We are in the crazy, holding pattern days between the holidays of Christmas and New Year's Eve. The kids are out of school, playing with whatever gadgets and toys they got, work crawls along for most people, myself included. We are in the midst of my favorite sports time of year, with college football bowl games to watch, sprinkled in with the college basketball season revving up, and then throw in professional football and basketball, and you have a recipe for a lot of nogging and nodding in front of whatever device you use to watch these events!
Lessons from the gridiron
My NC State Wolfpack came out of their bowl game with a big victory yesterday, and I am ecstatic about that! And in watching those 20+ senior players play their last game at my Alma Mater, I think about what they have built at State. Going from a 3-9 season their first year to a 9 win season this year, it makes me think about the idea of laying a foundation for future success. It takes a lot of hard work, blood, sweat, discipline, overcoming adversity, and keeping up the fight when the chips are down and you are in the middle of a 6 game losing streak. The mental fortitude it takes to keep going should not be underestimated. It also takes focused training, and understanding where you want to go to rise above those challenges. Yes, you are still going to lose games, face adversity, and get knocked down. But your preparation, training and past experiences will help you bounce back more quickly from these setbacks, and they will be fewer and further between- if you have that proper foundation that has been built steadily and conscientiously through time. I'm sure all of this has been said a million times in a million places, but in beginning to try and build my career from years of just breaking even, it is ringing true to me right now. I realize that the idea of things just falling into place and the "if you paint it, they will come" mentality has been holding me back. I've been in neutral. I've been waiting for others to elevate my career instead of taking action and doing it for myself. So my business resolution for the 2018 is to shift into drive! I guess time will tell whether or not I have some success in moving forward or I burn up the clutch- but dammit, I'm going to at least try! And this blog, my online store, the mini paintings are just the beginning of a plan I am still developing, and I am really looking forward to the challenge ahead! Happy New Years Eve Eve, everybody!!
No More of This!