Inside: Why now is the BEST time to follow your dreams! Discover how pursuing what lights you up, positively impacts your life and makes you an even better mom!
It’s been a crazy year…
The shutdown.
Homeschooling.
And now birds of prey are swooping in and snatching sharks right off the beach!
With all this chaos swirling around, no wonder moms are going mad in record numbers!
I remember back when my own world was in chaos…
I was a recently divorced, single mom of two kiddos living in one of the most expensive cities in the United States.
I had house payments, car payments and was left with a mountain of debt.
I was drowning and looking desperately for a lifeline.
I knew I couldn’t magically make more money as a teacher, so I started thinking of out-of-the-box ways to spend less…
And I became one of those crazy, extreme couponers.
I threw myself into it, and it became my focus and my passion…
But really, it was just my way of gaining a little control in my life, when everything around me seemed out of control–something to cling to that was all mine.
Is It Okay to Want More (Beyond Motherhood) ?
The desire for something more wasn’t new to me.
You see, I always had this desire to build a school for misfits–the kids who just don’t seem to fit in.
Over the years, as I saw my friends leaving the classroom to start exciting new lives, while I stayed put.
My dream began to fade because I was too afraid to take the risk.
What if I fail?
What if I can’t support my kids?
What if I’m not good enough?
My dream was dormant–not forgotten–and a few years later, a new husband and a new baby on the way, created a new opportunity.
“Perfect.” I thought to myself, “I can plan the school while I’m on maternity leave, and have my teaching position to fall back on if I fail”.
But the universe had other ideas…
My eldest son started having extreme difficulties in school–to the point where it was impossible for him to stay in the classroom.
I suddenly found myself stuck inside a box of “can’ts”…
I can’t be a teacher because I have to home school my son.
I can’t follow my dreams.
I can’t do anything that I love.
I can’t…I can’t…I can’t.
Or could I?
What if I refused to stay in that box of “can’ts” and did what I do best–think outside-of-the-box?
Sometimes You Have to Re-invent Yourself
I got to work reinventing myself–creating a world for myself that left me fulfilled and happy–while making an impact on others and inspiring my kids to have dreams of their own.
And that world is Lemon Lime Adventures… the little blog I started back when I didn’t even know what a blog was.
I know I’m not alone in this…
I know a lot of you reading this right now are struggling to figure out who you are besides an awesome mom, and, like me, you want something more…
Something just for you!
But the world is telling you that this isn’t the right time to try something new…
It’s too scary.
It’s too chaotic right now.
There’s too much uncertainty.
It isn’t safe.
But I’m here to tell you it IS safe.
7 Benefits to Pursuing Your Own Passion
Even though it may still be scary, there are… 7 huge benefits to starting an out-of-the-box life right now that’ll give you more freedom…
Freedom to say:
“No, I’m not working today.”
“Yes, I can spend the afternoon playing with you!”
Freedom to live life on your terms.
1.You’ll have something that’s 100% yours…
Not your kid’s…not your partner’s…just yours.
That out-of-the-box passion that keeps you sane in a world filled with chaos.
For me it was couponing…then knitting…homeschooling…then blogging.
What is it for you?
What would you choose if there were no rules and failure wasn’t an option?
2.You get to choose your own schedule…
When I wrote my first book, I wrote it in one hour chunks while sipping coffee at Starbucks.
When you have your own thing, you get to choose your own schedule.
Will you work on it twice a week?
When your kids are in bed…or before they get up?
For instance, I try to knock off around 3:00 everyday…
Because here’s the thing:
You get to call the shots.
No one tells you when to show up.
No one tells you to work when your kids are sick.
No one tells you that you have to go into work even though it’s unsafe.
It’s one hundred percent yours. Okay?
3.You get to work from home…
There’s a common misconception out there that you can’t follow your passion and build an out-of-the-box life for yourself without sacrificing time with your kids and family.
Where’s the logic in that?
You get to do this from home–in fact, my kiddo just came in as I was writing this–so you actually get to spend more time with your kids and be there for your family!
After all, you can’t leave the office to tend to a scraped knee or give your kids a cuddle when they need one.
4.You get to spend time working as a family…
What better way to teach your kids than by example?
If you’ve ever received a package from us, chances are it was packed by one of our kids…they love to help and feel that they’re making a valuable contribution to the family.
When your kids see you following your dreams and turning them into reality it inspires them to start dreaming of all the things that might be possible in their lives, too.
5.It’s actually quite safe…
I’m confident knowing that even if everything I’ve built so far crumbles to dust tomorrow, I can pick myself up and start something new.
Is it because I’m invincible?
Not at all.
It’s just that I’ve developed the skills and learned the steps it takes to build an out-of-the-box life.
Creating an out-of-the-box life for yourself– fueled by passion–is safe, because you don’t have to depend on anyone other than yourself…you don’t have to worry if your company downsizes and you’re suddenly out of a job.
6.You get to have more time…
No, you’re not going to get more than the same 24 hours everyone else gets…
But you will be able to manage that time and spend it doing the things you care about the most.
Spending time with your kids cuddling or playing games.
Date-nights with your spouse.
Doing something for yourself; something that lights you up inside.
By creating an out-of-the-box life you’re able to get back YOUR time!
7.You can be an inspiration…
Now this is especially important for moms who have out-of-the-box kiddos to hear.
By creating an out-of-the-box life for yourself, you’re teaching your kids that they can do the same.
They don’t have to go work in a factory…
Or work a nine-to-five grind.
You’re teaching them that they can control their own destiny and live a life full of meaning and purpose…and you showed them that it’s okay.
You gave them permission to follow their dreams when you gave yourself permission.
A lot of moms have reached out to me, asking me if I could show them how I built my out-of-the-box life so they could create one for themselves.
Now, I realize this isn’t something I normally talk about, but it’s something I feel very passionate about.
If you have an itch to do more with your life…
If you want to create an out-of-the-box life…
…so you can spend more time with your family and have the security and flexibility to live life on your terms, I hope you are on our mailing list – my free trainings are coming up soon all about how to rediscover who you are (in addition to being a mom!)
