Day 28

Here it is, the last day of my intoxication plan, it seems to have taken effect....

Two days ago I completely crashed, literally. I think I kinda tripped, sorta, and ended up on the couch and some how never got up. I was exhausted, busy month, busy weekend. On top of the holiday rush, I had eight different stops this Christmas, it extended through the day after Christmas. So, I took the much needed nap and let my brain check out for a bit. Sometimes you gotta let your life bar recharge in order to finish the game.

It was all good though, I worked twice as hard the next day, yet I didn't feel it. I actually felt as if I could of worked through the night, but I stopped eventually. Got to take the time for an evening with the boyfriend, the dog and food.

I noticed, however a difference in my attitude. Normally I would enter into a level of stress that would consist of personal down beating, but I didn't. I knew I would be working tomorrow and I knew I wasn't putting anything off. Stopping, in the past, would cause a loss of three or four days. It was a process to re-motivate myself in the forward direction.

I also caught myself saying, "after work". Oh you mean, my self employment is a full time job and I don't have to run errands in the middle of the day; or drop what I'm doing to help others? It's not like I am doing anything else, right? Heck no, I'm busy and if you can't understand that, then I don't need to be talking to you. Yep, that is how I feel about Last Minute Clothing. I may not make any money yet, but that will change, in time and with persistence.

So, here they are, the last steps in the program:

Step 10: Forgiveness

Forgive yourself; there will be some goals that cannot be accomplished in an allotted amount of time. There will also be some problems that you cannot fix. Don't let this be your downfall; even Superman can't do it all and he has super powers.

Step 11: Reflect

Take time to notice the things you do different and how it positively affects your regimen. Give yourself a pat on the back, but don't celebrate just yet, your journey is not over.

Step 12: Prepare

Now that you have created your new habit, be ready for what may come next. You may not be able to predict the future; but you do know what you would like to do in the future and you can prepare accordingly.

I have broken many, but not all bad habits and have created many new ones. I don't always know where my path leads but I won't stop walking it. Everyday is a new day and I will live it to the fullest and learn to take, head on whatever comes.

I am still two sales away from 100 and I am almost ready to open up my next Etsy shop, but I haven't stopped working towards these goals. December isn't over and I need to prepare for the next thirty days. I have a feeling things will begin to change quickly and one day I will reflect and wonder how the thought, that I couldn't make my dreams come true, ever entered my mind.

Oh and as far as forming a solid day to day routine goes; I use step three: don't think, just do. Yep, I wake up in the morning and I clock in, to Last Minute Clothing.

Peace Out!

~Christina

Day 26

Well, Christmas is done but my 28 days are not. It is day 26, two days left in my habit forming adventure, two sales away from 100 and two days before a hopeful opening of a second Etsy shop.

Somewhat tough goals, due to very little time, limited resources and a strong desire to lounge around and enjoy what Christmas has brought. Yet with hopeful determination, a mind that has begun to conform around the beauty of my situation and an All Mighty ever just God on my side; I harbor a strong belief that something amazing will happen.

Step 9: Trust and Faith.

Without the faith to trust in my goals, I cannot succeed. There is no point in doing something, anything, even cooking; if I do not believe in what I am doing. Everything is part of a plan and happens in accordance.

Joy and determination on this Monday....

Day 20

During dinner a couple nights ago the movie, John Q came on. A great movie about a desperate father whose son is in need of a heart. The fathers insurance would not cover the surgery and the hospital was not very sympathetic. With time running out and no other options, the man takes the hospital by hostage until his son is put on the list.

The movie taps in to the many problems with our health insurance but there was one line that keeps repeating in my head. John Q (Denzel Washington) tells his son to make as much money as possible when he grows up, even if he has to sell out. He tells his son not to be stubborn like his father and make the money, because things are much easier with money.

Things are much easier with money... oh how true that can be. I always imagine the many places I can take Last Minute Clothing, if only I had the money; how much easier accomplishing all my goals would be. For instance, something simple, a customer of mine still has not received his product, for what reason I do not know. My first reaction to deal with the problem at hand would be to recreate the product and have it shipped overnight or by two day mail. I do not wont an upset customer under my belt. This would cost me at the very least $42.00 for a product that cost $18.95 with a profit margarine of about half that. Since my business cannot afford $42.00 nor my own pocket, I am forced to come up with other ways of handling the problem. Which may result in an upset customer.

