(Rachel, Momma of Two, Beauty Advisor, Home Business Woman)
Time and life management can be under your mastery. You just need to have the confidence that most experts do and realize- you are already hard wired and designed to be your own personal life expert. Just listen to the clues.
Knowing what to do through each stage of your business is key. What worked a few years ago might not work now. If something served you and your family well in the past it doesn't mean it will serve you well today. Be willing to let it go and receive all that you've been desiring.
In today's article I'd like to help you find that secret. As we enter our 20th year of homeschooling I'm once again reminded of the truth in this famous principle of success: "Prove all things, hold fast to that which is good." Yours for radical profits, online AND offline- Sandi Krakowski
The Seasons In Life And The Seasons In Business
My first business was started when my little guy was just 2 years old. I was a single Mommy working late at night while he slept. My business was cleaning medical clinics and offices. A teenaged girl would come over at 8pm after he went to bed and I'd head off to work. By midnight I was usually done. This gave me the flexibility as a single mother to work, provide for my son and spend valuable time with him. It was 1990 and we lived on about $ 600 per month. Along with WIC and some other occasional cleaning jobs during the day, we got by. Nothing was ever left over at the end of the month but we had each other and we were happy.
When I married my husband Alan (we've been married for 18 years!) my little guy was 4 years old. I enjoyed being able to stay home with him all day long and spent several years not working. By the time baby #2 came along I got the itch to do something 'more' and had a strong desire to get very expensive kitchenware. This lead to the pursuit of what would become my first million dollar company.
No experience, no mentor and who on earth knows why I thought I could do it, but I did. By the time my little guy was 8 and the second one was 3, #3 came along and was a year old. My store was just getting started.
My life was very flexible back then when it came to work but I didn't work weekends, refused to talk to people during our meals and didn't answer the phone after 5pm ET. It was important to have boundaries when my babies were little.
Along with homeschooling my children and running our business- my life was full. Little guy grew to be 12 and ran my shipping dept. At age 12 he could wrap packages, do labels, follow through with UPS instructions and made $ 6 per hour. At age 14 he was making $9.00 per hour, was fired by his boss, Me, twice, but he was smart enough to earn his career back with good people skills and continued working with me. I was super proud of him and still am- he started creating his own paycheck at the age of 12. Can you imagine?
There are times in your business when you just work, do life and have a party all at the same time and your kids are right in the middle of it. Remember, I have always worked at home. If you work in an office this might not work. *wink*
There are other times when bringing your children into your work could form their future.
These were years when phonics and Algebra and Quickbooks and writing sales copy all blended together. But the boundaries were still in place. I didn't travel or leave the kids to be raised by someone else. But I also pushed myself way too hard and would eventually end up very sick fighting for my life so they still had a Mommy. (That story was featured in part on Tony Robbin's Breakthrough Website… and will be in an upcoming book).
But what served me well as guidelines, convictions and desires when my kids were little ended up being completely dysfunctional as they grew older.
How can you tell?
When there's tension and no one's happy. My kids are the type who are typically always happy. No kidding. When they are not, I am in tuned to it very quickly. With tender wisdom I'll help them figure out why and we'll go on. But then there are seasons when you just notice your kids are tense, they need a change, they need something new.
When my babies were little and I worked at home this would happen! Rather than striving to keep order I'd do the wild thing- tell them we were going to go crazy! I'd shout, "Hey guys! Let's go crazy! Mom is losing her mind! Wanna run around the house with me?!" They would look startled and then watch me as I'd take off running around the house squealing, "I'm going crazy and no one can stop me!" Eventually we were all making our best 'Gone crazy' inpersonations and peace would quickly be restored.
There are other times however when you can just 'tell' as a Momma that things ain't right and you have to follow your heart. Sadly, there are far too many professionals out there today drowning out a Momma's sixth sense and it's easy to begin doubting yourself.
When I came back into business this happened and I knew it was possible that we had to make a change. Mom was gonna have to travel some and the reality was this, the kids wouldn't die. Oh my, big revelation- they might even enjoy a little break from Momma, if you get my drift! *grin*
A Mommy who never leaves her home, doesn't travel or allow someone else to influence her children's life is a very weary Mommy. Thanks to Dani Johnson and my desire to rebuild my families future I began traveling when the big guy was 15, the middle one 10 and the baby 8 years old. They really enjoyed their 'guy time' with Daddy and not having to clean the house all the time. Not to mention they ate junk food more than "Nutritional Nutcase Momma" would let them during these times! These were great years.
It wasn't easy at the beginning. I remember being terrified to fly from Michigan to Chicago. Oh my word that's only a 30 min flight! Now I don't even think about it as I hop on this common connecting flight and head out to do business every few months.
