what does success mean to you

I think that often times we measure our success not by what we think it means to be successful but what we think others think it means to be successful. The very first definition of success in the dictionary states: the favourable outcome of something attempted- many of us often link success to money and how much money it takes to be successful can be different to every one, just like how is success defined can vary. But do we really need money to be successful? Does it have to be associated with each other, can it be? Yes of course, but does it have to define us? No. We can be successful at many attempts of anything in our life. From finding our keys in the morning before we walk out the door to finishing the dishes at night before we go to bed, to getting a better job, spending time with our loved ones after a hard day all the way to becoming a millionaire and every where in between. You can often times be more successful yearning for something then how much you can earn at it. Success does not equal money. As Zig Ziglar said- Success is not measured by what you do compared to what others do, it is measured by what you do with the ability God gave you. He also said- you can always earn money but can never get back time wasted. I love this and it is so true. Time is gone in a blink of an eye, an unkind word, a missed chance, an opportunity gone by.. pay attention to your calling, listen for it, find it embrace it, you never know what you may be missing.

Time

There is definitely something to be said for time. Time can allow a lot of potential in your life. Today was a day that I felt that time and patience allowed me to accomplish a lot of the necessary things that I had been needing to do. Things that the weekend did not allow for due to being to busy working every day.
I finished my book edits, wrote some contracts, played with my son, made dinner, paid some bills, and some other unmentioned items of paperwork. I wish every day allowed for me to have this sense of calm in my life. I think the hurried attitude that I constantly feel the need to have really isn't all that healthy but sometimes unpreventable. This time that I experienced today will prove positive results in my near future I am almost certain of it. I will keep my chin up, smile and carry the confident attitude that I need to produce the results I am looking for. If I can visualize it, I receive the instructions on how to make it happen. Positive thoughts prove positive results.
Here is to patience and taking my time, to hear what my opportunities may be.

Wow, what a day! I could have totally had it be a crappy one for the start that I had. Apparently something is wrong with my alarm, my husband didn't set his and I planned to wake up at 4 to do a little cardio workout before work. Paxton fussed a few times in the middle of the night and the dog had to go out so my sleep pattern was interrupted more than a few times. I guess the odds were against me, or maybe in my favor when I woke up startled to face the clock that said 5:28 AM, someone must have thought I needed a little more sleep time! Granted my alarm clock is about 10 minutes fast but I usually leave the house at 5:35 AM so 5:18 doesn't allow for much time to get ready. I somehow was able to get dressed, pull my hair in a ponytail, shove some lunch in my lunch bag and get out the door by 5:45 only 10 minutes later than normal. I made it to work makeup-less but somehow only 8 minutes late. I had to be grateful that I wasn't too late, I got there safely and in a pretty decent mood. I am trying to begin to realize that there are certain things that we can't fix, re-do or change. It is what it is and we have to accept it and look forward. I was proud of myself for remaining calm and not letting it ruin my day. My husband made it to work exactly on time for him, YAY!
I had a great day at work. I started my day off with my friend who loves to keep me in check of my attitude and emotions and I of hers. We have been doing daily worksheets and lists to keep us in check of our lives and our emotions and allow us to focus on our daily tasks rather than outside circumstances, not only to be productive employees but also personally grateful for the things we do have.
Once a week we do a Questions to ask myself daily worksheet, this helps to focus on what we are doing in our life to bring about the things we want the most. Other days we just make lists like why we have enough or why we deserve more. Today our list was: The things we liked most about our self? It is really hard to answer this question at times I think. Sometimes we are too modest, sometimes to conservative and sometimes feel to embarrassed to share with others how we truly feel about ourselves not wanting to look egotistical or self centered. I think we don't boost ourselves up enough. Frankly sometimes I think I am awesome and I should! I work hard and I need to remember to believe in myself, believe in my abilities, believe that God has planned for me to do great things with my life and be grateful that I am here to do these things. As I said last night on my face book page, it is never to late to be what you might have been.

