Splurge vs Steal: Easy Breezy Blue & Boho

Banana Republic is having a 50% off sale right now and I found this lovely #splurgevssteal dress that I'm in love with!

Inspiring actress and entrepreneur Lala posted this pic of her Fendi dress.

I found this comparison by Banana Republic that's already a fraction of the cost and is even more of a steal with their sale!

The dress is their Long-Sleeve Print Boho Dress in blue dusk.

Close up

Click here for all their sales dresses

Reframing Your Fears: Rise

It happened again...

I was all set mentally to have a session with a coaching client. I really believe in this client so I almost couldn't contain my excitement that she was my first appointment of the day...my whole day would be great because the tempo from working with this great client would be high level awesome!

I just had to stop by 7-Eleven really quick to grab a sausage biscuit...and then I was confronted with one of my greatest, most paralyzing fears as a single woman: at the corner of the 7-Eleven building was a single, homeless, desperate woman who was crying so hard because she was hungry and so thirsty (it's been near 100 degrees in Texas all week).

I tried to walk past her fast because I needed to get to my office but like always, I can not ignore someone who's asking for such a basic need: food.

Not money. Not drugs. Not something illegal. Food.

I told her to hold on while I go buy it in the store.

Ice cold bottled water and pizza slices at the cash register, and then the lady next to me asks if I'm buying this for the lady outside. I say yes.

She hands me $2 to put towards the purchase and I recognize the same fear I have in her eyes...it was unspoken: that lady outside so desperate and yet ignored could be us.

I purchased everything and walked outside. The lady had been crying so hard and desperate hoping someone would notice her (she didn't ask for help, I just so happened to have noticed her) that her face was covered in tears and her nose was profusely running.

I will never forget the look she gave me when I handed her the ice cold water bottle and hot pizza slices.

I had to walk away fast because I was about to breakdown crying...

What does this have to do with reframing your fear?
Fear is not something that is permanently deleted.

Fear is something that is managed...the more experience you have managing it, the stronger you get in dealing with it.

But in case no one ever told you: fear never gets permanently deleted. Ever.

Since this event tapped into one of my greatest fears, once I got back to my office I spent 15 solid minutes going over fear scenarios of how that could happen to me...

And then I hit a fork in the road.

It was 20 minutes before my client meeting and I had to make a decision: set the tempo of my day with one of fear and thoughts of homelessness (and likely cancel my meeting) OR rise up in courage and tell my fear to shut up!

I chose to rise. This is reframing.

For 20 minutes before my meeting I took back my courage and focus and prayed.

Long story short, the meeting went well and I was able to quiet my fear.

Your greatest fear(s) may not be like mine. But what I know for sure is we all have at least one paralyzing fear that is triggered when we least expect it to.

When an event triggers that fear, I hope you come back to this post and that it encourages you...

To Rise.

The Pineapple Moment

If you haven't noticed, we are definitely going through a pineapple moment!

Repost food52: Pineapple Tumblers at Brooklyn Foodie Event

I first bumped into the awesome-ness of how pineapple can add some whimsy to your décor when I purchased some pineapple shaped pillows at a boutique in California about 10 years ago.

Everytime I had guests for one of my dinner parties or family events, there was always a fascination and discussion about my pineapple pillows!

Fast forward to 2016 and pineapples are having a major "moment"!

The cutest way I've seen a pineapple theme was in the architecture on Harbour Island.

Pineapple Fences on Harbour Island

If you can't make it to Harbour Island, don't fret!

I've got you covered.

These pineapple tumblers from food52 are a super cute way to incorporate this design element into your current for a but if whimsy and fun!

They come in silver and a metallic finish.

Even better, you can use them for multiple things: tablescape décor, desk décor, shelf décor and more. Use your imagination!

Silver and Metallic Tumblers at food52

Pineapple Tumbler on Side Table

Coming Full Circle...with Time

I have written several posts before about how experience, patience and time can help you fulfill your dreams.

I was reminded of how strongly I feel about this from a Facebook reminder of a post I made in 2014.

The Facebook reminder post included this picture from a Dallas Farmers Market farm to table event.

It (and farm to table hosting I want to do) represents and is symbolic of what I desire as I continue aging...an elegance in the midst of rustic sensibility, especially involving good food, friends, family and hopefully lots of wine!

How is this connected to coming full circle?

You see, my farm to table obsession began in 2014 and because I have consistently talked about it, posted about it, etc, I have some Fall lifestyle farm to table events planned...my obsession is continuing to come full circle (and has no limits).

