However, I am now the mother of three boys that all have some degree of those traits, plus some of my husbands. My youngest, Shawn, has always been the most like me in almost every way. This weekend proved it. I have to give you a little warning…this is for all the parents out there! This story is a little gross, but absolutely hilarious. Many of you will be able to relate.

With all three of my boys, we have taken them out of the crib and put them in a toddler bed at 15 months old. We make sure the entire bedroom is child proof and put a lock on the door so they cannot get out of their room and fall down the stairs or get into any other trouble. We make sure they have plenty of books to read and toys to play with. We do this until they are ready to come out at night and go potty, about three or four years old. It has worked very well for the older two boys who are now five and seven. So, we followed suit with Shawn our three year old.

This past week we took the lock off of his door because he is ready to get rid of the Pullup at night. He has been potty trained during the day for over a year now and his bladder is about ready to go without Pullups at night. Well, he is still three, so he kept coming out of his room at insane hours and playing and making noise…enough to wake up his brothers. On Friday of last week I had had it. I had Matt put the lock back on his door. We talked to Shawn about why and said when he showed us he was ready again we would take the lock back off and try again. I showed him….right? Mama’s got this all under control…Or not.

Fast forward to Sunday morning, I walked into Shawn’s room for a second and thought I smelled something. Didn’t think much of it at the time. When I walked back in there, Matt was helping Shawn pick his clothes for the day. I started sniffing…I could smell something and it was not pleasant. Matt couldn’t smell anything because “his sniffer is broken”. I say to Matt, “Do you smell that? It smells like poop in here.” He doesn’t smell anything. I start sniffing around the room and asking Shawn if he had pooped in his room. I look over at him and his eyes are as big as saucers and he says, “NO”. There was an Elmo chair knocked over and I kick it out of the way…I am on a mission now. Something smells like poop in this room and I am going to find it.

As I am sniffing around Matt and I are grilling Shawn and he is assuring us that he did not do anything. All the while I can tell by his little face he did. Finally, I stop, look at Matt and say, “There is a steaming pile of poop in here somewhere. We just have to find it.” Finally Shawn starts fumbling over his words saying, “I had to go potty and I couldn’t get out!” We gently ask him where it is and he walks over and moves his big 4X4 Jeep which was sitting over it. Yes, he had pooped on his carpet.

Matt and I started laughing so hard! Matt composed himself quite quickly and started telling Shawn that was not a good idea and got to cleaning up the mess. I, however, had to leave the room. I was hysterically laughing. I walked out of the room and into my bedroom and closed the door. I picked up the phone and called my mom. I was laughing so hard she could barely understand a word I said. The first words I spoke were, “There is no denying Shawn is my son!” I proceeded to tell her the story through laughter and tears. I had to repeat myself several times because I think only dogs could understand me with my shrieks of laughter.

Now, I want to make something very clear. I would have never done what Shawn did. However, the reason I saw that mirror clear as day was because of his gumption. I have always been the type that if someone thought they had shown me, I would turn around and show them.

Believe it or not, there is a very important lesson Shawn taught me that day other than the fact that laughing that hard is a good workout. People are going to knock you down. You may want something really bad and someone is going to tell you you are not ready or you can’t handle that yet. You have to pick yourself up and prove them wrong. I am not sure Shawn went the best route at doing that, but I will tell you, we are not locking the door any more and he has been much better about coming out when he is not supposed to. Don’t let people stifle your dreams. When someone tries to block you, figure out another way around it. You have to be persistent. If there is no way around them, find a way to persuade them to your side. You would be amazed at what you can do if you just try.

Thank you Shawn for that wonderful lesson. You are such an amazing teacher at three years old.

• Do a core value check – So often we get caught up doing what we are technically good at, we don’t take the time to see if it is in line with what we truly hold near and dear to our hearts.
• Be honest with yourself about what your core values are - It’s okay…some things that you may feel obligated to be on there, may not really be part of your core values.
• Limit yourself to your top 5 core values – Start with 10 and narrow down to your top 5. See how you feel once you have them out there.
• Build your life and your career around those values – If you are feeling totally out of balance, this may be your problem. If you are not holding true to your core values, start to take steps to move your life in that direction. It is amazing the difference you will feel.

There was so much more than that, but those are the heart of the experience. Now, based on that, this is how I have decided to change my life since I returned.

• Focus on me and my business – While I always thought I was taking my business seriously, the Universe certainly did not think so. Hence, I have changed my office hours to reflect how serious I am.
• Make my business my top priority – I will do this by stopping the distractions, prioritizing tasks and focusing my time accordingly. I also had a very serious heart to heart with my husband and each of my boys individually letting them know what is going on and how things would be changing.
• Step up and do what it takes, even if (especially if) it makes me uncomfortable
• Talk to my husband about “mommy guilt” - I know that may seem strange, but as a mom, I have to deal with it. But in order for me to be able to take care of my children the way I want to, I have to put my business at the top of my priority list right now.
• Feed my soul – This is an enormous work in progress for me. I have finally broken down and admitted I just do not know how to do it. I will keep you posted on what I discover.

