My version of self-employment

  This week I made the decision to close one of my businesses that was, quite frankly, just not performing. It is hard to explain people who are not, or have not been in business very long, how freeing letting business related things go can be. I have been seriously self-employed since November 1995.    I say “seriously” because there were lots of “side hustles” in the lead up to the purchase of my first bricks and mortar store and the determination that I was never going to work for a boss again. That first business was a Kodak Express One-Hour Photo shop.  For the 15 odd years prior to that point I had worked in One-Hour Photo shops, so I did know what I was doing ?   I had been a manager for at least 8 or 9 of those years.  I made a pact to my family that, as I did not ever need to bring work home with me when I was a manage, I could see no reason why I would have to bring work home now. I stuck to that pact and right up until VERY recently have not even had a “work” computer at home.  iPads with just my person email address is just fine.  Work can stay at work.

It is all about boundaries.

The other pact I made to myself was that my wage must at all times be at least that of the job… For me that meant that the shop MUST be able to pay me as the manager of a photo shop.  If it could not do that, why was I doing it?  I may as well get a job. As a couple, we decided that my husband would go out on his own and became self employed in 1999.  Same rules applied. No silly hours, and same pay as the “job” required. One business decision we do in all our businesses is to have a really close look at the profit and loss numbers at the beginning of both the financial year and the calendar year (So July and January) to determine what needs to change. We look at what has done well and how can we improve on that but also what has done poorly.  We look at products, services, staff, clients,  time we are spending in the businesses and profit margins as well as actual dollar profits. Over the years we have seen many a product or service be introduced only to realise that it was a drain on resources and be let go in 6-12 months. Sometimes they have not been as profitable as we planned.  Sometimes it might be a good dollar earner, but took too much staff time to create.  We have tweaked staffing levels to be fairer for all concerned. We have “sacked” clients that are less than ideal. Those one’s that we might need to be constantly chasing for payment, or one’s that are just a general pain in the rear.

Working my way out of a job

My lifestyle plan began a number of years ago and involved trying work out a way to replace 1-2 hours of work consistently over a 4-6 month period. The idea was that in the beginning I did 40 hours a week work, then 38 then 36 then 34 etc etc over time.  The money needed to stay the same. This has worked pretty well and I now work about 15 hours a week I am not at the point of being able to “sit on a beach with a laptop” type lifestyle, but I am creating businesses that do not need the owner in them all the time.  This makes for attractive businesses when it comes time to sell.

The Question of Money

This is a very personal issue.  How much YOU want to make to live your lifestyle will most likely be totally different to what I want. Most people VASTLY over estimate the amount of money they actually need o create their perfect life. My advice is to always start with a “Be-Do-Have” Perfect Day exercise and when you have completed it, price that day out. Now, remember, in your ideal day, you might have that you are going to a café by the beach for breakfast…but do you REALLY want to do that EVERYDAY?? Unless your ideal day included a far bit of workout time, those café breakfasts are going to be pretty detrimental to your health eventually ? As a good guide though, start with the salary you have and think what would it look like if you had that same salary but only worked  ½– ¼ of the hours

Where to now?

If you are working fulltime and trying to become self-employed, but can’t afford to buy a business or try to create a product or service that can replace a few hours work.  Once you can do that, it might be possible to reduce your hours at work.  Keep going until you replace all your hours

Have FUN!!

Business can be hard, there is no denying it, but you do have to be doing something you enjoy.  If you wake up in the morning and dread the day ahead, you may as well go back to a job and take advantage of the benefits that this might bring – sick pay, holidays, superannuation etc I can honestly say that I do love being the master of my own destiny. If mistakes are made, I know they are mine and mine alone.  Conversely,  the rewards are welcomed with pride that I created them.          

There is somewhat of a backlash to girls and women wanting to be a “princess”.  After all, in this modern world can’t us women be so much more than a figment of prettiness that relies on a saviour in the form of a man?

Well…DUH!!   Of course ?     I do not aspire to be a Disney Princess nor an actual Royal Princess -that appears like faaaaaar to much work.

What I DO aspire to is the perfect life that most little girls are led to believe that a Princess has.

Waking up in a huge fluffy soft bed ( where even so much as a small pea creates discomfort) surrounded by woodland creatures and twittering birds.

The sun is shining as she slips into a lovely outfit and partakes of high tea in luxurious surroundings.  If there is any light work to be done, it is met with a merry song and is never a drudgery.

Her prince is dashingly handsome and treats her with the love and adoration that befits her – and she reciprocates. TOGETHER they live happily ever after.

I guess it is not so much the idea of being a princess as such but rather  it is the idea of being  the heroine of your own story, whatever that looks like.

I ask you WHAT IS SO WRONG WITH THAT!!!

So… Use the good china, Wear the jewellery, Bathe with the nice soap.  Who is more important to use it for than YOU!

What is your relationship with money?

Do you have a feeling of dread that there is never enough? or do you rejoice and welcome the possibilities that every dollar can provide?

I am sure you have guessed by now, that I love my money, I welcome it and treat it nicely like I would a trusted friend.

By making money welcome, more will be attracted to you and there will always be enough.  Sure, I would like more sometimes, but I very rarely say “I can’t afford that”  rather I say “What do I have to do to afford that”

The act of purchasing anything is always a choice. Even the simple act of buying bread can range from the budget $1.00 supermarket offering up to high end $10 a loaf artisan bread.  While I may not buy the artisan bread every day, it is sometimes bought on the weekend as a treat.  That artisan sourdough loaf together with slices of good ham and a couple of poached eggs still equates to a far smaller outlay than hubby and I going to a cafe for breakfast.

So how do I do it?

In our personal life, we have been “living on the pension” for a few years now. (you can read about it here)

It is due to this spending plan that we have been able to pay down a huge amount off our debt and will be debt-free (with a luxury car) well before retirement age, which is still over 10 years away for us.

To welcome my money like a friend, I have devised a method of preparation like one might do if they knew a friend was coming to visit and stay a while.

Step 1:  Set aside some time to prepare the visit.
Make a time (I do it monthly) to have a look at balances and spending.

Having an in-depth understanding of exactly what comes in and what goes out each month is VITAL to creating a great relationship with your money.

