Life Is Short: How My Daughter Danica and Joel Osteen Keep My Business Thriving

You know that moment in your life when everything changes and absolutely nothing petty matters any longer?

The birth of my beautiful daughter, Danica, was that moment for me.

My 13-month old precious girl is now sufficiently walking.

(I know… I’ve been told (warned!) that life as I know it will never be the same!)

Watching lil Dani go from only able to lay on her back, to rolling over, to crawling, to scooting, to walking around holding the edge of a couch, to a full on confident stroll around the room is a spectacular miracle to watch.

As a proud father, it’s amazing to witness this progression unfold before your eyes.

She is able to pick toys up along the way as she walks and continue about her business.

Here is 15 seconds of Danica’s first solo stroll outside of our carpeted living room.

Occasionally, Danica will lose her balance or trip over a toy and finds herself on the ground in a seated position.

Without hesitation, she gathers herself and brings herself back where she needs to be, on 2 feet.

What she does not do is wallow in the fact that she is down, and she does not feel bad for herself.

She does not sit and wonder whether she deserves to be walking, or is she really destined to be crawling her entire life.

She doesn’t ask why God put her in this position! Or why everyone around her is able to walk effortlessly.

She instinctively knows that she needs to be walking upright on two feet and continues to immediately get up when she falls down.

And do you know what that does slowly but surely? It creates a habit. It tells the body that upright is where we need to be. And the body begins to feel comfortable in that role. And eventually her body will not trip over what it once did or lose its balance.

The habit creates confidence. It becomes part of your makeup as a person.

In fact, every single time Danica takes a step forward, falls down, and picks herself back up, she is a stronger person.

She is stronger because of the fall.

Falling down and picking herself back up has given her strength. It has not taken anything away from her as a person. In fact, the fall was a necessary part of the entire process of learning to walk.

Without the fall, there would be no eventual walk.

This is the same concept as the months of ‘talking’ and sounds the come out of Danica’s mouth throughout much of the day.

She is not forming words, per se, but she is making sounds that begin to resemble ‘mama, dada, baba…’

Danica is not able to keep quiet until she can form complete words and sentences. She needs months of this ‘sound making’ to get to the point where she is speaking and saying real live words!

The Same Goes For Your Business

How many times do you second guess whether all this is worth it? Or if this is really what you want to be doing, or should be doing?

Perhaps you have a family member, close friend, or difficult client at the root of your struggle?

• A difficult client who is accusing you of things you did not do
• A bad review citing things you did not do
• A staff member doing things that give you a bad reputation

Are you able to properly see adversity for what it is: a necessary part of your journey?

Adversity will strengthen you up bigger, better and stronger than you were before! It will literally have the adverse effect of what the initial intention was.

If you can see this ‘struggle’ for what it’s worth, you will see that it’s worth more than all the money in the world. You can’t pay for that kind of life experience!

I’ve always been a firm believer of ‘everything happens for a reason.’

This past Sunday I turned on the TV like usual. After I change and bond a bit with my daughter, we turn on the TV and put one of those music only channels on in the background. I like exposing her to various genres of music.

When I turned on the TV this time, before I could change the channel, I was staring back at Joel Osteen in the middle of his sermon.

Like many other of his ‘life lessons’ this one was speaking to me. It was about struggle, adversity and picking yourself back up.

This is something every one of us can relate to.

Here are some of the points Joel Osteen was making that hit home:

Joel Osteen: “Have you ever seen a palm tree in the midst of a great storm? That tree may be bent so far over that it’s almost touching the ground, but when the wind finally stops, that palm tree bounces right back up. What’s interesting is that while that palm tree is hunched over under the pressure of the storm, it is actually becoming stronger.

“See, the reason God said we’d flourish like a palm tree is because He knew there would be difficult times. He knew things would come against us to try to steal our joy and victory. But God said, ‘You’re going to be like a palm tree because when the storms of life blow, you are going to come right back up stronger than before.’

“As you reflect on the events over the last year, remember, the storms you have encountered have only made you stronger. You are wiser, you are more alive, and you are headed for victory. Your brightest days are right out in front of you! Always remember that with God on your side, nothing can hold you back!”

Can you see how these can relate to my daughter Danica just beginning to walk? Or how about adversity in your personal life? Or with a difficult client trying to bring you down?

Do you see how these can relate to your day-to-day struggle you might find yourself dealing with in your business?

The bottom line is that nothing that comes your way can keep you down. You and I both have the strength to focus on the good, brush off the fall, and get back up on two strong feet.

Just like Danica.

You can’t make everyone happy in this world. And, by no means, should that be your goal.

We talk plenty about attracting, finding, and working with only your ideal clients.

I began my opening remarks at last year’s pet sitting conference expressing how ‘like attracts like.’ My brand, services, and insight may not be for everyone.

And that’s OK.

If you feel you can benefit from having me on your team, in any regard, I’m beyond thankful and grateful to be given the opportunity.

If I am not quite the fit in any regard, that’s OK too.

“Only by being true to what’s on your mind and in your heart will you define who you really are, as well as your truest of fans in the process.” -Marcus Sheridan, The Sales Lion.

Over To You

So how do you deal with adversity? How do you pick yourself back up after a fall? How has a specific incident made you bigger, better and stronger person that you are today? Share your story with us in the comments below!