A Kick in the Pants

I've been struggling lately to write here.  It isn't that I haven't been working on house things - my Pinterest boards will reveal plumbing research among other things.  I participated in an online tiny house chat (my first - loved it - check out their future chats) about starting a business and/or running it out of your tiny house.  I've been tracking down hardware orders (who knew that speakeasies were custom made?) and coordinating tiny house transport.  I've even drafted a few banners to order to put on the house as it travels.  Tonight I am going to a class at Career Design Associates about starting your own business.  So - decidedly not sitting on my hands.  But for whatever reason, I haven't been in the mood to blog.

I emailed Nina, a fellow tiny houser & truly one of my dearest friends and whined about my lack of motivation.  She replied with this in a nano-second:

Motivation starter

Visualize waking up in your tiny house on a cool morning and knowing that you can enjoy a leisurely morning before your first business call at 9:30 a.m .

What kind of business call is it? 

What do you want to be talking about? 

Where do you want to be?

What steps can you be taking right now to lay ONE OR TWO foundation bricks for that specific day?

It made me think - no, it made me dream.  I closed my eyes and pictured it.  Instant happy. A mental place that I haven't been often since I left the Boulder workshop weekend behind me. A place that I miss. Then I formatted it into a poster and printed it, grateful for her friendship.

The same morning (maybe even in the same email string) we emailed about a writing contest that I am entering.  I sent her a draft to critique.  And I got this back:

 ... It should come off as something that seems inevitable and natural, but definitely needing to sound more of a leap and showcase your bravery.   What you’re doing is something that a lot of people are doing, but you have specific details that make it unique.

For instance, I hit the highlights of your leap to my friend Dawn and her reaction was:

Dawn: I can’t imagine changing EVERYTHING in my life like that. My belongings, my housing, my relationship, my location, my employment. Crazy stuff!  She sounds like a free spirit and go-getter

Me: She's changing everything for her new life path

Dawn: Wow…that is flabbergasting!

Me:This sh*t ain’t for wimps

Dawn: No Kidding!

THAT is the reaction you want. You want people to go “holy sh*t! She is brave, what a leap! What a go-getter!”  

Your story is a good one, do NOT sell yourself short, bare yourself and show your bravery.

I was stunned.  I wrote back, "Wow, really??  You talked about me like that to someone?  Thank you!"

And you can guess what I got back, right?

Of course I talk about you that way.

Look, there are a lot of people in my life that are watching me and saying “wow” to what I’m doing.  

Dawn said, “you should be writing this all down for those that come after you” and I laughed and said that it seemed to be a natural thing….”those that come after” wanting the information as to how we went about it.  I told her that I was considering a blog but hadn’t really committed to it because I know it was a time-suck.  

Then I told her about how you had an amazing blog that was chronicling your journey and how it was empowering others just by example and that you were going to make a business out of it, just not sure how yet. And that’s where I transition into my telling of how MY story is one thing but yours is far more fantastic because of the whole big changeover, where mine is just converting to minimalism and striving for a smaller carbon footprint. YOUR story is a life-flip. 

It. Is. Fan-f*cking-tastic, what you’re doing.

It is NOT for wimps.

The reaction Dawn gave means that I communicated you correctly because it is correct. You are a free-spirit and a go-getter. Your leap is flabbergasting. 

You are a perfect B.A. Norrgard. 

 I sat back in my chair after reading it and tears welled up in my eyes.  She is a best friend.  A life long friend that I just met this year, (at a Four Lights workshop) on this journey.  NINA is another piece of my story.  Everyone should be so fortunate to have someone like her in their corner.  She's got my back. She's just what I needed to remind me this week - today - what a fantastic journey I am on, and how blessed I am to have the freedom and guts to take it on.  I hope that I reflect all of that back onto her journey; I should be so lucky.

Nina - here's to you:

And also:

Thank you.

Career Workshops

My career (transition) workshop is a group of 8 people, and we meet every Monday evening for two and a half hours.  That is quite a time commitment, at least for me, and we also have homework to complete in between.  It has just been a phenomenal experience!  I've met people I never would have met otherwise, and I've learned so much about myself...

A greatly simplified explanation of the process is that we have been working steadily using a variety of methods to identify our skills, our passions and our talents. After that we brainstorm and come up with three potential new careers that match up with what we have learned.  I sort of cheated on that part, because when I entered the program I had the tiny house idea in my head already.  (My other idea is construction related.)  I remember telling my coach when she passed out the list of careers that matched me, "I am pretty sure that my career doesn't exist on any list anywhere yet.  It's probably something that I am going to make up."  She was completed unfazed by that - in fact, she encouraged it.  She said when she started her business of coaching people through career transitions that nobody was doing that at the time, either.  So - onward! 

But what the workshops have done for me is to validate that I do indeed have the skills and talents for a career involving tiny houses, and that those skills and talents are somewhat unique. That sort of surprised me, because I thought everyone could do the things that I can do - I really didn't think they were unusual. The workshops have also given me the foundation to see how I can turn the tiny house into a life style and an occupation.  It's so exciting!  

I went to college to be in the legal field, and I've done very well in legal. But I am ready to try something new.  My coach tells me that being an engineer would have been ideal for me, but when I was choosing what to pursue in college, nobody ever uttered the word "engineering" to me, and I don't recall taking any type of assessments to see what I would be naturally good at.  (And I cannot see myself going back to school...)

After we identify potential careers, we research people and companies in that/those field(s) and then contact them.  We aren't necessarily contacting them to be employed by them, but more to gain knowledge about the field.  I chose to first contact Jay Shafer, the Founder of Tumbleweed Tiny House Company.  You really can't say "tiny house" without saying "Jay Shafer."  More to come!