Have you ever really considered that you can make a journey taking only one step at a time, even backtracking several times and going around obstacles to eventually reach your goal?
Doing something you love helps you to be persistent so that you eventually get where you want to go. Small minimum daily actions over the messy, mundane middle of the journey to learn or create something new will help to get you there!
I have never thought of myself as a very persistent person. In fact, I only ever thought that I was inconsistent and undisciplined, but becoming a mother and entrepreneur (Mompreneur) has shown me otherwise.
Are you the type who can do something that you do not like to do over and over, just for a paycheck? Or are you like me; you find it difficult to do something unless you have a deeper purpose driving you to do it?
Dishes and other necessary mundane daily tasks aside, if I am not passionate or interested in a job that I have to do then I can only complete it with the barest effort to complete the task.
If on the other hand, I am excited about the task and it fills me with purpose and fire, then something amazing happens and I complete the task with dazzling fireworks and then go on to obsess about doing a lot more.
Mother Makings has that fire behind it and has taught me to be ever so persistent.
Becoming a Mother
Motherhood is where my persistence was truly forged. Before that it seemed that I was hardly ever interrupted doing a task.
After the birth of my first son and then my second, finishing anything became a real struggle. Yet, as a full-time, stay-at-home mother there are a multitude of things that must be completed for the health and welfare of our families.
I created Mother Makings as a creative outlet, and that really saved me. I struggled alone many hours at home to fulfill my sacred duties, all of which had a steep learning curve since I had never been interested in homemaking before.
Mother Makings became my focus, and even as I laid a task aside to turn my attention to my family’s immediate needs, the passion that I felt for my creative project always drew me back. I learned to pick up where I left off until I finished it, no matter how many times it was set aside…
The Messy Mundane Middle
Recently, I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts, Old-Fashioned On Purpose, where Jill Winger, the creator and Mompreneur behind The Prairie Homestead blog, told the story about how she started her homestead and blog.
These are some of my favorite episodes because they remind me of when I was home with my babies discovering my own creative outlet. It was during this time that I discovered her blog. She created her blog using her own full-time, stay-at-home-mother experience. Reading her DIY recipes and stories inspired me and helped me to feel less alone and more connected to other mothers in similar situations.
Her episode “The Messy, Mundane Middle” is about all of the tiny, boring and monotonous tasks that she practiced daily before her blog became successful. Her message is that for those of us in the middle of doing this long and tedious work with a small business, blog or project that we have to do a lot of repetitive tasks before we see any success. She assures us that past the plateau of monotony the beginning of that shining success is growing nearer.
The Beginning of Success In My Journey
I created Mother Makings in 2014. I only became serious about making it a business rather than a bobby (a hobby that pays for itself but does not make a profit) in late 2018. This past Winter Holiday season showed me my first glimpse of that success that I have been working steadily towards.
Four of my awesome repeat customers all purchased large orders from me on the same day in addition to my high Holiday Market Sales!
I was blown away! It felt so good to finally receive acknowledgement through sales and outstanding Etsy Reviews (read Melissa’s of Dec 11, 2020) of all of the care and hard work that I have been doing!
My eldest son said “ Wow Mom! You had a really lucky day today!” and I said to him “No, it was not luck. I have been working really hard for this.”
What an amazing lesson for a 10 year old! I wish that I had known this lesson earlier but at least I know it now.
Minimum Daily Actions
Jill’s description of the “messy, mundane, middle” really resonated with me. Then my business coach, Deborah Englemajer of Tizzit.co in her January newsletter recommended committing to doing a minimum daily action instead of a New Year’s Resolution.
She defined a minimum daily action as:
“A daily action goal that can be extended on days where you have time, energy and can do more – but that’s small enough that even on the worst of days you can still fit it in.”
Deborah Englemajer of Tizzit.co
Now this is definitely more doable for me and it sings out with Jill’s point about all of the small repetitive tasks that one must do on their journey.
Here are my examples of those minimum daily actions (Note: I did not take all of these actions every day but I did practice them on a regular basis):
- Writing abbreviated Morning Pages
- Regularly showing up and networking with other like-minded people and businesses on Instagram
- Writing and sending a weekly newsletter (more or less)
- Showing up at a tiny newborn local market on a regular basis (the Staples Artisan Market)
- Taking care to create and continue to make my unique handcrafted tallow skin care products and newer copper and silver spiral jewelry with care and love
- The hundreds of ways that I am constantly streamlining my product creation, market booth set up and business
- Even taking time to do nothing, walk or bike with my family, play Minecraft with my boys or hang out with my neighbors, chickens and rabbits in order to help refuel myself.
Persistence
After encountering the synchronicity between Jill and Deb, then my friend and fellow Mompreneur Jen Piccici, an uplifting artist and inspirational coach, shared her post: The Number One Reason You Won’t Achieve Your Dream.
In the article Jen quoted Michael Ian Black on the Magic Lessons podcast by Melissa Gilbert:
“I think, from what I know, it had almost everything to do with persistence. Which is, I think, the most underrated attribute in any creative endeavor. And I think talent is the most overrated attribute in any creative endeavor. I’m not sure I even believe in talent, but I do believe in persistence.”
Michael Ian Black on Magic Lessons, episode 203
Apparently this struck a chord with her as it did for me too. I have always been the talented artist who never got anywhere and that is because I was never persistent. It’s funny how I have come to this realization after such a long and windy path. It makes me think that one day I may get back into drawing and painting too – when I put my mind to it!
Jen then goes on to outline simple steps to follow in order to achieve your dream.
When I read what she had written about persistence it all came together for me.
I knew that I needed to share with you what all of this meant to me.
Persistence doing all of my minimum daily actions has helped me to begin to see past the messy, mundane middle of my journey with Mother Makings. I am so glad that I am at the point to be able to share this with you!
How have you persisted through the messy, mundane middle of a project or business?
What character traits have motherhood or fatherhood brought out in you?
I would love to hear your stories and likely someone else like the isolated, full-time-stay-at-home-mother that I was would like to know too!
Links:
- Creation of my business Read about how Mother Makings came to be
- SE2: EP:1 The Messy, Mundane Middle by Jill Winger on the Old-Fashioned On Purpose podcast
- Etsy Reviews Mother Makings amazing reviews – read Melissa’s specifically of Dec 11, 2020
- Tizzit.co is Deborah Englemajer’s website that has links to all of her amazingly helpful blog posts, videos and membership group (Tizzit HQ) all to help Maker’s succeed in business
- January newsletter Deb’s newsletter about doing minimum daily actions (Thanks Deb!)
- The Number One Reason You Won’t Achieve Your Dream blog post by Jen Piccici with easy steps to help you achieve your dream
- Ep: 203 Magic Lessons by Melissa Gilbert with special guest Michael Ian Black where they discuss fear and failure of creative people
