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The Passionate Voice

Take Your Goals Seriously – Get Organized

September 8, 2017 • Career, Lifestyle

We’re 8 days into September, our second New Years or as I’ve been calling it, New Years 2.0. Oh and Christmas is 108 days away. Crazy, I know.

I’m not sure if its the teacher in all of us but most of us appreciate the ‘reset’ that September offers. Places like Chapters tug on all of our organizational heartstrings and all the new planners come out on the display racks. I personally love it. I joke to Andrew that if I am ever lost, he can find me in the stationary/organizational section. The stationary lover in me fan girls over the latest planners every year when they are released.

If your actually serious about (finally) tackling your goals or getting your side hustle or daily work organized for 2018, a new planner is a good start.

As techie as I am, there is nothing like putting pen to paper to keep everything organized. I haven’t yet been sold on fully transitioning my calendar completely to my iPhone calendar or through an app. I have an electronic calendar but also manage my appointments, commitments and to-do’s through a hard planner.

One of the best feelings in the world is checking off your to-do items in your planner when they are done and accomplished #Check #Done #KickingButt

Here are 9 options (some of them I’ve tried!) to try and put on your  planner wishlist:

[1] Emily Ley’s Simplified Planner – I’ve heard rave reviews about this planner. Emily Ley is a #GirlBoss herself and many fellow #GirlBosses I follow have ended up choosing this planner as their go-too.

[2] Day Designer – I had this planner for 2 years and LOVED it, just didn’t think I needed a page per day but otherwise loved this planner.

[3] Plain Notebooks from Chapters – If you don’t need anything fancy, too expensive and want to just ‘do it yourself’ with your notes, you can always refer back to the good ol’ notebook where you can make your own planner like this one or this one (The message on this one is SO true in my world of too many tabs open on my laptop!)

[4] Danielle Laporte’s Desire Map Planner – I’ve never personally tried this planner but if its anything like Laporte’s books, I’m sure it is an amazing planner packed with tons of inspiration and kick a$$ motivation!

[5] Rifle Paper Co Planner – Love all the details in this one including its 17-monthly calendar year and the beautiful floral design typical of Rifle Paper Co. It also has so many delicate touches inside.

[6] Kate Spade Planner – I have tried this planner but needed more space to write down more to-do’s each day. I still loved the details though in this planner including how each month had tabs and the pocket included inside.

[7] Eccolo 12-month planner –  This is the planner I used for 2016 (a larger version) but this exact version is what I used for the majority of 2017. I actually didn’t purchase mine from Chapters though, I was introduced to Eccolo in the Winners’ check out line where I bought the first planner for $9 #score

[8] Erin Condren’s Life Planner – I love how much you can personalize this planner and how colourful and bright her designs are. How can you not get creative when you get to open up that beauty every time?!

[9] Bullet Journal – I contemplated doing this for 2017 but at the last minute, chickened out. It seemed like a little too much work for me, but I swore to myself that if my current planner failed, I was going to give it a try!

Leave a Comment Career, Lifestyle 2017, 2018, 2018 Calendar, 2018 Planner, Blog 452, Bullet Journal, Business, Calendar, Career, Chapters, Christina Crowley-Arklie, Communication, Danielle Laporte, Day Designer, Desire Map, Desire Map Planner, Dreams, Eccolo, Emily Ley, Erin Condren, Goals, Job, Journal, Kate Spade, Leadership, Life Planner, Motivated, Motivation, Notebook, Organize, Organized, Organizers, Passionate Voice, Planners, Rifle Paper Co, Side Business, Side Hustle, Simplified Planner, Stationary, The Passionate Voice, Whitney English, Women

It All Begins With a Lemonade Stand

July 14, 2017 • Career, Food for Thought, Inspiration, Leadership, Lifestyle, Making a Difference

With a newborn, you can find me most days outdoors, gallivanting  around with the baby in the stroller, enjoying the summer sun. I always love seeing what adventures I’ll get up too or things I’ll encounter.

Last week, I was out for a walk in our neighbourhood when I came upon a young girl selling lemonade.

I looked like I was going to be her next customer as I was walking closer to her. It was then I realized I didn’t have $$$ on me so I quickly turned around to run back home and grab change. I can only imagine the look of sheer disappointment on this girls face thinking she was losing a customer as I ran away from her. I was happy to return a few minutes later to buy a cup of her homemade lemonade.

There was nothing better than watching the pride on this young girls’ face when I returned and asked her ‘How much?’ With the biggest smile on her face, she confidently said, “$1 please.” She had all the right things going for her – a well-written, visible sign with the $1 per cup cost; she had the cute little table and chair; she had manners and spoke well; and she genuinely looked like she loved what she was doing.

