When Anything Was Possible
By Noreen Music | Book Writing
Welcome to my book writing journey
As I take you on my book writing journey, I will share excerpts of my rough drafts so you can get a sense of what I’m writing about.
One of the biggest challenges entrepreneurs face is the constant overwhelm and stress that seems to be a reality when you work for yourself.
For a moment, remember back when anything was possible and things weren't so hard.
When you enter into the realm of possibility you will gain clarity on what work is vital to move the needle forward in your business based on your dream.
Polishing organizational and productivity skills in your physical and mental spaces lays the foundation to transform how you work so that you can enjoy greater results, freedom and success in your work and life.
Enjoy my friends.
"Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." -Howard ThurmanWhen Anything Was Possible
Do you dream of how you want your life and work to be? Can you clearly see where you’re going? Are you using your unique skills, talents and passions to get you where you want to go?
If you don’t have a dream and a clear vision for your work, focus first on dreaming, because an entrepreneur without a dream is like a heart without passion.
Think back to when you were a kid and anything was possible. Did you dream about what you would do? The life you would have, the clothes you would wear, the exciting things you would do?
In your child’s mind, dreaming the impossible was perfectly carried out without hesitation or complication. It was easy, effortless and you believed in your dreams with complete certainty. No dream, no matter how unrealistic or outrageous, was too big. Your child’s mind didn’t know any limits or boundaries. You were free to dream. You were bold enough to wish for what you wanted and what made your heart sing.
As time went on, you absorbed untrue messages that you saw and heard in the world which you eventually accepted as truth. These deceptions convinced you that your dreams were to be put aside. Dreaming is for kids. Dreams aren’t the cold hard truth of reality.
Who are you to dream so big and so bold?
You aren’t pretty enough, smart enough, lucky enough, worthy enough…just not enough in so many ways. And so your dreams were silenced as adulthood dawned and darkness fell over your childlike imaginings.
I understand.
I pushed my dreams aside too. I chose a career in commercial real estate because it fell into my lap and it paid the bills. I worked really hard, put my back into my living and did quite well for myself. I acquired a lot of wisdom, a respectable level of success and impressive accolades.
But, here’s the “but”.
Buried deep in my heart, under the polish and professionalism, I knew this was not my dream. I always felt like a square peg trying desperately to fit into a round hole. And I never really fit.
Eventually my zest for my career turned sour but I didn’t want to see or admit it. Even though I’d lost my passion for my work, I was doing what I thought I ”should” because of the money and the image.
Who steps away from all those years of hard work? The great salary? The benefits? The title? Not me, that’s for sure.
These next words are hard for me to write. It still causes me a great deal of pain and grief. It all started to unravel the day the man I reported too was terminated. He was an outstanding boss, mentor, supporter and he is still a dear friend to this day.
The politics and posturing seeping from the corner offices was more than he could bear and, after giving 25 years of his life to the company, they walked him out the door without even letting him say goodbye.
It broke my heart to witness how poorly they treated him. He didn't deserve to be dealt with so disrespectfully after all of his loyalty, kindness and hard work.
I also knew at that moment I was in trouble. The big guns were now pointing straight at me.
Regret that I ignored the writing on the wall still burns inside of me. I cried as I cleaned out his office. To add insult to injury, they expected me to do his job and my job for over 6 months while they took their time deciding if they were going to offer me the role or not.
I was the most qualified and deserving candidate by far. I gave the company my blood, sweat and bullets. I proved myself over and over again by achieving the highest level of standards and innovation across the country for almost 10 years.
One of the main issues was that I was born the wrong gender. I didn’t look like them. I would never be a middle aged white male in a navy blue suit and a red tie.
I remember walking into meetings with my sparkly jewellery and my hair and make up just so and be the only woman sitting at the table. I wasn’t invited to lunch with "the boys". They said snide things about me behind my back. My ideas and opinions were rarely heard.
These gentlemen made it quite clear to me that I was not accepted and no amount of hard work, stellar KPI's, solid financial returns or gloriously happy customers would change that.
Every day I suffered a thousand little paper cuts which set me apart and placed a target on my back.
Not living in my truth and pretending I was okay caused me to feel overwhelming fear and exhausting levels of stress. I became critical and prideful to cover how miserable I was. I saw the cracks appearing in the mortar of my accomplishments and there was nothing I could do to fix it.
I didn't know it then, but my deepest dream was trying desperately to break through the fractures.
When I was brutally fired from my job almost a year later, it was certainly in part because of the fear and denial that was becoming my character. Even though we can never be 100% sure of other's motives in these types of situations, I know my motives became a liability to me. I didn't deserve to be fired, but I chose to focus on the necessary life lessons I got out of it. I needed to learn to trust my gut and getting fired snapped me out of the trance I was in.
How could I have ignored the whispers? My intuition knew corporate life was not my highest and greatest good. Reason and lack of faith held me back from hearing the truth of my dream and choosing it before I was forced too.
I know now that the volume needed to get turned up so deafeningly loud that I could no longer pretend I didn’t hear my dream crying out to be realized.
From the ashes of my 30-year career was born my new life as an unexpected entrepreneur. It was staggeringly painful at the time. I was terrified, and I still am some days. I had no idea what I was going to do.
The only thing I knew for sure was that I wasn't going back into the corporate world where the air was thin and I couldn’t breathe. The dream buried in my heart demanded to be born and it needed more fertile soil to grow.
Out of my deepest pain and hardest challenge came the lightning bolt that sparked life into my dream.
To share what I know with creative, hard-working and inspired entrepreneurs like you. To decode powerful productivity practices so you no longer feel overwhelmed, frustrated, and stressed to your breaking point. To encourage you to create a laser focused vision for your work rooted in your heart's wildest dream.
Today as I write this, I have reframed that termination to a promotion. The end of my corporate chapter is where my entrepreneurial dream finally broke free and where anything is possible.
I Need Your Help!
I am looking for entrepreneurs who would like to contribute a story for my book.
If you are interested and have a story to tell about your greatest productivity challenge and how you overcame it, I’d love to hear from you!
Take the opportunity to possibly be featured in my book by clicking on this link and completing the quick submission form.
Find your freedom.
Live your life.
Noreen