(As a starting point, try using your debit or credit card for EVERY purchase for a few weeks, I know that sounds against what every “guru” says, but seriously who has the time or inclination to track every cent in a book or app for more than a few hours?   Having purchased on a card means you can go back and examine the transaction list and allocate where each dollar has gone.)

Once you have an understanding of your spending habits, you can organise a spending plan to accommodate the lifestyle you wish to have.  Note that I called it a Spending Plan NOT a Budget.  Budget is a word like Diet in that it has a negative connotation and feeling of lack for many people.  So have a Spending Plan and a Healthy Eating plan

Your money will not be a burden if it knows exactly where it is meant to go and what its purpose is.

Step 2:   Welcome Money
When you do see money arrive, welcome it with open arms ( or wallet 🙂  ) Don’t dwell on thoughts that it is not enough.  Would you open the door to a friend and greet them with  “Oh, It is only you, I was hoping for more”?

Step 3: Treat money nicely.
Literally, have a nice purse or wallet to keep money in. It will make you feel abundant every time you remove it from your handbag.  Keep your purse tidy, clear out those scraps of paper, old receipts and rubbish. This shows money that it is important and has a clear space to live.  Look after bank accounts too, have your emergency money in a higher interest account that means it is working as hard as you are.

These simple things will change your mindset around money and ultimately you will attract more 🙂

 

 

There is one thing that stands in your way to becoming anything you want to be and accomplishing anything you’ve dreamed of.
It’s not money and it’s not time. It’s not a lack of luck or not having the right opportunities handed to you on a plate.

 

The thing that is standing in your way is a lack of consistency.

I am sure everybody has heard that it takes approximately 28 days to create a new habit (or break an old one)
Changing behaviour is HARD, you are rewiring mindset patterns that have been deeply ingrained and are just soooo familiar. Even simple tiny tasks like making your bed every morning can prove to be a tough thing to master.

Making our bed EVERY morning has been a “thing” for me.  I was in the kitchen a while back waiting for the kettle to boil for my morning cuppa, mindlessly thinking of not much really, when it occurred to me that THIS was the perfect time to make the bed!   Who would have thought  LOL

It took less time to make the bed than it did for the kettle to boil.  Now I have a consistent morning habit of put the kettle on, make the bed, make the tea.

Making this tiny consistent change to my behaviour has helped me set up my day in the ideal way I want my home to look.

Why Consistency is the Key

If you want to be successful at anything then it takes work. As much as we might like to think we can be successful through luck or by gaming the system (and as much as we might be tempted to buy into ‘get rich quick’ schemes or diet fads), the reality is that “luck” requires work.
You need to make consistent progress toward your goals.

And the problem is that most of us just don’t commit to the consistent action

We make grand claims about the things we are going to do. We might proclaim we are going to lose weight, get fit, write a best selling book or even just go to bed before midnight each night.  The plan may be carried out for a few days but then it sort of gets forgotten about and we slip back into their old ways. ☹

And why is this? We say that it’s a matter of time but most of us – even the busiest of us – manage to find the time to watch large amounts of TV, flick through trashy tabloid magazines or play long computer games. Many of us will waste time on the train staring into space, or we’ll randomly scroll Facebook or Instagram on our phones in bed not really accomplishing anything or having a particularly good time!

Why? Because we don’t have a plan to enable a consistent behavior to become a habit.

What to do About it

We might claim that we “deserve” a night watching Netflix, or eating things that we shouldn’t really. It feels like a reward.

But the reality is that if you are working towards a goal you care about and that you’re passionate about, you’d probably enjoy that just as much.

This is purely a matter of creating consistent ACTION   Often our goals seem too large or just too far out of reach, but by chunking those goals down to smaller easy to manage steps, we can create ways to find a consistent action to do that task.

And there are few ways you can do this:

• Start Simple. Choose ONE area of your life you want to change right now
• Write down your goals. There have been numerous studies that show the pure action of writing a goal down can help it come to fruition ( you still have to do the work though ?  )
• “Reverse Engineer” those goals. Eg a goal might be “To Save $1000 this year”  reverse engineering might mean you need to save $83.34 per month, or $19.23 per week or just a TINY $274 per day (and who can’t do that?? )
• Formulate a CONSISTENT Action for that goal. Set up a daily/weekly/monthly transfer from your back account into your savings account.
• Reduce the “consistency disruptors” of the rest of your day – Switch your café coffee with one from home, get off the bus one stop earlier to get some extra exercise

Commit to your plan for 28 days.   After that time, if you have succeeded in your goal, add another goal. If not, don’t beat yourself up, review how you can do things differently and commit again for the next 28 days

Find the consistency and you’ll find you can do anything. Now you know the problem, there is nothing to stop you from fixing it!

 

My RISE to Rich programme helps you determine your goals and breaks each part of your life down into smaller, manageable steps.  By taking baby steps you CAN be living your 10/10 life.

I got what I truly wanted ?

Every now and then the Universe decides to give you exactly what you ask for. It might be in the form that you visualised, or it might be something completely from left field.

For years I have been following the idea that visualising your perfect life will indeed create that life.   It has been a cornerstone of the way hubby and I treat most areas of our day to day life.

And, of course, it is the foundation of my concept of Sunshine Cash and the creation of my “Rise to Rich” course.

One of the big parts of our ideal life is the wish to be able to travel more.  We do manage to get away for many short breaks, but, due to my husband’s business requiring to be “on deck,” it has been a section of my life that has not lived up to my desires.

I have followed many ladies who have created seemingly wonderful lives for themselves and managed to “retire” their husbands.  What joy that would be!  I know my husband has toiled HARD for long enough and has provided a good income for me to be able to stretch with my “Sunshine Cash” methods.

It has been a top of mind goal for me to create a location independent business that would be able to sustain our living standards without him having to go into the factory every day.   I have included travel scenes on my vision board, I read lots of travel books and blogs and have created many “perfect day” visualisations about this reality.

Now you may know that the universe DOES listen to what you put out there, and sometimes does get a little quirky in its interpretations in providing the answer.  This is what has happened to me 🙂

Due to unforeseen circumstances, I have had the opportunity to join a friend in his business as he bows out.   This business is within my zone of genius and I am looking forward to continuing the great work he has begun.

So, for now, at least I am pausing my work with the “Rise to Rich” course.  Of course, my ongoing ways of stretching every dollar that comes through my bank account will continue.  It is who I am 🙂

This opportunity has certainly cemented the belief in my mind that what you believe DOES become your reality and that there is no such thing as “the Right Way” to reach your goals.

