I recently explained here on the blog that my lack of work online is actually caused by information and life-overload! I’m learning SO MUCH and it is absolutely wonderful, but, sometimes too much learning - and not enough DOING - can be a bad thing! And then, of course, there’s all that ‘regular life stuff’ that gets in the way, too! I can get distracted and overwhelmed in nothing flat!

[Aside: Am I the only one in the world who continues to use the phrase: ’still pause’???! Quote from that last post: “Can’t the world still-pause while I get things in order here?” Ha! Along with my ‘records’ and ‘albums’ and ‘eight tracks’ and all the other phrases that keep me stuck in the 80’s! ‘Welcome to the ‘how to work at home in the 80’s blog, folks!’]

Back on topic, though, I made that frustrated-I’m-overwhelmed-and-that’s-really-why-I’m-so-inactive-online post and the very next morning, Gary Vaynerchuk, one of the COOLEST dudes online, tweeted this:

That guy is always on! How does he do that? I responded back to him with this:

And let me tell ya - if he was selling ‘Gary’s Magical Motivation-in-a-Bottle’ - I would be the first one in line buying it! And really, just watching his videos gets you pumped UP! As a result of one of the answers to his above question, Gary made a video for GaryVaynerchuk.com. His topic doesn’t exactly address me in my current situation as a stay at home mom, but, I can definitely apply it and get some KICK A$$ use out of it! And I have! Watch the video and we’ll talk some more….

Gary Vaynerchuk says, You Can Have Both….Jobs. Watch the video and be inspired!

I LOVE THAT, PEOPLE! JUST LOVE IT! I have been using that since the minute I first watched the video. When I get tired, distracted, not sure what to do next - my brain whispers to me, “Hustle 2.0″ and then I get so excited, re-energized just from the thought of Gary’s inspiring message and holler out to my empty house,

HUSTLE 2.0!!!

Seriously, ya’ll - I just love it. It gets me centered and gets me focused. It’s so simple and so right on. Just sit your a$$ down and do something, you know? Make things happen! A bunch of lollygagging here and there is not gonna make anything work. Not. one. thing.

And another thing, being afraid of things working - forget that! Don’t waste opportunity, because, subconsciously, you’re afraid to succeed. Success is unfamiliar - we don’t (some of us) know what it looks like or feels like. What if it’s icky?

Are you crazy?! Hustle 2.0 and tell your subconscious to go fly a bloody kite!

That last bit, that lovely ranting lecture, was really meant for me, from me. I know I’ve done this multiple times in my life, but, quite recently, I let a very good opportunity, that I knew good and well was a great opportunity - pass me by. I was wondering about it yesterday and thinking that I probably let myself be ruled by my evil, Negative Nelly subconscious in letting that go. And that right there, folks, is nothing but just plain silly!

HUSTLE 2.0!!!

Sometimes I find myself in quite a stagnant place with my online work.  I wind up paralyzed and usually spend my days mindlessly surfing the web.  Some of it feels like I should actually be doing some of this web wandering - like reading up on new internet marketing techniques and happenings, but the rest of it is usually just nothing more than a wild goose chase.  I can look at one person’s Twitter stream and get lost for two hours IN A SNAP! looking at the links they’ve posted and following through on their conversations, and then looking at the links their followers have posted….  Seriously - I’ll open ONE new email saying, ‘Joe Smith is following you’ and so, of course, I go check out his profile, so I can decide if I want to return the follow.  I’ll check out his recent tweets, check out his website, follow a few of his conversations - and next thing you know - TWO HOURS have passed!  All from opening one freaking email!

The crazy part of all of this is that a lot of this ‘mindlessness’ is actually caused by having too much on my mind!  Here, let’s let my new friend, Gary, explain it.  He said it so eloquently:

And that, my friends, is exactly where I’m at right now!  And then some!  I have so many blankety blank ideas bumping around in my head right now that it is driving me crazy.  I’ve heard all kinds of different ways to deal with this and I think I’m gonna have to sit down today a few of them!  I’ve been jotting things down in my notebook I keep beside me, but, that is just not helping.  Well, it’s not helping near enough, anyway.

