Learning from our mistakes…

This week I learn about the importance of learning from our mistakes. Many times we have to experience failure in order to succeed. The best entrepreneurs and successful people have failed many times, but they have not surrendered. We only have to win once. Failing is a good tool to achieve success if we learn from it. Every time we make mistakes, we have to learn from them and become stronger. Spencer W. Kimball a prophet of God said “Where there are challenges, you fail only if you fail to keep trying!” We need to learn how to keep trying. We don’t have to surrender because trials come to our life. They come to us to make us stronger and better people if we take advantage of them and learn from them.

The entrepreneur Paul Robshaw learned from his mistakes after losing everything in his life he got back on his feet again.  Money is not everything but it gives us more tools to help the people around us.

After being two weeks in bed because of a surgery I learned a lot the value of good health. I am excited to feel good again and I am ready to start my $100.00 challenge.  I know that it won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. At the end of the challenge I will realize that after a hard work we can finally obtain our reward!

Challenging week!

This week I had an emergency. I had a surgery where my gallbladder was removed because I had gallstones. I am in a lot of pain because this week I realized that I also have a gastric ulcer. I am a good student and I tried to give my best. This week I learned a lot about Tom Monaghan. No one can say that achieving dreams is impossible. Everything is possible but we need to work hard. Dreaming is easy but becoming our dreams true will really prove our desire to accomplish them. I admire Tom Monaghan because after becoming rich he decided to devote his life to serving others. Even though he is not a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints he followed the teachings of Jesus Christ the we found in Jacob 2: 18-19 “But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God. And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good—to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted.” He also did what the rich young boy couldn’t do in the bible. He left his riches behind and followed Christ.

I also learned that it is good to have different ways of thinking and different skills in a group. I always thought that the best working groups were those where the people had similar ways of thinking, because there was no conflict and things could be solved easily and in a good and happy environment. This week really opened my eyes and helped me understand why diversity works in a team that want to solve problems or find different solutions. 

Last thing... this week I discuss with my classmates ideas to reach our $100.00 challenge. I realized that if we think negative any good idea will be impossible to make. We need to have a positive thinking in order to achieve our goals.

My first attempts…

I am starting a new adventure. I have a challenge of making a small business that can generate a profit of $100.00. Probably is not a lot for many people but for me it means 8 times more. I live in Guatemala and our money is worth 8 times less than a dollar. That means that making a dollar is 8 times harder for me. I decided to sell delicious banana bread. I am working on the logistics and I am excited about it. The cost of the banana bread will be $.0.38 and I will sell them at $0.62. I cannot ask for more because people won’t pay it.  $0.62 means Q.5.00 in my currency. It is an attractive price. I am motivated because it is really a challenge. I am also motivated because I have chosen to donate the money to a 69 years old lady from my country. It feels good to know that I will help someone with my effort. I am reading the book “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill. I understand that in order to achieve good things I have to work hard and give my best. I have to think that I can achieve my goals and I have to work with a plan. I know that is it possible to reach my goal of $100.00 and I hope I can make more.      

                It is good to know that in a few weeks I will have the opportunity to look back and realize that today something that seems like a huge mountain difficult to climb will still be a mountain but I will be stronger and I will have a better perspective of business from the top.

Last Entry...The value of life!

I have been extremely sick this week. I have a terrible infection. I am still sick. I feel weak. I know that I will get better and hopefully before Christmas day! The good thing is that I know that there is a cure. My kids are sick too because of me. But we all eventually get better. This week one of my friends had an accident. I don’t know the details but she is in comma. Her family is waiting for a miracle to happen. We have all united in prayer for her. This week I have realized that our lives are so delicate and precious. We need to take advantage of each minute of our lives. We don’t know when it will be our last day here on earth. We can make a difference in the world and in our lives but we need to start right now. There is no tomorrow to be better. Today is the day. Right now is the time. We all face trials and obstacles during our lives but we can make the difference. Our attitude is the first thing we need to change if we want to improve. Sometimes we become our worst enemies. Many times we establish limits and boundaries with our minds. We set barriers that no one except us can open. As future entrepreneurs we need to decide now how are we going to live our lives. There is no tomorrow to make good decisions. This is a good season to help others and also to help ourselves. We need to set high goals and work hard to achieve them. Good things are not given free. The best things in life are achieved by working hard and giving our best every single day. I know that eventually I will recover my health and I want to think that my dearly friend will recover her health too. Life is a gift. In these wonderful season we need to remember the greatest gift of all given by our loving Heavenly Father. He sent his son Jesus Christ so everyone can repent and return to Him.  Our life is full of possibilities. We need to write down all our goals, hopes and dreams. And write down how we will achieve all of them. Our real goals need to be written on paper if not they will be always just dreams. We have to work hard to become better. Everything is possible if we work hard to achieve it. Sometimes during the path we will realize that some decisions were not the best. Don’t worry, learn from it and you will succeed! Remember our life is a gift!

 http://www.mormon.org/christmas?cid=HPFR112814529

Be grateful!

