Happy Turkey Day!
Granted, I’m a day late, and you might not be from the USA, so maybe that’s not such a great opener. I always have conflicted feelings about Thanksgiving – I hate that we get such a whitewashed version of the historical events in school growing up (often more straight-up lies than whitewashed, even), and I hate that every year it gets a little closer to just being part of the pre-Christmas rush & buybuybuy.
But I also think we get precious few reminders to slow down & smell the roses (as it were – I’m guessing not everywhere is as lucky as Austin in still having roses in November 😉 ). Practicing gratitude has become increasingly important to me over the last year, as I realize how thankful I am for the family, friends, support network, and life in general that I have.
One of the things I’m most thankful for is that this year, I can actually buy my family Christmas presents. I know that might sound a little materialistic, but most of the time since I’ve moved down to Texas, money has been really tight; I was doing well to get back up to Missouri for the holidays, let alone give anyone gifts showing how much I cared. To me, it’s not about spending money on my family, it’s about giving them a physical representation – something they can see and touch – that shows them I think about them all the time.
If you’ve been around since the beginning of this year (if you have – thank you), you know it’s been a bit of a bumpy ride. I’ve moved three times this year (with the last one being in June – so really, three times in six months), went through a serious bout of depression in February (which I’m fairly certain was prompted by my hormonal birth control – glad I figured that out), and this weekend is also what I’m jokingly referring to as my six month singleaversary – six months from when Matt & I decided to end our marriage. (One more thing I’m thankful for? No more in-laws! Haha, no, but seriously.)
Despite all of these bumps in the road, I’m doing better than ever. Which sounds cheesy, but it’s true. I have a support network here in Austin – people who love me and want to help me out (and who I will even, gasp, let help me out, which is no small deal for me) and check in on me when I’m not doing well. I have a family that loves me unconditionally, and that I know loves me unconditionally. I live in a great apartment that I’ve rather awesomely decorated, if I do say so myself, with no, you know, gaping, leaking holes in the ceiling. (Actual thing that happened earlier this year.) Also, I’ve got some pretty awesome neighbors. (As it turns out, having cool neighbors is like having cool roommates, without all the bad parts.) I’m healthy, and happy, and so is my dog. After wondering many (many!) times in the last few years if I was totally fucking kidding myself with my business, it’s now at a point where it’s supporting me happily. I work with amazing, fantastic clients that I love.
And no small part of that is because of you. You’ve been here. Reading, and watching, and giving me support (when I said something in a newsletter about Matt & I, directly after it had happened, several people responded to send their love, which made me cry like a baby), and sending your friends and customers and colleagues to me.
So, I want to say, thank you. Really, really thank you.* I hope I’ve returned the favor in one small way or another sometime this year, but even if I haven’t, I’m incredibly grateful for you and your attention, your patronage, and your support.
On a more business-y note…
I think it’s a shame that as business owners, we’re often made to feel (especially at this time of year) like we have to choose between crass commercialism + materialism and making no money at all. I think that’s a false dichotomy. For this weekend, I wanted to do something to say thank you in a big way, and I also wanted to run an awesome deal that wasn’t just about buying things, so here’s what’s going down:
- The Bombchelle Explosively Epic Holiday Bundle – everything I’ve released so far (including Systems 201 in packaged format) for $42. And when you buy, you’re also entered to win a $497 Purple Lipstick Plan service package, and you’ll get access to new materials that will be released next month, and 10% of all sales go to Vittana (a nonprofit dedicated to helping people out of poverty with education). Whew.
- I’m also opening registration for the 2013 Planning + Systems + Strategy workshop, a one-day workshop happening in December that I am really excited about. For the early bird period (November 23-28), tickets are $147 instead of $197, and everyone who signs up during that period gets the explosively epic holiday bundle, and 10% of all sales go to Vittana.
These offers are available from now until midnight CST on Wednesday, November 28th. If you have any questions, email me and let me know. In the meantime, whether you celebrated Thanksgiving this week or not, I hope you have a fabulously fantastic weekend with people you love doing things you love.
*I would be lying if I said that writing that didn’t make me think of 10 Things I Hate About You. I know you won’t judge me.