It's Amazing What You Can Accomplish When You're Avoiding Something Else. I Spent Two Hours In The Container Store Yesterday And I'll Bet 90% Of The People There Had Something Else They Should Have Been Doing.

I've blogged often about my love of fresh starts.  The beginning of the school year, the first day of a month, a new moon, Monday, New Year's Day - you get the drift.  But for some reason, as I contemplate my business moves for 2014, I'm feeling a little drained by facing yet another beginning.

It seems like for almost the last 10 years or so, I've consistently been starting some kind of new business effort.  At times it would just be a class or two investigating possible professional directions.  Of course, it didn't take long for me to realize I had no future at all as a Master Gardener - thankfully that fantasy was nipped in the bud (pun, not intended.  Just a happy accident!).  Mostly, though, I've focused on different iterations of decorating and staging.  And some fashion.  And a little writing.  I love all these subjects and when my businesses have been thriving, it's been a blast.  But that thriving period never seems to last for long.

I wish I could generate just a little more energy to contemplate the moves I want to make professionally in this New Year, but it feels like the movie Groundhog Day.  I've been here before.  So, I'm taking a few days to mull over my next steps and tie up a few loose ends.  I do my best thinking when I'm distracted by other tasks.  And besides knowing I'll have a totally organized house by next week, I hope I'll also develop some vigor and confidence when it comes to plotting my 2014 professional direction.

One thing that is especially challenging and I think plays a big role in motivation, is having a vision.  That's where I think my problems may lie.  I'm not totally clear on what I want IT to look like.  I have a lot of areas I'm interested in pursuing, but no clear picture on how it all comes together.  Or if it should all come together.  I do a lot of reading about visualizing success and have discovered conflicting views.  Often you hear you need to have a vivid picture of what you want, to manifest that as an end result.  Others say you just need to start and by starting you'll get clear about what you want.  Sometimes a sweat lodge is recommended.  What's a girl to do?

I suppose, like anything else, the answer lies somewhere in between.  We need a vision to give us some direction, but we also need to be willing to make adjustments.  That said, I'm going to allow myself the freedom to think BIG - sometimes a big idea is easier (and more exciting) to come up with than a realistic one.  Then, I'm going to commit to just taking The. Next. Step.  And I'm going to stay open to possibilities because most of the roads in life are pretty curvy.  It's kind of a Pragmatic Dreamer approach to business success. I hope it works.

I'm wearing this while I'm cleaning the junk drawer and contemplating my future.

I chose jeans and a t-shirt because they symbolize a firm foundation onto which many great things may be created.  Plus, they were clean.

gratitude:  a cozy house when it's windy, Parks and Rec, an organized closet, shelf liners

thanks and love.