There is a lot I am learning from this experience, for one buy the insurance and tracking information when shipping, it will be worth it. I should probably offer other shipping options that the customer can pay for if they wish to receive their package faster. Another, is patience for all I know it is at the customers post office waiting for him and the mistake is not on my part. I hope for this scenario, but am prepared for the worst.

So, maybe things would be easier with a bunch of money but what do you really learn? Generally those who have changed the world even in the slightest, start with nothing. They would have never changed anything if they were simply able to throw money at a problem, while indulging in the riches of this world. And really, how much easier are things when you have the money...?

With that said, I reach Step 8: Be Resourceful

Don't always look for the easiest way to solve a problem, look for the best way. This is the only way one can learn to change things. Any, things...

Day 19

Another Monday, and only four days until Christmas....

Oh how I would love to bake cookies, watch movies, wrap presents, lounge around; ya know, enjoy the holidays. Not the plan, even if I wanted it to be. I still have a subconscious, not totally set in stone, but really want to accomplish goal of opening up another Etsy shop by next week. I picked a good time to stat this shenanigan.

A few days ago I was moving right along and had no doubt that the goal in mind would be accomplished. Of course, those tedious habits found their way in. When I begin to fell a sense of accomplishment several things can happen. I will add more things to my list, thinking that I have time. When I realize that I don't really have the time I begin to cut corners in order to finish everything. This leads to a feeling of being overwhelmed and causes me to slow down; a feeling that I created. I am like an evil scientist, the villain and the victim at the same time.

So, I took the slow down as a good thing. I didn't go backwards, left or right; I found a safe spot, let my life bar recharge and am moving ahead. Accomplishing what is important first; like the upset customer in France who still hasn't received his product yet and the customer whose product needs to be shipped today so he can receive it before Christmas. Yes my family is extremely important and I really hope I can finish all the Christmas presents in time and even bake cookies; but, my family won't kill me if I don't. The customers will, they can destroy my business before it even has a chance to go somewhere.

I am off to finish this busy, rainy Monday and yes, I will have another pot of, I mean cup of coffee....

Day 16

A wise woman, by the name of Mom, suggested that I blog first thing in the morning as opposed to last thing at night. Blogging is meant to be motivational for myself and hopefully others. therefore if I wish to motivate myself with all that is Last Minute Clothing, I should begin my day with goals and ideas and words of motivation, rather than last thing at night when all I want to do is sleep.

So, Step 7 and the word for the day "Motivation"

Many people work for others or with others, generally they have a set list of things to accomplish, simple goals for the day. There are always sales goals to reach, quotas to fill and rewards that await them. These incentives are generally set by the company they work for or upper management. I don't have these people setting these goals for me. I have no one to compete with other than myself. This can be tough when your are attempting to find motivation in oneself.

Sure my long term goals are what motivate me. Day to day reminders help keep me going. But what motivates me each morning? I need to target that exact thought and hanker on it, so when I look around and all I see is how I can't do this, I remember why I can. Like in Harry Potter, when he has to find his happiest memory in order to produce a patronus to protect him from the dementors. Or when Peter Pan thinks happy thoughts in order to fly.

With that said, I am off to fly and ward off evil.....

Day 13

Day 13..............

Yup, it has been one of those days. The amount of things that have went wrong today have caused a rise in my level of discouragement. Yup, the space heater shorted out, I left the one item I went to the grocery store for, at the grocery store. A customer got the wrong item. This blog post deleted before it posted, causing me to rewrite the whole thing. Yup, all this stuff all day long...

But, these are just things. They are not things to be completely discouraged over. Many other people go through far worse in life and keep going.

We live in a world of instant gratification, but I did not grow up in that world. Not everything will go the way you want it to when you want it to and you can't always fix it with the click of a button. So, I will deal, and I will keep working. It is the only way I will ever be able to accomplish anything.

Yup, the only way to produce results is to work at it, whatever it is. So I kept sewing, all day, on day 13......

Day 12

Monday...

There's not really much I can say about this day. For one, I kept thinking it was Wednesday, which kept my stress level up, seeing as I thought half my week had gone by. Realizing it was actually Monday didn't bring my stress level down any, as many would assume it would. Apparently I enjoy being stressed out.

