You Gotta Friend

Day #3 of the 31-day change with Mel Robbins.

Today's lesson was again an eye opener.  We have an easier time making decisions for a friend than we do for ourselves because it is easier for us to not get emotion involved in looking at a friend's problem.  We are even able to look at it from different angles to come up with a better solution.

But, when we ourselves have a problem, we let emotion get in the way of our decision making process.  What will my family think?  What will friends say?  Will I hurt someone with my choice.

Going forward, when you (or I) have a decision to make, try looking at it as a friend's problem, and not your own.  You are then easier able to put the emotion aside and make a more clear decision.

I'm gonna try it!  I'll let you know how it works.

It's Not A Crime To Be A Kid

A quick post from an experience at work today.  Man calls in on 911 saying he wants an officer to respond because kids are playing basketball in the street.  I ask if they are moving out of the way of cars, he says yes.  I ask if they are damaging vehicles, he says no.  I explained to him it isn't a crime to be a kid and play.

Then he says, "well they are being disrespectful and I want them to stay off my sidewalk".  Oy...again sir, the sidewalk is public property.  Are they on your lawn?  No.  Did they say anything to you that was disrespectful?  No, they're playing in the street after I told them I didn't want them to.  Are they your children?  No.

WTH Dude....they're being kids.  It's a beautiful day out...don't get yourself all worked up for kids playing...join them!

No One's Coming

Yesterday's assignment was not to complain for 24 hours.  It was not as easy as I thought it would be.  I thought I didn't complain much to start with, but I did catch myself complaining about small things and so I used the 5-second rule to change the direction of my thoughts.

I worked a 16-hour shift yesterday.  Came into work for my 8-hour shift at 1:30p and then a 3rd shift dispatcher called in sick, so I was forced to stay for her 8-hour shift too.  I got off work at 5:30a this morning, went straight home and straight to bed.  I set an alarm for 12:30p hoping for 6-1/2 hours of sleep.  I woke up, checked the time and it was 12:02p.  My first thought was "I have 28 mins more to sleep, I don't want to get up!"  But then I thought, "no, I'm awake, get up...5, 4, 3, 2, 1...get up!" And I did.  I know that if I had gone back to sleep, when the alarm went off I would have been tired and grumpy.  Instead, I got up when I woke up naturally, cleaned a little, did cookies a little, then got ready for work.

I started my day off actively, instead of going back to sleep and then being forced into action by my alarm.  I started my day, my day didn't start me.  And...I have no complaints about it.  I feel good.  Assignment one...check!

Today's lesson is about parenting yourself.  No one is going to come and get you to do the things you don't want to do, like get off Facebook and market your business.  Or get off Candy Crush and walk the dog.  You're the adult, you have to be your own parent.  Just like as a parent it is your job to make your kids do their homework, or chores, or even bathe.

This concept opened my eyes.  Don't give my brain an opportunity to talk me out of doing what is needed.  As soon as I have a thought about something that needs to be completed, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...go.  Just like a parent would do, don't take any back talk from your brain...get in motion and start doing.

In life we are going to be faced with lots of things we just don't want to do.  Get up and go to the gym.  Get up and go to work.  Eat healthy.  Go grocery shopping.  Go out with friends when we'd rather stay home and binge watch Netflix.  Tend to our relationships.  Tend to our self care.  No one is going to come and make sure we do those things.  We are adults, it is our responsibility now to take over our own parenting.   Mind blowing concept.

The Moment of Change

You're going to begin to notice something about me, I am totally into self-improvement.  I read, or actually listen (thank you Audible) to at least one self-improvement book a month.

This month I started The 5 Second Rule by Mel Robbins.  When you purchase the book (I am not an affiliate in any way) you get access to a 31-day plan to change...your life, your health, your relationship, what ever you feel you need to change.

Today I received the first video and the assignment of that video is to go 24 hours without complaining.  Now, I'm not really a big complainer, but I would be lying if I said I never complain.  So this is going to be an interesting experiment.  Follow along with me, join me even!  That would be awesome to have peeps to talk to as I do this 31-day plan.  Let's see where it leads!

5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Go!

Sweetly,
Tracy
#5secondrule

Shonda Rhimes Experiment

Have you read Shonda Rhimes' book, 'The Year of Yes'?  No?  Why the heck not?  There are so many great things about the book that really hit home for me.  I felt like she was talking about me, and giving me an instruction manual for my life.  Don't get me wrong, I don't have any delusions that my life is anything similar to Shonda's.  I mean, she's totally awesome and super creative.  She is the mastermind behind Grey's Anatomy and Scandal.

One of the things she said in her book that I know would help me to get what I want and where I want, is to practice my craft every single day.  So, like Shonda and her Year of Yes, I am going to do a Year of Practice.

There are 2 things I am going to practice every day:
1.  Cookie decorating.  I love cookie decorating and I always feel woefully inadequate, but I bet if I practiced every day for a year that I would really have something to show for it.  I am going to post pictures every day of something cookie wise that I have done to improve my craft.

2.  I am going to blog every day.  I hope this will help my creative flow in all aspects of my life, work, home, cookies.  I am pretty sure that between my family life with 5 daughters, my job as a 911 dispatcher, and my cookie business I can come up with something every day to talk about.

So, this is my first blog post of my Year...later I will post a picture of something cookie I have done.

Feel free to follow along with me on my journey.  Please do feel welcomed to post words of encouragement, feedback and share your stories with me too!

Sweetly,
Tracy

I Need A Bigger Plate

We have all heard the saying "she has a lot on her plate" right?  I have always functioned with a lot on my plate, for starters I have 5 daughters.  Those ladies alone are enough to fill my plate to overflow!  But I also have a full-time job as a police dispatcher.  I work the graveyard shift.  I also have my cookie business.

Balancing all of that is quite a challenge.  Some days my job makes it even more of a challenge.

When I have cookie orders I come home from work, sleep about 4 hours, get up to do the decorating, and then try to get some more sleep before my shift.  Some days I get up early to bake off all the cookies for the next orders and then go to work from the bakery.

Then there are those super challenging days where I get up early to decorate and order that is due soon and my job will call to ask me to come in because someone has called out sick, or had to leave their shift early for a family emergency.

See, I'm what some call an empath, I feel deeply, and I'm also very maternal, I want to take care of people.  So when my work calls me and says they need my help, I'm suckered right in.  It's nearly a compulsion, I need to go.  I appreciate the extra money OT brings, but I hate the lack of sleep and the tightening of my cookie deadlines it causes.

BUT, I love my job as a dispatcher.  I often wonder what I would do if my cookie business began to become a bigger part of my income.  Or how much my skills and creativity would improve if I had nothing else to focus on but my cookies.

No, It's Mine!

I haven't blogged in a while, but this was one I just had to put in writing!

There are some really funny things that people fight over!  Tonight I took a 911 call over neighbors fighting over ..... Wait for it!!!

A mop!!!