Skip to main content

How Do You Want Your Life To Look In 5 Years?

Yesterday was my birthday, and I'm close to the mid-century mark, so it got me to reflecting on my life thus far. Seven years ago, a stranger asked me a very powerful question - if you keep doing what you're doing, how does your life look in five years? This very wise and good woman, who I didn't know at the time, unwittingly changed my life and ended up being a good friend and mentor. The answer was obvious - I would be sitting behind a desk, counting down the minutes and hours to the end of the day, to the end of the week, to the next vacation and to retirement. I would be asking a boss off for lunch time breaks with friends, for after-school activities with my kids, for vacation time with my family. And that is definitely not how I envisioned the life of my dreams.

Here's how I wanted my life to look - I wanted to wake up in the morning and have time to be with my children. I wanted time to work out and take care of my physical health, I wanted time to be with my kids after school and have family dinners, I wanted to have lots of annual vacation time, I wanted to have time with friends, I wanted to have the option to see my parents regularly, I wanted to feel fulfilled in my professional life and not stuck, and I wanted to be on the path to making money that would outlast my working life.

On my birthday, my daughter told me that one
of the things she loves about me is that
I walk her to school every day. Priceless!
So I took the chance and made a change and here's how my life looks now - I get up in the morning and walk my two princesses to school, my dog and my middle-school daughter. After that, I work out with an amazing group of moms. Then I connect with other incredible people throughout the day and help them look better, feel better and make more money. I also have time for lunches and coffees with friends. When the kids get home from school, I am there with them. We have family dinner most evenings, and I have time for myself and loved ones many week nights and weekends. Our family takes several vacations throughout the year, and I have the flexibility to spend weekends with my parents as well.

This weekend, I took my eldest on another college tour. I can hardly believe that my baby is getting ready for college and at the same time, I'm at peace about it because he is happy and I know that I accomplished what I envisioned for our family. I think back to how scared I was when I started my side hustle Mompreneur gig and am so grateful that I put myself way outside of my comfort zone because without having faced those fears head on, I would not be here today!

How about you? Are you ready to thank yourself in five years for something you start today? Life will pass you by no matter what, so why not try!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hey, Mom! Has Anyone Told You You're Doing A Great Job?

I was recently traveling alone with my three kids, and since they're tween/teens, this does not seem like such a Herculean effort as it did a few years ago. As we were exiting the shuttle from the rental car place to the airport, a guy looked at me and said "Hey, Mom! Has anyone told you lately you're doing a great job?" My face lit up, I felt a huge glow inside and thanked him profusely. He may as well have told me I had won the lottery.😁 This got me to thinking, why was this such a big deal? Probably for the one truth that most moms I know live. We think we suck at this parenting thing every single day. We beat ourselves up for every little thing. We read social media and play the compare game. We are not enough insert whatever crapola thing comes to our mind or is hot in the media at any given moment. And here's what the truth looks like. Most of us are doing a pretty amazing job. Our kids are loved, fed, clothed and housed. They feel secure enough to ha...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sunday Burquest, She Is Grit Girl

Some times you meet people, and they tell you your story and you can hardly believe it. How can they be real people, people you actually are speaking with, not someone in the movies. This week, I had the pleasure of interviewing that someone - Sunday Burquest, a survivor in many ways. Sunday's story starts well before she survived two truly life-changing experiences. She was a busy mom of four working alongside her husband in his ministry work. That all changed when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. This came shortly after her husband almost died and several close family members had passed away, so it was a very dark time for her and led to depression and anxiety. Her son encouraged her to do her own thing and move forward, something which she had thought about for years. But it had never been the right time, she was worried about money and frankly if she could succeed. Sound familiar? I think many of us wanting to go out on our own grapple with similar inner voices. So aft...
Post a Comment
Read more

Do You Think All Bricks And Mortar Businesses Are Dead? Think Again!

We hear it over and over again - bricks and mortar stores are dying. Don't start a retail store because everyone is shopping on line. Recently I met a mompreneur who would beg to differ. Megan Giltner, a self-proclaimed professional bra fitter and accidental entrepreneur, became the owner of a lingerie boutique a few years ago and says the business is thriving. Like many of us moms who pursue entrepreneurship, Megan always knew that being a mom was something important to her, and at the same time she needed to feel professionally productive and engaged. She had been working in lingerie for several years, initially as a part-time way to earn some extra spending money. When Megan was four months pregnant, the owner offered her the opportunity to purchase the business where she was working, and although timing may not have seemed ideal, she jumped in with both feet and has not regretted her decision. What Megan loves most about entrepreneurship is the ability to do something sh...
Post a Comment
Read more