21 Days of Discovery

Growing up, I spent summers with my godparents in a rural town in northern Ohio. There, we were surrounded by expansive farms, miles and miles of hay fields straddled here and there by rows and rows of corn. Their home, however, was in a rare arrangement with 10 or so other homes, suburban style, all lined up one after the other. These one acre lots butted up against a large farm whose grass covered field ran as far as the eye could see.

I spent a lot of time in that hayfield over the years – mostly running back and forth along the fence that separated the yards from the field, all so I could visit my friend two doors down.

Occasionally, my friends and I would search for treasures along our worn-out pathway in the field. I LOVED to catch field mice, yet I squirm to think of it now. Funny isn’t it, how what thrilled us as a child can somehow turn into something we would never do as an adult? But, then, ahh … those mice were so cute with their beady little eyes and their sweet, tiny little paws!

One summer, I found a beautiful little kitten in that field. Abandoned by her mama, no doubt.

I took her in and, despite the initial resistance of my appeals, my cute little eyes and my tiny little hands somehow talked Deda and Harold into keeping her.

I spent my final weeks of vacation that year nursing that cute, little kitten and making her feel at peace in her new home. As summer drew to an end, the grassy field, now mowed and stored as hay, held a new source of fun. Freshly grown patches of clover sent my friends and I on a quest, searching to find the one with four leaves.

Before I knew it, summer was over and it was time to return home to Florida.

Just as those seasons would change long ago, they continue to change for us in our adult years.

As I transition to being an “empty nester” over the next few coming years, I find myself searching for clover, so to speak, in this new season.

I love the life I am living. My family is happy and healthy. I love my work and I love those I serve.

Yet, still . . . something is not quite in alignment.

I suspect the issue is in my brand as a business. I’ve never quite settled into one niche, try as I may.

Experts tell us to pick a niche, because, after all, you are too complicated to be all of you in the marketplace.

Yet, intuitively, many of us (especially women) business owners long to be all of who we are. We want the world to see EVERY part of us – not just one piece.

The world says, “This is how it is done.”

 

I want to defy that.

 

 

Truth be told, I’ve never been big on doing things the way the rest of the world dictates.

I want to be wife, mom, daughter, sister, crafter, nurse, teacher, food lover, Disney addict, writer, and successful business woman.

I want to be silly, smart, lovable, compassionate, conservative, and mountain moving bad ass – ALL-IN-ONE! Because THAT is who I am.

 

The only question is how?

 

How do I present myself in an online market as being multifaceted when the market seemingly searches for experts who specialize in only one thing?

So, I’ve decided to participate in a writing challenge in hopes that I will dig a well into my inner most thoughts and, somehow, discover the answer.

I’m calling it 21 Days of Discovery.

Every weekday, for the next 4 weeks, I will be writing a new blog post aimed at discovering that “missing piece” that keeps me from feeling unstoppable.

And, hopefully, it will reveal how you and I can present ourselves – in totality – in a way that still works in the marketplace.

I invite you to come along for the journey.

Simply click the subscribe button below and I will be sure to send you daily reminders. After this writing challenge ends, weekly posts will resume.