What Inspires You?

What if I told you that you can be your own biggest inspiration? That may seem strange, but it is true. You are your biggest source of inspiration if you know how to motivate yourself. Someone once said, “If ever there was a time to follow your passion and do something that matters to you now is certainly that time.” I like this quote because it puts the focus back where it belongs: on you! It is important for you to realize that true inspiration comes from within, not without. While we might be inspired by someone else’s story or by something we witness, ultimately it comes back to internal motivation if we are to be truly inspired to do what we want to do!

Your source of inspiration will drive you to move beyond the status quo If you are content with doing something the same old way, you will never achieve anything important. Millions of people are doing it the same old way! Instead, why not do something different and stand out from the crowd?
You must remember that whatever inspires you will take you out of your comfort zone. This is why so many people never follow their dreams or pursue their passions: because moving outside the status quo can be uncomfortable. Change can be frightening, and breaking new ground means, by definition, making changes. In many cases, you are trying things you have never tried before and doing things in ways that are not familiar. You may not be able to find much support for your endeavors simply because so few people know how to do what you are doing!
Still, if you keep up the hard work, you can truly be your own best inspiration. It all starts with attitude: tell yourself at all times that you can accomplish your goals. Set your goals just above what you think you can attain and you will surprise yourself with how quickly you reach them! Call on your supportive group of friends and family to hold you accountable, give you the cheering section you need and ultimately underpin your success.
Remember that the only thing that can truly drive you to pursue your passion is you!

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Please welcome Janelle Cline – our very first guest blogger! Janelle, I am so thankful for this article, it is full of great ideas and tips for working moms with home businesses! The entry below features just two of her genius strategies – the rest of which can be found here.

Face it, mom’s needs often seem to come last. We are so busy putting everyone else first–husbands, partners, children, parents – and playing so many different roles in life–mother, wife, businesswoman, daughter, sister – that we lose sight of who we really are which in turn zaps our energy and productivity at home.

Parenting is one of the most rewarding jobs in the world, but it’s also exhausting. You are on duty 24-7, no weekends off or sick days. It’s easy to focus on all of your many roles you play in a day and neglect yourself, but that’s not good for you, them, or your bottom line.

But you can’t always stay on the back burner. Instead, here are some quick and realistic tips on how you can recharge your own energy tank while working from home.

Organize Your Morning Routine.

Are your mornings filled with tired sleeping heads, arguments, impatience, stress and aggravation? No one likes to start off her day in a hurried frenzy. If you start off your day in hurried chaos chances are you will expect the rest of your day to continue the same way.

I personally like to make sure my kitchen is spotless the night before – all the dishes done, counters cleaned, coffee pot prepared with timer set. This habit absolutely drives my husband crazy but if it were up to him there would be dishes in the sink for days. I’ve explained to him instead of waking up to stinky dirty dishes and visually feeling overwhelmed first thing in the morning with clutter and cleaning, I’ve found I wake up to a sense of calm and organization as I sip my first cup of coffee and think about my day ahead.

My children respond better to my chipper mood rather than waking up to a tense mother.

Take Time for Yourself

If you take an hour or two to yourself, for whatever nourishes you, the rest of the day (or week) will be easier and fun! Leave the kids and go to brunch with your girlfriends on the weekends or do your Zumba class in the evenings. Your children will develop independence, grow up knowing it’s important to take good care of themselves, and most importantly see that they’re all right without mom hovering nearby constantly. Sometimes taking a break from parenting can give you the energy you need.

If you are having trouble carving out time for yourself, start small. Don’t spend your extra time rushing around to finish your to-do list, it will never end. Instead, prioritize tasks that are going to make you money first and eliminate tasks that don’t absolutely have to get done. Write it down (don’t forget ‘me’ time), if it’s on your calendar, you can plan and work around it. And the next time you have some breathing space, don’t fill it with errands. Instead, just breathe.

About the Author

Janelle Cline is an Executive Consultant with Ambit Energy and uses her company as a vehicle to empower women to strive to elevate their financial lives. Having worked as a professional engineer in the corporate grind the last 13 years, this wife and mother of two recently became financially free and has become passionate about teaching motivated busy women how to achieve their financial freedom. She is sharing the dream of business entrepreneurship, owning your time, and creating passive income by helping people discover a money-saving service…and to also help them change their financial circumstances in an industry that is revolutionizing America. If you’re ready to make a change, create passive income, own your time, or want to elevate your financial life, visit www.MakeExecutiveIncome.com, Janelle can show you how!

Michelle & Adam Carey are great friends of mine and I am so honored they are in my Ambit family! They have built an incredible business in Ambit Energy and have experienced financial freedom at a young age, and they’re still working for more! Thank you Michelle for your contribution to the blog this week, it encouraged me and I know it will encourage the readers!

