About that time I interview in sweats...and got the job!

I have been sitting on some wonderful news for a couple of days now because I couldn't share it publicly until I had a firm offer and had resigned from my previous job. Now that all the formalities are taken care of, I can share with you: 

I got a new job! 

I was hired as an attorney at a law firm here in Colorado. It is such an amazing opportunity and right in line with where I see my career going, so I'm sure you can imagine how thrilled I am. 

Before I give too many details, I want to back up and tell you the story. 

For a couple months, I had sent out resumes to jobs that appeared to fit with my goals. There weren't too many, but I wanted to throw my hat in just in case an amazing opportunity arose. So, when an advertisement for a Paralegal appeared in Craigslist, I sent off my resume. I figured that even though I didn't want to be a paralegal for too long, I could show them what a kick-ass attorney I could be for their firm.
Still, it was a long shot that they'd call. 

They did. The next day. And I threw on my best suit, printed out my references list, and interviewed with their newest attorney would desperately needed a paralegal. We quickly determined that even though I was over-qualified for that position, there might be another fit for me. As I left, I overheard him ask the receptionist to "put this resume on Nate's desk for immediate review." 

The next afternoon, they called again. This time, the owner of the firm wanted to meet with me: "Can you come over here right now? You don't need to be dressed up or prepare, just come over so we can meet you." I was already sitting in the parking lot of the gym where I coach, wearing sweats and flip flops, so I told her I couldn't.  After comparing calendars for a few minutes, she replied "look, he wants to meet with you right away, so I don't even want to look past tomorrow for times."

I told her I was about to coach a gymnastics class, but I could come to the office afterwards. I informed her that not only was I dressed casually, I was wearing sweats. She assured me that was perfectly fine, so after my class I headed over the the law firm and met with the head attorney. 

We talked for almost 2 hours, both about professional things and just getting to know each other. I quickly forgot how I was dressed and instead found myself very comfortable. His wife, the office manager, joined us for the meeting and I left feeling welcomed and confident I would receive a job offer. But I had the weekend to wait.

Monday rolled around and I received a text late in the evening offering me the job and by Wednesday I was sitting in the office (more appropriately dressed this time) working out the details of my employment. 

It's crazy to think that I applied for a paralegal job, on a whim that they might need an attorney, attended my second interview in sweats from the gym, and was still offered the job. It goes against everything you're taught in law school - about attire and professionalism - but I can't begin to tell you how right it all was. 

And ultimately, if you really want to get to know someone and learn if they are a right fit for your company, all the suit and formality does is get in the way. This week, I was offered a dream job and a new crop of friends all in one fell swoop. And I did it in sweat pants!

So, about that exercise...

Remember this post? The one where I talked about my non-plan workout plan and how it was working, but I needed more structure to see bigger changes? 

Yeah, that one...

I haven't worked out since. Granted, I've taken on an extra 2 classes at the gym where I coach and I've made doggie walks a bigger part of my daily routine, but I have not stepped foot in the gym since I wrote that post. 

Nothing really changed, I just stopped going altogether.

Let's see if I can change that this week!

The Upside of Fear

I had the pleasure of attending a business luncheon this week where the keynote speaker was a man named Weldon Long. He shared his journey from being a 9th-grad dropout and felon to becoming a wealthy, successful entrepreneur (Inc. 5000 company in less than 5 years.) 

He writes about how fear and the thoughts you have in your head can completely alter your ability to succeed and overcome obstacles. So, in order to be successful, you must rewire your brain and start putting in thoughts of success and accomplishment, rather than negativity and fear. 

Specifically, he discusses the concept that thoughts are the beginning of everything and they need to be adjusted in order to change your actions. 

Thoughts ---> Emotions ---> Actions ---> Results

If you think fearful, negative, and defeating thoughts, your emotions and actions will following, results in a negative or less-than-stellar outcome. Likewise, if you change your thoughts to ones of success and confidence, you will feel successful and your actions will reflect that. 

