My Journey Continues

         This semester has been quite the journey for me. My kids recently informed me that while I am in school, they are in bondage. We are ready to be out of bondage! This tells me that I struggle finding balance in my life. Balance is such an important part of the journey. In my study, balance was compared to someone trying to spin multiple plates on sticks. It can be done, tending to each one, but if one is neglected it falls to the floor. This is just like our lives. If we neglect our spirituality, our testimony falters. If we neglect our marriage, it will fall apart, etc. Balance often takes sacrifice. What are you willing to sacrifice to make your business successful?

I have really enjoyed the opportunity to learn and study what entrepreneurship is. Entrepreneurship isn’t just beginning a business or striking out on your own. It begins with a journey of self-discovery. From taking this class, I have learned some of my strengths and weaknesses. Through this knowledge I am now able to learn how to work with those strengths and weaknesses more efficiently. One of my favorite parts of the class were interviewing a successful entrepreneur. Learning from someone who has been there and done that was a wonderful opportunity.

If I was to share a last bit of advice it would be that we are all on a journey and that journey never ends. Before jumping into beginning a business it is important to discover your why, your reason. Why do you want to be in business for yourself? What do you want to gain from the experience? If the answer is money, you are barking up the wrong tree and look into other options.

This class is coming to a close but my journey continues. I look forward to discovering what the Lord has in store for me and where the journey will take me.

Gratitude

In this week’s study I was able to listen to the words of one of my favorite speakers, Thomas S. Monson. He spoke of having an attitude of gratitude and the importance of it. He shared the lyrics of the favorite hymn Count Your Many Blessings.

When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,

When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,

Count your many blessings; name them one by one,

And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

 

[Chorus]

Count your blessings;

Name them one by one.

Count your blessings;

See what God hath done.

Count your blessings;

Name them one by one.

Count your many blessings;

See what God hath done.

 

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?

Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?

Count your many blessings; ev’ry doubt will fly,

And you will be singing as the days go by. [Chorus]

 

When you look at others with their lands and gold,

Think that Christ has promised you his wealth untold.

Count your many blessings; money cannot buy

Your reward in heaven nor your home on high. [Chorus]

 

So amid the conflict, whether great or small,

Do not be discouraged; God is over all.

Count your many blessings; angels will attend,

Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end. [Chorus]

 

In the entrepreneurial journey I think it is so important to have an attitude of gratitude. Gratitude keeps things in perspective for me. For example, my husband and I have a small home with four children who have quickly shown me how small my home really is. We could go purchase a beautiful, large home that would fit our needs so much better, but then we would have a mortgage payment (we currently do not have a mortgage payment). We are feeling so confident that being out of debt is where the Lord wants us to be that we are managing with our small home. We have so much gratitude to have a home (especially after the fire came through so close to our home). I have been slowly making small improvements to make our small home more beautiful; plants in the flowerbeds, a new coat of paint (inside and out) and new furniture that actually matches. The fire helped me put a lot of things into perspective. Gratitude isn’t just to be grateful for the things around me but I must have gratitude for the Lord in all that I do. The journey with the Lord on my side is difficult. I can’t imagine trying to do it without the Lord.

Money

 This week we read an article regarding money and how we perceive it. There were a couple of parts of this article that I really enjoyed. The author, Stephen W. Gibson, related the story of the Good Samaritan, with a different perspective. We always hear the story, learning who our neighbor is. This time we learn about money. The Good Samaritan took the time to care for the wounded man, bandage him and take him to a “hotel.” All of these things take money. He also left money for the inn keeper, telling him to take care of the wounded man. The Good Samaritan had money and chose to use it for good.

Being wealthy can be good or evil. It is how you choose to use the money you have that makes the difference. Brother Gibson shares 6 rules to making money.

Rule 1. Seek the Lord and have hope in Him

Rule 2. Keep the commandments, that includes the temporal ones, tithing and fast offerings.

Rule 3. Think about money and plan how you can become self-reliant.

Rule 4. Take advantage of chances for learning so you will not be ignorant of these matters. Education, as President Hinckley has taught us, is the Key to Opportunity. 

Rule 5. Learn the laws upon which the blessings of wealth are predicated. 

Rule 6. Do not send away the naked, the hungry, the thirsty or the sick or those who are held captive.

These 6 rules can help each of us to be self-reliant. It makes me think of the early pioneers that kept moving from place to place. Many of them had no money to start over with. They depended on the kindness and wealth of others.