We have been a husband and wife team with Ambit Energy for over 5 years now. I was recently reflecting on our journey with this amazing company. We were able to grow in so many facets of our lives. Not only were we able to grow our business intelligence, we were able to also grow in our leadership and mature in our faith. That journey started back in late 2007 when my husband received a call from my mother-in law, Cheryl Spencer. She was extremely excited and preceded to tell him about an opportunity that he just could not pass up. She just got back from Texas and I have never seen her more excited. I thought it was strange, an energy company in Texas? It didn’t make sense to us since we, still living in California, have only known one company, PG&E. Although thoroughly confused, we eventually agreed to take a look to learn more. On a side note, we were skeptical and the only way she could get us to sit down and learn more, was to dangle a home cooked dinner in front of us.

At the time a good meal was a rare treat. I had become accustomed to ordering off the 99-cent “value” menu at various fast food restaurants. The real estate market had started to plummet and my husband was virtually working for free at the boat dealership that could not turn a profit. I was slowly sinking in the muddiness of my credit card debt, avoiding phone calls from creditors that seemed to call me every hour on the hour. Life was stressful, and yet we were “skeptical” at a chance to change our situation. I have to admit, that was one of our more, for lack of a better word, stupid moments. I am so glad that she persisted, because we went from skeptics to die-hard believers. I share that with you because, you may be one of those skeptics, or maybe you have a tinge of doubt lingering in your mind if this will work for you. Or maybe you are on the other end of the equation and you have skeptics that are trying to “warn” you about joining a scam. Either way, you must persist to believe in yourself and the opportunity, and that will cause the skeptics around you, even that little voice that speaks doubt into your ear, to completely have a change of heart.

How do you persist despite the critics and skeptics? Here are 2 things to help you.

1.) Know your WHY. I know you have heard this over and over, and it seems so elementary, but you must know WHY you are doing the business and you must be passionate about fulfilling that mission. If you are not passionate about it, you will have a hard time inviting people to take a look.

2.) Listen to the people that are having success, not the people who quit and failed. Notice that I didn’t just say failed. You will fail sometimes in the business; you will still succeed as long as you never quit. Esther used to tell us, “You must discipline your disappointments.” Let me ask you this, if you were to become a real estate agent, would you ask advice from someone that just took the test to get licensed and complains that the real estate market was hard so they quit, or would you ask advice from the top producers of the company that keep having results regardless of the challenges? Exactly. If you buy into their opinions you run the risk of buying their lifestyle, so be aware of whom you take your advice from.

Why are we so passionate about this company? Well, we went from trying to keep afloat in our finances to becoming completely financially free. Meaning that just from people paying a gas or electric bill, that pays all of our monthly expenses, whether we work or not. We paid off all 7 of my credit cards and was proudly able to tell those pesky creditors that it’s all been paid off. I am no longer a slave to my debt.

Our jobs went from full-time, to part-time and then to no time, and now, we own our time. We are so thankful and humbled to have had an opportunity this profound to come across our lives and we truly believe that it is our life’s mission to help other people do the same. No matter where you are in evaluating this company, whether a guest or a consultant, I hope you take this business seriously, because you can truly create the lifestyle that you have always dreamed about. Lastly, always remember that life isn’t about clocking in to make money; it should be about clocking out to make memories. God bless you and I look forward to seeing you share your story in the future.

I know you are expecting the 3 rd installment of “Keeping the Summer Sizzle,” but that is not what you’re going to get today. Before you get too upset, like I always say, discipline your disappointments.

For the past three weeks I have been in the middle of a whirlwind tour of California. I have seen friends, family, met new customers, new consultants. I’ve toured wineries, played on the beach, and seen incredible sights at Yosemite National Park. I have mixed business with pleasure this whole time and I have loved every minute of it! And here’s why: because I love what I do. I don’t feel cheated when a thought about work comes into my mind while I’m on vacation because, when you own your own time, all your life is a vacation!

I have learned how to enjoy the flexibility of my career. I even enjoy thinking about work because I have chosen a career where I get to save people money and in some cases even create income for them. I get to develop real relationships with my consultants and mentor and develop them in their professional and personal lives. I work in a people-oriented industry and that is why when I think about all the phone calls I have to make and all the emails that need to be sent I don’t feel stressed or disappointed that I have to do these things while on vacation. Instead, I recognize that I get to help people from wherever I am! I get to do all the fun things I mentioned earlier and still be available to my consultants and customers!

This is what I mean by taking advantage of vacation time. Like I said earlier, when you own your own time, all your life is a vacation. Take in the family time, the sights, and the experiences! Then send a few emails, make some phone calls, and head off to dinner. Better other’s lives while enjoying your own.

That’s the benefit of what I do and why I will do it for the rest of my life.

If you are in a job or career where you can’t take advantage of your vacation because you’re so exhausted from work to enjoy your time off, think about becoming a member of my team in Ambit Energy. Don’t get me wrong, it requires hard work and dedication, but you set your schedule and you work from anywhere! I honestly believe that I have the best job in the world because I get to make a real and lasting difference in people’s lives without sacrificing my own. It sounds too good to be true, I know. But from where I sit, in the mountains of Yosemite, I can tell you it’s possible and it’s awesome!

Next stop, Santa Cruz beaches!