Some days I forget to look back, to think about what we HAVE accomplished and where things have improved. Some days I forget that in January of this year it hadn't occurred to me to start my own business, and now I have an assistant. I forget that a year and a half ago I was a size 16 and couldn't run five minutes straight if my life depended on it. (I'm a size 10 now, and can run 30+ minutes) And some days I forget that not that long ago I would have looked at someone working on a business and raising three kids and seen her as some kind of impossibly accomplished person, something I could never even imagine being. Those days I look at the things that need to be done, both for work and for home, and I feel inadequate to the task(s) at hand. I feel as though any day someone will look at me and realize that, really, I'm just faking it. I can't possibly imagine how I will get from here to there. So today, I'm going to look back and pat myself on a the back - just a little bit - in the hopes that it will remind me that if I could go from where I was to where I am, I can do anything - so long as I stay focused, stay positive, and keep doing what needs to be done.
In January of 2010, my little girl was born. I knew even before she was born that I didn't want to have any more kids after her. I had my two boys and my girl, and while none of my pregnancies were particularly difficult, being pregnant while having two very energetic boys was not a lot of fun. And while infancy is a magical and wondrous thing the first time around, by the third kid it is mostly a lot of work with VERY little sleep. Meeting the unending needs of a newborn/infant is never easy. But throw in a couple more kids and a husband working insane and very long hours at a job that was both physically and mentally demanding, and the magical and wondrous parts, while still there, get harder to find and hold on to.
Since then, I've taken up running, something I never ever thought I'd do. In fact, when it was suggested to me I gave at least 15 reasons that I don't run, can't run and would never run. My friend insisted I should just TRY the couch to 5K program. Just to see. I gave another five reasons it wouldn't work. But I tried it. And it worked. And for the first time in my life, I was running, and I loved it. And the weight I fought with all my life started melting away. I still get surprised when I look in a mirror and don't see a double chin, but it's a lovely surprise. :)
Then early this year, it was suggested that I try being a Real Estate Virtual Assistant. We needed some income, and I had liked working as a real estate assistant years before, so I gave it a shot. I started with one client, doing a few hours of work a week. Bringing in a little here, a little there. But I liked it. I was good at it, and it was fun. So I kept at it. Now I have 6 regular clients and other agents ask me to do occasional work or sit and consult with them from time to time. And I have an assistant, without whom I'd probably lose my mind. And there's money in the bank. From my business. And it's fun. It's hard - it's challenging, and like I said, some days I can't imagine I'll ever be able to negotiate all the challenges that come from running my own growing business. But when 2010 started I'd have sworn up and down I'd never be a runner and I'd probably never be less than a size 14 for the rest of my life. And when 2011 started I'd have laughed at the idea that I'd have a lucrative and growing business. So I'll figure it out. I'll make some mistakes - mostly small stupid mistakes that are just a little embarrassing, probably a couple of bigger ones. But I'll fix them, learn from them, and keep going. And next year, if I keep doing the things that I need to do, I'll be able to look back and say "Wow..I came that far??"
