A wish for my fellow dreamers and doers

work life

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Don't live by default and factory settings. You were meant for so much more. A wish for my fellow dreamers and doers on KaraLayne.com

No matter what the past year has looked like for you, I have one wish for my fellow dreamers and doers. The fellow moms and dads who have big ideas for their family…

GO AFTER EVERYTHING YOU WANT WITH WILD ABANDON.

Stop saying “tomorrow”, stop blaming it on your limitations and for the love of all things, stop pointing to every possible negative outcome to be the reason not to go for it. This life is not a guarantee. Tomorrow is not promised and if it does come, who knows what it will bring us. The guy who finds comfort in the 9 to 5 paycheck can get hit by a bus on his way to work tomorrow just the same as the guy going after a new venture. Read that again.

So many people live by default. It’s like factory settings that they don’t realize they have control over the dials. But they do. This entire thing we are doing here? Practically all of it can be customized. Whether it’s an idea, a business, a hobby, or a crazy desire to move to a foreign place. If it’s stirring inside you it’s worth listening to. Don’t live by default.

Don't live by default and factory settings. You were meant for so much more. A wish for my fellow dreamers and doers on KaraLayne.com

I know what you’re thinking… but Kara, there’s a thing called ‘real life’. There are bills and things to pay for and families to support. And there are crazy things happening right now. We all can’t just walk away from our jobs to dream big dreams.

I feel you. I am extremely familiar with those real-life situations as well as you are. We have five children who need our dreams to pay the bills, put food on the table, and heat the house. There have been times that there has been more month at the end of the money. There have been dinner conversations over frozen pizza. We have gone without more than we have gone with and the idea of a vacation is still a foreign concept for the time being, however…

We pick the hard we want in life. 

Six years ago my husband found himself miserable at his corporate job. While it would have been easy in certain ways to continue on the hamster wheel, to continue collecting that paycheck, what would it be for? For benefits? Well, we couldn’t afford them with an employer so what’s the difference in trying to afford them on our own? My husband realized that he could be doing the same thing for himself. So he walked and it was the best decision we ever made for ourselves. Was it hard? Hell yes. The hardest and scariest thing we had ever done, but it’s the hard we could go to sleep with. And it’s the hard we could look at in the mirror every day. He worked his tail off to build a six-figure business for himself and our family. No capital, no education, no backup. It’s incredible what a hard work ethic and grit can do But as Thomas Edison said, hard work dresses in overalls and because of that the opportunity it brings is missed by a lot of people. 

Or how about when we decided to finally give into the idea of moving out of Arizona. After 16 years of talking about it only to never take that stirring inside of us seriously, we set our sights on a place we had never even been to. We left everything to move sight unseen to Tennessee. We left everything except what could fit in that UHaul trailer hitched to the back of our SUV. We not only left material possessions, but we also left all the family we have, friends, and yes – even Jarett’s business. We rolled into Tennessee on fumes. And there have been a lot of ups and downs as we have worked our tails off to rebuild.

But when I tell you that we are so much happier where we live now, I mean it in the deepest and most sincere sense. We feel endless inspiration. Two years later and we still can’t drive or go anywhere without smiling. The personal growth that comes from making a leap of faith like that? Life-changing. It wasn’t just about proving outside opinions wrong, it was also about proving to ourselves that we can do hard things. And that dreams matter, even as adults.

Don't live by default and factory settings. You were meant for so much more. A wish for my fellow dreamers and doers on KaraLayne.com

There might be people that will tell you it’s the wrong time to start a new business or take a risk. Frankly, those people are really good at finding a reason not to do anything. But for every one of them there is also an entrepreneur or dreamer that will tell you the exact opposite. Do you know the companies that were founded and started during the last recession?

Pinterest

Uber

Dropbox

Slack

Square

Airbnb

Just to name a few. 

We pick the stresses we want in life. We pick the hard we want to deal with. That’s our freedom. Waking up, commuting, and working nine to five at a job you hate? That’s hard. Waking up knowing that you have to book three new clients in order to pay your bills for that month? That’s hard. But you know the amazing thing about going after what is stirring in the deepest parts of you? SO. MUCH. GOOD. So much good comes from going after what sets our souls on fire. And in the act of following those passions, we put energy out into the world and it creates a domino effect. It’s a tidal wave of blessings and growth and when you open yourself up to it, you will be shown sheer power and force that aids you in making things happen. It was our experience in moving to Tennesee. And maybe one day I will share the whole story with all of the magical-cannot-be-explained-God-had-everything-to-do-with-it kind of details.

You don’t want to know life without a steady income? Then use your 9 to 5 to fuel your idea, your product, your business venture, that move you have been dying to make. We know now more than ever from the past year that not only is another stream of revenue a wonderful blessing for so many reasons (whether it’s to fuel a new idea or simply be better prepared), but that life is meant to be lived. Not standing still.

Be ruthless in getting things started. Work all day and then plan all night. Your life deserves to be everything you want it to be. YOU deserve to have everything you want and I’m not talking about money and possessions. You deserve to wake up and feel fulfilled. You deserve to wake up and feel content. To not dread Monday and only live for the weekend. You were made for so much more than that. You just have to be willing to do the hard. Be resourceful, have grit, have courage, and have faith.

Don’t live your life by default. Let’s give our kids the gift of watching us go after everything we want. My hope is that we are rearing up the generation that will burn the system to the ground. Because they had us showing them that they are divinely created for more. So much more than living by default.

Set your soul on fire because, goodness… it’s going to be a sight to see. 

_______

(You can find this print available in the KL shop here.)

March 16, 2021

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