Last month while I was in Sydney for the Trade Show's I attended a couple of business orientated workshops, one of which by Kylie Lewis from Of Kin who presented a session on Instagram for small businesses. Included was a copy of her book The Leap Stories & this past week I have been reading it before bed & I am so, so inspired! It is a cumulation of stories from people who have taken the leap, intimate interviews sharing how they have overcome fear, picked courage over comfort & gone on to design fulfilling careers. You don't have to be in business to appreciate it's words, the messages are very applicable to everyday life. Here are some one-liners included in the book to fill you up;
- If you don't stop & think about what you want in your life, someone else will hire you to help build what they want
- Your work is a gift
- You're a divine work in progress until the day you die
- Comparison is the thief of joy - Theodore Roosevelt
- Back yourself - especially when you feel uncertain
- Fear is mostly a liar - don't let it run the show
- You can't know what you're truly capable of, but you're more capable than you imagine
- A nudge that scares you qualifies as a little leap
- This time next year you will wish you had started today
- Your health & your time are the most precious resources you have - don't take them for granted
- You'll only join the dots looking back, so follow the curiosity forward
- Being afraid to make a mistake is one
- Courage is contagious - surround yourself with lion hearts
- You can leap at any age, it's never too late
- You get to write your story
Tell me that doesn't give you some fire in your belly & some enthusiasm to get to work. Today. Right now!
I had never wanted to own a business, it's not something that I had ever desired but I have always wanted to work in a jazzy store. Five months ago I was slothing my way through life. I'd be in my dressing gown until some unforgivable hour feeling like life was hard with 3 small children. I was in an unattractive rut. Not working towards anything fulfilling. Not doing anything good. Then we saw Little Mash for sale on Instagram & it lit something up inside of me & I wanted it to be ours.
Here I am. Taking a leap. Most days I am doing something that I haven't done before. Sometimes I am afraid but mostly I am curious to see what will happen after I give it a try. I was very comfortable in my work as a midwife, it was familiar. I could turn up, throw on a pair of scrubs & adequately work but it wasn't filling me to my brim. I went to nursing school right out of high school & studied midwifery not long after graduating as a nurse. Until a few months ago it was all I knew. I will probably never walk away from it completely, it is a part of me but for now it is secondary, I am here choosing courage over comfort & I hope that this sparks some thoughts & feelings for you!
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