Monday is the starting line to an awesome race.

Think of Monday as a starter pistol to the race of your life. Whether that race is a marathon or a sprint is up to you but stay in the race; Mondays are only the beginning.  Each day we are given is a chance to do it right, do it over and get it done.

These are not days that we will shuffle through these are days we will greet with the full sun on our face. We will get up and have a lean healthy breakfast, get out our favorite lucky shoes, get dressed and get motivated. We will stand at the starting line with our minds set on our goal.

The bang can be startling but then the focus sets in, we warm our muscles, reach our stride and the world falls away. We feel the breeze of Tuesday, the steady heart rate of Wednesday, the fast twitch of Thursday and the second wind of Friday. But don't stop there this is bigger than Friday; this is freedom.



 It's race Day! On your mark...get set...

Photo credit: BONNINSTUDIO for Stocksy United

Why "I am just" is never enough...

You are more than "just"

Photos copyright @thewitlesswoman

You hear it all the time, I'm just a stay-at-home mom or I'm just an intern. It is not okay to believe you are "just" anything; as if you are somehow less than you could be or should be. You are more than "just" you are more than a simple definition of good enough. Think of it this way. What happens if you stop being your "just"? If you stop being "just" a housewife? What will happen to your household? I will tell you; it will be filthy. The dishes would not be washed, the clothes would stink worse than the garbage that you aren't taking out.



Photos copyright @thewitlesswoman

If you stopped being "just" a mom what would happen? Would your kids be safe? Would they be healthy and well fed? Would they thrive with good morals and a healthy emotional life? I don't think so. To say that you are "just"  anything is belittling the contribution that you make to society on a daily basis. You may not realize it (or find it hard to accept) that changing the world does not start with a major production, a grandiose title or a well-recognized social life. 

It starts, with the simple mundane tasks of everyday life. Your posts of inspiration may reach only one person but you may save their life.  That smile you give the post office clerk maybe the only one they get after a long day.  And your encouraging kisses, what would your children do without you to arm them for the day with a soft kiss.

No, my dear, you are never "just" anything. You are the left shoe of your family, the door stop of your community, the zipper of your universe. None of these things seem important until they are no longer there. You are never "just" anything unless of course you are "just" awesome and I can live with that.

Jana

Today's WitKey: Cry.

Today's WitKey: Cry.
  
  I spoke to a male friend of mine today and he said when times got hard for him during the start of his Practice he would worry, scream and go home and cry; that's right I said cry. A man admitting he cries. Of course I laughed at him. I laughed at him not because he was crying but because here I was sitting at home screaming at my husband and crying and I felt weak. Through my tears I chided myself for wasting my time and my energy, possible starving my family and for what? However, now I feel immensely better knowing that a 50 year-old man, for whom I have great respect and admiration, would go home and cry like ...well...a girl. It was not the fact of him crying; it is the fact that I was not alone.
  
 I woke up today determined to give it all up and "get a job". I mean here I am a 26 plus some year-old with a two-year old and a one-year old, what the heck am I doing? I am barely surviving. One month I was on top of the world and this month I am checking out Benefits.gov to determine my eligibility for "food stamps", don't let your pride fool you, you are unemployed until your business starts to pay off; if you need them apply.  I am so tired I can't even focus and on top of that I am sick and so is my youngest son which equals two-hours (at the most) of sleep.
   
 Today, is another day in a long week. The party-place cancelled my son's birthday party, my hairdresser dyed my hair orange and then charged me twenty-five dollars to re-dye it and finally I scraped off the paint from the side of my car onto the garage door; and today is just Thursday. I initially handled the week well but on two hours of sleep a husband in another country and a sick baby; the tears just fell. I called around and no one seemed to understand the frustration I was going through, I seem to be the only dumb enough to launch a business with two toddlers in this economy.
I lacked support, I lacked faith, I lacked the strength to continue and I was ready to give up it and stay-at-home searching for a job; until I spoke with my friend.

While he did not give me the magic map to lots of clients and money, he did give me hope. Something, some believe,  so small and insignificant as hope has renewed my energy and my faith. And he has given me another life lesson, if all else fails; cry. I would not cry in public though this is a male dominated industry, after all and we must keep that in mind. But you can only pretend to be so strong for so long, so in a male dominated industry  sometimes I think we should, in this instance, do as the men do; cry. Go ahead, I won't tell anybody; else.