In my own life, money is something that we need. We need it to provide shelter for our family, pay the bills and clothe and feed our children. We are working on being self-reliant so we can increase our ability to provide opportunities for those around us.

Are you a doer?

    This week I had the opportunity to visit with a beloved friend, who is a successful entrepreneur. Early on in his marriage and career, he realized that working for someone else was not for him. So he quit his job and ventured out on his own (in 1978). Through the years he has learned a lot and made a successful business that currently supports himself, some of his children, and many families that work for him. I have even spent time working for him! He is a wonderful man that I have really enjoyed learning from.

    We discussed that there are two kinds of people. Those that show up and those that do. This idea has caused me to ponder what kind of person I am. Am I a doer? Or one that just shows up? I would like to think that I am a doer, but I think I am a little bit of both. There are times that I just show up. Physically or emotionally, I am just spent from the challenges of life, so I just show up. There are other times that I can take the bull by the horns and get things done. I definitely need to improve my stamina to be more on the doer side.

    Another concept that we discussed that has caused me to ponder is watching and praying. He said that to be successful, you have to watch for what is coming and be flexible to adapt. Apple wouldn’t be nearly what it is if they didn’t watch and continue innovating. I saw this first hand in Dean’s company. When the pandemic first hit, his business took a large hit. No one was having surgery to need rehab supplies. I saw his business shift. They hired all the newly returned missionaries and put them to work making personal protective equipment for the hospitals. Dean and his team saw a need and adapted.

    I want to be like Dean when I grow up!

Tarryn is a Leader!

         This week’s study took us down the journey of leadership. It got me thinking about my daughter. She just graduated high school and has been a natural leader her whole life. People are drawn to her. After graduation she took a job at Wal Mart. She is working in the online order/pickup department. It is her first week and I am already hearing comments of how this or that could be improved or made more efficient. She took this job because it is something that she can do for a short time without getting attached and feel bad when she leaves in September. Her natural abilities are far beyond this entry level job and I see management qualities in her that will take her far in whatever field she chooses.

Leadership skills are something that my daughter got from my husband, not from me. Being a leader is hard for me. Developing plans and delegating are not my strong suit. That is one of the reasons that I went back to school. I want to build a business teaching others how to sew and quilt. I want to quilt with a long arm quilting machine and help people get their projects across the finish line. I feel that having some schooling in my background will help me accomplish this dream.

I am excited to learn from Dean Cropper, who built Cropper Medical and the Bioskin brand. He has been there and done that. He and his wife have persevered through the hard times and I am sure they have celebrated the good. They have built a legacy that they are able to pass on to their children. Thankfully their children have embraced different parts of the business. There are many family businesses that the children don’t want any part of.

My quilting business could be one of them.

Perseverance

 Often times, when I have a challenge that I am trying to work through, I think of the pioneers of the early Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They had some HARD challenges. The journey across the plains to the Salt Lake Valley was long and difficult. Many didn’t make it due to illness or injury causing death along the way but the people knew what they were doing was right and that the Lord would bless them in their efforts. They persevered despite it being hard.

We learned from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland (who at the time of the address was the president of BYU) some of the details regarding the building of the Salt Lake temple. The building of this temple took 40 long years of blood, sweat and tears. Once the foundation was dug out and prepared, they had to cover it back up. This must have been so discouraging. Then they had to do it again because it was cracked when they uncovered it. Elder Holland discussed the hard work it took to get just one stone from quarry, cut just the right size and shape and how the people saw very little progress from week to week on the building. But the people knew they were doing the work of the Lord. They had faith and kept on going.

My business isn’t the first priority in my life right now, my family is. My children are growing and getting ready to leave the house for their own adventures. I am trying to savor the time I have left with them. That is a challenge itself. I work my business when they are at school or work. They pop home for a few minutes here and there. I try to spend those few minutes with them. They have been extremely supportive of me. Offering encouraging words when something doesn’t go just right, cheering me on to the finish line of a project or watching the little guy so I don’t have any interruptions. They are wonderful children!

I strive to keep the example of the pioneers in my thoughts when things get hard. They persevered and so can I. I can build a business, with the Lord’s help.

7 Habits of Highly Effective People

     I would say that most of us have heard of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. This week we focused on learning what these 7 habits are. I haven’t actually read the book, but I think that I may have to now. The 7 habits are broken into two groups. The first three habits, once mastered, give a person a private victory. The last four, once mastered, give a person a public victory. A person must have had a private victory before accomplishing a public victory.

