“Turn the page, continue reading, and let the next story begin…” — Suzanne Weyn
I honestly never thought I would be doing this. While I’ve always had this idea and always have seen the pieces out there, I’ve never been able to put them together. For some reason I thought I always just needed the answer.
JUST DO IT!
Back in October when I made the commitment to sign-up for Dream Year and submit my proposal to see if I was accepted into the program, I was overcome by fear and doubt. Weird, because I am very rarely a person that has fear and doubt. What would cause it in this instance? I’m not sure, but I did hit me….until I hit the “Submit” button on the application and then it was truly out of my hands.
Since I was accepted into the program in December, a ton of things have shifted in my life. Yes, I had submitted the proposal about what my year long (and life-changing) project was going to be, but as I began on the journey I noticed that the sails needed to be adjusted. This was a good thing as it provided me with a ton more clarity. Over the past few months, all those pieces I talked about earlier, have come together and grown into something even bigger. I’ve had many sleepless nights in which I tossed and turned all night thinking about this project and the lives that it will change:
- Thinking about that one family that is able to save their home from foreclosure because they now have a side business that is bringing them in income.
- Thinking about that family that needs a two-income household but can only have one because one of the parents has to stay home at all times with their disabled child.
- Thinking about the person who cannot experience true growth in their life or their gifts because they are confined to a job that mentally destroys them.
- Thinking about the family who can experience a trip to Disneyland for the first time because of the extra income they created in their life doing something they love.
- ….and the list goes on and on.
As I began the research on this clever term “Lifestyle Business” it was interesting to see the lack of positive meaning. In fact, many of the instances in which it was discussed, it often was turned into a curse word. Many of the large corporate or start-up companies claimed it as a bogus-BS word for a lazy entrepreneur who really doesn’t have a business or a future sellable asset.
I’d like to have the opportunity to interview their kids and see if they wished that their parents would have owned a “Lifestyle Business.” I think the results would be mind-boggling and possibly even leave a tear in your eye. Do you honestly think places like Google put in cafeterias, sleeping rooms, dry cleaning, gyms, etc for the “culture” they claim? NO! They put all those amenities in there so you will NEVER GO HOME! Do you think the kids of those types of employers notice? Yes! Do you think the parents realize it? Yes, but usually it’s too late when they figure out the life they missed out on.
Too many people build businesses and then design their lifestyle around them. That’s why you see the local pizza owner working from 9am -12am seven days a week and he never has time to enjoy the things he likes such as golf, church, and family.
The kind of “lifestyle business” that I’m referring to is one where you create the lifestyle you want to live and then design and build a business around it that fits your needs. Maybe your the mom that wants to make sure she picks up her kids after school every day, attend all their sporting events, and be able to stay at home with them if they’re sick. You also enjoy cleaning houses. Well, then your perfect “lifestyle business” might be starting a residential house cleaning business where you clean houses only from 10am – 3pm each day. You might eventually grow it so you decide to hire a couple people to help you out and then you’re able to still maintain the lifestyle you want, but within the hours your willing to devote to it. You’re satisfied with your life on all levels and your kids love that you’re home with them every day and part of the summer. You can’t put a price tag on that.
As I begin on this new journey, I continually am amazed daily at the big thinkers and dreamers that I get to hang out with. These are the type of people that put hope back into this supposedly bad economy. I can’t wait to see what the next 7 months of my life has in store as we begin to truly launch this entire project worldwide. Join us for the ride!
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