Your Next Big Thing

Good Morning!

Sometimes being a stay-at-home mom can really get to you. Between the late night wake ups, constant nursing, and tantrums, it can be difficult to find time for yourself. It becomes easy to slip into your role of mom and neglect the rest of your roles. Your role as wife, friend, daughter, and even just the role of being you.

For the past year, my husband has been into reading self-improvement books. He finds it inspiring to read about how people became successful in their lives and enjoys looking for ways to apply their strategies in his life.

He is constantly telling me that I need to do things. To do things that make me happy and challenge me. My response is always the same.

"I have no time."

or

"When am I supposed to do that with two kids crying for me?"

And then he gives me a speech about something he has recently read and found enlightening. I'm not going to lie, it can get a little annoying always having to listen to his "light bulb" moments.  And I make no secret of it to him. Even though I know he is right.

Husband: "Babe, did you know that if you have a goal you have to work at it every day?"

Me: "Um, you didn't know that?"

I love to tease him. He gets so mad!

I made that conversation up. In case you couldn't tell :)

Well, the tables turned on me the other day when I burst into the living room excited to share with my hubby what I had just read in YOUR NEXT BIG THING by Ben Michaelis, PhD  a new book and Blog Hop that will hopefully change your life. I was invited to join sseveral bloggers who committed to join up to write about the new book YOUR NEXT BIG THING By Dr. Ben Michaelis and how we are each making and sustaining real change in 2013.

While I was reading the chapter about discovering your purpose, I read this:

Throughout the course of or lives, each of us has has an opportunity to do or make something that serves as a representation of who we are.

Hmmm...Ya, I am a former teacher and now a mom. What can I do? I pondered this for a really long time as I kept reading.

Imagine your great-great granddaughter...what does she know about you? What does she do to thank you for how you contributed to her life? Why is she lucky and proud to be your great-great granddaughter?

Bamn.

I knew when I read that that I needed to quit making excuses and figure out what my next big thing would be.

I have big shoes to fill when I think back to my grandparents and great grandparents, but today I am committing to write. To write more on this blog and to finally start writing my grandmother's story.

 Enough with the excuses.

 Ben Michaelis, PhD believes that a true commitment to personal change requires 3 things:

1.     Vision: It's wonderful if you know exactly what you'd like the New You to look like, but it's not necessary. All that you need is to be open to imagining yourself and your life as different than it is now. You can explore the particulars along the way.

2.     Promise: When you commit to change you implicitly make a promise. The promise is not to your husband, your sister, or even your kids. The promise you make is to yourself.

3.     Energy: Energy and work mean purpose. When you truly believe in something, when you are moving with purpose, you are throwing your energy at something you believe in to make a change and to make it the way  you want it to be. 

Here is how I will use Vision, Promise, and Energy for my own real change:

1. Vision: I will write my book. I will continue writing and growing Simply Mommies.

2. Promise: I commit to spend time each week writing. I am promising myself that I will do this. I will do it because I want to and I will do it because of the promise I made to my grandfather before he passed away. I will stop being afraid to write and stop making excuses to myself and others.

3. Energy: I will start slow, but steady. Organizing all my thoughts and ideas and make small goals for myself. I will spend time alone (no kids!) each week writing.

I hope you will join me and link up to my post and the other bloggers and take part in Your Next Big Thing Blog Hop.

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You can purchase YOUR NEXT BIG THING at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Indie Bound and you can learn more about Dr. Ben Michaelis on his Huffington Post contributor page or on his website.

Sometimes the simplest concepts can change your entire perspective on life.

XOXO Sarah

*I recieved a free copy of this book to review, but all content and opinions are mine.*