I can say, at least, that I still have Last Minute Clothing on the mind. I can't say however, that it was at the top of my list today. I felt old habits creeping in. Distractions disguised as important endeavors. I began to let myself be overwhelmed with the amount of stuff that I need to and have to do and began to do things I wanted to do.

I will say, that I put up a good fight and got most of the stuff done I needed to get done. Yet I could of had a more productive day if I didn't have to fight so much. And, I wouldn't be as tired.

Take each day at a time, for tomorrow may never come, so why wait? Seize every moment and opportunity and don't wait for the perfect time. Don't forget about those you love and remember why it is that you have goals in the first place. Remain Focused (step 4)

Never give up, It ain't the last minute yet...

Day 9

Well, today will be the first day in December that I have not had at least one sale from my Etsy shop. The reason, I'm guessing, my attitude.

All day I felt the overcoming strength of exhaustion with a strong desire to sit and stare and do nothing. I began to indulge in put off mode. "I'll just finish this later", became my attitude. This attitude of course lead me to the feeling of having too much to do, which is overwhelming. Then stress settles in and I am left paralyzed. I subconsciously move in a distracting path, deliberately slowing down progress.

Of course all of this is irrelevant. If I simply do the things I have to do and don't over-think the what ifs (step 3) then I will not have time to worry about how much I have to do and I will then notice that I don't really have that much to do; because I am actually doing the stuff I need to do.

Ha, seems easy enough...

Well apparently I am still stuck on step three. Oh yeah, I love repeating things over again (insert sarcasm here). Geeze la-wheeze, how hard is it to grasp this concept. I guess I will find out in the next 19 days...

Day 8

After a busy day of running around like the crazy that I am; finishing orders and staring into the medicine cabinet to look for thread. I took a break to eat dinner, (that my wonderful boyfriend cooked) and watch a movie. The movie of choice was Iron Man, the first one not the second, yeah I'm a bit behind in my movie watching.

Anyway this movie made me think about all the other super hero, comic book, action type movies that exist. All these movies have one thing in common, the little guy always wins; the Hero, always wins. The super hero generally has outrages powers that give him excellent ways to pulverize the bad guys, yet the bad guy some how manages to mock his power. Creating or supplying a bigger more powerful version of the original design. But always, the good guy finds a way to win the battle.

Why is that? Well for one, his powers were never used for world domination. Greed and ego never play a part. Generally the basic design of a super hero is to do good. Yet the most powerful power a super hero can obtain is his passion, his heart behind what he does. A super hero can never win if he does not have the heart to believe, against all odds that the impossible can be possible. That his foolish ideas are not foolish at all.

So, with that thought in mind, I reach Step 6: Have Passion In What You Do.

There is no point in doing something if your heart is not in it, good or bad. Fortunately I obtain the knowledge that good always conquers over evil and with this knowledge I know that I have no choice but to prosper. I am winning already, even if it looks like I'm losing...

Day 7

A wise man by the name of Larry Gatlin, once said: "The difference between those that do and those that don't, is often that some quit and some don't."

Many of us trying to achieve our goals, take on our dreams or change our paths in life; like to make excuses of why it just wont or can't work. If only I had this or I don't have that so there is no way it will work. I'm just to busy at this point in my life or it's not the right time. What about the dog, the kids, the house, etc... etc... Well I have to say I was one of those people. I never stopped talking about my goals, my dream, but there was always a but; until one day there was no longer a but. But of course, I still made (make) the excuses...

I have been given the perfect opportunity, at least in my eyes. I have the time, I have no major obligations, I have no children only my wonderful dog. I am, however lacking in the proper funding for the business I obtain; an excuse I can't argue with. BUT, there is a reason for that. What is the reason? Well, I haven't been fully intoxicated with all that is Last Minute Clothing. Hence the reason for the 28 day program. I, of course like many others, am excellent at making the proper excuses for why I haven't even begun to take Last Minute Clothing to its full potential. I have all faith that when I put my faith in the path that has been laid out for me, I will be given all I need to succeed.

This of course requires much obedience on my part, so every morning I have to remind my self that no reason is good enough for me to give up. I have to continue with the belief that what I am doing is not foolish, I have to remind my self to NOT give up!

So, no steps or ideas today, just words: Nothing is ever as bad as it seems and with God, all things are possible...



