Hot Mama, you can indeed have it all. The successful career, fulfilling goals and
dreams as well as still being the fantastic care giver you have always been to
your children.
As a mother myself, I know that taking care of my family is
a top priority and for a long time I was scared to things for me in case my
children slipped down the priority list.
Newsflash…. This doesn’t happen by itself…
I was scared to try new things because I thought that if my
children didn’t have every moment of my undivided attention, even if they were
off doing other things, I would be failing them and me.
How wrong was I? So wrong… When I decided to do little
things for me, which made me feel good, this good feeling permeated the home
and the relationship with my children. I
felt a little lighter and brighter. The reason for this was that I was a little
more satisfied. Unbeknown to me it was a small act of self-love.
When I decided to embark on a total change of career, it
took a lot of courage, lots of tears and support from others who knew I could
be self-employed and still be a fab mother.
I wrestled the desire in my heart against the negative self-talk that
always wanted me to stay the same, not to venture out, to accept my lot and
allow my dreams and desire to wither away.
All I knew was that doing my 9-5 job was becoming more and more challenging;
my true talents were not being used consistently. I felt most alive at work when I was
mentoring or organising social events, where I felt I was making a positive
difference in people’s lives. I wanted to do this full-time and get paid for
it.
Once I set my intention, a lot of help came my way. Friends
and family were supportive. I found networking groups that offered support. I
didn’t suddenly resign my position at work, but I began to really explore what
I wanted to do, set some goals and put some plans in place. I wasn’t sure when
I was going to leave my job, but I trusted that it would be at the right time…
The right time happened when I got made redundant. I wasn’t
surprised because spiritually and emotionally I had resigned a long time
ago. I had a bit of a buffer; I could
live off my redundancy for about a year…. I was scared witless, but I owed it
to me to give it a shot. Did I love myself enough to do this for myself? In all
the planning and researching and goal setting I did, I saw this as an act of
self-love because I had to ensure that I had enough of the moving parts in
place for me to continue to be a fantastic mother to my boys. In no way were they to be negatively impacted
for my decision to ‘go it alone’. It was
like I had to make sure my reserves of self-love were overflowing to ensure
that this flowed to my boys. It wasn’t about just going to the gym, putting on
my make-up but it was deeper than that, did I love myself enough to listen to
the whispers of my heart. Did I love myself enough to take me where I felt I
deserved to be? Did I love myself enough to live with purpose? Did I love myself enough to be true to me and
stop hiding behind the role of motherhood?
I took the time to define the prize. I embarked on this new
journey, keeping my eye just not on the end goal, but on the little steps along
the way. I celebrated each step I made
and the challenges I overcame. I
embraced my fears by talking about them during networking. I involved my children
as much as I could. Their support was a key part to my success. I ran things by
them, sought their opinion when it was appropriate. My children were proud of me and that helped
to keep me going when I wondered what the hell I was doing…. I was showing my children that there was
another way, that they could pursue their dreams. I was giving them a valuable
lesson that wasn’t taught in school, I was teaching them to break the mould,
that going after their dream was a beautiful act of self-love. I was being a
trailblazer for my children and most importantly I was my mojo back. I was a hot, fulfilled Mama, living a life on and with purpose.
We
were all happy.