Random Acts of Kindness

Have you ever had someone do something for you that was kind but unexpected? Have you ever done something for someone and they didn't even know it was you? How about for a complete stranger?
On my way to the zoo this morning I decided that since I had given up coffee for lent I deserved a yummy Soy Chai Latte from Starbucks; A Venti nonetheless. I went through the drive thru, when I approached the window the lady smiled really big and said, here you go have a nice day the lady in the vehicle in front of you paid for your drink... I looked at her and said " you are kidding right? Did she know me?" She said no, she just paid for it. Wow, I was speechless. I was on the phone with my husband at the time that couldn't believe it either. I silently said a prayer and blessed the lady for having such a kind heart. I truly felt blessed. It really amazes me in this day and time that someone would be so nice as to do this for me. Why was I the lucky one? I decided that it was not for me to question, just to add to my list of things to be grateful for and to pay it forward someday.
Og Mandino's Rule Ten of a Better Way to Live states:
Beginning today, treat everyone you meet, friend or foe, loved one or stranger, as if they were going to die at midnight. Extend to each person, no matter how trivial the contact, all the care and kindness and understanding and love that you can muster, and do it with no thought of any reward. Your life will never be the same again.

5 simple questions

I never thought that 5 simple questions on a written interview would be such a huge deal to me or make me think deeper about myself, who I am and where I want to be. I never thought it would take me 5 days to approach them with gusto. It is amazing to me how little we can have confidence in our self when we think it may be of the utmost importance. I guess sometimes it is hard to praise our self and not in some little way seem cocky about it. I am a pretty modest person, but I think I am good at the things I do and I am proud of myself for my accomplishments, yet I don't want to seem like one of those people that everyone deems stuck up, stuck on themselves or too good for others. I want my abilities to be natural, I want to maintain approachability and trust of others, I want to remain free of judgement but still motivate others to reach a place where they too have confidence and give 100% of themselves to whatever their cause or passion may be. I want to worry less and enjoy more, I want to fear less and do more. I want to approach things with ease not struggle. I want to be passionate in the things I do, give my best to every situation that I encounter, I may not be able to choose my situation, but I can definitely handle and control how I deal with it. I need to remember to always walk in my own shoes, never someone else's.

who am I

Sometimes I think that I contemplate too many things and it is hard to make a decision. I second guess myself as I think we all do at times. My latest dilemma deals with my books and how I want the world to see me as an author.
I have contemplated how I should sign my books and it really took a lot of thinking and a good friend to help me see what the right thing would be, even though it might not be what she originally intended.
I remember as far back as 5th or 6th grade writing poetry, then short stories. I have always signed them Dani Rae. Growing up Danielle Rae Jen, only a few people referred to me in this way. I guess I felt maybe it distinguished me no maybe defined me as a writer? Nonetheless, I didn't want to hurt anyones feelings or have someone take it the wrong way now that I am now Dani Miller, I have not always been Dani Miller and that is not what defines me.
I asked a close friend who has known me as both. In a way I think she was trying to get me to see that it was okay to be Dani Rae, even if I struggled with it being too personal for a children's book. She said the books are inspired by your beautiful bay boy, so yes it is personal in a way, the artist in me wrote the book and my artist is danirae. Then it hit me, it was my beautiful baby boy that inspired me to write my children's series and I highly doubt I would be the mother of my beautiful baby boy, if I hadn't become Dani Miller and for that, that is who I am now.

