so it was quite nice to have a bit of a diversion.

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What Way has Closed Behind You?

This week I am completing my life coaching certification and it feels great. Six months of the ups and downs and life and somehow I stayed the course. For me the idea of looking for the path is a very personal story that I live in every day. 

My Linger Question today evolves around this idea of finding the way: being a Way Finder. Many times we talk of the way opening before us but how about this: 

What ways have you seen the way close behind you that deepened the understanding that you were moving in the right direction? 

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What Emotions are Driving You?

I am back with this week's Linger Question (oh! and a new 'do!") This question revolves taking an inventory on the emotions that are "motivating" you to move forward into a particular goal you have. 

AND the question holds a challenge: 

Are the emotions that you are using for fuel REALLY ABLE to sustain you for the long haul? 

I look forward to hearing what you think. Leave your answer in the comments below OR post the answer on your blog and I will pop by for a visit. 

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Is it Time to Burn the Boats?

Welcome to this week's Linger Question:  

Where in your life do you need to burn the boats?

 Show notes:

Tony Robbins/Oprah Winfrey video: CLICK HERE

Danielle LaPorte and the Fire Starter Sessions: CLICK HERE

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BE as your Reality

We are settling into our home in Arizona with the heat and with catching up with friends who have been so supportive of our all the moving we have done over the years.  We try to make it a point on the weekends to explore the beautiful museums around town and this weekend we ventured over to the Superstition Mountain museum.

On the agenda of me this week:   I am creating a couple of PDF that I am excited to present to you in the next few weeks.  All those on my mailing from today forward will automatically get the PDF in their inbox.  

For Today: find one thing you can do that will make your life easier and MOVE TOWARD IT.

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Is a Tribe Truly Necessary?

For the past few years I have been doing a ton of solopreneur projects and it has served me well.  I am able to work around school schedules and hubby needs and can squeeze in extra time when I find it.  I see the value at least at the beginning of new projects of using quiet to help you really get at what you are trying to accomplish without anyone else adding into what it is YOU are trying to accomplish.

BUT...

There comes a time when the projects, the ideas and ESPECIALLY the person behind those projects and ideas needs... the tribe.  You just do.  I think that you can have the personality and the drive to carry yourself and your ideas on momentum and adrenaline for quite a while.  But THEN you are going to need someone to help you go BEYOND  what you envision.  I think even the most visionary among us will hit a wall of fear that you need a supportive outsider or two or three to get through.

Who are the people in your life that help you unlock the door to get at those deeper intentions with your ideas AND challenge you to go bigger than your comfort zone would allow?

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What Do You Design?

"I don't design clothes, I design dreams." 

- Ralph Lauren

I took an e-course offered by Kelly Rae Roberts and Beth Nicholls this year called Hello Soul Hello Business which challenged my thinking on how I approach my business.  For quite a long time my businesses were a desperate attempt to get money in the door.  However I noticed all along that I made my soul mark on what I offered: infuse hope into the ordinary; find sparkle in the struggle.

I do not believe that every business necessarily has to have such deep rooted longings.  But I do challenge you today to ask yourself:  

Do you want to have a more soulful mission statement? And if so, how can you tease a bit more of that purpose to the surface?

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Envy as a Tool for Change

"I believe that there is a correlation between what you envy and what you have to offer to the world." 

- Danielle LaPorte

When I first heard this, I was a bit skeptical about the truth of this comment.  But then I began to think about my own life and how, if I am not careful, my admiration for someone or for the things that are happening in someone else's life can quickly turn to envy. 

Take some time this week to look at those places in your life where you feel envy creep in. How can you take that feeling and use it as fuel for change in your life?

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Got Some Good Advice Lately?

Do you have a tendency to read blogs and watch YOUTUBE videos and sign up for webinars and basically load up with GOOD ADVICE?  

Stop it!  Take ONE IDEA, one piece of advice and ACT ON IT today.

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