A Bit of Introspection, Thoughts to Share

I love to read. I do not spend a lot of money on books, but the library I do very much love!

I am not much of a television watcher. I can barely tell you one show from another except for those that my husband frequents (and then I probably would not remember the actors names, nor the name of the show). I do not sit long. I am more of a person that likes to stay busy, and I have never really thought about it until now!

Based on one of the books that I am reading, I took the Clifton StrengthsFinder test to identify my signature themes. At first, after a 30 minute test, I looked at my themes and thought, "how lame." No...wrong...none of us are lame. We are all designed to meet a purpose in life. I strongly believe God made us the way that we are for reasons. We are to grow in our natural born abilities!

My strengths are (in this order): Learner, Achiever, Empathy, Responsibility, and Focus.

Hmmm...I thought about the Learner and could not figure out how that could be good. Oh yes it can! How do I know about making soap? I began collecting it and became interested in it when I was 8 years old. I taught myself to make soap. I read a lot of books and did a lot of studying. I never witnessed a video or a single person making soap. Self taught. I also taught myself to raise a herd of goats. Again, tons of reading and studying. Then I thought about the job that I retired from, taught myself the ins and outs of government student loan rules and regulations. I took that 4" thick manual home a lot. And I loved trying to interpret it. I ended up teaching others, leading classes (even though I was a very shy person). It fit like a glove. Is that such a bad thing? Probably not. So...the moral of my story is, do not beat yourself up for what you are good at. Make it better!

We all have natural talents and we tend to not see them. We go from day to day and forget that we are special. No, I do not like to wag my tail. I am a private type of person, but I am passionate about talking with people.

Achiever...not a bad thing either. That explains why I feel I must accomplish something each day. I must do something that is worth my time. I can relax and rest, but I also must do at least one constructive thing. On the days when it feels like everything goes wrong, it is quite the battle for me. Then I stop and remember, I am human, and I laugh. Again, I feel there is a reason for everything. Perhaps a goofed up day is a signal that we need to rest!

Empathy...this does not mean that we know everything about everyone, it is a gift of instinct. I can easily sense what people are feeling, what they might need, or even what kind of day they are having. This is probably why I can easily talk to strangers, or chit chat on the dime. I do not try to be a mother hen, I just seem to easily understand.

Responsibility and Focus...again something that makes me tick. I have to have something to do that has meaning, and I love to focus in on something difficult until the job is done, and the job is done right. I catch myself planning out the steps...just how do I get to the end result?

I am not here today to talk about myself, I am here today to remind my friends that we all have special gifts. Perhaps we are not good at being a sales person (cold calls), or perhaps we are not an extrovert that needs a crowd around us, or perhaps we are not good at speaking in front of a crowd, but we all have special gifts and talents that we can focus on, appreciate, and grow in. We can brush up on our weaknesses a tad. But do not focus on what you cannot do, focus on the natural good in you, and run with it.

I go into my soap shop and I think about everything that I can accomplish. What can I create? Where have I gone in life (and I never focus on the negative past), and where do I want to go? That is what we are designed to do...do what we do best. I love hearing that others are happy with what I sell to them. It isn't all about the money, it is more about them finding a product that they really are satisfied with.

Introspect? Perhaps...but more that I wanted to share with you! I feel inspired.

Less Can Be More

No, I do not keep all of these items on my desk...just some of them like the steno pad (to-do list), the Post-It notes in every room, along with a pen, for ideas (so I do not have to depend upon memory), and of course, there is always paperwork to do. The files in the shop, the files in my desk, the files in the locked fire proof cabinet. The emails to follow on both the PDA and the PC. The land line phone so I can still send faxes. The camera is always charged up. Sound familiar? And look waht I did yesterday, announced my Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter contact names. And thank you, friends, sincerely, I will be showing up again! Your emails and contacts meant so very much to me.

I have been in deep thought this week. The kidding season is coming to an end and the brain is functioning much better. Going from the typical "I am having kids" zombie state to "I am beginning to see the light again, and my brain is growing sharp again," is a great time. It means enjoying the kids even more, and it usually mean re-thinking life itself for me. I have been working on personal goals this week...better to start them later in the year than not at all!!!