Lent

There are plenty of things I have given up in the past that weren't really huge, things that I knew I could have again eventually or things that maybe I didn't have on a daily basis, like sweets. I really agree about the meaning and reason behind why a lot of Christian faith's "give up" something during this time, many people give there word and don't last 1 week, 1/2 way let alone all the way to the end of Lent, even when I was a kid growing up, we could have whatever we gave up on Sundays. As I was sitting in church on Sunday listening to the priest talk about Lent and sacrifice and keeping your word in a society that is easy to give into peer pressure and go with the crowd it dawned on me that sometimes I think we give up things that we know we can or that we have before, otherwise we have a fear of failing or not sticking to our word. Why it is that we do this I am not certain. Are we really easy to give in to pressure and our own mind somehow telling us it is okay to cheat or go back on our original promise whether it be to our self or someone else? I often times think that it is easy to make up excuses in our head as to why it is okay to slip up, make that mistake, lots of people mess up you just start over again. It goes back to the same principles that I have talked about before. You can promise yourself you will diet starting Monday, you will start exercising for sure, you will read more, spend more time with the ones you love, do something once a month for yourself, call your loved ones more, quit smoking, give up alcohol, candy, sweets, carbs, caffeine or some other crutch you have... and when it doesn't work out, heck no worries you will just do it again... starting Monday.
I think this habit of allowing ourselves to do it again has led us to go against our original word. Take marriage for example, it is such a norm for divorce nowadays. If it isn't working out, no biggie we can get out of it, move on to the next person and try again. This is really sad. I hope that my marriage continues to grow and I am never faced with such a situation. It takes effort and sometimes I think we are too tired in this fast paced world to put much effort into a lot of things that we do.
I have let the priest sermon sink in, it really makes me feel that whatever it is that I give my word on I should definitely strive to stick to it, hold myself accountable, not be picky/choosy when it comes to what I can make myself stick to and eh, what is okay to take back. My word should be my word whether to myself or someone else.
So today I give my word that I will take this Lenten Season to renew my commitment to myself and God.
I will give up coffee (this is going to be a hard one, not only because I wake up for work at 4:30 AM but because I have grown accustom to the taste and the pleasure of drinking my flavored creamer coffee on my hour drive to work.)
I am also throwing in a do, on top of my sacrifice, I will be more patient with myself and not allow things to get to me, things happen beyond my control and the more upset I get about a situation the more negative energy I release.
Hopefully with the combination of both of these things plus my dedication to going to the gym 3-4 days a week will give me a much needed boost in energy to climb from any slumps that may have appeared over the course of the past couple years.
"Everyone who got to where they are had to begin where they were." - Richard Paul Evans

why let it get to me

Oh how I wish that things didn't get me so upset. I hate it when you try to explain something to someone over and over and truly feel that you may as well be talking to a brick wall. There are certain situations that I wish I could just make go away, medical bills that I don't agree with (granted some of what is owed I understand) but the hidden fees and non explained items up front don't settle right in my book. When you offer a service to someone and make it sound great but don't say there is a fee attached it kind of rubs me the wrong way. When I provide a service for someone I am going to say what they are getting involved in up front, I am going to be honest, I am going to treat the customer with respect and I am going to fully explain everything. I am not going to use lingo they don't understand without explaining it, I am going to make sure that the customer is satisfied and if they are not I am going to correct it or figure out a plan. Too many businesses these days are so big that one or a few dissatisfied people are really not going to hurt the business as a whole and therefore they feel they have the power to treat others with disrespect and negligence. It is quite absurd.
Now that I just vented I am going to let this go, think positive that I will get it straightened out this week (after 15 months of argument) before I stress my self out even more, and just list all the little things today that I am thankful for. To concentrate on the good, the positive and allow my attitude to reflect those things and not the frustrations that I apparently cannot control no matter how hard I try.
I am grateful for my husband who helped out this morning.
For my adorable little kid.
My in laws for watching my son so I could go to a meeting for Real Estate after work.
For my husband for cooking dinner and putting our son to bed.
For my mom who supports me in everything I do.
For the sunshine, blue skies and beautiful weather.
For co-workers who believe in my abilities.
For friends.
Going to the gym and getting a great workout.
Sticking to my eating and workout plan.
Getting an accepted contract.
Learning about new marketing tools that will help increase my RE business.
For talking with a student who brightened my day.
For understanding people.
I am grateful for much much more.
Today this entry may be a little random, but the venting helped.
This quote of the day sums me up in a nutshell a lot of the time.

"Most people are so busy knocking themselves out trying to do everything they think they should, they never get around to do what they want to do."

Kathleen Winsor
1919-2003, Author