It was a Friday evening in May and I was pulling into my hometown for Mother’s Day when I got a phone call that changed everything. I just spent that day in Oklahoma doing meetings for my corporate job and I was so grateful to get to see my family for the weekend.
The phone call, besides the fluff added to make the blow less severe basically went like this, “You’re fired”. I couldn’t tell if I was more in shock because of the message I was receiving or the horrible timing as I was about to walk into the house to hug my mom. The tears flooded after I hung up and I decided to stay in a hotel that night as to not stress my family out with my sadness.
I had never been fired before. From anything. And now I didn’t know how I was going to keep funding Texi Boots.
I had relocated my life to Chicago for this job because I believed in the company and the salary would help better fund my dream of building Texi Boots. I took myself to the closest Wal-Mart to buy some “essentials” (a bottle of wine and a box of oatmeal cream pies).
I realized very quickly that Gods redirection is often for our own protection
See, just four months prior God had introduced me to the man I was going to marry. The day after we met on January 26th he bought the ring and two weeks later we were engaged (you can’t make this stuff up ha). I was living in Chicago and he was living in California and we were going to do the long-distance thing until we got married and I could get out to California.
I called to tell him the news of my newfound freedom, which honestly felt more like being trapped in a cage of brain fog and confusion. His response, “Maybe this is God letting you know that it is time to chase your dreams instead of helping everyone else accomplish theirs.”
And then the most beautiful words that every woman’s heart wants to hear, “Don’t worry babe, I’ve got your back.” God had blessed him with a job that was three times my corporate salary.
When I thought I had hit a breaking point, I realized it was a breakthrough point
We as humans try to figure everything out. We make plans, we live by our schedules, we create boxes so we can check them off. When God has the deck, He was stacking the cards in my favor and I just had to trust Him. God knew I would meet my knight in shining armor just a few months prior and my being fired was really being set free.
Since May 2019 I left my 80+ hour a week corporate life to shift my focus to Texi Boots. I started making more per month in my own business than I had ever made working my corporate career. The transition was far from perfect. I had 80 hours a week free and not enough work in my own business to know what to do with myself (a blog for another time).
But here are 5 ways I started to dig in my boots when I thought it was over:
- Positive Motivational Messages – A habit I started at 19. While you are getting ready in the morning (doing hair, makeup) put on a podcast. When you are driving, put on a podcast. When you are folding laundry, put on a podcast. Start filling your mind with positive. It may take a few months, but eventually it will shift your mindset and rid your inner-self talk of the negativity you are experiencing.
- Move – Get your butt moving, even if it’s a 15-minute walk (while you listen to a positive motivational message). It is a scientific fact that exercise helps your body fight depression. It may take everything within you to start moving, but just start.
- Vision Board – I know, I was one that literally mocked people that plastered photos of things they’ll never have all over their house, until they started getting those things. I silently became curious and wanted to test the theory myself. I have since taken down 28 photos off my vision board that have come true in real life. What your mind visualizes and works towards you will start to attract into your life. Start with one photo, or take my word for it (I am driving my dream car, wearing my dream 4 carat diamond ring, married to my dream man, building my dream business – all of which were on my vision board). If you don’t know where to start, follow Terri Savelle Foy on Instagram and check out her youtube channel.
- Confession Card – This one I thought was really whack at first. But I realized I needed to start programming my mind for positivity. I needed the negative self-talk to disappear so I could focus on maximizing my potential here on this earth. You can start with a 3×5 notecard and can write anything you want your mind and heart to believe. Some examples may be, “I am debt free by 30 years old. I am a New York times best-selling author. I am beautiful inside and out and make those around me feel loved.” Two great books that will help you here are called Hung By the Tongue and What to Say When You Talk to Yourself.
- Action – Confidence isn’t built by wishing, speaking or visualizing something into existence, it comes only by taking daily action. Small daily action compounded over time will produce better results than if you once a week or once a month binge worked on something. Start by writing what the goal is you are working towards (whether in business or in life) and write it in your calendar exactly what small action you will take (and what time of the day you will accomplish it). You will be able to look back on a month and have a track record of small daily wins that build confidence and move you closer to your dreams.
You can’t just wish for it, you must work for it
And the next time you feel like life has hit you in the head with a 2×4, realize that that piece of wood may just be necessary for you to start building your empire.
