Having a Clear Direction for the New Year

Hopefully you've been enjoying your holiday season and hopefully it's been Flu-Free! I don't know if I have the flu, but I did catch a Christmas Cold. Be that as it may, I've been taking some quiet time to reflect on the past year, refresh some of my online presence and do a little catch-up reading from one of my favorite motivational writers: Ralph Marston. I very much enjoy reading his Daily Motivator, and through the years, I've collected quite a few of his inspiring quotes. Some of his quotes and passages have inspired me through some challenging times. With the start of a new year - full of hope and promise ahead, and also filled with a list of all the goals plus resolutions you expect to achieve, I thought this Ralph Marston passage in particular could help you in the new year with a different approach...

 via

Ralph writes:

You have great plans, and yet life is always getting in the way. You intensely wish to move forward, but all sorts of things seem to constantly interrupt and impede that movement.

But do those unexpected and unwelcome interruptions really have to hold you back? The fact is, you don't have to let them.

Sure, you must regularly deal with the urgent, pressing matters that come your way. But that doesn't mean those unwelcome interruptions have to take over your life.

Instead of seeing those interruptions as negative, distracting influences, you can just as realistically choose to see them as positive, empowering opportunities. Just because they weren't in your plans doesn't mean they have to upset your plans.

Decide that there's something positive to be found, and you'll find something positive in anything. Decide that the interruptions won't really interrupt you, but will in fact provide you with additional ways to move forward, and that's exactly what will happen.

Learn to welcome, embrace and empower yourself with the unexpected interruptions. They're always going to come, so make the choice to make them work in your favor. - Ralph Marston

via

Clear Direction for the Year Ahead...

Decide where you will go, and then go there. When you live by intention, there is no limit to the rich rewards that life can bring.

To get somewhere, you must first know precisely where that is. To achieve, you must zero in on the specific details of your intended achievement.

Whether it is for an hour, a day, a month, five years or five decades, clear and purposeful direction makes a profound difference. The highest level of fulfillment comes to those who can envision precisely what that fulfillment looks like.

Yes, it's difficult to hone your scattered ideas and desires into a positive, coherent direction. Yet you most certainly can do it, and each time you do the results will be amazing.

Give yourself a clear direction for this day, for this week, for this beautiful and unique life of yours. Give yourself a clear direction and you'll have a workable path to your own special greatness.

In whatever you're doing, choose a direction that will express your highest, most treasured values. Give yourself a direction, and give your very best gifts to life.

Another fave quote...

Best Wishes to you and your family for a happy, healthy and safe new year!

I'll be sharing my 2013 Rewind shortly - Thank you for stopping by and being a part of Focal Point Styling!

GETTING READY FOR FALL TRAVEL!

Finally! Fall has arrived, and so has the time to get psyched for my upcoming trip back east - back home - this coming Monday! Looking forward to this trip has made this past summer a little more bearable. I originally had the travel plans set in mind during the first of the year in my New Years Goals & Resolutions - and now it's time to get ready and fly on outta here! First stop: I land in Newark and pick up a rental car to drive down the shore to my hotel. After a long day of travel from Phoenix, I'll rest, unpack and unwind (or take this time to meet up with online friends who live in Jersey!) before heading south to Spring Lake to spend two days with my Godmother - I cannot wait! 

I can't wait to see, hear, and feel the ocean breeze coming from the Atlantic on the Jersey Shore 

I cannot wait to taste some REAL PIZZA!! 

And of course, I cannot WAIT to see my Godmother - my Aunt Lily - the lovely lady who brought me to New York City as a child - to see the Tree at Rockefeller Center, shopping on 5th Avenue at Saks and Lord & Taylor, lunch at The Plaza and Waldorf Astoria and even Ice Capades & the Barnum & Bailey Circus at Madison Square Garden. As juvenile as some of these events may be now, it was those first NY experiences (in the 70's!) with my Godmother traveling to the City by Taxi (back then a Checker Cab) through the Lincoln Tunnel or over the George Washington Bridge to The Port Authority that I still very much cherish today. My parents never took me to NYC - so I know if it were not for my Godmother, I may never have ever fallen in love with the City. 