Keep dreaming, be open to odd pivots that might come your way and I cannot wait to see you RISE!!

Sue

ps.  If you need great images for your eCommerce store
( Amazon – eBay – or website)
check out my page at GoMibby

A little over a month ago, I had a speaking engagement at a conference. I was also meeting a number of my coaching clients for the first time. In the lead up to the conference, I was determined to have nice long strong nails for the weekend. To achieve this, I had a routine of using strengthening oil on my cuticles and coating them with Sally Hansen’s “Hard as Nails” Strengthening Polish twice a week. (If you have not used the Hard as Nails polish, try it, it is great for growing long healthy nails.) By the time of the conference, my nails were GREAT!! Nice and long and strong.

After the conference, I was even busier than usual, and self care was the thing I neglected. I felt I just did not have time for me amongst everything else that was going on. Exercise, quiet mediation time, and – yes- my nail routine, went out the door.

As a consequence, my nails are currently NOT long and strong 🙁 , my stress levels have been high, and I am not living my ideal life, in fact, I feel like I am careering out of control, backwards down long hill 🙁

My plan for this week ( and subsequent weeks) is to take back some me time and rebalance my life. I know that this will mean i have to delegate some tasks, and outsource others for a short while, but it is necessary.

Do you make YOU a priority in your week? Let me know in the comments.

Morning..,.

I admit it, I am a morning person, and I know some of you might hate me right now:)
I know that for many people, the mere thought of morning brings feelings of dread and panic.

However, for me, mornings are the time I get some “me” time.
I like to get up 30 minutes earlier than hubby. He is one of those – “as soon as his feet hit the floor he is go go GO!”

My 30 minutes or so are quiet time.  I like to make myself a cup of tea, read a few pages on whatever book I am currently reading, maybe do some stretches and most importantly THINK!!

It’s the perfect time to focus on myself before life gets in the way and it’s the perfect way to ensure the day gets off to the right start.

Another thing I frequently do is to start the day with meditation. Meditation is a fantastic tool for relieving stress and helping yourself to cope better with the challenges that life throws at you.  So if I know I am in for a busy day, some calming thoughts can prepare me for the onslaught.

Part of my quiet thoughts are often gratitude exercises.  Gratitude is super valuable for being happier and more effective. The problem is that many of us forget to stop and take stock of how far we have come or how good our lives are already. Instead, we tend to overthink and dwell on the things we have yet to accomplish and what we want next.

Spending five minutes in the morning writing down at least three things that I am thankful for (these can be big things or small things), but simply by focusing on them, I will feel more content and happy.

Starting the day with a to-do list is an excellent way to enhance productivity. It’s also a very good way to avoid feeling overwhelmed by the volume of things you need to do.   I tend to make my “Tomorrow To-Do List” at the end of each day.  By reviewing this list in the calmer atmosphere of the morning, I can prioritise the top two or three tasks that will be my “Main Thing” for the day.   Chunking down the tasks into bite-sized pieces makes the day far less daunting.

My morning routine helps me save money too. By knowing what I doing throughout the day, allows me to plan meals, so I rarely have to resort to a rushed takeaway meal.   If my day looks like it will run late, a meal thawed from the freezer stash means dinner can be on the table in a matter of minutes.  Or it might mean packing some healthy snacks in my bag for lunch on the go.

What is YOUR 10/10 ideal morning?

 

Have you heard this term yet?  I have a hunch it will be BIG very soon.

I first came across the idea of “Cozy Minimalism” a couple of weeks ago.  I must tell you, I am HOOKED!!!

Like many of us, I scour Pinterest for home decor ideas and have not ever really nailed down a style that is “me”
I like elements of many styles…
Farmhouse Styles like Joanna Gaines does on “Fixer Upper”

Hampton Style from when the TV show “Revenge” was on

“Resort” style

But nothing made my heart sing.      Hubby and I are not “frou- frou, frilly. pillows everywhere” people

So often, I will look at decorating ideas on Pinterest in magazines and just see clutter and dust collectors, all which translates to far too much cleaning for my liking.

However, on the other end of the scale, I am not really into the starkness of true minimalism or “Industrial Chic”
The feeling I get from this style is somewhat “Bachelor Pad” or “Hotel Room”

THEN!!!   I found   “Cozy Minimalism”
The term has been coined by blogger Myquillyn Smith of Nesting Place   As I read through a number of posts, I could feel myself getting drawn to this simple compromise of stark bare minimalism and over cluttered and busy.
Her ideas have been so popular she has written a best selling book on the subject…

To complement the book she even has a course to follow and create your own Cozy Minimal home.  You can find it here. I have a bit going on right now, but I have signed up for the course.  Here is what Myquillyn has to say about the style…

I am really looking forward to starting this and seeing how our home evolves.   I have no intention of spending a great deal of money ( as usual ?  ) as I am sure I will be able to create the suggested looks with either what I have or with KMart or Op Shop finds.

 

Life is like a road.  There are long and short roads; smooth and rough roads; windy and straight roads.  Many roads are on the map as we journey through life.   There are roads that lead to a life of marriage and family or others that lead to a fulfilling career with our without a family.  There are roads that lead to fame and fortune on one hand or isolation and poverty on the other.  There are roads to happiness as there are roads to sadness, roads towards victory and success, and roads leading to defeat and disappointment.

Just like any road, there are corners, detours, and crossroads in life.  Perhaps the most perplexing road that you would encounter is an intersection.  With four roads to choose from and with limited knowledge on where they would go, which road will you take?  What is the guarantee that you will choose the right one?  Will you take any road, or just stay where you are: in front of a crossroad?

Guess what-There are no guarantees!

You do not really know where a road will lead you until you take it.  There are no guarantees.  This is one of the most important things you need to realise about life.  Choosing to do the right thing ( what even is the “right” thing) all the time would always lead you to happiness.  Loving someone with all your heart does not guarantee that it would be returned.  Certainly fame and fortune does not guarantee happiness.  Fast tracking your way up the corporate ladder by accepting a “favour” from somebody is not always bad, especially if you are highly qualified and competent.   There are too many possible outcomes, which you really cannot control.  The only thing you have power over is the decisions that you will make, and how you would act and react to different situations.

Wrong decisions are always far clearer in hindsight.

