slow down, give praise and...breath!

​More recently, I received my United States greencard which, for anyone attempting to live and work in the U.S. is a pretty big deal! For many years, I've been working through a business plan to create mavisBLUE.com but unfortunately, due to visa restrictions, I've had some impressive limits to what I was able to do and sell. And, for someone who's a rule follower (I'm proud to say I've only purchased music on iTunes), I felt at times that I had very tight, creative and entrepreneurial, handcuffs on. 

This past October, with greencard in hand, I'm excited to say I now have professional autonomy which, for someone trying to grow their own small business, is exciting! I HAVE BIG PLANS yet, I feel like I'm playing catch-up. BUT...each day, I continue to remind myself that this is a journey and that I need to TRUST THE PROCESS.

In my darkest hours--when I'm bummed out or feeling like I'm not making enough progress (or at least as much as I think I should be)--I hark back to those three words to help keep me centered and it has worked! My point for this blog post is, I believe this mantra--TRUST THE PROCESS--is something that all new mothers can relate to. We need to give praise, slow down and consider how much we HAVE done and not get overly focused on what WE HAVEN'T. 

Mothers (let's say all women) are notorious for creating virtually never-ceasing 'lists' and holding themselves to impeccably high expectations. This is why women are so super-fantastic but, we also need to give ourselves praise (not in a braggy-type way), take pause and realize we aren't 'well-manicured' robots/machines! ​

Case and point. A typical day for me includes: 

• waking up at 5am to teach back-to-back spin classes (yes, I am a certified spin teacher and love it),
• racing home to pack up kiddie lunches, grab a quick breakfast bite with my girls and make sure Dad's outfit selection is on point,
• I travel 12 miles to drop the kiddies off at child care, travel back home to do a little personal training, 
• an hour or so later, it's a full-on, mad-dash to get out of my work-out clothes and become a normal human being again, 
• I then teach a section of Intro To Graphic Design to some pretty impressive teenagers (they keep me on my toes, creative and laughing), 
• After a quick bite to eat, I head home again to spend a few hours taking mavisBLUE orders, work through our next art project, answer a few work e-mails and plan out a little mB social media promotion,
• My husband usually does pick-up (unless it's hockey season--insert the last four months of my life--so then it's usually me again) and as all mothers know...then it's...wait for it---->
• GAME TIME--the most intense 3-4 hours of my day! Dinner. Baths. Pajamas. Hair + Teeth Brushing. Stories. Water Bottle Filling. Kisses + Hugs. Kisses + Hugs and yet again, Go. To. Bed.

I'm exhausted. But wait, then we (we're not done yet...) have to rally! I get my oversized wine glass out and pour myself 6oz. of pure red grape bliss and get started on lunches (what I wouldn't do for a personal chef!), e-mails, and a few random projects. If all goes well, I convince the hubs to sit and take in a little Netflix or a tea to finish off the day.  
 
Sadly, many days I go to bed thinking "...man, I should have done that" and "I forgot to do this" or, my favorite "...maybe I should just get up and do this..." WHAT. IS. WRONG. WITH. ME??? I just accomplished a boat load, yet, I am already adding to my 'To Do' List. 

TRUST THE PROCESS--GIVE PRAISE--SLOW DOWN!!!

​So here's what I'm doing to follow my own lead. 1) I'm taking up yoga and 2) I've got myself a professional mentor. 

Yes, I said YOGA (don't laugh those of you who know me). A friend has recruited me to join her each week and I'm looking forward to slowing down and practicing some much needed mindfulness.

And here's where I bring it back to my greencard news. I've also got myself a mentor. In late October, I applied to receive small-business development mentorship via the Women's Enterprise Initiative and even more recently, I received word that I'd been chosen as a mentee.

​I'm now working through, with the help of a fantastic mentor (a retired CEO of a prominent CT-based company), a re-draft of my business plan, sourcing additional small-batch manufacturers for our 'lunchies' and ultimately, searching out government and state-sponsored funding for mavisBLUE.

My mentor, let's call her Carole (that's actually her name), has been inspiring. She has helped me organize my time and energies--no more drinking from the fire hose! She has empowered me in times when I was overwhelmed and unsure of what direction to go next or how to even move in the right direction. This relationship has been game changing for me not only as a woman and mother but also as an entrepreneur.
I know my mantra is to TRUST THE PROCESS but Carole has helped to re-affirm, remind and keep me on track. This is not only helping me personally and professionally, it has also made this journey what is should be--UNIQUE, INSPIRED and ONE-OF-A-KIND. I have learned to TRUST THE PROCESS, to SLOW DOWN, to GIVE PRAISE and most importantly, to BREATH. 

This is a journey and I need to focus on the process - not the results. They will come.