Optimistic Mondays – Tomorrow’s the Big Day

This is it! Today is the last day I can claim to be in my 20’s. Tomorrow I turn 30. As promised, today I will reveal my “Mission Statement”. I’m know you have all been living in suspense. The fan mail has been rolling in. Hundreds of you have begged me to leak the secret, but I’ve been strong. I hope you didn’t loose too much sleep over this. Well, actually I hope you lost a little. That would make me feel important. Are you ready?

First a little explanation. About six months ago, I got this idea. I based it off the fact that successful businesses all over the world have something in common. They have a Mission Statement. It’s something that keeps them on track. It tells the employees what is expected of them, and it helps the clients and customers know what the company stands for, and that they live by a certain code.

I decided that if it works for them, maybe it would work for me too. So without further ado, I give you my mission statement for my 30’s.

"Digging Deeper"

Say what??? Allow me to explain.

I have spent my twenties trying to figure out where I belong. I have started dozens of projects. I’ve tried out new things. I’ve wanted to master them all. You know what I’m talking about. I wanted to be the perfect mother, housekeeper, cook, employee, gardener, photographer, scrapbooker, breadmaker, piano player, Spanish learner, singer, artist, visiting teacher, friend, blogger, exerciser, reader, craft show maker, makeup consultant, and many more I can’t think of right now.

I saw someone else succeeding at something, and I wanted to do it too. But I didn’t just want to do these things casually; I wanted to be the best there was. I never really thought of myself as competitive, I just wanted it for myself. I had a genuine interest. I loved to learn new things.

The problem was I didn’t have time to really focus on any of those things. I got so overwhelmed by the task in front of me, that I would give up, and find something else to master. It was a vicious pattern.

I’m not disappointed about my 20’s. I did a lot of wonderful things. I grew, progressed, learned, and experimented. See last weeks post.

Now it’s time to move on. This time, instead of just skimming the surface, I’m going to be digging deeper. I’m going to pick a few things, and focus on them. I’m going to let go of the rest. I’ll not be completely abandoning them, just not focus on them. For example, I love to take pictures. But somehow I couldn’t just take a picture for fun. I dreamt of being a professional. I’m letting that go.

I don’t plan to participate in craft shows. Instead, I’ll go and support my friends that are in them. Artwork? It was never really in my blood. Easy to let go of. Gardening? I want to have a garden, but no longer want to learn the proper name of each flower. I wont try to plant every variety of vegetable.

Instead, here is where I will list the things I plan on focusing during my 30’s.

1. I am first and foremost a mother. I have a heavy responsibility placed on my shoulders, and feel the weight of it every day. The next ten years will bring many moments of joy, pain, challenge, and worry to my family. My children will be exposed to the world, and things I would rather protect them from. I hope I will be a good enough mom to prepare them.

2. Recently I developed my passion for writing, and have every intention of taking it to higher levels. Sometime in the next 10 years, I hope to become a published author. I hope it doesn’t take the whole time, but even if it does I’m not giving up.

3. I own a piano. It’s a beautiful piece of furniture that sits in my living room. My children play on it every now and then, and I plan to put them in lessons when they are old enough. I used to play it regularly, but with everything else going on, I’ve abandoned it. I plan to get back into it, and regain some of my talent. I hope to be able to start lessons again.

There you have it. It’s a small list, but hey-it’s supposed to be. It’s hard to let go of so many things, but it’s the only way I’ll be able to really focus on what’s the most important for me. I will still do things that are not on my list, but I won’t obsess about them anymore.

I’ve got my shovel (literally, a friend gave me one, see picture above) and I’m Digging Deeper. I can’t wait to look back in 10 years and see what I’ve accomplished. Okay, I can wait. I don’t want it to go too fast. ;)

Happy Monday.