Had you known that you were making a wrong decision, would you have gone along with it?  Perhaps not, why would you choose a certain path when you know it would get you lost?  Why make a certain decision if you knew from the very beginning that it is not the right one.  It is only after you have made a decision and reflected on it that you realise its relevance.  If the consequences or outcomes are good for you, then you have decided correctly.  Otherwise, your decision was wrong, but even a seemingly “bad” decision can produce some positive benefits.  Taking the wrong path might turn into “the scenic route” where you discover new things. That bad career move might have given you a skill that you would not have otherwise achieved, or maybe a bad relationship created beautiful children that you cherish.

Take the risk: decide.

Since life offers no guarantee and you will never know that your decision would be wrong until you have made it, then you might as well take the educated risk and decide.  It is definitely better than keeping yourself stuck in a rut complaining that nothing ever goes right, or dreaming that “one day life will change”.  Although it is true that one wrong turn could get you lost, it could also be that such a turn could be an opportunity for an adventure, as you discover more roads.  It is all a matter of perspective.  You have the choice between being a lost aimless traveller or an accidental tourist of life.   But take caution that you do not make decisions haphazardly.  Taking risks is not about being careless and stupid.  Here are some pointers that could help you choose the best option in the face of life’s crossroads:

·           Get as much information as you can about your situation.

You cannot find the confidence to decide when you know so little about what you are faced with.  Just like any news reporter, ask the 5 W’s: what, who, when, where, and why.  What is the situation?  Who are the people involved?  When did this happen?  Where is this leading?  Why are you in this situation?  These are just some of the possible questions to ask to know more about your situation.  This is important.  Oftentimes, the reason for indecision is the lack of information about a situation.

·           Identify and create options.

What options do the situation give you?  Sometimes the options are few, but sometimes they are numerous.  But what do you do when you think that the situation offers no options?  This is the time that you create your own.  Make your creative mind work.  From the most simplistic to the most complicated, entertain all ideas.  Do not shoot anything down when an idea comes to your head.  Sometimes the most outrageous idea could prove to be the right one in the end.  You can ask a friend to help you identify options and even make more options if you encounter some difficulty, but make sure that you make the decision yourself in the end.   Remember there is rarely only one road to any given destination.

Consider this scenario.  You wish to travel from Brisbane to Sydney – you have no time restraints to arrival time.  Will you fly? Will you take a coach?  Will you drive? Which highway will you take?   There are many options, but in the end, all will see you arrive at your destination. Are any one of these paths “wrong?”

·           Weigh the pros and cons of every option.

Assess each option by looking at the advantages and disadvantages it offers you.  In this way, you get more insights into the consequences of such an option.

·           Trust yourself and make that decision.

Now that you have assessed your options, it is now time to trust yourself.  Remember that there are no guarantees and wrong decisions are always at hindsight.   So choose… decide… believe that you are choosing the best option at this point in time.

Now that you have made a decision, be ready to face its consequences: good and bad.  It may take you to a place of promise or to a land of problems.  But the important thing is that you have chosen to live your life instead of remaining a bystander or a passive onlooker of your own life.  Whether it is the right decision or not, only time can tell.  But do not regret it whatever the outcome.  Instead, learn from it and remember that you always have the chance to make better decisions in the future.

·           Take action and make the move.

The next step from making the decision is to take ACTION.  After all, it is no good if you are at the intersection, with the brakes on and you decide to go right and do not move your foot to the accelerator. Without action, you will remain right where you are – good or bad decision.

On my path of life, I am aiming to create a 10/10 life for myself in all areas.

As I read blogs and self help books, I am always amazed at some of the true Rags to Riches stories that abound.

While I have never earned a huge salary , been unemployed for any long period of time or been even close to homeless, I have not often ever though of my situation as being POOR.

Except for ONE DAY. Let me tell you about it.

The year was 1984, I had been working as a photographic assistant in and advertising agency in the city.

For a young 19 year old girl who was newly married, it was a glamourous position. It was very “Mad Men” with the ad execs ( both men and women) in suits, champagne lunches and celebrity “talent” often arriving in the office.

One of my duties at this job was relief receptionist to cover the lunch hour. In enjoyed this and was paid a small bonus for the extra work. All was going well, I loved the people and the job…UNTIL.. I fell pregnant. Sadly 1985 did not have the equality of workplaces today and I was told that it was “not a good look” to have me in the office 🙁

I did manage to find another job form a friend and I was able to work a couple of days a week while some staff members were on holidays.

My husband was working full time and we actually got along reasonably well on the reduced wages. I had been planning on having to reduce our budget to one wage anyway in preparation for the baby’s arrival.

Hubby had found a new job at a large factory nearby, we had a decent car and very little debt. Things were looking good. 🙂 UNTIL.

One Friday hubby came home and said that the factory he worked for closed down over the Christmas break for 4 weeks!! As he had not been there very long, there would be no wages for that time. A Trip to Social Security to see if we were eligible for any assistance proved fruitless. Because he technically still had a job, we were not able to access any benefits. We knew if he quit that job, the likelyhood of getting it back in January was slim at best.

So, together we looked at what we had left and formulated a plan. We would need to cover the 4 weeks of close down plus the one week when he went back to work before the first payday.

We could see we just did not have enough.. So we moved from the house we were in to a tiny one bedroom flat, we backtraded the car to a “sort of” ok one and we felt we were ok. We now had no debt, I paid rent upfront for the duration of the time we would need. All we needed was food, petrol and utilities money.

For Christmas that year, we asked for baby stuff and cash and we were looking OK. We gave family and friends Christmas gifts that I had bought throughout the year, nobody missed out, and I did not need to break the budget. .
We even managed to have a couple of weekends away camping with friends over the Christmas break.

On Friday the 18th of January 1985, the last friday before hubby was due to go back to work. Hubby filled up the car with petrol so he could get to work for the upcoming week and I went shopping with our last $20.

Keeping a couple of dollars aside for fresh milk and bread through the week, I spent that last few dollars on eggs, cheese, mince, onions, frozen mixed vegetables and some potatoes.