While serving the last 7 of his 13-year sentence, he wrote out a list of positive thoughts and goals ("I am a man of honor and integrity" and "I have a beautiful home in the mountains.") and simply recited them to himself every single day. By the time he got out of prison, he had rewired his brain to equip himself with the tools necessary to become a successful person. 

He started a business and turned it into a multi-million dollar venture in less than 5 years. He got custody of his son, and became an amazing father. He bought a house in the mountains and another in Maui. He wrote a book, followed by another one. And he became the man of integrity he wanted to be. He accomplished all of these things at 45 years old, after spending much of his life imprisoned or homeless, with no belongings and no education. He is remarkable. 

And he doesn't stand there and tell you some canned answer or sell you a line of crap about "if he can do it, so can you." He backs it up with psychology and science. He backs it up with his story and similar journeys of many others. And he knows that not everyone has the same goals. Some would like to run a marathon; some would like to be a great husband and father; others want to be successful entrepreneurs. 

Whatever your goals may be, you can use his technique to rewire your thoughts and better accomplish them!

After leaving the luncheon, I went home and wrote out my list of affirmations. I wrote out my goals and the thoughts I want to put into my head to change my personal course. I taped them to my mirror and read them aloud again this morning. I might share them with you another time, but for now, I encourage you to listen to one of the short videos on Weldon Long's website and see if you are as inspired by his story as I was. 

{Disclaimer: These thoughts are 100% my own. I was in no way compensated or otherwise induced to write this review. I am sharing a story that inspired me and doing so without compulsion or inducement.}

Our weekend project: A sneak peek

Perhaps the most daunting project of our house renovation has been the stairs. We had pulled the carpet and gone back and forth on what we wanted to do, finally settling on this inspiration: 

White risers, dark step. white spindles, dark railings. For now, we're focusing on the stairs themselves. We'll worry about a runner later, if it's in the budget. 

We determined, after much research, that ordering stairs in the color that matched our new hardwood exactly was ridiculously expensive (think, thousands) and since most of our house was DIY anyway, we figured we could do this too. 

The process, however, is tedious. There are multiple coats of paint, primer, sealant, etc... and each has a drying time of three years days. And since we actually live here while renovating, we need to do each flight of stairs separately so we're not quarantined to the main level away from all of our stuff. 

At this point, the stairs have been stripped and sanded and look like this: 

This weekend, we are hoping to make serious progress on them and should have completed photos in a couple weeks. Stay tuned!

Garage Sale Outcome

After a mildly successful Friday and Saturday, we decided to stay open into Sunday and see if we could get rid of a few more things. Many of our big ticket items were still there and we knew if the right people came by, they'd pick them up. Our friends got rid of some of their bigger items and did very well. Still, it made sense to stay open a third day and see what we could do.

I'm glad we did. Sunday's patronage yielded better results than the first two days combined. We hit some of the after-church crowd and another batch of women who were probably out and about in order to let dad enjoy his day at home. 

We made a couple hundred dollars. Not as good as I would have liked, but not bad at all. And we definitely purged a lot of crap even if we didn't make much money. We decided to hang on to the leftovers and have another sale in late-August or early September. That will give us time to rally the neighbors and see if they want to participate and refresh some of the supply so there are new things to offer the second time around. 

The only thing I will do differently in August is get/make better garage sale signs. I picked some up at the dollar store and while they were bold in color, they were difficult to read and came with cheap, plastic stakes. After the first day, one was completely destroyed and the others were flimsy and falling over. Next time, I will build substantial holders and make BIG, neon signs indicating where the sale is. 

For my first garage sale (without the fam) I'm pretty happy. There's a bit of a learning curve and figuring out your neighborhood before you can really master a garage sale. I'm pleased with the results and look forward to trying again in the fall!

Garage Sale Guru

We are having a garage sale this weekend and I'm pretty excited about it. Granted, I'm a little tired after three days of cleaning, pricing, staging the garage, and placing signs around the neighborhood, but it is going to be so worth it come Sunday. 