One thing I am thinking about doing, though I’m not sure if it’s the smartest way to go, is to just focus on one site at a time, and let the others sit and wait for their turn.  I’ve got mountains of ideas in my head screaming at me for each site, though - so I don’t know if that will keep the peace in there or just make things worse.

And to top things off, there is actually life happening around me outside of my computer and the internet!  The nerve!  Can’t the world still-pause while I get things in order here?  Sheesh!  The kids have all kinds of band things going on almost constantly.  (My daughter is now officially in band, too.  So as of last night, we have three band members in the family - a trumpet, a trombone, and another trumpet.  Yea!)  There’s also that thing called school with all of it’s accompanying needs and demands.  The housework is piling up.  I’ve got a sore throat. (First sickness of the season - I went all summer without getting sick.  Cool!)  And I just found out that I’ll actually have FIVE kids for the weekend.  I forgot I’d promised to keep my nieces.  That means I have to keep track of two little kids at the football game Friday night.  Oh my!

So you can see, all these things - kids, band, school, sicknesses, housework, nieces - they just don’t understand.  I have work to do.  Lots of work.  Ay ay ay!

I think I’ll just go meditate!

I was totally pumped up and excited on Wednesday. I had somewhat of an epiphany, from witnessing the growth of a friend. I got totally focused, and realized exactly what I needed to do to go forward into the new year, and really grow in my online endeavors. I was so motivated - it really felt good. I was nervous, but, full of happy anticipation.

I got started on my newly-decided actions, and then was interrupted in the afternoon when it was time to go to the post office and pick up one of my kids. And by the time we were on our way home, it was snowing like mad here. And it just does not snow in Alabama very often - at all! So the kids were thrilled! And there was lots of playing and snowball-making and snowball-fighting, and picture-taking going on!

Work -what’s that?

New goals, new objectives -what are those?

Then on Thursday, there was some family drama which slowed down my productivity. When the dust cleared, I sat down to get to work, and my computer just was not in the mood to work. I spent the rest of the day doctoring it.

On Friday, one of the children stayed home from school, not feeling well, and my stomach decided to not feel well, too.

And since school got out on Friday, up until about twenty minutes ago, we’ve been hosting and entertaining extra children.

It’s funny, because, I still feel that excitement from Wednesday. I still feel like I’m on the verge of something really good. I’m about to jump off of that cliff of blind faith and it feels great! Only, I’ve just taken one foot and lifted it over the edge, and ….

STILL PAUSE!

Someone put me on pause. I’m still here, still waiting…might get some of that ‘new’ stuff going tomorrow, but, it will more likely get going on Monday, when ….NO! Hold that thought! Monday is a school holiday….

STILL PAUSE!

Thank God! It’s like a breath of fresh air! Every now and again, my email box gets so cluttered up and I get so behind, that it is just overwhelming! And it has been that way for a few weeks now, and it’s been driving me crazy.

So I just sat down yesterday afternoon and went after them with a vengeance! Do you find this happening to your email box, too?

I am a packrat, by nature, and that carries into my online life, as well. Or, I should say, it carries into my computer life, as well. My documents and my pictures get pretty messed up, too!

So when I get a chance to clean things out and get more on top of things, I feel so much better!

One thing that I have found very difficult, as an entrepeneur, is staying organized. I am always getting to where my desk is a mess or my office is a mess or my computer stuff is a mess. And I also often bite off more than I can chew work-wise, because, it all just sounds so good or inspiring or like it’s just going to be a great money-maker.

So that is definitely one of the challenges that I face as a work-at-home-mom, or entrepreneur. I find myself in a ‘mess’ way more often than I like to think about.

I know staying organized can only benefit me and my business, and my children, too. It benefits my children, because, when I am more organized, my work days are shorter.

I’m going to try to remember how good this feeling of having my emails cleaned out feels - so that I can inspire myself to keep it together!