When I was single, I had traveled up to New Jersey to see my Godmother and I traveled to the City for the first time solo. My aunt nearly wept when she dropped me at the bus station so I could go explore the City on my own - She said it was time for her little sparrow to fly. The following day we went together and visited the Guggenheim Museum to see the Georgio Armani exhibit. Ironically, this tine I shared an experience with my aunt she had never been to - Although she worked in NYC for over 40 years, she had never been to the Gugg. It was FREEZING that night - we still took a horse & carriage ride through Central Park. Tourist-y things? Maybe - but you'd be surprised at how many people who even LIVE in NYC, never experience all the City has to offer - from history to culture - because they all work so hard to live there! Since that first solo trip (in November of 2000) I was going back regularly twice a year... until about '09...

Besides reflecting back on City experiences with my Godmother, we're also planning a little drive further down the shore - I'm hoping we can make it down to Wildwood & Cape May (both childhood summer vacation destinations) but I don't know if her health will allow such a long drive. Although I still see my aunt as only being in her 60s, time has past, and now she is in her 90s... but even if we only sit on a bench on The Boardwalk and talk - I'll be the happiest I've been for probably over two years now...

After my visit with my Godmother in New Jersey, I'll be staying on the east coast - but flying south to see my mom and friends in my home away from home: MIAMI! Although the first ten years of my life I grew up in Jersey, my core is from living in Miami for 33 years! I arrived in Miami during the peak of the Mariel Boat Lifts (which being Cuban, was very challenging and where I had my first experiences with bullying) but I was also part of the South Beach growth movement, as well as the rebirth of the Miami Design District. I was part of the uprising of Skyscrapers in Downtown Miami - plus the birth of sports teams like The Marlins, The Panthers, and The Miami HEAT. I could comfortably experience outdoor living and would frequently walk / run the beach or bike to the gym and bike to South Beach when I lived in Bay Harbor. I tolerated the traffic - especially when film crews and concerts started to block off streets - and I was a part of a metropolis making its mark with models and runway fashion shows... And oh - let's not forget working with the Colorsplash team (and David Bromstad!) or the tremendous vintage & thrift scores from North Miami to Ft. Lauderdale! Which has all now come down to - and I'm not kidding - CRICKETS here in Arizona. 

Keep laughing - but I'm serious: Crickets outside and crickets inside, which Sephora (our cat) loves to chase and swat when they're inside the house - then like Scarface said, "Eat that Sosa (cricket) for breakfast!" (Scarface was filmed in Miami!)

I know my husband knows I WISH this trip was a one way ticket - to get back home - to feeling like I BELONG again - because God knows: I've been a lost soul living here in the desert.

My mom wants me to shop for a new wardrobe for her and I'm wanting to take walks on the beach, get some fresh seafood plus, see and meet up with old friends, and visit culture + history (like REAL Italian architecture and decor at Vizcaya) and eat some Cuban food! Italian too - nothing like moms sausage & peppers like she'd make in Jersey!!

I've pretty much run all my travel errands. Got caught up on social media updates. Had a few client projects these past few weeks I can now put towards my trip. Tuesday I had my hair cut & colored + highlights -- but it came out too dark so heading back for a fix on Friday morning (thank goodness I did the appointment early enough to fix!) Now I just need to confirm those last minute calls for meet-ups and pack up the outfits + accessories I pulled. The last time I was on a plane was when we moved here to AZ in November 2011 - This is going to feel strange - but it's all good and can't come fast enough!!

I only hope it all s-l-o-w-s-d-o-w-n when I get back east. 

Time will fly & I know I'm going to come back both exhausted and invigorated!  

Thanks for stopping by now - in all honesty - I probably won't be posting much once I get back east - taking in every moment with friends and family (plus maybe a little sharing on Twitter and Facebook!)

Going HOME: September 30 - October 8!

PROJECTS TO DO

How has your year been going for you so far? Are you snowed in wherever you are? Have you made a list of projects you'd like to tackle? Anyone doing any major renovations? Painting projects? Is anyone moving to a new place and excited about starting the year with a clean slate? I'd love to hear about it! Email me and send me pics of your DIY's, mini or massive makeovers. Similar to last March where I had March Modern Madness month, I'd like to try to put together a March Makeovers Month. In the meantime, these are some personal projects I'd like to accomplish the first half of this year:

Color Inspiration

New color combos: Pop in Pairs:
Something different I'd like to try is to pop a pair of colors - not just one - with my existing neutrals. Fortunately, I already have soft grey walls throughout our home, so the new neutral is already here. By incorporating some pops of pink and living with it, it has become an inspiration on its own and it's grown on me. Some pairings I'd like try are rose & grassy green for Spring, grassy green and gold with grey, and fuchsia with orange for summer. I'm also going to try to use less black - even though I wear it everyday =)

Color Inspiration

Color Inspiration

Color Inspiration

DIY Project to tackle this year: Sewing:
I'd like to utilize the fabric sources I'm learning about to apply them to make pillows on my own as well as window panels, and slipcovers for the two white ottomans (Sephora had turned into a scratching post - ggrrrrr) and also try to slipcover our bed (with help from my friend Jose!)

