The flexibility entailed with owning my own firm is such a gift. I work hard…and also work “non-traditional” hours when necessary to best accommodate my clients. Nine-to-five job and kids’ activities on Saturdays? No problem. I’ll meet you Sunday afternoon when your children are doing their homework. The benefit is my ability to carve out pockets of “free” time during the week for me to do the community outreach that feeds my soul. I spend an hour every Monday morning at Lourdes Catholic School in Bettendorf. Watching the “light bulb” come on in a 6th grader’s head when I work one-on-one with them on an algebraic equation makes my day. Teaching 4th graders at Paul Norton Elementary, also in Bettendorf, about what entrepreneurs do on Tuesday afternoons gives me a charge. And when I have the opportunity every Thursday to leave the office to go eat lunch with a beautiful at-risk 3rd grader in the West End of Rock Island, I know where I’m supposed to be.
When I was in the corporate world, my days were a flurry of phone calls and deadlines and endless meetings. Being completely depleted at the end of the day was my default mode. The older and wiser I become, the more I recognize that time is one of the most precious commodities we have. Now I give myself permission every day to enjoy the bounty of time spent on something that fuels my personal passion. Living this way is a “game-changer”. I’ve never felt happier or more fulfilled.