There are many more steps, but I think you get the idea. Once you build your core values, you too can take the steps necessary to change your life.

What drives you every day? What makes you get out of bed? What makes you smile through the tears?

As parents, it is normal for us to say our children or our spouse and I completely agree with you. Those are definitely the top two (four technically) on my list.

However, I really want you to go deeper this time, and one step further. Why do your children or spouse inspire you? And, I don’t want the cliché answer. I want you to think about specific examples.

Let me share my experience with you.

A couple of weeks ago I wrote my article Success vs. Failure. The entire time I was writing that article, I had a vision of my seven year old son, Derek, playing tackle football. He plays with children that weigh up to 90 pounds. Derek weighs in at a whopping 51 pounds (without pads). For two years now I have watched Derek go to every practice and every single game. I have watched him get hammered by boys almost twice his size (although he can give as much as he takes, even considering his size).

There have been times I sit and hold my breath until he gets up. As a mother this is very difficult to watch. However, Derek absolutely loves every second of it.

Every single time that little man gets pounded on, he gets up. Sometimes slower than others, but he always gets up. When he does, he shakes his head, dusts himself off and then gets back in line to do it again. Now, think about that for a minute. My seven year old gets knocked down several times a night at practice and in games, but he always bounces right back up and is ready to take on more without even the hint of a complaint or tear.

What if we as adults took on life like Derek does his football? When I have a tough day, I just think about Derek. If he can take on all that he does on that football field and always get up with a great attitude, why can’t I? Why can’t all of us live life with as much passion and perseverance as he does?

Think about what inspires you, is it a child, a spouse, a parent, a friend? What exactly is it that they do that inspires you to want to be a better person? Now, I mentioned above that I wanted you to take it one step further. Share your feelings with that person if it is at all possible.

On the way to football practice one night last week, I told Derek everything I mentioned above. I told him he inspired me and why. I know he is seven, but I truly believe he will remember that conversation for the rest of his life. Hopefully he will remember it when it matters most.

Why don’t you go do the same? Go change someone’s life…

It really does make sense if you think about it.  More than likely self-made millionaires are probably the best (or close to it) at what they do.  If you make good money, you are probably pretty good at what you do.  But, could you be making more?  If so, what do you need to do to make that happen?  What is holding you back? 

Are you the best you can be in your career?  Do you want to do more?  If so, is there a reason you are not doing it?  What would it take to get where you really want to be?  More schooling, a license of some kind, a college degree, a graduate degree?  What is the first step?  Maybe it is looking up the courses online or researching the steps you will need to take and making a plan.  Whatever it is, I challenge you to take it.

Are you the best family member you can be (whether you are a mom, dad, son, daughter, brother or sister)?  If not, why not?  Are you spending too much time at work?  Do you need a family vacation, but you are too afraid to spend the time and money on one?  What would it take for you to take the first step? 

Physically, are you where you want to be?  Do you have the body you have always dreamed of?  Do you have all the energy you could ever want?  Are you getting all the sleep you desire?  If you are confused and can’t even begin to think about where to start, just go for a walk.  Not only will that give you time to think about it, but you will be getting exercise too.  Think about joining a gym or starting to play a sport recreationally that you have always been interested in. 

Do you have all the education you wanted to get?  Maybe you do not necessarily need to get more education for your career, but you have always wanted to learn about ________.  Why not go to a local community college and take a class here or there?  Start reading books on the subject.  There is nothing wrong with constantly educating oneself.

I want to inspire you to be the best at everything you do.  If you are perfectly happy where you are at with your life, then celebrate and enjoy the feeling.  But I have found, most people may be happy for a time, but then they want more.  If you want more, explore that feeling.  See what it is you desire and make a plan to make it happen.  If nothing else, put it on a dream board and see how it manifests itself.  I promise, you will not be sorry you did.

A good friend of mine (Jennifer Bourn, owner of Bourn Creative) shared a quote from Jim Rohn on Twitter that I thought was perfect for this topic.  It is “Reward in becoming a millionaire isn’t the money.  It’s the person you have to become to be a millionaire in the first place.”  If you are struggling with money and finances in general, stop and take a look at how you feel about it. 

• Do you expect to succeed when it comes to money or are you feeling beaten and frustrated? 
• Are you always confident that the money will be there to pay the bills? 
• Do you think the Universe is conspiring for your greater good? 
• Is there a lesson you may need to learn before you can move on to brighter days with regard to your finances? 
• When you go to pay the bills, take stock of your body.  How do you feel?  Are you tense? On edge? Nervous or relaxed?

I am not saying this is an easy thing to do.  Start with one step at a time.  Recognize your feelings.  Try to remember everything happens for a reason.  Maybe there is a lesson to be learned.  Relax and realize you have complete control of your fate.  If you expect to succeed, chances are you will.  You have to become that person first, then the pieces will start falling into place.