But my point is this, what was so removed from my comfort zone and made me scared out of my wits- flying, leaving my kids and doing new things later proved to be the best time in my life. It was great for my marriage, my kids and guess what… for me. Sandi discovered a side of Sandi she would never have met had she never gotten outside of our comfort zone.
Later I began to take the big guy with me. Through these travels he began to do some small graphics work for my clients and friends and by the time he was 18 years old was flying across the country to work full time as a video editor and had a full time career.
At age 22 he earned a high 6-figure income in his own part time business and continued to work with the same company he was hired into at the age of 18. Yes, he did two jobs and lives a full life! He also closes on his very first home Sept 10, 2010, is completely debt free and such a joy to watch grow into manhood. He plays the keyboards, DJ's on weekends and lives life to the fullest capacity possible. He sure is the apple of my eye and brings me so much joy!
I've always had a passion to train my kids up to live a fulfilled, fun life. From the time they get into 2nd grade I'm paying attention to what they love, are good at and can't get enough of. My first born was building, creating things and putting things together by the time he was 18 months. No kidding, doing puzzles already! Computers and videos were his passion. Look where he ended up!
The second born would always have to 'fix things.' If a plumber came over he became the plumber all week long. An electrician visited and the rest of the week was spent 'wiring' the house with yellow, white and red yarn from Momma's basket. One Christmas this son was in his glory when he received a measuring tape, several strings of yarn and 2 rolls of tape he could call his own. To this day he's the one we go to for a solution we might be puzzled with!
He is learning WordPress, loves to work hard and get a job completed. He's driven by a challenge much like his Mom but is tender and warrior like, reflecting his Dad as well. He plays the guitar extremely well, looks out for his younger brother and is an amazing teacher. He makes me feel courageous and helps me to see things more clearly. He's an amazing gift of wisdom to me!
But there is a thought on raising kids who are unique out there that doesn't leave room for strong leadership types like him. Just like in your business, your life will demand you make some decisions to do what you know is best for your family. You can't run a million dollar business thinking like everyone else and you can't raise amazing kids doing what everyone else does either.
Lastly, the baby, who I call the caboose, was a real curve ball in the mix. Wilder than the others, never slept much as a baby and came out of the womb as a 10 lb 11 oz 23.5 inch bundle of super sonic JOY! He is now taller than I am, rocks out like a pro on the drums, can do 3 things at one time and keep all things going and loves to live for a party! He's got Dad's easy going nature, Mom's driven side and will probably be the first to graduate through 'night homeschool'. He's nocturnal like Dad and thinks best later in the day. Can keep his room clean when he needs to, rises at 6 am if he has to but was uniquely designed to be chaotic, fun, loving and wild! God gave him to me so I could never be bored! He taught me how to live without stress all the time!
So what does this have to do with business?
A better question would be what does life not have to do with business.
When you have finally achieved some of your goals you'll soon discover that life taught you some of the greatest lessons along the way. You'll see that separating life and business is really an imbalance when everything you do in business is so applicable to life itself.
Moms and Dads, make some of the decisions in your business a family matter. Ask for some input from your children. You might be amazed at answers they come up with! Make your life and your work a family matter and the result will be a family that matters.
But you'll also discover that some of the things that served you well at certain times in your life won't serve you so well in later years. New things come into play, new locations to live in, new friends, new challenges. Knowing how to think and find the "best" is the key.
I've got a new challenge staring me in the face now. It involves travel again and it means going internationally to impact lives with some of the things I've learned along the way. It also means that my guys are growing up, reaching some of their own dreams and still need me every step of the way.
I've got a good handle on what we desire as a family, I desire with all of my heart to raise my guys for the God who created them and adores them! And most importantly, I've got 22 years of mothering to reflect upon to know this one thing… if for some reason things don't come out as we expected, just change the channel.
Change your mind, change your rules, change your desires. We humans are given an enormous capacity for change.
Grow with your family, bring your business, your life and your passions together and you'll discover that the things you once thought would be difficult or 'just a dream' could soon be your reality.
I believe in you and I believe that YOU can have the life you've always dreamed of. Just listen to the clues and follow your heart. 🙂
Sandi Krakowski spent 6 years in the Direct Sales industry building a $ 4 million dollar company that was run 100% online through eCommerce, building large sales forces in network marketing and home business industries. After earning $ 1.8 million dollars in a home based business market in 31 months, she went onto build a 7-figure marketing and copywriting firm in just 20 months. Currently she runs one of the fastest growing training venues teaching beginners to experts how to really use the internet to it's fullest capacity.