In my life right now, I am drawn to the private victory. I have a beautiful family with lots going on and often struggle to feel on top of it all. The first habit is probably the one that jumps out at me the most. Be Proactive. To me being proactive is the same thing as playing offense in a basketball game. You are the one to make the move rather than responding to the move someone else made. I have had a few times in my life when I was successful at being proactive. More often, though, I am on defense. Just scraping by to get everything done, everyone where they need to be, and fed. Don’t forget to feed the children. Things will get messy if you forget.

I feel like these 7 habits (be proactive, begin with an end in mind, put first things first, think win/win, seek first to understand, then to be understood, synergize and sharpen the saw) will help me on my road to a successful business in the quilting industry. I have already partially skipped the first habit and began to visualize my quilting studio filled with people, learning from one another and building a community together. I guess I need to go back and work on being proactive before I get too far ahead of myself.

When I accomplish my private victory, I will be prepared to move on and have a public victory.

Boundaries

I am a stay-at-home mom of four kids. With that title I wear a lot of hats and do a lot of different things. Let’s add the titles of student, small business owner, teacher. May is the busiest month of the year (I used to think it was December, then I had kids in school). The kids are finishing up the school year with concerts, awards ceremonies, basketball games (yes, basketball in May, weird) and graduation. My family is my top priority and there must be some give and take among the different responsibilities. I only get my daughter for a few more short months before she goes off to college and the next phase of her life.

My study for the week has revolved around developing boundaries for each part of life. One example given was a man that built his business around his kid’s schedule. There was family dinner, bedtime stories and one on one time. He worked on his business while they were at school and after bedtime. They never felt like business came before them. This is what I am striving for.

Something that I love about attending Brigham Young University Idaho is the way that the instructors incorporate a spiritual side of whatever topic you are studying. This week, we were reminded to not forget the Lord in our day-to-day activities. If we decline serving others because all our time is going toward building a business, the Lord knows where our heart is.

Since I went back to school, setting boundaries has been a hard thing for me. I have been squeezing schoolwork in wherever it fits in the schedule. I have been guilty of “not having time to serve.” Funny thing is though, the Lord makes up the difference when I serve anyway.

Boundaries are important!

Passion and Perseverance

This week we covered a few topics that caused me to ponder. One was the concept of finding your passion. Many ask, well how do I find my passion? I don’t think there is a right or wrong way to find it. I have had a few years to work on this and I feel like I have found my passion. I have tried many things over the years, but I always come back to sewing. My thoughts are constantly filled with beautiful fabrics, the next project or how to accomplish something I am stuck on. I lose track of time when I sit with my sewing machine and I get giddy when a project is coming together smoothly and beautifully. I have been caught staging photos of my projects in strange places, sometimes just to embarrass my children. It is something I am good at.

Finding your passion and using it in your work is a common thread each week in my class. When your work is your passion, it doesn’t feel like you are working. It isn’t hard to give back to the community when you are doing what you love.

I have also pondered the characteristic of perseverance. Perseverance is being persistent when “doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.” There are many examples of perseverance in my life, my grandmother being one of them. This grandmother passed away before I was born and I have heard many stories from her life. She is someone that I look forward to meeting when my time on earth is finished. Grandma and Grandpa Stark had many struggles in their marriage. Grandpa experienced several injuries that made it hard for him to work. With eight children and limited work, they had very little money. The church building was in a neighboring town and the meetings were spread throughout the week, not the block schedule we have now. Grandpa didn’t go to church with Grandma very often and it was difficult to get eight children there. She and her children were faithfully in attendance each week.

Her example of perseverance is powerful in my life. Just as she did, I can do hard things.

The Formula

 

I spent this week finishing the book “Launching Leaders: An Empowering Journey for a New Generation.” I think the intended audience for this book is in their twenties and thirties. I am on the tail end of that age group and found that many of the concepts taught are things that I try to implement in my life already. After guiding the reader through the journey of taking control of life through the Cycle of Spirituality, the author, Steven A. Hitz, presented “the Formula.” The formula comes from the guidance of two of his treasured mentors, blended together. Living these six steps will provide a “joyful and abundant life.”

They are:

• Get up early                         • Work hard

• Get your education             • Find your oil

• Make your mark                  • Give back

Applying these steps to your life can empower you to be successful in living your life intentionally. Hitz shares an example of how these steps helped a handful of students. An instructor, with permission from the principal of a local school, took five students and conducted a semester-long experiment. This instructor spent one hour a week with these students, helping them apply the formula in their lives. In the end, those five students “went on to win all of the school’s academic awards and were instrumental in their school becoming the highest scoring in the nation on that year’s standardized exams.” Apparently, it really works.

