I Ripped My Pants

Well, this week in California was quite a success. The sun was shining, the temperature was warm and soft, the cliche birds were singing, and I learned a lot. From meeting with various clients, to long drives off the coast, I would say that I'm practically considered a Cali girl... Ok - that may be a bit extreme. But before I introduce "Stretch Yourself: Week 2", I'm going to share a brief story.

Our beautiful view from a point near Chula Vista 

All week had been mapped out, meetings held, all leading up until this one moment... The handoff.

No, I'm not a drug dealer. I'm in finance... Same thing basically. (Joking)

Before the handoff, I had done an exceptional job of keeping myself hydrated during our drive. So, I had asked my boss to pull over for a pitt stop so that I didn't have to do certain bodily habits at the handoff location. Well, all was fine there, no details whatsoever. As I was walking to the car, I had been messing around, and jumped into the car in such a way that when I heard this sound, "sshreeep", and well, I ripped my pants! All of the sudden, my professional career flashed before my eyes! 

I was mortified. I thought about that Spongebob episode, so long ago in my distant memory, of how he ripped his pants. Later in the show, he then starts ripping his pants for fun, but I will tell you now, I didn't have the same experience. My insides wanted to be my outsides, and my mind felt like it was being imploded like a Vegas casino! All was wrong with the world, and the only thing I could think to do was... act like nothing happened. Call me dramatic, but this is how the world was in my mind. My boss didn't seem to realize, as he continued on with our conversation about classical music and the sad piece created by Samuel Barber playing over the radio. All I heard in my head was, "blah, blah, blah music, blah, musical theory, blah, ripped pants..." I was trying to pay attention though.

Well, I figure my luck would have two outcomes. #1 - I've got a booty. And as people might look, they'd notice the tear, and I would endure psychological damage the rest of my life. #2 - The cardigan I was wearing may have indeed been divinely inspired, as the tear could possibly get covered up. I decided that I had no choice but to have faith in a piece of cloth. We arrived at the location, and I got out of the car all shaky. I thought that this stuff only happens in movies, not to me! But I had to keep pushing on. At this point, I was worried about my ripped pants, that I didn't take into account my sweat levels. My adrenaline must have spiked because all of the sudden I got really flush and hot. Anyway, didn't notice till after.

We made it to the meeting, and all went really well. I tried to imagine that the pants incident was an obstacle to help me stretch and grow. What did I learn from that experience? I will tell you what... If I could make it through a really important meeting, with ripped pants in the crotch area, I believe that this was yet another sign that I now can do anything! And that cardigans are a very worthwhile investment. In all reality, this situation taught me to slow down, and problem solve. I thought about ways to position my body language in a way that wasn't awkward, and I also focused on every word that was said to make sure I wasn't deterred from my end goal. Talk about perfect example of stretching yourself! 

Now that it's all said and done, I'm ready to move forward with my next challenge. 

Stretch Yourself: Week 2

Thanks to my beautiful, life-long friend, Rachel Evans, I will be doing a Vlog (video blog) this week on Jason's and my SECRET Utah adventure/trip! (For those of you reading this who may already know why we're going to UT, don't tell!) Big things are happening in the lives of Jason and I! Who wants to guess what's happening?? :D

I will reveal the secret on March 8th.

Stay tuned. Xoxo

Stretching Yourself

I once heard that you grow the most, when you stretch yourself the most. Lately, I've been thinking a lot about this concept. I've been thinking about some of the things in my life that make me feel uncomfortable, or skills that I don't possess, and have been thinking about ways to overcome these obstacles. The way I figure it, if I can stretch myself and learn at least one different skill a week, do something that will help me grow, my comfort zone will expand, and I will gain more life experiences. I will document my progress on this blog, so if you want to make suggestions on new things I could do each week, feel free to let me know!

Why do I want to stretch myself? It's simple. It's my "Hero's Journey". I've written about Joseph Campbell, a famous philosopher, in some of my previous posts, and yes, I'm slightly obsessed with his teachings. He focused his life's work on this concept of the "Hero's Journey". He studied how every mythological story, bible story, etc. and how they come together as a metaphor for the journey that we each go on. He diagramed his theory as a circle with 3 main phases to our lives: The Separation, The Initiation, and The Return.

The Separation focuses on the Hero's call to adventure, branching out from your natural state. For example, I am currently on an airplane, with my boss, on our way to Orange County, to do a major handoff with one of our company's largest accounts. Basically, this handoff will be the biggest moment of my professional career, thus far, where I will personally be handling all major relationships with one of our biggest partners. The Separation here is leaving my wonderful boyfriend, my fur children, and my comfortable home, to fly across the nation and assume major responsibilities. 

Luke Skywalker's call to adventure.

The Initiation of this adventure will be where the "hero" will take "The Road of Trials", as Joseph Campbell would say. This is where a "hero" needs to pass a series of tests to begin the transformation. So, I will be making note of everything that happens this week with the handoff, and then report back to you... Which brings me to the last major phase: The Return. 