{reference, Pastor Larry Gatlin: www.indiojourney.org}

Day 6

All in all, not a bad day. Some things may of took me a bit longer than they should of, but at least I got most of the stuff done that needed to be done. Next, after I get the hang of forming my routine, I can then learn to speed up the parts that can be sped up. Of course I can only move so fast when quality plays an important part in the products I create.

Since today was a productive one I thought I would take a moment to explain one of my immediate goals for Last Minute Clothing. I currently have a store on Etsy that sells specialized cuffs and arm warmers from my own design and work. My cuffs are unique to the mass that are on Etsy due to the buttons. The buttons are functioning and help the cuffs stand out. My sales are not through the roof yet but percentage wise they are beating last years numbers. My goal, of course is to boost sales for the current site but I have a different goal; a bigger goal. I want to sale my clothing designs on line. I have many one of a kind designs (too many sometimes) that I am in the middle of creating in to actual pieces for sale.

Here is where my main struggle lies. If I can not form a solid routine and defeat discouragement I believe that I will never be able to be successful in this goal. Thus deferring me from the many other goals I wish to accomplish in the immediate future. So, baby steps with a flaming fire right behind me. You catch my drift.

So, Step 5: Don't give up, that finish line isn't as far as I think...

Day 5

OK, so, the weekend was me going crazy and I almost relapsed. I had to re-group and focus.

I let myself get boggled down with the items on the list, trying to complete each task, mundane or not. I would then begin a stress rampage as I notice the time on the clock dwindle down. Yet I couldn't just stop, that would be me giving up. So I changed one of the ideas of forming my solid routine, 'list in order of urgency' to prioritize and don't write down. When I see a list of things I would like to do for the day, I then feel like I must accomplish each and every single goal in one day; mundane or not. If I didn't accomplish each goal, I would feel as if I was letting down others expectations of me. Then, of course my own expectations for myself. Even if the task are non-detrimental to the goals of Last Minute Clothing.

So, instead of writing each and every single thing down for the day. I begin with the most important task and continue down the line. When I feel I have reached a point where most of the high urgency task are complete I then think about all the other things I would like to do and pick one or two depending on how much time I have left in the day.

I also stick to the rule of Step 3 'Don't Think Just Do'
When moments would arise where I started thinking about all the important yet not urgent task, such as every ones Christmas presents, the house chores, going to the fabric store, calling my Mom; I would simply stop and continue sewing. A hard thing for me to do, but I would continually remind my self that the stuff will get done, but only if I finish the orders or the project at hand first.

So for Step 4 of the intoxication process 'Focus'

Remember where the finish line is, see it in your head and when you get closer, do not become distracted by everything else. Remain focused on the goal ahead.

Day 3

I just got told to relax!

Well, I guess I needed to hear it. It is Saturday, day 3 of "the program" and I am a stress case. My plan was to utilize Saturday as a day to catch up on leftover goals from the week and also a day to do all the house chores and what not.......

Hmmm, I'm trying to do everything today all at once, here's the list:
~finish and ship the three orders I got today and yesterday (yay more orders)
~take pictures of new merchandise, to post on etsy
~Sort through Avon orders and ship (oh yeah I sell Avon)
~make a trip to the fabric store
~trip to the grocery store
~house chores
~finish re-arranging the apartment (I'm creating a bigger work space)
~decorate the house, it is the holiday season after all...

So I started with stressing out, then I tried step 3 "Don't think just do" then I realized I had no idea what I was doing. I think I was trying to combine a work day with a day off, which I can do both, yet only if I remember that the steps to intoxication also apply to the other elements of my life.

So with that said, I'm off to the fabric store and the post office oh and I need coffee; it's a necessity at this point....

Day 2

So here it is day two and I am already discouraged.

The reason: Those goals I set yesterday I only accomplished the first one. The most important one yeah, but still only one...

The explanation/excuse: I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing so I made two left handed gloves, had to make another. Then I sewed the buttons on the wrong side, had to take 'em off and do it again. After that I still had to create postage labels and head on out to the post office, while taking care of several other errands. This is all way more time consuming than I would assume it to be and next thing I knew it was 10:00 at night. What?

The result: Before I even got out of bed this morning I was already overwhelming myself with the what ifs and the things I cannot control.