The resulting huge pot of mince, onions and veges would turn into the following meal plan for that week :

• Savoury Mince on toast x 2
• Add some tomato paste and pasta from the pantry and have (sort of ) spaghetti bolognese x 2
• Add some mashed potato and grated cheeseon top and call it shepherds pie x 2
• Add some to roast jacket potatoes
• And for the last night whatever was leftover could get a tin of tomatoes added and it turned into “minestrone”

We were quite proud of ourselves for managing so well at such a tough time. We had not asked family for any money at all, and I doubt they knew we were as skint as we were.

It was a stinking hot Brisbane day, so after dropping me back at the flat with the shopping, hubby and his friend were going out to Centenary Pool in Brisbane (about 20 minutes away from where we lived on the North side) to have a “play” They have high diving towers that “boys” like jumping off 🙂
I set about preparing the big stock pot with the mince mixture and by the time it was simmering away, I was sitting down watching TV.

The first indication that we may have a problem that day, was it started raining. Then it rained HARDER, then the wind started. The wind was so ferocious I could see the glass sliding door bowing under the force. Then the hail began. At that point I got scared. 🙁 I was 8 months pregnant, on my own in a TINY flat with no where to go that felt safe.

Hubby and his friend had seen the storm coming from the high tower of the pool and had started heading home they made it roughly half way when they got stuck in the hail. From their accounts the hail was horitantal as it slammed through the back windscreen and broke the front. They were both huddled under the thick carseat covers from our friends car.

When they were able, they tried to make it home and they have both said that when they came closer to our suburb they were both really scared for both their wives. It looked like a bomb-zone.

When hubby got home, he called out for me as he could not find me. When I heard him, I called out and he found me in a curled up mess hiding in the bottom of the tiny linen cupboard/broom cupboard in the flat. It had not been a fun afternoon 🙁

Our flat was totally devastated with not one single window left whole. The place was flooded the carpet was ruined, curtains shredded and our bed was also soaked. When I had a look in the kitchen, that is when it hit me the hardest, my big pot of food for the ENTIRE WEEK had broken glass all through it.

There was no power or phone as the lines were all down. We could not contact anybody to see if they were ok. On the way back from town, Hubby had come through the suburb where my parents lived and said it was very badly damaged there too, but we had no way of knowing if we would be able to go there and the reports we were hearing on the radio suggested we would not be able to get through. The inlaws lived approximately 50kms north and it was getting dark by this stage, so there was not much we could do but put a tarp on the floor to try and stay dry , blow up our camp mattress and attempt to get some sleep.

I remember we had sandwiches for dinner that night.

The next morning we were able to get a look at the damage. What a mess. Still no power. ( it would take a couple of days to come back on) and of course NO FOOD 🙁

This was absolutely the lowest point of my life. I honestly had NO IDEA what we were going to do.

Later that day, our landlord came to see the block of flats ( he owned the whole block) He said we could not stay there and gave us $50 in cash to help out until he could get the glass doors and carpets replaced. He also offered that we would have free rent for the time we were not able to live in the flat.

Not long after the landlord had been, hubby’s Mum came. We packed up what we could and spent the next couple of weeks at her house, before finally returning to a fully renovated flat.

It was quite some time before I could face the thought of making Savoury Mince 🙂

Here are a few news reports from that day

Brisbane Super Storm January 1985
The Big Storm

OH NO!! you might be thinking that this is yet ANOTHER New Years Resolution post.   It is not!!

In fact I don’t “do” resolutions.  As most of you know, resolutions are easily made, but seldom kept, with most being broken by the first week in January.

What I DO do, is have a strategic plan for my year.  This is broken down to a Quarterly Plan, Monthly Plan and finally Daily Tasks.  That is not to say that I am so scheduled that there is no room for spontaneity and fun.  My daily tasks are flexible enough to cope with almost any diversion without causing the whole plan to implode.

So how to start?

To move forward, you first need to know where you are right now. Take a good hard look at the state of your life and decide – REALLY decide to move each area just one step closer to your version of perfect.  

Now the point here is to look at YOUR version of perfect.  The perfect holiday for instance for me is not a 5 star hotel, but rather a cute cottage by the beach or in the country that is close to a farmers market where hubby and I can buy some amazing local produce and spend a lazy afternoon cooking up a superb meal.

To help guide you to see where you are right now, and them move forward, why not take a look at my 
“Getting $#!T Done” course

 

 

 

I saw this quote on Pinterest today as a wall mural.  You can buy it here

What a powerful message… Sure life hands us all lemons occasionally, but the mindset to “make lemonade” is an admirable quality, that I try to live to.

When I read this, I was reminded of a friend of mine just recently.  The closure of his bricks and mortar retail store, an impossibly hot Queensland summer week in a house with no air conditioning, bushfires around and just to top it off him and his wife were struck down with Whooping Cough ?

It would have been enough to make most people curl up in a tight ball of self-pity.    Instead, this man picked himself up every morning and got on with the DOING.   He has been learning the ropes of online selling and this week, without the restraints of the retail store,  has kicked the proverbial butt.

Online stores have been built, products have been sourced, great images taken and decent images shot.  The next step, of which I have no doubt will happen VERY quickly, is to run a Facebook campaign with the aim of going viral and drive lots of buyers to his products just in time for Christmas.

So not only has he made “lemonade,” I think there might be a good shot of Vodka in that tasty drink too 🙂

He has certainly proven to me this week that while “It is what it is”  with the right mindset “it will become whatever YOU make it”

May we all have the power to do the same 🙂

 

I saw this lovely little poem recently by author Mary Stuber.  Initially I smiled and laughed to myself, then I really thought about it and how true it is.  We are blessed that we can have food on our plates and a safe home in which to prepare and eat meals.

It made me think about how often we complain about little things and how, with a simple reframe we can turn an annoyance into a blessing. Some examples:

Do you complain that the kids have left toys all over the living room floor?
How blessed that, not only do you have children when so many cannot, but you have had the resources in your budget to be able to provide them with not only lots of toys,  but a living room in which to play.

Did you have a minor car accident and now have a repair bill?
How blessed that it is only the car with a few scratches and dents and that you, your family or other people were not injured.

Are you complaining about the cost of Christmas?
How blessed are you that you have a large family and circle of friends that love you and deserve your generosity.

I could go on and on.   It is an important mindset “hack” on the way to happiness, to be able to find the good in all situations.  I am often astounded and inspired by people who have had the darkest of situations and find strength and light when they are able to focus on any tiny piece of “silver lining”

I am attempting to make it my habit of stopping myself when I have complaint surface and reframe to find the good.