The Return focuses on the retained wisdom that the "hero" has gathered on his/her quest, and how the "hero" applies this wisdom to their life, and shares this wisdom with the world. The story is the most important part of this phase. What did the hero learn? How did this process help the hero grow? What will I learn from taking over this large account? What can I do better the next time? In what ways did I stretch myself? 

So, all of this being said, this week I will be stretching myself professionally. I will be taking a big step towards big learning experiences. I will be meeting a lot of very important people, and I will be broadening my horizons on ways to better improve our partnership. I will be meeting the CEO, CFO and other level employees at this company. I will be the quarterback for this account. I'm the youngest employee to ever do this at my company... And you know what? Bring it on. 

The phone is ringing... 

My call to adventure has been answered. 

....

Will you answer the call?

Stretch yourself.

Happy Checks

This is going to be a quick post. I've started a new phase in my life. I've just switched to a career that is going to take me on a freight train to my bliss, and I'm loving it so far! I'm doing school, and trying to maintain somewhat of a life as well in the background of this amazing life change. One thing I will say that I've been learning over the last little while... TIME MANAGEMENT. Phew.

So, here are my thoughts this evening:

Have you ever had that moment in life where things make sense - you're in the right place at the right time, doing what you're meant to do, loving the partner of your dreams, embarking on an amazing journey called "life"? You wake up every morning feeling so grateful to be alive. You know that you were brought to this Earth, at this time, for a purpose.

Yes - this is my life. I am an optimist. I love my life, and one of the things I love most about life is the obstacles. These are what I like to call "happy checks", and they are waiting for you to cash them out. Once you do, they become opportunities to grow to become phenomenally exceptional. 

So, what is my definition of a "happy check"? Think of it like this - you decide to make a change, or you're forced to make a change in your life. Whether that be a career shift, a medical issue, a divorce/breakup, a financial turnaround, etc. This change is just yet another stepping stone in your "hero's journey" towards following your bliss. Then the universe says, "It's time to get paid!" And boom. You get a glorious check!

I was talking to my new boss tonight in the car. We spoke about how we have a choice with our lives. We can wake up in the morning, and either choose to be happy, or choose not to be happy. This is the greatest payday we can experience everyday. However, there is a key to cashing out a happy check. 

You must be willing to take the leap into the unknown.

Follow Your Bliss

Joseph Campbell once said,

"I don't believe that people are looking for the meaning of life, as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive."

As I've reflected on that quote, and looked back on my own life, I've come to realize just how true that statement is. 

Let me start with a story that comes from a documentary I'd seen recently:

Many, many years ago, there was a small village with a statue of a golden Buddha next to a monastery. There had been news that an army from a neighboring city was about to invade. So, the monks decided to cover the golden Buddha statue with mud and twigs so that the army would perceive no value in it. Sure enough, the army rolls through, see's the stone Buddha, and because it was just stone, they did not need to plunder the statue. Years went by until there was a time, in that village, where nobody remembered that the statue was actually gold that had been concealed. Until one day, a young monk was kneeling, meditating next to the stone Buddha and noticed that a piece of the stone had chipped off, and there was shimmering gold underneath the stone.  

He ran to his fellow monks yelling, "The Buddha's gold! the Buddha's gold!" They followed him to the Buddha, took their picks and hacked off all of the stone, revealing the golden statue in all of its glory. 

The reason I tell you this story is because it's a metaphor that each an every one of us is golden by nature. We're born golden, we're born high, we're born connected to our "bliss". Eventually we develop a casing of stone over our Buddha's. We grow up, we're told that this is how we should act, this is what we should study, this is how we should look, this is what you need to do to make a lot of money, etc. We eventually believe that we're really the stone Buddha, and not the golden one. 

Until one day, something comes along that cracks our casing. Whether that be a divorce, financial setback, a physical injury, something that really scares us and bugs us, and it knocks off a piece of our stone armor and reveals the gold underneath. Only then, when that piece of concrete get's chipped off, and you see that gold, you will never be satisfied with the stone again. At that point, you'll enter the true hero's adventure, and all you want to do for the rest of your life is pick away the stone...

The gold is so much more fun!

All of that being said...

A little bit of an intro: My name is Whitney White, and I'm a hard-working, easy-going, patience-lacking individual who lives in Atlanta, Georgia. I have two dog-children, and a loving boyfriend. I love my little family! I'm new to GA, as I am from UT. It's been an incredible transition.

I keep telling myself that there's more to my life than what I'm doing now. I have a huge urge to serve others, help others through their journeys, like I have been helped on so many occasions. I have often realized that my golden nature, or my golden Buddha, has been covered up with a concrete armor. And sure enough, like that story, bits will get chipped off, and I will find the gold. In this blog, I will talk about those events that have been helping to chip away at that thick armor that's been created, and my road to following my bliss.

Jason and I

What does "follow your bliss" mean? It means that you should do the things in life that you were born to do. Follow your dreams, listen to your inner self. Joseph Campbell coined the term "Follow your bliss", as he believes that everyone embarks on their own "hero's journey" and that we all have a path that we need to follow.

Well, this blog is a start to my bliss.

... I want to serve others and enrich lives.

-Whitney