I actually grew up in a family of garage-salers, both hosting them and shopping them. And after years and years of helping my family set them up, I'm pretty good at it. I know how to price things reasonably, draw people in with bigger items, and how to keep the overhead low so you actually make a little money. 

With Al's help and a few friends pitching in, I'm sure the weekend will be a huge success. 
I'll check in on Monday to tell you how it went!

Weird Facts

Did you ever read any of those Weird Facts books where they highlight a state or city or all the haunted mansions in the country and provide a list of inane yet interesting facts about it? No? That's OK. But I'm still going to bore you with some weird facts of my own.

1. I am very picky about hair binders. They need to match my hair color or be solid black. And as soon as they're even a little stretched out, they go in the trash. I loathe trying to use a binder that needs to be wrapped around more than twice in order to be functional. 

2. I occasionally eat popcorn for dinner. Sometimes even two bags. 

3. I buy chapstick in bulk. It has to be the blue Chapstick brand with spf and I carry one in my purse and gym bag, store one at my desk and next to my bed, and usually have a spare stashed somewhere. 

4. I put both mayo and ketchup on my hamburgers. Delicious.

5. I have a Chicago (the city, not the band or the musical) mug that I drink my coffee from. It has no real significance other than I like the size and design. I will make sure to wash it every morning so I can drink from that mug only.


6. I'm obsessed with word search and crossword games. I usually play for an hour or more before bed and sometimes to wake up my brain in the morning.

7. I have never worn foundation. I get occasional acne which gets a dab of concealer and I sometimes use mineral powder for uneveness, but even both of those items are non-daily wear. I just prefer to feel clean and natural on my face even if I have a blemish or spot.

8. I hate wearing socks and avoid it whenever possible. 

Happy Thursday, all!

Battalion Ball Photos

Here are the photos I never posted from our Battalion Ball back in May.

I was waiting to share them when the professional photos came in, but those are taking their sweet time. In the meantime, here are a few snaps of the evening from our phones.

That's Sgt. Babysitter to you!

The closer we get to the end of Army life, the more often we are asked "why?" Al will have served for 8 years, and that's a long time to invest towards a career only to walk away. At the same time, no one should pursue a career that doesn't make them happy (at least in theory.) 

The answer to the whys has always been the same: I signed up to defend my country, not be a babysitter. I want to mentor and be a leader, but I don't want to teach a grown man how to tie his shoes.

Obviously, he's exaggerating a little bit. But honestly, only by a very little bit.

For example, Al came home the other day - after a longer-than-normal day - frustrated. I asked him what happened and he proceeded to tell me that he had to counsel quite a few of his soldiers for "defacing government property." Now, the actual story is that one of the guys drew male genitalia on a vehicle in the motorpool, which subsequently washed off with little issue. Nevertheless, it was a minor act of vandalism that required punishment.

I personally think it's possible to go your entire life without drawing a penis on something, but, if you absolutely must, doesn't it make more sense to draw it on a post-it or something you can easily dispose of? And if you're trying to be "funny" or perpetuate an already existing office prank (as was the case here), then the even bigger issue is why a group of adult men think this is funny in the first place. But before I digress too far into the crevasses of the male psyche that makes up the "fart jokes" of the world, I'm led to a new question... 

Is dealing with these minor infraction (while insensitive and juvenile, it is still minor) the best use of my husband's time? 

Certainly part of his job is to counsel the younger soldiers through disciplinary issues in order to teach structure, discipline, and mutual respect. And it is certainly necessary to get through some of those problems in order to teach them how to do their actual jobs. (Those problems, by the way, my husband is more than happy to mentor them through.)

If incidents like this were rare and the majority of his time was spent doing tasks related to his MOS or his role as an NCO, things might be different. As it stands, stuff of this nature is relatively "normal" and consumes more time then it should. Which leaves Al feeling unmotivated and less than useful, not mention downright fed up.

Maybe it is integral to the Army mission that he handle the less significant matters. Maybe with the draw-down and decrease in military funding, this is going to be a bigger part of the day-to-day. If that's the case, however, then it might not be the right place for us. 

