Wednesday, February 29, 2012

postheadericon My Weakness

My weakness, I'll admit it, is being a thinker...yep, I think too much.  In other words, I tend to spend way too much time analyzing.  One manager I worked for called this "paralysis by analysis."  Yep...that's me.  I have been trying to come up with a topic to blog about, so what did I do?  I would come up with an idea, then analyze it's worthiness or interest appeal...then I would chuck the idea.  I'm sure I probably had some really good ideas, but just overthought them.

This imperfection in my persona causes me much grief.

  • I have times when someone will ask me to do a custom cookie design and I think about the best way to do the design, but have trouble shifting from the thought process to the "doing" processes.  
  • I want to lose weight, and have a great treadmill in the basement, and I will think about going down and getting on to run a mile, but then I begin to think about what I have to get done to complete the goal...shower, 
UPDATE:  I started writing this blog post 2 days ago...guess what I did...thought maybe it wasn't interesting enough, so I walked away from it.  

I went back and read it this morning, and laughed...because last night while at Target, I split the seat of my jeans open...okay, so they were old jean, but I have been gaining weight and I knew I needed to do something about it...that was the last "thread." 

I went back on Weight Watchers this morning and walked a mile on the treadmill.  Whose with me on losing some weight?  Feel free to join in the misery!  

I will be brave and put it all out there for ya...I'm 5'4", weight this morning was 181.4 pounds...squeezing in to my size 12 jeans...so my goal is to drop 2 pant sizes and stay there!  


Photobucket
Friday, February 24, 2012

postheadericon Snowy day!

We have been talking (okay, somewhat complaining) about the very mild winter here in Illinois. 

Today I need to go hit Sam's Club to stock up on flour, sugar, butter, all the cookie necessities, and this is what it looks like outside.

Going to Sam's with my 2-year-old grandson in tow is going to be an adventure!  I need a shower already just from shoveling my driveway to get to my car!




Wednesday, February 22, 2012

postheadericon Dream Job

I love decorating cookies.  I have so many "heros" that I follow on Facebook and Flickr who I adore their work, to name a few (in no particular order), there is My Little Bakery, Sweet Sugar Belle, Polka Dot Zebra, Cookie Crazy, Ali Bee's Bake Shop, so many more I could go on and on.  I learn from these ladies all the time, new techniques, designs, and even what it means to be supportive in a virtual environment.

I started my cookie business with the goal of it becoming my Dream Job, one day being able to give up my regular job of medical transcription to work my own custom cookie business.  I follow Marie Forelo and through her emails I learned about Ramit Sethi and his Dream Job system.    I signed up for it, thinking I would find a way to grow my cookie business into the vision of a Dream Job I had in my mind.  LOL...too funny looking back now.  After 3 weeks in the Dream Job program I realized I was not the target market Ramit was looking for when he designed the program.  He was looking to help those in high level positions to earn more money and position themselves to advance their careers.  And while I do want to increase my earning potential, I do not have a high level position, nor do I feel that a high level position at any medical transcription company would be my dream job.

Through the research Ramit has you do in the Dream Job program, I realized that I already have my Dream Job, the cookie business, and after researching what bakers earn, and small business bakery owners I realized that I'm not going to make a substantially large amount of money as a cookie decorator.  The research I did showed most bakers make between $8 and $14 (with 20 years' experience) working for large bakeries or grocery store chains, that independent bakery owners actually make less because of the amount of hours they put in to keep their businesses going.

That information actually knocked me back on my seat.  I literally felt depressed for about a day.  Then I thought about it, this is my Dream Job, no one ever said your dream job would make your rich, just that it would make you happy.  And it does make me happy to decorate cookies and be at home with my daughters. I also make pretty decent money as a medical transcriptionist, between $15 and $22 an hour when I focus like I should.  I realized I have nothing to be depressed about, and I actually found myself happier than before I entered that Dream Job program.

I have set an intention for my business...this is the year that I'm really going to grow it and enjoy it to the fullest.  Like I heard on the radio this morning (Sheryl Crow - Soak up the Sun) "It's not having what you want, It's wanting what you've got."  I've got my dream job!

Going forward, I'm going to share my dream - post all the things I have learned and just enjoy living the dream!   
Tuesday, February 21, 2012

postheadericon Motivation

Yesterday and today I was trying to find something to blog about...which is why I go so long without blogging at all...I just don't know what to talk about.

I follow Marie Forleo and watch her Q&A Tuesday videos religiously.  Today's video was about motivation.

What I know about motivation is nothing...do nothing, nothing happens.  Then it dawned on me...I was doing nothing.  I was not blogging at all because I could not find my motivation.  Marie says to take action, so that it EXACTLY what I'm doing, taking action.

There is no reason that I have to wait for some big idea to hit me to blog, the little ideas will lead to the bigger ideas.  I just have to take some action.


Did you see the cookies I did last week?




I had made them as samples to share at Girls Lunch Out on Saturday, but then I had to cancel, so they are free to new followers if our blog. Email me to let me know you are following, don't forget to provide and address, and 6 cookies will be yours!

Tracy@sugarbeez.com




Photobucket

Sunday, February 19, 2012

postheadericon Ready...Set....RE-go!

So, I have obviously not posted in a year (yikes!) mainly because I am new to blogging and don't know exactly what would interest most people...but I have decided I'm going to just blog what ever enlightens me from day to day.

I'm a divorced mother to 5 daughters (yep, 5), 3 grand babies and trying to keep all my spinning plates in the air.


I work from home as a medical transcriptionist.  Doesn't really make me a lot of money, but I do have some great benefits, like being at home...I can work in my PJs, and I literally roll out of bed and into my desk chair to work.  I have raised my daughters while working this job and can help with taking care of the grandbabies while their mothers work.

I also have my cookie business, Sugar Beez, which my daughers and my sister (and even my son-in-law) all help with at one point or another, some more than others.  Gina (my oldest daughter) helps me most with the cookie business.  She is great for me to bounce ideas off of, okay maybe more like she throws my ideas back at me and I have to dodge to keep from being wounded, but we compliment each other very well, because I'm creative and she's down to business.  The ying and yang necessary to make this operation function. 

I've decided I'm going to blog about both my job and my business, share what I have learned about both throughout the years, and maybe throw in some parenting pearls once in a while.

Here is to re-launching my blog! 

ps...e-mail me an address to ship cookies on Tuesday when you let me know you are following the blog - tracy@sugarbeez.com 


Photobucket

Followers

Powered By Blogger