Its all about passion
It's All About Passion By Angela J. Mattson
I was doing some reading on the web this morning and stumbled across an article about Tamara Mellon, the mastermind behind the ultra-popular Jimmy Choo shoes. In the article, she mentioned using a London-based organizing service called Practical Princess. Being an unusual sounding name for a company, I immediately went to the website. And I ran smack into PASSION!
The owner of this company is Elika Gibbs, 42, a single mother and organizing maven. She started this company just two short years ago and has already been featured in a dozen magazines. She has an A-List clientele in London. Her background is in modeling and fashion. And man, has she found IT. That thing that makes her heart sing. She's found the key, right thing for her, a niche, her talent, and her passion.
So, why am I telling you about this organizing whiz based in London? Well, we could ALL learn a lot from her.
1 She's taken a couple of her interests - namely fashion and modeling - and combined them with a solid skill she could probably do in her sleep - organizing.
2 She's got a cute and snappy website that includes products, press releases, and how-to's.
3 She charges what she's worth (and she isn't cheap - it costs about ?450 a day to work with her, not including supplies)
4 She never, ever gossips about her A-list clients (that's called integrity)
5 She's honest and firm with her clients about what they need. In myexperience, most people thrive on this.
I know I've covered this before, but since coming back from Alaska, I'm really focused on identifying and using those things that make your heart SING. And this woman has clearly found her thing. Before today, I'd never heard of Elika Gibbs or the Practical Princess. But I am completely inspired by her. After all, if you haven't found your passion yet, you aren't living the life you were meant to live. And we were all meant to live BIG.
For instance, when I think about my passions and talents, I come up with a good list. I know that spending time in my garden, working from home several mornings a week, and watching the birds twitter about in the birdfeeders in my backyard makes my life richer. I also know I get a bit of a "high" when I work with a new client and we get them organized faster and more completely than they ever thought possible. I love solving those pesky little time-zapping problems that irritate my clients. And I love taking a huge stack of work and methodically getting it all done.
I also know what doesn't make my heart sing - doing math, constantly reacting to clients who are over-reacting, dealing with repeated crisis, having apathetic or negative clients, or having to change course from a set plan too much. I also don't like answering phones, making appointments or managing special events. I've done them all over the course of my career, but I'm much more careful now to not take on clients who put me in any of the above positions.
Now, let's turn this all around and focus on YOU. Pull out a sheet of paper and make two columns. Label the left side SING. Label the right side SOUR. Over the course of the next two weeks, keep this paper with you at work. As you do what you do, write down those things that you love doing, where you lose time and feel utterly complete satisfaction when they are finished. On the other side, pay attention to those tasks that you dread doing, that put a knot in your stomach, or that make you feel exhausted when you've finally finished them. Heck, keep the paper with you at home, too. This will help you figure out a wider variety of things you love doing…and other things you love not so much.
At the end of this exercise, you should have a pretty good idea of where your talents and passions lie. This is especially important if you want to go into business for yourself. You must know yourself - your strengths and weaknesses
- in order to be effective in business. It makes no sense to start a business as a mobile administrative assistant if you HATE doing administrative-type tasks. Now, if you only dislike some of these types of tasks, like my list above, you can be choosey about the types of clients you take on, and weed out or refer those who aren't a good fit.
After all, owning a business is about combining your passion, talents, and interests. You must be passionate about what you do and whom you do it for. It is defining your day in a way that makes you eager and excited to get out of bed each day - and that makes your heart SING.
And what's that old saying? Do what you love and love what you do and you'll never "work" another day in your life. I'm betting the Practical Princess feels exactly the same way.
© 2008 Angela J. Mattson and Mattson Business Services
Solopreneur, Angela J. Mattson, publishes "Supporting Solopreneurs," an online e-zine for mobile administrative assistants, project assistants and bookkeepers who want the freedom to define their days by being their own boss! Sign up today at www.defineyourday.com.
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