I have a very good talent, as most women seem to possess, and many men. A talent that is not so good sometimes. And it seems to be a growing state of being for the population in general at the present. The talent is multi-tasking. I can multi-task like I have earned a crown for it. While multi-tasking is necessary at times, it is not always good. This is where I am saying less is more.



Have you ever caught yourself sitting down at your computer, with four different windows open, attempting to complete many tasks all at once? Uh-huh, that is me. If you shadowed me at work you would notice the following on many occasions; I am paying a bill in one window, sending an email in another, blogging in one more window, and updating the website all at the same time. And guess what is happening while I am doing this? My blood pressure is slightly rising because the satellite cannot keep up with my requests, I am irritated at Blogger because it seems way too slow, and I am thinking about what I need to do and cannot do because the computer is moving so slowly. What is up with that? It is nonsense, and I will be making a huge effort to make a change. Remember the old saying patience is a virtue? It is. Do you see yourself in any of this?



We do a much better job when we handle few tasks at once. First of all, we can think. Second, we are much more happy. Third, the outcome really is that we focus on what is most important and begin to see success.



Today I practiced what I preached. I fed the bottle babies, fed the rest of the herd, washed the dishes and mopped the floor (amazing that I completed something that I had not had time to do recently). I sent the husband to town to run a few chores. When he came back, I was ready for lunch, and ready to head out to the shop to make lotion. And it felt good to have accomplished so very much. I did just what was absolutely necessary. At one point I caught myself trying to send an email while water was heating up in the kitchen, and I caught myself looking up the to-do list while putting goat milk in the freezer, and later I caught myself with phone in hand, ready to send a message to someone! One thing at a time, one thing at a time. And everything in its own time! And less stress...ahhhh.




Again, less is more because there is no irritation, and the job gets done with a lot of quality and progress is able to been seen.




Life was probably not made to be this crazy, was it? When we feel overwhelmed, or feel like we cannot get it all done, our minds and bodies are telling us something. What do we need to get rid of, what do we need to focus on? Because when we are fretting, we are not doing a good job of anything. We are making mistakes and we are not thinking clearly. And what else is happening? Life is zooming by us 100 MPH. That is not good.

Did I lose you in the long post?

Honestly, I had decided to not write any more of these types of blog posts because I am not an expert, just someone that feels compassionate enough to write her thoughts down from time to time. The decision to not write flew away quickly! My philosophy has been, I hope I touch just one life when I do get the urge to share these thoughts!

International Women's Day and Balance In Life

I have reflected on many things today. When I am tired, I have to think in a more guarded way, remain very focused, and prioritize my day that much more.

Women have, in my opinion, the unique ability to hold wisdom, and to be many good things. Many of us can multi-task, perform many jobs at once. And I am one of those. I love to have several projects at hand, it keeps life at an interesting level.

But sometimes we must remember to take care of ourselves, or we will not have the ability to take care of the things that we truly love to focus on.

My business goals were put on paper when 2009 began. I try to meet the goals daily, and on most days I do meet them. My personal goals, put on paper as well, have taken a step back, my social goals are right where I wanted them to be. I have spoken about balance and need to do so again today. I have several different bulletin boards, one houses keepsakes such as thank you cards. Another, the board that I looked at a while ago holds family pictures, goat pictures, dog pictures, a new truck picture, personal goals, business goals, and even a photo of my husband taken 30 years ago by his brother. All of these things can be parts of our often busy lives when we make sure there is a balance!

The balance consists of the important things in life: financial, physical, social, family, mental, and spiritual. My tune up and re-evaluation is on the way. It is time to stop and smell the roses, put all goals in gear, focus on what is most important in my life, and remain true to the woman that I am. You need to do the same! But remember, you are in charge of pampering you, with a balance! Take care of you!

Sunday is International Women's Day, a day where women across the globe celebrate women's economic, political and social achievements of the past, present and future. Perhaps some of these women made big waves, some made smaller ripples in the sea of life, and some were just as happy to make a difference without rocking the boat at all, and that is okay, but there is no doubt that every successful women (thank to you each one of them) has focused on the balance in her life from time to time! No doubt at all.

Happy Women's Day to each of you!