Gratitude Journal : Day 2

                I awoke thinking about nothing but gratitude. It was on my brain all day yesterday and this morning. I also awoke at 6am to do laundry. There is a stillness and serenity about being the only person awake in your condo building on Saturday at 6am. It is not a workday so people are sleeping in. I load my first two bags of laundry then walk to the ATM for extra cash. Outside displayed a quietness too because there are too many cars. At 6am I did not think that the buses were running yet so I walked away without man-made noise pollution. I finished laundering close at 9:20am. People started awaking and being on their day. By then I had already completed half of my to-do list (the other being writing down all of my book edits). I went to the CVS to mail my mother’s and aunt’s birthday cards, picked up lunch and dinner then returned to write Ellen’s letter. I also wrote down my gratitude list. Here it was below:

Gratitude – Entry 2:

1. I am alive.
2. I have the mobility and strength to do 8-9 loads of laundry and walk to the DuPont Circle ATM
3. To have the money in my checking account to withdrawal $10
4. I have a dry place to live while it is raining.
5. I have the money to pay Sharvette for my website upgrades
6. Food to eat.
7. Have the money to buy two birthday cards

I felt a certain amount of progress writing it before noon versus yesterday afternoon when I got the epiphany. I was serious about turning my energy and life around. Unbeknownst to me, Periscope would play another big role in my life today.

                I watched Robin Devish’s hourly scope-a-thon where she broadcasted different book publishing topics. She ran the gamut from why her first self-published book failed to the business of books. Although I had the business formation, US copyright, and copy editing down pat, I still learned a whole lot about from her. I learned that I could resubmit my US Copyrights Office application because my book title changed and I edited my book; I needed a sales plan for both my book and my business; and I should focus on selling my book first then look at the data and sell my audiobook and workbook. Yesterday I showed gratitude for being able to learn from anyone. Now this came to fruition through watching Robin on Periscope. She provided us with her email. I submitted all of my information. I was surprised that she said that I was farther along and ready to be successful. That comment lifted my sails because it was coming from a professional! I was just grateful that a professional gave me an opportunity to contact her. I never expected that response.

                Furthermore, I also watched Arvin’s Periscope about the writing and publishing a book in 24 hours. Now I would be the first to admit that I liked structure (LLC and US Copyright Office); yet, publishing a book in 1 day would be great for my thought process. I already came into the class with a project management ebook idea. However, it grew to include the idea that using this 24-hour turnaround would help me generate free resources and lead magnets for my business. In addition, I would learn how to upload a book on Amazon. Moreover, that course would have a 7-day replay allowing me to learn at my own pace.  This gratitude thing was starting to work out and paying some dividends. 

Gratitude Journal : Entry 1

I did not awake on Friday saying to myself ‘hey, I need to start a gratitude journal.’ I only showered and got ready to see my former coworker. That was my only change. I ate lunch with her and immediately I realized that I was in isolation and could not do it alone. I was glued to my computer because I was applying for jobs, checking emails to see if I got phone interviews and received rejection letters. I also stayed on the computer completing my book edits and sending money to get it promoted. Removing myself from my virtual world by stepping into the real world and interacting with a human disconnected to a computer had a profound effect on me. When she said that something good would happen, it ignited my internal fire. I felt like I could rebound from all of the disappointment from not just this week but ever since losing my last consulting job in August.

Suet later wanted me to return to my first federal agency to see my former coworkers. Initially I declined because I did not want to see those people but relented because I did not want to disappoint her. Returning gave me another epiphany. I held onto this longstanding belief (still did) that I was the survivor. I managed not only to get out from there but also 1500 by earning my certifications and tripling my income. I started off there in 2006 earning $44K. Last August I made $115K. Those people who stayed incomes were stagnant. Yes, my second former federal agency was a horrible experience but had I stayed at at my former first federal agency, I would had lost my apartment because the cost of living exceeded my paycheck. When I interacted with them, I began to empathized with them being abandoned by other coworkers leaving there to stay in DC and moving to Maryland. I did not feel bad for the she-devil who was still stuck because she royally showed her tail at my going away party. However, I did understand that they were human beings too. As I walked back home, I admitted that my day was better having eaten with Suet and meeting my former coworkers.

I still had no desire of starting a gratitude journal until watching Arvin Poole’s periscope. He was filming Mario Armstrong’s Kim Coles interview. She was talking about someone telling her to take the 30-day gratitude challenge. Mind you she was in the middle of bankruptcy and foreclosure when someone advised her to undertake the challenge. Now I would had hit that person with the ‘Stop the BS!’ because I had real problems. However, Kim Coles undertook it and her life started changing. Her interview signaled to me that I should undertake my own 30-day gratitude challenge. I was not bankrupt or hit foreclosure and had no desire of getting there; but, I admitted that something needed to change. With my own 30-day gratitude challenge, I decided not to feel bad if I repeated the same gratitude. Finding 150 new and different things to be grateful for were too overwhelming. I was just grateful that I started and not holding myself to this gargantuan task. Moreover, as a Type A, I wrote down more than 5. I knew that I could be grateful for more than 5 things on any given day.
So here was my first entry to my gratitude journal:

1. Have friends who love me
2. Have family who loves to interact with me
3. Have the money to pay my rent
4. To be good enough to give directions
5. To be alive and live in DuPont Circle
6. Both of my parents are living
7. I can learn from anyone
8. I can wear whatever I want
9. I legitimately own my own business
10. I have the financial cushion

Franchise > Certification Studies This Week

                 I have delayed my PMI-PBA certification studies because of this midterm election. Franchise > Certification. Many people have died for my right to vote. I just want Election Day to be over with due to all of this mess going on. 

Silent No More

                Until now, I’ve remained silent and others have taken this to their advantage. People have told me to polite, courteous, and ‘to trust the process’. That stops today because I’ve reclaimed my voice. I refuse to let others and my enemies speak for me and write my story. I’m telling my story and my truth. I’m reclaiming my voice and my life. I’m giving life and voice to all of my dreams and aspirations. I have stopped fearing the future and what might happen. I am living in the present, taking each day as it comes and making the most of it. By being present and capitalizing upon all current available opportunities, I will make the future better; and, all of these things start with my declaration of not being silent any more.