What if what I am doing is not what I am supposed to be doing? What if I can't compete? I am only one person. What if I am just wasting time? What if no one reads my blog? Why should I even bother writing? What if my clothing doesn't fit right and no one buys it? What if I don't have enough sales this month and can't pay my bills?

This then, of course, led in to many other thoughts. Maybe I should just focus on making more cuffs or making some beanies to sell instead of my clothing. I don't have the resources I need to accomplish all my goals. Then I let myself get distracted with all the other stuff that needs to be done, like house chores and what to get/make everyone for Christmas that doesn't cost money. Then of course I start stressing out about Christmas and other holiday ordeals. This then led to a slight moment of depression, 'cause it can be pretty depressing knowing you can't buy or make all the things you would want for your friends and family.

These thought lasted until just a few hours ago, when I finally stopped wasting time thinking and just started sewing buttons on cuffs. Hey what do you know I finished one of the goals set for yesterday.

It is when I start working that things seem most clear to me. I knew I didn't have to worry about the house chores and what not until later today or over the weekend. Why? well if I was anyone not self employed I would be in an office or retail space unable to do anything other than work. So I need to start clocking in to my job. I am my own boss and right now I am not being a very good one. I am not strict enough and as a result production is down and sales are low due to lack of merchandise. Just because I am a small business does not mean I am any different than those ginormous corporations. The same principles still apply to me. The only difference is that I actually enjoy what I am doing and there is a heart and soul behind my product.

So the goal for the rest of the day:
-continue with the concept design for the new dress and do some actual constructing...

And as for forming my solid routine:
-the third idea: clock in! Start treating my own work as I would any other work environment.

And finally...

Step 3: Don't Think Just Do

The only way to make progress is to actually produce. When I spend to much time weighing the pro's and con's or contemplating the what ifs, the only result is a headache and I can't afford Tylenol. So I guess the best thing to do is, to do. Hey Nike makes a whole lotta money with their catch phrase. I would assume, it works...

Day 1

The Mission: intoxicating myself to all that is Last Minute Clothing. Learning to ignore the elements of negativity (especially the ones in my own head) by forming a solid day to day routine for this self employed fashion designer.

Step 1: Detoxification

This only took me two years...

The irony of it, is that I was/am my only enemy, my friends and family all believe in me, yet I would fall off the wagon by not believing I could do what I have always wanted to do. Typical of an addict; I was addicted to the idea of my dream, my goals completely failing. Yet, what is success without failure? I would venture out and look for new ways to survive (a new drug), instead of continuing with what I was already doing. Using (other drugs) seemingly promising endeavors as a distraction only to come right back to the exact same spot, with much time wasted.

So here I am, "completely" (we all know what completely can mean) detoxicated, ready to take on all that is Last Minute Clothing, ready for a healthy addiction. Knowing all to well that many will tempt me with their false pretenses and OK for you drugs. Every day will be a struggle but, "I got this"!

Step 2: Forming a Routine

Here lies the beginning struggle, getting out of bed in the morning even if you don't really have to. Sure, I can work til 3:00 in the morning and sleep til noon, who's gonna stop me. But can I really? Is that wise? I mean how much work do I really get done and how often do opportunities come up where I want to go out but can't. Or I do go out and a customer doesn't get his or her order in time. Or, how often would I miss opportunities related to my business because I was still in bed. Yeah, not the way I want to run my business so I have learned how to get up with the sun(ish) and go to bed when I am tired. This did take me a while to learn how to do, I'll spare the details for another time. As a result I actually get more sleep now than I did going to bed late and waking up late. But I still struggle with distractions and getting work done during the day.

So a few ideas for forming my solid routine:

-First: Do not worry about what will happen tomorrow and do not worry about what happened yesterday (Luke 22:25 for those of you who read the Bible) Only focus on the task and goals at hand.

-Second: With that being said, set small goals, ones that I would like to accomplish and ones that need to be accomplished. Don't go crazy with the long term list of curing world hunger and what not, just stick to the realistic for now goals. Then place these goals in order of urgency.

-Third: I don't know yet, I haven't got that far. Still a bit overwhelmed with the first and second ideas. Geeze.

So, here I go, goals for the day:
-finish and ship the two orders that should have went out yesterday (yeah, should of...)
-finish new set of cuffs for posting on Etsy (...sew on buttons)
-begin concept and design for new dress

OK, doesn't seem to hard, lets see what happens...