I don’t know about you, but I’m not perfect. In fact, I’m far from it. You’ll probably see misspellings and grammar errors here and there. And I’ll admit that some of my posts were 100% mistakes on my part.
I’m pretty ecstatic about it.
And nope I’m not a masochist either.
I’ve just learned something important-you may say life changing-about mistakes over the years.
They are good things!
In fact, I’m almost too thrilled when another error has taken place.
I find it ironic or dare I say, “serendipitous” that something occurs every week that coincides with The Joy Diet. And this week was no different. One of my challenges has been feeling disconnected-the downside of working at home and getting deep into social media. I’ve gotten great at the daily tweets or Facebook comments online, but in the real world, I’ve shied away from TMRI or too much real interaction.
According to Beck, it’s the risk we take when two people become three-a dynamic that can make us vulnerable to things like heartbreak and rejection. Yet, connecting with others is the very thing we need the most. Supportive relationships are what helps take us through the “not so perfect now” to the life of our dreams.
In order to tackle this ugly monster, I’ve been practicing diligently like the “good” student I am by doing nothing, being honest, and taking small risks on a daily basis.
In honest language, this means I’ve stared off in space while I waited for things to happen (my husband to come back to the car, the computer to stop thinking, etc.). It also means that I’ve been brutally honest about my life and the choices I’m making in the present moment to create my future reality.
Beck tells us to try to do nothing in relationships with others. I’ve been spending more time focusing on listening to others rather than worrying about responding. Although I haven’t always been successful, I notice that during moments when I can fully be present, I feel less stressed in the conversation and more compassionate about who I’m listening too.
Yes it’s another one! Recently, a dream came true when I started “chatting” via twitter with one of my role models and inspiring author of this book (I think I’ve laughed and cried from laughing on almost all of her books.) Martha Beck. I’m sure she’s someone with the kind of generous spirit that will chat with anyone, but I can’t tell you how much my spirit lifted and my heart soared. I took a giant risk, for me anyway, to contact her. And I felt validated, in fact, I felt “heard” just like what she talks about in chapter 9 and just like my favorite scene in the movie Avatar.
In fact, I’m starting to wonder what it would be like if we all stopped focusing on our own insecurities, doubts and worries and focus entirely on the person right in front of us.
We might just become more happy, compassionate and connected beings.
In case you’re curious…
ME: Thanks you for making my day! I’m heavily into, “The Joy Diet” and can’t tell you what a difference it has already made.
MB: At the risk of sounding like a dork, it’s people like YOU who inspire ME!
I believe things happen for a reason and my recent run in with inspiring blogger Annabel Candy is a good example of that. Call it synchronicity. Call it a god wink. Call it mere coincidence. What I know for sure is that finding Candy was sweet synergy to me.
I first spotted her on Problogger. She was a guest blogger, posting the popular, “Getting Over the Blogger’s 6 Month Itch.” I was so intrigued that I ventured over to her site Get in the Hot Spot to check it out. When I discovered that her mission was to help others follow their dreams, I was sold. That’s why I’m thrilled to feature here as this week’s Successful Dreamer! I hope that you’ll be as inspired by Annabel as I was by her. So without further ado, please welcome inspiring writer and world traveler, Annabel Candy.
I set the blog up to put myself ‘in the hot spot’ and force myself to write, so the name came from that idea. But there are a few other meanings of ‘hot spot’ that fit nicely too.
A hot spot’s a lively, active place and I want my blog to be a fun, informative centre for personal development with the focus on helping people achieve their dreams.
My personal dream involves travel and a lot of my readers also want to travel, yearning for warmer climates and exotic places. Get In the Hot Spot is a place where people can come to dream, to learn how to start working towards their dreams and to stay motivated. The idea is that me and the readers each enjoy living in our own personal hot spot.
The aim has changed. At first I did it to get myself to write. That worked.
Then I decided to see if I could get 1000 subscribers to convince a publisher I had a readership and get my manuscript published. But I had more fun writing the blog than the manuscript!
I’m still working towards getting 1000 subscribers in a year but I have until March 2010 to achieve it. If that works the next challenge will be to see if I can make money out of my blog because that way I can carry on writing it without my husband complaining that I spend too much time on it:)
I’d love to keep getting more readers and help more people to start working towards living their dream.
If you don’t follow your dreams you won’t be happy. If they don’t work out it won’t matter, you’ll be glad you tried and good will still come from that. For me true happiness lies in following our secret dreams, no matter how big, small or silly they are.
I can think of three big hurdles:
Doing an MA in Design for Interactive Media when I didn’t even know how to turn on a computer was hard.
Giving birth to an 11lb baby at home was hard.
Travelling round Central America with three kids aged 1, 5 and 8 was hard.
But I love to take on challenges. I get stuck in and do it. The hard part doesn’t last long when you look back and the final rewards are brilliant.
When you set yourself a challenge and do it you end up feeling as if you’ve conquered Everest. It’s a real confidence booster that makes you think you can do anything. It gives you a winning attitude which encourages you to challenge yourself more.
Yes! All the time. I think a lot of writers do.
The only way to overcome doubt or fear is to face it. So I wrote and shared my writing then I got some positive feedback and that persuaded me to carry on.
Like most things writing takes practice. Now I write daily my writing is faster and hopefully it’s getting better too.
Go for it. My parents warning me not to become a writer because it was “too competitive”. I want to encourage my kids to do what they love and try things out for themselves. You have to learn by experience.
Two things. When you get a new idea for a post – the aha moment is great.
And I love reading comments from people thanking me for inspiring me and helping them. That’s why I write so it’s great to know when I’ve achieved my goal.
Thank you Annabel for your words of wisdom and inspiration! Please visit Annabel’s website Get in the Hot Spot 2 be inspired. She would love to hear from you and is open to questions and to assist readers looking to pursue their dreams.
I love to read about others inspiring stories and if you’ve found your way here, there’s a good chance you like reading them too. That’s why I decided to compile a list of sites that feature some of the best in heart warming, happy stories. It’ll lift you up during tough times and inspire you to spread your own joy in good. Happy Friday you all!
This is just a few of the sites that help inspire me. Do you have any favorites you’d like to share? I’d love to add them to my list!