Fart jokes and penis drawings aside, the Army is transitioning out of war time and into a garrison Army. We are starting to see a big shift in how the Army spends their limited resources and the military as a whole is in a huge holding pattern. That holding pattern is impacting many MOS's and altering their job descriptions and, ultimately, removing any flexibility or control over your own military career. 

So, it seems we have reached the perfect time to walk away - the perfect time to find a new way to serve. One that suits Al better, utilizes his full potential, and provides him fulfillment he deeply deserves. Hopefully, one that doesn't involve male genitalia prominently displayed on his work vehicle.

5 Goals in 2013: May in Review

Expand Mind

1. Did I read at least 1 book? Nothing new. Still reading "It's a Jungle in There" by Steven Schussler

2. Did I develop any skills? No. Nothing new.

3. Did I teach/tutor at least 1 child? No. I'm not sure I'm going to get to this. With my business taking off and taking up a lot of time, it's simply on the back-burner.

Increase Wealth

1. Did I payoff any debt? Yes! We paid off one smaller loan in full!

2. Did I increase ER savings? No, but we have maintained the account at its current level.

3. Did I increase additional savings? Not technically. I cleaned it out for my trip to Vegas (which was the whole point) and started a new balance towards my trip to Minnesota. So, the balance went down but I am still actively contributing to it.

Advance Career

1. Did I attend at least 1 event? Yes!

2. Did I write at least 1 article? No.

3. Did I make steps toward finding a mentor? Still in the works.

Enhance Home

1. Did we make progress on the guest bath/bedroom? Yes! Our third bathroom (basement) was completed and we made progress on the second guest room. 

2. Did we make progress on clearing the Radon? Done! The radon-mitigation system was installed and has been working for 4 days now. We will run our scan to see if it has been effective sometime this week.

3. Did we make progress on the outdoor projects? Yes. We finished landscaping around the driveway and front stoop. We will re-pour our front step soon and hopefully finish the exterior painting as well. 

**We also made major progress on the basement: walls painted, new flooring in, trim painted and replaced, closets revamped, and new doors on the utility closet. We have about half-a-day's work left to do finishing touches on the bathroom and bedroom and another day or two to do the stairs (which we'll complete in conjunction with the main level stairs.)

Improve Health

1. No smoking? Still completely smoke-free!

2. Did I eat healthier? Yes and no. I'm making salads for lunch and usually eating light snacks when necessary. Dinners have been healthy but we've also eaten out more than normal.

3. Did I take a multi-vitamin? I don't want to talk about it...

Saturday Share: Great Business and Networking Resources

A couple weeks ago, I had coffee with a military spouse who also happens to be a licensed Psychologist. Smart, driven, and completely lost on how to build a business in a brand new state. She asked if she could pick my brain about networking and building contacts when you're starting from scratch. 

I didn't know going into our coffee date, what I would tell her. I honestly wasn't sure if I was a great networker or just got lucky when I moved to Colorado. A few minutes in, I started spouting off the resources I used to find groups, certain personality skills I developed to help with the face-to-face interactions, and how I track my networking contacts. She looked at me, wide-eyed, and said: "so you're basically a networking genius." 

I smiled and responded that it was mostly luck and high-level organization that made my method a success. I also reminded her that it might not work for everyone in every field. But it had worked for me and, yes, I was pretty good at it.

So, today, I put together some resources to help build networking skills. Whether you're a budding photog trying to get your portfolio out there or a licensed psychologist trying to build a practice, there will be something here to help you with that endeavor. As always, email me if you have any questions!

In General

How to Make a Good First Impression - via Money Crashers

In-Person Networking, Like a Boss - via Successful Military Wife

The Power of Personal Networks - via Get Rich Slowly

How to Build a Personal Network (Genuinely) - via Lifehacker

The specifics

How to Professionally Promote your Friends - via Corporette

How to Network at a Conference - via Corporette

Tips for Staying in Touch with your Network - via The Levo League