Today's WitKey: Divine Patience

I have had a week from Heck! I wont hesitate to tell you. It is only wed and so far this week: my son's birthday party (scheduled for Saturday) has been cancelled because the venue is flooded out. After wanting a change in my life and deciding to dye my hair,I walk out of the salon with what must have been a mutant muppet hanging from my face (he is being amputated as I type to you) and on top of that I scrape the side of my car and my mirror backing out of the garage. Now, the people who knew me from the beginning of time think that by now someone has been cursed out. I am happy to report that nothing could be furthest from the truth.
I have learned in my 26 (plus some) years that the person you are yelling at is probably not the point of your frustration. And to the tell the truth as mad as I should be; I'm not. I know it's a scary thing and someone should probably have the military on speed-dial but I feel nothing. I don't know if I have suddenly been blessed with the patience that I have prayed so long for or I am just numb.
What do I mean by numb? Well I believe that every person gets to the point when they have so little energy they conserve it. Therefore, you get to the point where what used to be a big deal is no longer worth the energy. I believe this is what occurs when we get passed our 50's as well. Everything in life becomes "okay" i.e. " I am sorry that your son's party is cancelled and you will have to wait till the insurance claims comes through to get your refund" my reply "okay" or " I know it's not your fault your hair is wrong but we are going to have to charge you 25 dollars to fix it" my reply "okay"... As I type this I am realizing this maybe more than numb or Divine patience; it has to be Divine intervention!

A day of reckoning

Tomorrow we go and see an office space. Then we have to make a decision to make between having a home, virtual or physical office. Actually, I think whatever we choose it is going to be a hybrid. I have my reasons for wanting a physical office, including safety, but I am still weary about having enough clients to sustain an additional monthly expense. You must realize its more than just an office , it's daycare, it's gas and time away from the kids. The transition is not easy and the guilt is very heavy. The pressure to succeed is on full blast. I now have to admit that a completely virtual office which was the initial grand catalyst for my career change, may not work and it's time to adjust. My ego is taking a blow. It's times like this that you need a mega-awesome support system. With your mega-awesome support system you know that even though you may have made a bad decision, you are better than your last mistake. They will help you up, dust you off and get you moving again. So, even though I am putting my family in debt to fulfill my dream of entrepreneurship, I know and they know it's not a wasted effort and one day we will look back and be proud we did. Now, what does one wear when they go office shopping?

Come to think about it

I am still in the process of moving and starting my own practice. I have not forgotten about this blog or any of my social media addictions. I just have to pack move to the mainland and chase a two-year old while holding a 7 month-old. It’s a lot but it does bring us to one very important WitKey: perseverance. Every time you think that there is too much on your shoulders; put it down. I know you are thinking where in the heck I am going to put my kids? Well find someone who will watch them for about an hour and shut the brain down. Don't be afraid. I can say this because I am in a new city (that used to be my old city) and I have to find new people to trust. I am currently staying with my mother in a 55 and over community and I have two weeks left before the senior patrol notices the Tyco truck on the lawn and breaks down the door to drag us out. I have learned a lot about foreclosure and auctions and the best lesson is that none of that helps you without money. I am also learning a lot about having a home office while being a stay at home mom... As soon as I can get the crayon off my pleadings and the grape jelly off my kids there will be an entry on that as well so stay tuned. I promise we'll be right back.

The Witless Woman's Guide to: Starting a Business

Wit Key: Courage

Today's Wit Key is COURAGE. When you decide to start a business you are going to encounter a lot of roadblocks. The first road block will be convincing yourself you are not crazy and you CAN do it. This is especially true when you are a minority. Here is a clue if you are a woman you are a minority. Accept it but don't let it limit you. There are plenty ways to start a business and plenty of businesses to start. How you decide to start a business and which business you decided to start is where our Wit Key comes in. Some people have talents to carry their business; products to sell or services to offer. You need to have to confidence to believe that your creation will be worth something or you have the eye for choosing what people will be buying. You also need confidence in the service you would be providing. So all that said we will take this journey together. We will figure it out as we go and we will have our ups and downs but we will not give up!