It is important to have a master plan and follow it

The last couple of months have been very hectic. I had a meltdown, caused, among other things, by my decision to work the night shift. That was a bad idea. It created what I can only describe as a meltdown, mentally, physically. I was exhausted, I could not concentrate and my house and my life was suffering the consequences.

Then, as I had a medical excuse for two weeks from a real doctor, the company fired me because they did not understand the medical excuse. Oh, and by the way, I was fired by email. I know that it is the new millennium but a word of advice for all company owners, have the balls to fire people in person. If it is a telecommuting job and you are thousands of miles away, like in my case, call me until you find me and then fire me. It is bad form to fire someone through email.

The next few weeks were a blur, but included a car crash and a trip to Atlanta, where I saw my gorgeous niece graduate from high school. And then I came back home. With no job and the obvious depression after the layoff, I was out of sorts for a while. Then a couple of things happened that changed everything.

1) My significant other and I had a conversation where we discussed the actual, real possibility of me creating a small company from home. Right now his income can cover most of our expenses. We just have to tighten our belts and be resourceful.

2) I spent Friday reading an e-zine I receive every day, Early to Rise. I highly recommend it. I was reading all the mailings since before I was fired and a thought kept coming back: find what you love to do and figure out a way of making a living out of it. Well, the only thing I KNOW I love more than anything (well, anything except chocolate) is reading. So why can't I make a living reading and writing. The concept for my company started to take shape - a research company. I can take projects based on what people want to research. If you are working on a tight deadline and have no time to research a certain management model, I am your gal. If you are trying to figure out what colleges to send your kid to, but are not sure on where they teach Animal Sciences (we are talking Zoology for the wild animal lovers here, not Veterinary Sciences), I can do the research for you. Ok, the truth is that particular research I am working on right now because that is what my daughter wants to study and that is how I found out that in order to be an expeditioner studying the habitat of wild wolves, requires a college degree that is a little different from the veterinary sciences. The point is that I can take on projects that refer to what I am interested in (which is a lot of stuff) and say no to those that I have no knowledge or interest in. That guarantees a good job and I stand by what I do proudly.

3) My family is backing me up on this particular venture.

4) I also kept reading that you should try out your ideas, even if they are not perfect yet. I understand the concept. You spend so much time trying to make it perfect that you never get anywhere. You spend too much time on the details and you don't take the plunge. That is not going to happen to me anymore.

This is the plan. I am going to concentrate on a master plan that makes me happy. That will include several key concepts: my health, my happiness and my wealth. And I hope you decide to follow me on this adventure. Have a great day and keep trying.