As a coach, I can tell you that there are numerous people who won't ever experience the exhilaration of a passion evolving and maturing (stages of coming full circle) because they abandon it before it gets fully exposed. Being lukewarm about your passions before they have an opportunity to let time allow it to evolve with your personality won't give you the exhilaration I'm talking about.

I know we live in a culture of non-commitment and lukewarm interests...don't let that effect you.

Apart of living a life of wholeness involves having passions that have a time investment that also has evolved into an activity people associate with who you are.

And for you women out there, I am not talking about your passions towards your family, kids, friends, charities...in other words, I'm not talking about those things that you do for others.

I'm talking about those passions that make YOU happy!

Commit (or renew) your passions, let time cause your passion to be enriched and experience the exhilaration of it coming full circle as you age.

Be whole...

No Regrets: Reviving What Once Made You Happy

#NoRegrets: Do you have anything you look back on and regret you didn't continue it? A hobby that gave you peace? A dream you let people talk you out of? A relationship only you believed in? A career that paid less but gave you more joy? An adventure that made no practical or logical sense that you aborted?

While I don't believe in living a life of regret wallowing in "what could have been", I do think it's healthy to remember (and sometimes go back to) things that you once loved.

This image is one of my regrets that I'm going back to...a year after starting my company I made these #inspiring videos. People liked them so much I opened myself up to make them for others. That's when things went wrong...

Continuation from my Instagram post:
You see, I genuinely enjoyed the creative process of figuring out how to inspire people through a two minute video. Inspiring people is like breathing for me. It's completely effortless and fun!

What went wrong is that I saw how video was going to be huge in telling the story of people and brands so I took what was effortless and fun for me and tried to make it commercial by making money from others.

And guess what? Making creative, inspiring videos for people and small brands who are paying you doesn't work the same as doing it for the love and passion in building your own brand.

I won't go into details but let's just say my money making commercial idea to create videos for other people and brands was a flop.

But the bigger flop was that I let the critique and criticisms of commercial clients talk me out of a passion project that gave me great joy! I completely stopped making videos (even my inspiring ones for my own brand) after my commercial flop.

Here's the wisdom from this series of events...

I accidentally bumped into one of my old videos (I loaded them on YouTube) and I cried. I cried mostly because I was having an awful day and that video inspired me so much that I was moved to tears...and I was the one that created it!!!

The images in the post are stills from the video. And here's the video titled "Destined to Be Great"

If you are reading this post, I pray it crossed your path for a reason.

Sometimes our timing maybe off, our attention gets diverted or we just lose steam. No matter what happened, I challenge you to revive something that once gave you an immense sense of self, pleasure, service, contentment and/or peace.

Revive it.

Go back to it.

And I pray it makes you live a life of no regrets!

P.S. I have a fairly new friend revive an old blog idea she had and y'all, her writing and point of view is completely brilliant! She has survived breast cancer and a list of other life challenges but I was one of her cheerleaders telling her to revive it...you can check out her blog Salt, Sandy and Happy.

P.S.S. There are plenty of people who have commercialized a passion project...this blog is an example! Just know and distinguish what's not your calling and gifting. Video making is not where I needed to expend my efforts in building it into a company. I'm clear on that, lol!

..

Inspiration: What To Do When It's Your Turn

#MyStarbucksLife: I'm a a big believer that sometimes books have a way of finding you (if you stay open)...today my Starbucks neighbor told me about this book and little did he know, it's by one of my favorite people: Seth Godin!

Ironic? I think not...here's the best summary of this book that was self published by Godin... (you can get it on Amazon)

What To Do When It's Your Turn (and it's always your turn)

Your Turn To:
Ship.
Speak Up.
Stand Out.
Build a Following.
Market a Product.
Make a Connection.
Solve an Interesting Problem.
Write, sing, invent, create, ask a question, launch a project, organize a protest, open the door for someone, question authority, make a short film, direct, produce, create or adopt.
Learn a new skill.
Help someone who needs you.
Be missed if you're gone.

Your turn to make a ruckus.

This book is about an opportunity. The opportunity to take your turn and make a difference. The opportunity to contribute, to lead and to live your life fully.

The thing is, there's no easy way to do this.

This might not work.

It might not be fun.

I hope you'll do it anyway.


I couldn't have said it better Godin and I hope that all these #CurvaLish posts inspire you to do all these things in your lifetime!