Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Blog Lovin'

Can I just say how much I love this guy's blog?


Everything he posts is exactly my style. Seriously. We're kindred-style-spirits.

Go check it out! :)

(Especially his latest post on Paris. I mean, seriously, right?! I think we would be friends.)

A New Thing!

I am so fortunate to work with some of the most amazing, talented, and godly women around! This past weekend we had our Arbonne Area Manager retreat, and all the AMs and above gathered in Gatlinburg for lots and lots of training, a bit of fun, and little sleep. And it was all so worth the puffy eyes and 15 cups of tea I'm having to drink now to stay awake right now
(j/k. kinda.).

Here's all the lovely gals in our group.

I pretty much filled an entire notebook with thoughts from all of the great trainers and speakers we had, but here's a few of the main ideas I took away from it:

* Take great pride in incremental successes - celebrate every small step along your journey!

* When you work, work. When you don't work, don't work. This may sound obvious, but it was pretty revolutionary for me. That's one of the hardest things for entrepreneurs and those of us who work from home to do - set boundaries. It's easy for me to weave a phone call here and there throughout my day, or to let work seep into the times when i'm supposed to be hanging out with my husband or spending time with friends. I'm making a point to very on purpose and focused with my work time during the day, and turning off or ignoring the phone when I'm supposed to be taking time off. This means cutting back on Facebook and internet time (darn you, Pinterest and your crafty ideas!), no Netflix while I'm folding clothes or cleaning house (amazing how quicker I can fold a towel when I'm not distracted by an episode of Dr. Who), and generally being more mindful of where my minutes of the day go.
"Mind your minutes, and the hours will take care of themselves."

* Find out where your team members want to go and help them achieve that, rather than dragging them along behind you and getting frustrated when they're not living up to your goals for them. This one's a bit more specific to network marketing, but it just goes to show good communication is necessary for every aspect of life. My biggest realization is that I was doing a great job of starting and training people in my business, and a very poor job of following through with them over time. I was getting frustrated when people weren't living up to what I thought their goals should be, rather than listening to why their goals had changed, what they really wanted, and what they really needed from me. I'm a pretty horrible leader if I have no idea where the people following me actually want to go, right?

And, finally, my guiding thought for the year, in my business and in life:

“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert." Isaiah 43:18-19


(at the Dixie Stampede in our western garb.)

Watermelon, feta, and butter lettuce salad with walnuts and white balsamic.  I love my CSA box.  And not the flippant, I-love-th...