I have been thinking this week about "depression “and why it comes to people’s lives. Thinking in myself I sometimes feel sad or depressed because I think that I am missing something. Many times I caught myself thinking in what I would like to do and I don’t enjoy the moment. I have a wonderful and beautiful family and a loving husband. I have more than I need. God loves me and He shows me his love every single day. I think the social media make us believe that we need more. In order to be happy we need to be "perfect". And the worst thing is that the media doesn't show the effort that we have to do to achieve things. So we get frustrated and desperate because things don't happen spontaneously.

God sends us to this earth to be happy. I remember than during my youth I was happy. I enjoyed life. I am not old but I think that I have given a room in my mind to wrong ideas and that sometimes made me sad. While I was reading the talk of president Monson titled "An Attitude of Gratitude" I realized that if I want to be happy and overcome modern "leprosy “ I need to thank him for everything He has given me. President Monson counsels us to remember six things that we need to be grateful for:

1. Our Mother

2. Our Father

3. Our Teachers

4. Our Friends

5. Our Country

6. Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

I want to share a portion of President Monson's talk: "Like the leprosy of yesteryear are the plagues of today. They linger; they debilitate; they destroy. They are to be found everywhere. Their pervasiveness knows no boundaries. We know them as selfishness, greed, indulgence, cruelty, and crime, to identify but a few. Surfeited with their poison, we tend to criticize, to complain, to blame, and, slowly but surely, to abandon the positives and adopt the negatives of life.

This is a wonderful time to be living here on earth. Our opportunities are limitless. While there are some things wrong in the world today, there are many things right, such as teachers who teach, ministers who minister, marriages that make it, parents who sacrifice, and friends who help.

We can lift ourselves and others as well, when we refuse to remain in the realm of negative thought and cultivate within our hearts an attitude of gratitude. If ingratitude be numbered among the serious sins, then gratitude takes its place among the noblest of virtues.

Let's Change the World!

Many times we think that if we want some changes in our world our governors need to change, the laws have to change our neighborhood has to change but who really need to change is us! I love Michael Jackson song "The Man in the Mirror" especially this part: "I'm starting with the man in the mirror I'm asking him to change his ways and no message could have been any clearer if you wanna make the world a better place take a look at yourself, and then make a change".

Every change has to start with us. We all need to realize that we are responsible for the world we live in. This week I read the story of Muhammad Yunus he made a great change in the place he lived. He realized that all the things that he was taught in the university about economics didn't apply to poor people because they didn't have access to loans. So he made the change he started loaning money to poor people. Little by little he founded a bank because no one else wanted to loan to the poor. He made a great change and he helped his community. He says: "All human beings are endowed with unlimited potential because of barriers created by our societies individual people never get the full opportunity to bring out their potential. We have created the present world in this particular manner because our minds were trained to behave in a particular set of ways that led to this formulation of the world if we train our minds to think differently we can create another kind of world. For example we accept the fact that we will always have poor people around us so we have poor people around us, if we had believed that poverty should not belong in a civilized human society we would have created appropriate institutions and policies to create a poverty free world. We wanted to go to the moon so we went there if we are not achieving something my first suspicion will fall on the intensity of our desire to achieve it. Don’t give up dreaming be a dreamer and keep on trying to make the dream come true dream about the world you would like to have if we all dream about a better world I can guarantee you that we will  create a better world."

I will like to conclude adding President Monson's quote "Remember that ofttimes the wisdom of God appears as foolishness to men, but the greatest single lesson we can learn in mortality is that when God speaks and a man obeys, that man will always be right." If we obey God's commandments we will start changing our world!

My priorities!

It is hard to find a balance in life especially when you have a family. When I was younger and single I could spend all my time doing whatever I wanted to do. I used to spend my time preparing myself. I spend many hours studying music. I spend my time working and with my friends. I had a happy life. Now that my priorities have changed I feel overwhelmed. I would love to spend my entire time with my family and my kids but it is not real. I need my personal time too. Before I realized that I used to feel guilty when I was not with my kids. But then I realized that it wasn't healthy for me. In order to give to others I needed to have something. I needed to invest time in me to have enough to give to others. I made a list of my priorities and then I started to feel less guilty when I couldn't do some things. First is God and then my family. My studies and social life come after that. So I rather be with my family than on a society event. I now feel happier. I am grateful to God for all the opportunities I have to learn. Being a wife and a young mother is not easy. There are many things I need to learn. I know that I trust God he will give me the tools to overcome my trials. I have found peace and joy as a mother. I know that this is the place where I am supposed to be right now. I am not leading a company because I cannot do it I am not leading a company because I have decided that this is the time for me and my kids. They will grow up fast and this is the time to teach them and guide them. They are my most precious treasure in my life!