When Life Gives You Rattlesnakes Do You Make the Best of it?

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First off, I’ve redecorated my blog again.  I’m not one of those types of people who can live in the same home for 50 years.  In fact, I can’t even count the number of times I’ve moved.  I sincerely believe my family came from a band of Gypsies. I went to 5 elementary schools and have moved every few years ever since.  My mother is currently on a nationwide tour, at 87, trying to figure out where she really wants to live.

I just moved again.  Moving can definitely reek havoc on your business.  It’s not always fun.  But, you just have to make the best of it and see the result as a big new adventure. I’m loving my new digs.  I still live in Los Angeles, but way up in the hills where the coyotes howl.  We overlook the entire San Fernando Valley and can actually see the stars at night without the helicopters and sirens.  It’s so far up, we had to go with an unknown Internet service.  I thought all of LA had 4G!  There is an old rocket test site nearby, so I hope I won’t become radioactive.  So far all the bunnies up here still have one head, so that’s a good sign.

I’ve decided to focus my blog on having FUN in business and in life, because FUN, is what I’m really about.  Making sure to have FUN is important to me at least. , Unfortunately, too  many people take life far too seriously.  If you can’t have FUN, what’s the point?

So, if life gives you rattlesnakes, just throw them into your next casserole.  They’re supposed to taste like chicken.  At least, that’s what my son told me.  He and his buddies conked one on the head and BBQ’d  it at a Boy Scout outing several years ago.  I wasn’t there and had nothing to do with it except cringe.  It’s a boy thing.

Business has to be FUN in my opinion.  If you’re stressed out about job security, working with ill mannered people who don’t appreciate you, or under extreme financial stress all the time, you may find yourself wanting to jump off a cliff.  I’ve certainly been in all of those situations, at various times in my life, but I realized I am the only one with the power to change my situation.   No one needs to be a martyr for anyone.

Here are a few tips to keep the FUN alive in your business and in life:

Stay away from poisonous snakes, sharks, jackals, and vultures. (the people kind)

Their only mission in life is to make you feel small and insignificant.  If you can’t avoid them all together, simply ignore them.  They have no conscience and there is no way they can be saved.

Quit being coyote bait

It’s easy to be a victim and blame everyone and everything for all the negative things that happen along your path.  Stuff happens.  People are not in a conspiracy to get you.  Only you are.

Dogs are happy.  People, not so much

If you’re complaining that you’re working too hard, you hate Mondays, or you never have time for a vacation, you have created an existence,  not a life.  If you hate what you are doing, start building a business that is in sync with your ideal lifestyle.  For instance, I want to travel more and catch up with my more worldly kids.  (Yes, I did the martyr thing)  I had tied myself down to having to be in a certain location to earn a living.  I had my own businesses, but I was running local meetings  and spending too much money on overhead.  I have now discovered a way that I could be anywhere in the world and still conduct business without the massive cash infusion.  I’m not a millionaire yet, but working on it.

Simplify your environment and stop being a pack rat

To me there is nothing more freeing than getting rid of unneeded stuff.  Let’s face it.  We all have it.  (Even the most Zen of us)  Release what you don’t need by either selling it (for extra cash) or giving it to someone who will benefit more from it. (because it feels good)  My man friend has over 200 Hawaiian shirts. He is a classic pack rat and is beyond help, but we are trying.  Right now his mess is relegated to his office.  If it starts to bleed out he gets a bonk on the head. (not literally)  I’m also working to convince him that retirement is not a reason to putter around thinking he’s busy.  That’s a quick way to drop dead.  You have to have a purpose and passion in some form or another.

Do what you love and fly free as a bat

(Can you tell all the animals in my new neighborhood are inspiring me?)

That’s not always easy to figure out, especially if you get distracted easily like me.  But the fact is, you are the one who has to live with yourself, no matter what happens.  If you don’t love what you’re doing, and it feels like you’re not contributing some way to society in a good way, eventually, you will become restless and unhappy. I have done voice overs for over 30 years.  It’s always been lots of fun, but many of the projects I have worked on were about death and destruction. It’s nice to be at the point to be able to pick and choose.  Build your business around your passions, as long as they are marketable.  Create multiple income streams so you don’t always have the security thing hanging around your neck.

Realize that if you stick it out long enough, like a turtle, the fun will start to begin.

Lifestyles are not built overnight, no matter who tries to tell you so.  Be careful of buying into get rich quick scenarios or getting sucked into things that do not directly serve you, but instead serve someone else.   All you end up doing is spending money unnecessarily with little to no results.  I personally have an issue with somewhat charismatic people who blatantly taunt others with links to products they do not really need.

Make it a point to have some FUN in your business or life today!

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About Rebecca Olkowski

I'm a 30 + year voice over actor, blogger, WordPress Blog Consultant and a gal who loves to have fun. I'm on a mission to travel the world in style. Can you give me a lift?