Last year at a Scentsy event I was listening to one of my favorite corporate leaders, Joal Curtis and he was sharing some experiences of one crazy day. His message was when you look back on certain situations to ask yourself "Will it make the write up?" Well yesterday, was one of those days...THAT MADE THE WRITE UP!
It all started 2 months ago when I began planning an after convention meeting. I set the date and had been preparing all of the details that go along with a big event! Well, THE DAY finally got here! I had everything planned out just right! It started that morning at 8 am trying to get the key to the amenity center that I was supposed to already have! The guy that I was getting it from left work early the day I came by! So that left me to Monday morning (day of event) to get the key! 3 hours go by trying to leave messages for the guy with no success of a return call! I begin to go other avenues to get a key! I finally realized where I could get another key but was told that before he could give me the key he needed a verification email that i had the center reserved! (No problem) However, that took an hour! Yay! Finally get the key!
So I get to the center to begin decorating and setting up 30 chairs that I had picked up and loaded into a car and brought over to the center for seating! I am dripping sweat like a faucet! I try to see why the AC unit isn't coming on and realize that it is BROKEN! I then scurry to make phone calls only to find out that it was a known issue and someone SHOULD BE THERE before 5. (Which was OK because my meeting didn't start until 7) So, I continued to set up all the chairs, rearrange big heavy furniture and yes still sweating! (It was 90 degrees on the thermostat) So as I continue decorating I continued to call the property manager to see the status of the AC getting fixed! Each phone call I am told.."they are supposed to be there" Well, the clock keeps ticking and I continue setting up! I started texting people asking if they had fans they could bring! I started thinking of a PLAN B. Its now 4:45 and NO AC MAN HAS COME YET!
So, to finish all of the deco details I was making a road out of black paper and white duct tape. (DRIVE was the theme) So I wanted to create a road outside for everyone to walk up the road to the front door! So me and a friend are out there making this road and quickly realize that we just locked ourselves out of the building. Phones, keys, everything was locked inside of the building! I couldn't even call anyone for help! We paced and decided to ask a mother that was in the pool if we could borrow her phone! We contacted several people to get us a phone number and that took about an hour to resolve! We finally got the key from the other builder in our community! STILL NO AC! Now there is only 1 hour til my event! It was funny how hot it was inside and now being locked out..I now desired to be back in that hot inside.... Funny how perspective changes...when at first all I wanted was to be OUT of that hot place!
I now can't get a hold of the manager and realized that even if they did come to fix it...that there was no way that it would be cooled off in time! So I make a last minute decision to change the location to my house! So all those 30 chairs had to be loaded back into the car and brought to my house and unloaded and set up AGAIN! I had to rearrange furniture and we have literally 45 minutes until people would begin coming! I thought man what a day...but hey it's all gonna work out! Sometimes you just have to make the best of the situation! I knew that speeches had been prepared, food had been purchased, people were in route and hearts were to be touched.....it just had to work out!
Every single stumbling block that could have been thrown at me WAS! Have you ever had days like this? I think we all have! I could have easily just thrown in the towel...I mean people would have understood since the AC unit went out! But NOPE I WAS GONNA PERSEVERE! I mean obviously it couldn't have gotten any worse! RIGHT????..... WRONG!!!! So, finally with help...we got all the furniture moved and chairs arranged and the doorbell goes off! Of course all of the cute deco was at the other place and I had even got the laptop and TV aux all set up at the other place. SO now I have to improvise! Guests are continuing to arrive! People are blowing up my phone with last minute direction change questions and so on. I am running around like a chicken with my head cut off...but its all good! Where's the cord for the computer, where's the Internet key number, where's this and where's the restroom! It's was awesomeness! I mean it now can't get any worse! Well now we are having technical difficulties and can't get the online recording to work! As we continue to get that fixed...more and more and more people are arriving! I am still all over the place BUT WITH A SMILE! I've learned in life that if plan a,b,c,d,e,f,g,h,i doesn't work then you just go to "PLAN K".... I just knew it was gonna all work out somehow! Just when we almost have everything ready to start after the quick transition of locations....One of my guests walks in and says..."Um, your neighbor is out there cussing and going crazy!" I then walk outside to see what's going on and realize that she is cussing me and bad mouthing me because our entire street was covered with cars! She was angry that people were parked in front of her house (drive ways were NOT even blocked) I explained that this was supposed to be at the amenity center and so on and so on! She hardly let down her guard...I apologized and killed her with kindness! She continued to have choice words to me! I walked away with her on the phone cussing about her crazy neighbor that had over 70 guests at her house! At that moment I got a chill as I walked away and realized that I had 65-70 people packed in my house and we had some great messages to pass into their hearts! I quickly came back into my house...realizing that EVERY SINGLE STUMBLING BLOCK THAT CAME TO STOP ME FROM HAVING THIS MEETING....DID NOT STOP ME!
As it approached time for me to share my message...I tossed out what I had originally had prepared and shared what was in my heart from the experiences of my day! I was not sure why but felt that I needed to share it....so I did! My message was simple! Daily darts, trials, obstacles will come to shoot you down...But you gotta keep your head up and keep pressing forward! You just gotta keep going!
The meeting started and pressed forward after ALLLLLLLLLL OF THE CRAZINESS of the day! The SCENTSY MISSION STATEMENT RANG TRUE.....Their senses were enlivened, Hearts were warmed, and Souls were Inspired! IT HAPPENED! I felt like the Grinch story when he realized that he couldn't stop the Christmas spirit! THE SPIRIT COULDN'T BE RESTRAINED!
Today I received 10 different messages, fb messages, and emails of people sharing the blessings that they received from being in attendance and it what was they needed or the words that they heard saved them! Two of them especially touched me as this person expressed the despair of her day and how the messages that were shared actually saved her! I know that all the trials prior were in attempt to have me not have the meeting...but it happened DESPITE ALL THE OBSTACLES!
Yes, it's a long story but doesn't this ring true for how life can feel so often? We just can't win for losing! But, if you keep putting one foot in front of the other and pressing forward no matter what comes your way to shut you down....REMEMBER THIS..
My message is this....The only way that you won't succeed is to QUIT! So next time...NOTHING GOES YOUR WAY REMEMBER THIS.....
Find JOY in the BIG PICTURE....AND JUST DO IT!
Find JOY in YOUR JOURNEY!