 

Thank God for Dirty Dishes;

Thank God for dirty dishes;
They have a tale to tell.
While others may go hungry,
We’re eating very well
With home, health, and happiness,
I shouldn’t want to fuss;
By the stack of evidence,
God’s been very good to us.

Author: Mary Stuber

 

As a “middle aged” lady, I do try to keep myself fit-ish.  I no longer go to Gym. I was a member of Curves for a few years but the fees kept rising and our local center changed hands and the opening times were not a “work time friendly” for me.  Hubby and I had been walking every evening, but now the Queensland Summer is just about on us, it is far to hot, even in the evening.  What to do?

My Daughter has been into yoga for as long as I can remember, and while I do enjoy yoga, again I find the times of many studios (and fees) not suitable.

Imagine my excitement when I decided to search YouTube for some gentle yoga and I found HEAPS!!  Who knew?  People keep telling me there is all sorts of “stuff” on YouTube.  I recently bought a box “thingy” that plugs into the TV that turns it into a smart TV.   It is primarily for Netflix, but the opportunity to have YouTube on the big screen is great too.

Anyway, I found this instructor who I have found great.
Yoga with Adriene

I won’t promise to do yoga EVERYDAY, but it nice to have so many options.

How do you stay fit?

A friend recently commented that they have no idea how I fit everything in to my days, and stay sane 🙂

Yes it is true that I always have a heap of things going on at one time, and also a number of plans that are ready to burst toward fruition in the future.  Between my husband and I we run 3 business, I also try and keep up with this blog and keep the house clean and tidy.

Like many women, I am pretty good at juggling life and getting things done.  But I am going to let you in a little secret.  I do have a system.  I have had a diary/planner since highschool.  I have all appointments diarised so I know exactly where I should be on any given day.

I also have defined goals that I write down every year, month and week.  Science has PROVEN that you need to write down your goals.  I have a vision board that details my long term goals and them a physical planner that outlines exactly what I want my life to look like in one year.  I do this around my birthday. It is like giving myself the present of and elite life.

I look at every area of my life and set a goal to achieve within that year.  Once I have set my (often big stretch) goals, it is easy to chunk them done to monthly goals and then further to weekly and sometimes even daily tasks.     The old adage of “how to eat an elephant – one bite at a time” is fitting.

I am about to launch a 5 day challenge that will help you set goals, break them into tasks and achieve your ideal life. Stay tuned it is coming real soon.  🙂

Yay!!!  It is here.  Please check out my 5 Day Challenge for Getting $#!T done.

You can sign up here.

 

While I do like to add to my blog reasonably consistently, I am not one of “those” bloggers  You know the type – they post almost everyday and are super active on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

I have been writing and adding posts every few days -or so I thought!!   I get comments that people like my blog and I have been blindly carrying on as usual.  One day recently a friend asked why I was not blogging anymore??  She then mentioned to me that there have not been any new posts for ages 🙁

From the dashboard of the blog, I could see all my posts as normal, but they were not appearing as published posts to the world 🙁

A quick Google of the problem showed that others had previously experienced a similar issue.  After some time resetting and updating various “bits” of the blog it FINALLY seemed to make the posts magically appear.  There was just one problem…It dumped them all into the one day..Not ideal.

For the time being I have LOADS of posts sitting in the back-end of the blog as “draft” posts. I will gradually go through them again and update any relevant information and make them show the proper date.

The lesson I have learnt from this, is to double check that each post is publishing correctly from a computer other than my own.

 

In today’s busy world I see so much written about passion and having to find your passion or purpose in life to get ahead and be successful.

Sadly, we see this “requirement” as early as high school when 13-year-olds are expected to know exactly what courses they are going to do to set themselves up for the rest of their lives.

How many of you are in jobs professions or businesses that align with your 13-year-old self? .. my guess is not many ☹

My 13-year-old self had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up and to be perfectly honest I still don’t.

With the help of teachers and my parents my high school education was quite broad with a number of different subjects that would cover most jobs that were available for an 18-year-old girl that didn’t want to go to university.

In my last year of high school I was sent to a large photographic lab on work experience. While there I met people that would become longtime friends and eventually business associates, but it was not really a passion.

A few years later, I was offered the opportunity to purchase my own store and so my business ownership career began.

When I sold my stores in the early 2000’s I spent a lot of time and even more money trying to decide what I really wanted to do with my life.

In the early 2000’s the internet was most certainly not what it is today and there was not a lot of easily accessible information.  The library had a number of books that I greedily read hoping to find the answer.

Over and over I read the the “Secret to Success” is to carve out a niche.  I became more and more frustrated with this concept. What is my niche?, What is my purpose?  I would start blogs, facebook groups and even businesses based on what I thought was my “greatest passion”.  Sadly, I quickly became bored or distracted and moved on to find the next “greatest passion”

After reading and reading and reading and even more reading I finally determined that I do not have just one passion, and you know what…

THAT IS OK !!!

I have many things that interest me and fire my determination to do more.

Often these things seem to be at odds with each other.

For example –

• I love helping business owners expand their business to create more profitable outcomes. I have a knack for being able to spot lost opportunities and can create a solid plan to implement these opportunities within the business with the least amount of cost and upset to current operations

So, it would appear that my passion in that regard is to create more money for spending BUT

• One of my other passions is almost making a game of how far I can stretch my money.

This does NOT mean being a scrooge or miserly.  Money is meant to be circulated, it does not serve anybody by being trapped in a savings account.

• Another great passion is food after all who doesn’t love the satisfaction gained from the deliciousness of a perfectly cooked and presented meal. I love gleaning inspiration from café and restaurant menus and creating equally gorgeous meals for my own table and enjoyment.

Sadly though, I do NOT have a passion for exercise, so I do need to keep my food passion in check somewhat ?

Perhaps my greatest passion is learning about myself. How do I really think and how can I make myself better?

I truly believe that our greatest gift to ourselves must be a positive mindset, without that positivity nothing else can come to pass.

Whether you call it the “Power of Positive thinking”, “The Secret”, Mindset or just Blind Faith you must believe that you CAN. (no matter what your niche or passion)

I hope I can share each of my passions with you.  In my Free Resource Library, I have a growing list of freebies relating to each niche.

Please keep checking back regularly..

