Throughout my life, I have always tried to set myself up for success.  I don’t always achieve success, but I do the necessary preparation so that I have a chance. 1.   School When my girls were in elementary school, we always took 10 minutes before bedtime to make sure that homework and books were in the backpack and placed by the door.  Shoes and coats were out by the backpacks.  Clothes were picked out and placed by the bed.  Those 10 minutes of preparation before bed made it easier for us in the morning.  Before school, there were no…

Priorities are very personal and something that drives our everyday lives.     1.  Faith When your first priority is your faith, everything else falls into place.  My time with Mary Kay Cosmetics (MK) allowed me to focus my priorities on three key factors: my faith, family, and career.  Always in that order.  It is what I am most grateful for taking away from my experience with MK.  I lived my life knowing the importance of my faith, family, and career, but when I clearly chose faith as my first priority, life became much clearer. 2.  Family Family for me is defined…

Noise hits us from every direction daily.  The noise I am referring to is all the different distractions that pull us away from what we intend to do.  Staying on track and reaching your final destination without being temporarily derailed is something to rejoice about.  Noise might be from our electronics, co-workers, boss, children, spouse, friends, social media, and so much more!  If not careful, I can get off track walking from one room of my home to another.  I make a conscious effort to stay on track through prayer.  I ask Jesus to help me filter through the…

One of the most difficult things I had to learn how to do was to accept help from others.  For someone independent and self-sufficient, learning how to accept generosity from others was and still is very difficult.  For me, there was a sense of pride in being able to take care of myself and my family.  I struggle when I have to accept help.  Sometimes I accept help because I need it.  Other times, I accept help because it is the right thing to allow someone the opportunity to be kind and neighborly.  I never thought I was a…