And to top it off, she was so pleasant when I approached her with the baby – she even asked questions about me and the baby, the customer. Who taught this girl proper marketing etiquette at such a young age?!

It was one of those moments, as a random stranger, that you take so much pride in doing what you did to help encourage this person.

It also brought back so many memories for me as a kid… because I did the exact same thing! I held many a rummage sale and (tried) to sell lemonade to no avail.

The difference for me was that growing up in the country, trying to sell things on a random weekday in the summer, half way down a long driveway was not that financially viable or successful. There aren’t that many customers who probably think stopping in a car and walking up to a young child in the country looks OK to those driving by. I get it now, but it was hard to swallow at the time.

Clearly my entrepreneurial spirit was evident already at a young age.

The acts of this little random stranger last week was an amazing reminder of what we’re all capable of and how it all begins at a young age:

  • The ideas we have that spark within us;
  • How unafraid we are of big, hairy, audacious goals (and we don’t even know what ‘goals’ are yet);
  • How we take a pretty basic product and only because of how we sell it, the product becomes a hit;
  • The complete, random strangers we are OK with meeting in order to make a sale (and a buck);
  • When we realize we can make money doing something we love or at least enjoy doing;
  • And ultimately, we have the guts to do something we have never did before (and don’t know the outcome of as to whether we’ll be successful or not) and we still go ahead with the idea and sell the lemonade!

It takes some serious guts as a young kid to have the motivation, confidence and persistence to want to do something like sell lemonade, while other kids are out playing with their friends.

At what age or stage in our lives do you think we lose that self-confidence and belief in our abilities that so many of us clearly have as young kids? When do we lose that entrepreneurial mindset of fending for ourselves and running with our own ideas, only to worry what others think of us and our skillset to land a job that may not be for us?

As a quote I found perfectly says, “When life gives you lemons, you build a lemonade stand and profit.”

“When life gives you lemons, you build a lemonade stand and profit.”

Click To Tweet

As the young girl packed up after selling me her last cup of lemonade, I encouraged her to make sure she sets up shop more this summer because I’d be sure to be back. She said she would.

I better start saving my loonies now because she has a repeat customer that will guarantee her sales for her young start-up venture (or college education) 😉

[Photo Source]

Leave a Comment Career, Food for Thought, Inspiration, Leadership, Lifestyle, Making a Difference 2017, Ag Women's Network, BHAG, Blog452, Branding, Business, Career, Christina Crowley-Arklie, Communication, Confidence, Dreams, Entrepreneur, Food for Thought, Goals, Guelph, Inspiration, Job, Lemonade, Lemonade Stand, Lemons, Life, Life Lessons, Making a Difference, Marketing, Motivation, Passion, Passionate Voice, Persistence, Side Business, Side Hustle, Start up, Summer, Summer 2017, The Passionate Voice

“People Don’t Buy What You Do, They Buy Why You Do It”

March 5, 2017 • Agriculture, Career, Communication, Food for Thought, Inspiration, Leadership, Making a Difference

Thought-leader Simon Sinek’s book ‘Start with Why’ is one of my all-time favourites and definitely a recommended read. I happened to re-watch his TED Talk “Start with Why – How Great Leaders Inspire Action” and it reminded me of so many lessons I try and keep in mind.

If you haven’t watched his TED talk, it’s a must-watch — his messages throughout the talk are daily reminders for me in my job; in the industry I work in, in agriculture and communications; and for what I do here on my blog and the whole premise behind The Passionate Voice.

2 of my favourite take-aways from Sinek’s infamous talk:

‘People Don’t Buy What You Do, They Buy Why You Do It.”

“Leaders hold a position of power or authority. Those who lead inspire us. We follow those who lead not because we have too but because we want too.”

‘People Don’t Buy What You Do, They Buy Why You Do It.” – Simon Sinek

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[Photo Source]

Leave a Comment Agriculture, Career, Communication, Food for Thought, Inspiration, Leadership, Making a Difference 2017, Blog452, Branding, Business, Career, Career Lessons, Christina Crowley-Arklie, Communication, Food for Thought, Inspiration, Leadership, Life Lessons, Making a Difference, Millennials, Motivation, Motivation Monday, Passionate Voice, Simon Sinek, Start with Why, The Passionate Voice, Truth, Why, Words to Live By

#MotivationMonday

September 12, 2016 • Inspiration

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Leave a Comment Inspiration Inspiration, Life, Motivation, Motivation Monday, Passionate Voice, QOTD, Quotes, The Passionate Voice, Truth





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