 

My husband suspects I might be just every so slightly totally bonkers. (In the nicest possible way of course). After 20 years, he is used to my sometimes crazy purchases.

One of “secrets” to living my perfect life, is to visualise what that life looks like in minute details.  Then I choose an area that is less than perfect and upgrade it closer to my vision.  Of course, some things are not possible to jump from a level 1 straight up to a level 10, but for the many little things in life that we “make do,” it can be an easy low-cost upgrade.

One of my upgrades this months has been to buy matching coat hangers for our wardrobe.

This was my side of our wardrobe before….

And this is the after…

It just makes me smile with joy every time I look into the wardrobe now. My wardrobe looks “10/10 ” to me, and it was not a huge expense.

I got these coathangers off eBay I chose the one with clips on them so they are useable for any type of clothing.

 

The whole concept of “Sunshine Cash” is the total opposite to “Saving for a Rainy Day”   It is, of course, important to save an emergency fund for unforeseen events, but (in my opinion) to have money in the bank for money’s sake is just not necessary.   In no way would I EVER advocate spending more than you have, but cash is there to be spent. ALWAYS pay your bills first, then allow funds for savings and general “adulting”  then allow some “Sunshine Cash” for just having fun.

Some call it “Fun Money” or “Splash Cash” or”Splurge Money”

We all work very hard for our money, and yes!! you DO deserve to enjoy some of it.  I am sure you have relished the joy of a fun purchase bought with no guilt.

Spending is not greedy or wasteful, money is meant to be circulated. Your purchase means the cashier has a job, the store owner makes  a profit and the whole circle of cash continues. In accounting terms it is even called cash FLOW…cash needs to flow or everything stops.

My greatest ability to having money seemingly rain down is a positive attitude and a good eye for a bargain.  The Power of Positive Thinking, The Secret, The Law of Attraction, Manifesting, Mind Powers and a heap of other “brand names” for a positive mindset are not “Woo Woo” rubbish.  Our minds ability to manifest what it truly wants has been shown over and over again throughout centuries of Human existence.   A simple example of the power of the Law of Attraction is the example that almost everybody has had when are looking for a new car.  You decide to buy a red VW Beetle and all of a sudden it seems that every second car on the street is a red Beetle.

The Universe will rarely give you money for the sake of money. Money in itself is just random pieces of paper and metal.  What you CAN manifest is the ability to be able to buy the things you desire. You might get a pay rise or promotion that gives you the amount needed to fund the monthly payment on your red VW Beetle, or the local dealer might be having a great runout sale and you snap up your Beetle at a fraction of the price you originally budgeted for.   This happens so often to me and many of my friends, cannot be simply LUCK.

The other side of keeping a positive mindset to your money are the inevitable blocks we all have around wealth and money in general.  How often have you heard terms like..

• Filthy Rich
• Dirt Poor
• Rich Bitch
• Greedy Capitalist
• Gold Digger
• Sugar Daddy

Many people have a real block around attracting wealth for fear that their friends will not like them anymore, or worse, that their friends will resent them.

I have spent quite a bit of time over the years practising my money language. Instead of saying “I can’t afford that” I will say “I have different priorities right now” or Instead of “OMG That is SOOOO expensive”  I might think “Hmmm I wonder how I can achieve that”

Let’s get into action and manifest more Sunshine Cash!!

Let me know how you go.

 

 

 

 

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past year or so, you will have heard about the KonMari method of decluttering.  Through her best selling book, The Life Changing Magic of Tidying: A Simple, Effective Way To Banish Clutter Forever, Japanese author, Marie Kondo promises to transform your life one empty closet at a time.

Like many people, I took all this with a grain of salt.  The book and I admit, a bit of peer group pressure 🙂  did spur me on to do a decent declutter of our home.  Given that we live in a fairly small one bedroom apartment, i really did not think I would have much to “declutter”.  Well I was WRONG!!!

Fairly ruthlessly, I decluttered wardrobes, shoe rack, book cases, kitchen cupboards and the pantry.

The KonMari book recommends you get rid of anything that “no longer brings joy to your life”    That box of “one day I will fit into them” clothes most certainly did NOT bring joy, so listed on eBay they went.   Clothes, shoes, books and heaps of tupperware that we have not used in ages all got listed on eBay.  Over the course of about 8 weeks or so, my total “declutter wage” was just over $500!!!

The pantry declutter, left two groups…One small one of out of date foodstuffs that went in the bin 🙁  and a larger group of  “stuff” we had bought for a long forgotten recipe, or had been given as gifts (jams, sauces, biscuits and relishes etc  from hampers).   These were all still perfectly fine and useable and a lot of them quite Gourmet (White Truffle infused oil ).  I really did NOT want to waste these and have to throw out some substantial value.   Looking at each product, I decided to roughly menu plan some uses for them.

We had some “interesting” dishes over the course of the few weeks until they were gone.  Who knew that Mediterranean Tomato Chutney would make a truly delicious pizza sauce in place of regular tomato paste? or that Almond Butter in place of Peanut Butter is really good in satay sauce on chicken.

I do find, now that I have decluttered, the apartment is a lot easier to stay tidy. The bookcase/wall unit especially looks much more open without every shelf stuffed full of books.  I have even managed to dig out some ornaments for display.

There are loads of stories on the internet of people who have found all sorts of “hidden treasure” through the act of decluttering. I did not find much actual cash ( no more than a few coins in the bottom of an old handbag) but people have found cash in  pockets, old purses, and of course in the couch.

So get to it…start decluttering now.   Just start with one place and do it well.  List what you can on eBay, Gumtree, Facebook or Craigslist and let me know in the comments how much your “declutter wage” comes to.

 

 

 

 

Hubby and I have been just so stupidly busy lately that we are both feeling quite overwhelmed.  I can tell, both of us are a bit cranky and TIRED  oh so bone weary TIRED.  We often find ourselves struggling to stay up past 8:00pm

We work for ourselves and recently lost a key staff member. It shook both of us around a bit and rather than re-hiring immediately, we tried to do it all ourselves.  (Bad move..although saving 3 months wages has made the bottom line look healthy)

We have now hired some more help so we know it is going to get better, but just the act of doing ANYTHING at present seems to be a struggle.  I have made sure we are eating well with minimum cooking fuss.  Quite a few “throw the ingredients in a pot and cook it” type meals.

