Practicing Patience: The Turtle Always Wins
Most of my adult life I have let life happen to me. I would react instead of being proactive. I worked to survive and provide for my family. Choosing health benefits and security over my true calling in life – to become a writer and a teacher.
Throughout my early working life, I believed I was living my purpose by writing the newsletter for my daughter’s elementary school Parent Teacher Association (PTA), being the recording secretary for community organizations, or becoming the person who trained new hires in the warehouse where I worked. I lived without a plan – living paycheck to paycheck and TGIF. I believed borrowing money for material things was happiness.
Choices Create Change
Dave Ramsey tells us the turtle always wins. Slowly I began to realize I had choices and the ability to create everlasting change in my life. One of the first things I did to take control of my future was go back to school. At age 44 I started pursuing a college degree, part-time, while working and raising a family. Thankfully my husband was supportive and believed in me. Like the turtle, five years later, step-by-step, little by little, I finally wore my cape of confidence (also know as my cap and gown).
Just like many college students I experimented with different jobs – but this time I had the confidence and knowledge about myself to know when something wasn’t a good fit for my values. At times I started to slip into my old habits and beliefs of just get a job to make money instead of pursuing my God given talents of teaching and writing.
A New Opportunity
Then one day the world changed because of a pandemic. Thankfully before 2020 came my husband and I had been proactive in following Dave Ramsey’s plan of getting out of debt, having an emergency fund and savings. When I lost my job a new opportunity presented itself and I was prepared to move forward. I was able to take time and author a story I had always wanted to tell. I also joined Dan Miller’s 48 Days Eagles Community which offered me the ability to become a coach and a teacher. By the time the pandemic had ended I had a publisher for my new book Catherine’s Dream.
Now I am officially a writer and a teacher. What about you? What are your dreams? What are you being proactive about and starting to take those small steps toward? Send me a note, I would love to hear from you.