If you know me personally, you know that I am not a morning person. Waking up early is one of the hardest things for me. So, when I learned that this was the first step in Hitz’s formula, I cringed. I want to apply the things I am learning and I want to be successful at it, but getting up early and I don’t get along. I am determined to try. Here’s to my adventure in striving to live “the formula.”

Learning from the Journey

     This week our class highlighted Magdalena Yasil. Magdalena is a successful entrepreneur in the engineering field. I found her story very intriguing. She grew up in Turkey and came the United States to go to college in the early 1970s. When she was young she developed a love for the engineering world. The field was predominantly filled with men which potentially could have created a problem for her. She was determined to study engineering, so she did. She felt strongly that she could do anything despite the cultural beliefs around her. She took each opportunity given her as a learning experience to fill her toolbox of skills. She is a very successful woman.

    What I admire about her and her story is her dedication to get what she wanted. She was willing to work hard and do well. She was able to look past the stigmas of gender and follow her passion. I am sure that she heard many negative comments regarding her gender and her chosen field. She continued to work hard and progress. Learning from her example, I can persevere through the challenges of building a successful career. I am starting this journey much later in life than Magdalena did.

    As I am finishing up the book Launching Leaders, I love the reference of airplanes mentioned. In this case the reference is about charting your course, having the end goal in mind with checkpoints along the way. It reminded me of Elder Uchtdorf teaching about the same thing. Elder Uchtdorf warned that if we are just a single degree off in the beginning, we will never make it to the correct destination. That degree grows over the course of the journey. The book adds to this concept that having checkpoints along the way keep us on the correct path to arrive at the end goal. Recently I found myself at a checkpoint, evaluating my end goal and if I was on the right path to get there (I was a few degrees off). 

A truly inspired concept.

Dreams

This week I took on the challenge of creating a bucket list with 50 items. I didn't realize it would be so hard to come up with 50 things. It was hard! This showed me that a bucket list doesn’t have to be just dreams. Those dreams can be reality.

I believe that dreams are an important part of our lives. Dreams show that we can make goals. I have a dream of having a quilting business that can support my needs if I need to do so. That doesn’t have to be a dream. It has become a goal and I have started making smaller goals that are steppingstones along the way. Dreams and goals give us something to work for, something to look forward to. If we don’t have dreams and goals in our lives, we are at a stand still and are no longer growing and improving.

As a child, I wanted to be a veterinarian when I grew up. I grew up around animals and loved them so much. I learned that I could connect with animals when others could not. Somewhere along the way, I lost sight of that dream. I was reminded of that dream when talking with a friend the other day. She asked me why I can’t make that dream a reality. I have returned to school and could make it a reality. Times have changed, interests have changed. I still love animals and can still connect with them on a different level than others, but I have found something different that makes me happy.

In my teenage years, I learned how to sew and it quickly became a passion. This passion has taught me a lot but it took me many years to figure out how I wanted to make money with this passion. Part of my journey is figuring out what the Lord wants me to do with this gift. He has given me a gift for a reason. I want to use it the way He would like me to.

Entrepreneurial Journal

A year and a half ago, I decided to return to school and finish my Bachelor's degree. Being settled in our community and having a family, I was no longer able to attend classes on campus at BYU-Idaho. So their online option was a great fit for me. The schedule is flexible and I learn pretty well without being in a classroom. The journey hasn't been easy but my family has been very supportive and helpful, making it all work.

This semester I am taking an Intro to Entrepreneurship class. I have always wanted to do my own thing but I don't have the skills to accomplish it. This is the beginning of developing those skills. This week the study was about myself. The things that we read and watched discussed the importance of figuring yourself out before you can really be successful as an entrepreneur. Tackling school as an older student I feel like I have figured out a little bit of what I want out of life, but I still have a long way to go.
I loved the video from Guy Kawasaki. He spoke about doing something that you love. I find this guidance extremely helpful. As I put forth the effort each semester to go to school and do well in my classes, I sometimes wonder if I would be better off doing something else. Am I moving in the right direction? Is this the path that the Lord wants me on right now? My passion is to sew but I don’t have any business skills to put my passion into something that could support my family in the event that I become the breadwinner.

Already I have seen the benefits of networking. Learning from others is so beneficial. Networking is hard for me. I am more of an introvert so starting up a conversation with a stranger is quite challenging. Learning to come outside of myself and speak up regarding what I am doing is how it all begins.