Luckily neither hubby or I are not  prone to any severe depression or anxiety, but after the last month or so , we can certainly see how these conditions can manifest very quickly.  We keep reminding ourselves that there IS an end in sight. The new staff members are coming up to speed and the workload is coming back to a manageable level.  Heck, just the fact that I have time to type this post, means I am not “drowning” beneath a pile of paperwork to be completed.

We have both been fairly mindful that we have been too busy and that the need to look after ourselves is important. ( hence the in bed at 8:00 caper)
Some things I have done are: (in no particular order)

• Ignored the housework to a certain degree.
• Made sure we eat. At work we have been so busy there were a couple of days we forgot to eat, so I set up a reminder on my phone for coffee breaks and lunch – even if it was just a sandwich on the run.
• Planned simple no- fuss dinners that required little prep and cooking.  It sounds fancy, but a simple roast is just peel a couple of potatoes, slice off a chunk of pumpkin and thrown it in the oven with a piece of meat for a couple of hours.
• Ordered groceries online and had them delivered to the office later in the afternoon.
• Tried to stay positive and actually talk to each other. While we work in the same business, we don’t actually work together ( does that make sense?)  I am busy in the office while he is busy in the factory. So we can still have a “how was your day” conversation when we get home.
• Hubby has been very good at prioritising which jobs need to be done by which day, and we have not upset any of our valued clients. He is far better at To Do lists than I am.  I make to do lists but not in the correct order and then I can get stressed when they don’t pan out.

How do you cope with a busy life?

 

 

Do you live your perfect life?

How can I invite abundance if I don’t know EXACTLY what I want.??

Today’s post comes about from a discussion with my husband about abundance.

When I asked him what  Abundance meant to him he answered “Winning Lotto”

This is how the conversation went…..

Me:  Great why?
Him:  Because I would have a million dollars.

Me: What for?
Him:  For whatever I want. (getting cranky now)

Me:  What do you want?
Him:  I don’t know….a million dollars

Me:  But what would you do with it- what would you do
– what would you buy?
Him:  Whatever I want.

 

Shortly after this…I gave up 🙂

LOTS of people do this…have the wish for “something more” but don’t know what  that “something” is.  Why??   I truly think you need to believe you deserve abundance.  My Husband doesn’t actually believe he will ever win Lotto because “People like him don’t win Lotto” so of course he doesn’t.

I KNOW what my abundance looks like. (Made real by my vision boards)

I have decided that I am going to create many vision boards –one for the big things and kind of like a  “sub-boards” off the main board.    For example…on my main board is a wish to redecorate our apartment.
I am creating a separate board with the things I see for our apartment…the furniture, the appliances, the linen on the bed.

This will help further manifest the abundance I want. It also makes me aware of what I want so that is a great bargain presents itself, I can grab it.

Do you use vision boards?  Please post a picture of your board or tell me about how you have manifested “stuff”.

 

From the time I was a little kid, I never seemed to have enough “fun money”.

Sure, Mum and Dad gave me pocket money for doing chores around the house, but I was made to put half of it in the bank.  (Who remembers the good old “dollarmites” school banking?)

After depositing my hard earned cash into the bank, there wasn’t enough leftover for the latest Barbie fashion or tastiest lolly that I “just had to have”.    It was just soooo hard. Everyone else’s Mums gave them lots of pocket money 🙁   It just wasn’t fair.

 Something had to change.

I complained to Mum about it LOUDLY!! and was told basically to “suck it up – that is life”  🙁

I looked for other ways to get money.  A paper round with my brother was a good earner, but hard work in the cold and rain at 6:00am.  I made a bit for a while polishing my Girl Guide troops’ brass badges ( coz it is a YUK job that no one liked doing, but we HAD to have shiny badges)

I soon found there were many simple ways a young girl could make a little bit extra, and did many different things over the years.

Growing up, we lived in an inner city location with not a lot of “suburbia”. This made looking for the usual ways of looking for odd jobs from the neighbours a little more difficult.

There were, however, shop around and most of these shops were “Mum & Dad” type businesses with few if any staff.

I soon discovered that I could earn money by offering to do jobs such as

• cleaning the front window of the shop, or
• taking the garbage out to the big central skip bin, or
• restocking shelves or even just
• sweeping the floor.

I struck a deal with Mum and Dad that anything I earned from these odd jobs was MINE and did not have to go into the bank.  They agreed, and my Sunshine Cash earnings began.

As I got older, I was always on the lookout for ways to supplement my pocket money.

A suburban goldmine.

When I was a teenager we moved to the suburbs and this was a veritable treasure trove of  Sunshine Cash.

• Baby sitting
• Dog Washing
• Car Wash
• Lawn Mowing

Finally, when I was old enough to have a regular job, I would still look for ways to receive extra money to “live the lifestyle I wished to become accustomed to!!”

A world of opportunity.

As a young adult, a whole new world of Entrepreneurship was introduced to me and I was soon earning good amounts of  Sunshine Cash.

A super simple method was to buy things from op shops and resell them in the weekend classifieds (nowadays we use eBay, Gumtree, Craig’s List etc).  I would look for clothes that were in good condition. I could often find clothes that had been donated in Brand New condition, or that just needed simple things mending ( like a button missing or a new zipper)    Furniture was another great seller. A couple of coats of gloss white paint and a $20 table could sell for as much as $100.

Over the years I have rarely been without something generating a bit of extra cash on the side of my regular job.  When I had children, they too were taught to look for ways to earn their own “Sunshine Cash”

As a special freebie for you today, I have put together an eBook with over 25 ways that either I have done personally or friends have done to earn a little bit on the side.  Just sign in below to gain access to this and other free downloads.

 

 

Sign in to the Information Vault. (lots of awesome goodies) Freebies are HERE

Enjoy 🙂

 

That is the loaded question 🙂 According to the dictionary…
.–noun
1. an extremely plentiful or oversufficient quantity or supply: an abundance of grain.
2. overflowing fullness: abundance of the heart.
3. affluence; wealth: the enjoyment of abundance.
For the purposes of this blog, my “abundance” is to have an abundant life. I am inviting an abundance of love ,wealth and happiness.
I am starting by giving thanks for the abundance i already have.

Thank You for great friends and wonderful family
Thank You for a business which is growing and will provide the abundance i am inviting.
Thank You for a perfect location to live and be abundant in.

Today I invite abundance…..