My daughter barged into my room shouting “My wish came true! I was good when the cleaners came!!” I love her random enthusiasm; it the complete opposite of me. The good news when she flew in, I was just ending a Peloton ride, so I was in a good mood to dive into this with her. Heaven help the person who interrupts my ride with ten minutes left while I am in a flat out effort! But timing was with us and I was able to catch the wave of her excitement with my endorphin high. What I found fascinating about her statement was two things. First, I didn’t realize this was a wish, or a goal. Truth be told it wasn’t. She didn’t know the cleaners were coming. BUT she was reflecting on how her morning went, and was proud of herself for being “good” while the cleaners were there. She did what she needed to do, and was proud of a “thing” she didn’t put all this advance effort of planning and identifying finish lines. She was right, she should be proud. I loved that she was able to positively appreciate something and share it with others like it was the best thing since sliced bread. It wasn’t the end of a goal, or a project, or some big milestone we set. It was a win. And she wanted to celebrate it. As if behaving for two hours should get an award… well no, but the energy in which she brought this profound statement to me, was contagious and reminded me to celebrate and acknowledge all the “good” stuff, not just the areas we invest all our energy in striving toward.

The second reason this struck me was the word she used. Her ‘wish‘ came true. Now maybe she doesn’t really know what a wish is, but in her growing mind a wish is something she effected, something she is to be proud of. Usually we think of words like ‘wish’ and ‘hope’, are softer, less empowering, taking the action orientation away. Removing the individual ability to do something about it. But not for her. To wish for something is the same as having a goal and taking the bull by the horns to make it so. She didn’t wish it and poof it happened, she had this idea that she needed to “be good” and she knew that she had to take some action to make it happen. Maybe the passivity of the word wish is changing. Maybe thanks to Disney and their empowerment that even princesses need to make changes if they want change, is actually sinking in. Maybe she is just wise enough at 6 to know that a wish is something you really want for yourself, and the only way to get what you want is to make the pathway yourself. Or maybe she really doesn’t have a clue.. certainly a solid possibility. But I am going with my interpretation and my opportunity to reflect.

The point of my ramblings are 1) Bring explosive energy and celebrate everything, even the things that may seem small, they might be huge hurdles for others, and they don’t need to be on the master plan for our future vision. 2) Wish: State out loud what you want and then go get it. Make it so. The power is within you. Happy Friday Eve!

“Wish it. Want it. Do it.” ~Brian Griffin

I have spent the last month interviewing with an amazing Consulting firm! I applied to a job on LinkedIn that looked cool at the start of the year. My attempt to make sure I did not put all my career (and financial) eggs in one basket. I was starting to feel the pressure of hemorrhaging money (albeit planned, still tough to see that savings account dwindle). Like all good worker bees in the new year I made sure to apply to some full time jobs.

I got a first interview with the recruiter. She was awesome! So easy to chat with. I loved how I showed up. I felt confident and articulate. Not perfect, but at ease. This is not a small feat for me (read other blogs on self-regard, anxiety, imposter syndrome)…. So when she asked if I wanted to continue, my answer was “of course!”. The firm does work with organizations I am really passionate about, the culture seems to be exactly what I am looking for. All signs point to coolness. Met with two other consultants who work there and the managing director. Supers mart people. Unpretentious. It was everything one would want in an interviewing process! Nirvana does exist!

In the meantime my business is slowly but surely taking off. I signed a client, the group coaching program I created has participants. Things are happening! Will I ever earn the same money, unlikely, although my husband says, ‘yes and more’. The safety of working for someone else pulls at me. Having a regular paycheck I can count on, please… But working at least 40 hours a week, hummmm, putting aside, or at least not going all in, on where may passion and energy has been for the past few months, I don’t know. It is an amazing embarrassment of riches. Mind you, I hadn’t been offered the job yet, but I felt confident and wanted to be clear on what I thought before any offer.

True to my usual process I created a list… pros/cons. Well the pros of taking this job from a numbers perspective outweigh trying to do my own thing, hands down. Stability. Money. Team. Variety of work. Passion projects. Yes Yes Yes. BUT…. I don’t wanna…..I let my heart lead. I decided to keep going with the path I am on. Even with the lists, trying to be objective, I didn’t let fear or my anxiety of “what if I can’t do this” take hold. I let my heart and intuition drive my decision making, not the numbers. My mantra in life has been regret the things you did, not the things you didn’t do. This brought me to Spain for a year. Leaving a job to go to Rome for a summer. Getting a masters. Having my daughter. Taking charge to smooch a man who would turn out to be husband (guess I knew that). So far I haven’t regretted any of those things.

If this company had come into my purview while I was still at my last full time job, and I had not experienced the joy and satisfaction (and even a bit of success) of being independent, I would have definitely loved to have join this great consulting firm. It would have been a different dream come true.

Sometimes we just have to throw caution to the wind, follow our hearts, and take the risk.

“If it excites you and scares you at the same time, it probably means you should do it.” ~Unknown