Painting projects I'd like to try: Distressing pieces:
I'd like to age an accent wall or room (bedroom or a bathroom maybe), by blending and mixing all the cream, grey, brown and black I already own... I'd also like to lighten & brighten a few accessories (ie repaint!) as well as also try stenciling a pattern in the half-bath (and maybe one other wall around here, or at my moms.)

Wall finish Inspiration

Wall finish Inspiration

Wall finish Inspiration

Wall finish Inspiration

I few other projects I'd like to work on this year is to better organize & consolidate all our keepsakes, create an inspiration board for the home office - and not a project but a plan - be in New York City for the Ten Year 911Memorial & Anniversary. Even if our budget only allows for one trip this year, THAT is where I want to be in September. I was there for the one year, and I told myself I'd come back for the ten year.

Office Inspiration

Office Inspiration





Office Inspiration

After the Color Splash "gig" ends (around March) I'll be refocusing my attention back on building my blog, brand, business and client projects to makeover. I had thought I'd be able to do both, but it won't be fair to either one, so I've been focused on learning all I can (as well as sharing and networking) for as long as I'm there.

STUDIO BEFORE

STUDIO AFTER



David came back to the studio and loved it! he commented that "it 'feels' like home." A few others have commented the same, and the girl I've been working with (Kathy) said she "feels more productive now that everything is organized". That makes me happy.

More pics to post of the reveal this week.. Stay tuned...



Starting to blog & the end of an era

This week marked my final week in a 16 year chapter of my life: working at JCPenney. But this wasn't just "any" JCPenney: it was AVENTURA - one of the company's top five stores. Over the years, Aventura grew a reputation of executing high standards of presentation, doing what was RIGHT not only for the customer, but for our market, and for thinking out of the box. We had become "legendary" out at the home office.

The past month was a bit awkward-  watching the "new organization" take place (but not necessarily shape) and watching so many standards I had helped develop get tossed around, and even aside. Part of what kept me focused on getting through my final 30 days was actually near the end of it. One of the managers asked for my help in decorating the meeting room and the associate lunchroom for a Spooktacular Halloween Luncheon. And that I did.

 



I drew layouts. I gave myself a budget ($500) I made my list of quantity needs. I searched online for deals. I shopped around and managed to set up not only the 2 spaces for the luncheon, but the hallway, and the reception area. It really helped to lift the spirits of the people who work there, especially since the store was ALSO being decorated and set for CHRISTMAS. I executed what I planned, as well as came in under plan: $491. This all included cutlery, serve ware and cups for 300 people, decor, supplies to make decor, and a DVD I had made of the 16 year transformation of the store.

It felt GREAT to maneuver 8'x4' boards of foam core, feel the sticky mist of spray mount on my arms, inhale the spray paint fumes, trace and cut 80 bats, feel the tension holding the exacto blade in my hand, and even get one blister on my thumb from a hot glue gun. It hurt, but it meant I was ALIVE. I don't even remember WHEN the last time it was I was able to BE "this" creative... to BE in MY ELEMENT... to BE this focused.

It was all worth it in the end. I heard the sweet enthusiasm from the managers, the appreciation from the associates, and my boss say, "Lynda... You've outdone yourself." And I even managed to come up with a costume to tie into everything happening: The Legend Of Aventura....

FOCUS - My First Blog Post

Focus... that's a little difficult to do right now. Several ideas and emotions are streaming through my thoughts. Some good... and some NOT so good. I partially feel like Kathleen Kelly, from The Shop Around the Corner in "You've Got Mail."

"People always say change is a good thing, but what it really means is that, something that you didn't want to happen, has happened." She had a choice to make: stay right where she was or close her shop. When she decided to close her shop, her friend Birdie Conrad commented, "Closing the shop is the brave thing to do. You're imaging your life can be different. You are marching into the unknown, armed with - nothing. "

Although the nothing is only partially true (meaning no pay check to count on) the one thing I do have to arm my self with is my talent. Now where do I focus my talent? A part of me DID want to leave my comfort zone. A familiar place where I'd been working, developing my management style, as well as developing strong organizational skills, and was still able to be creative in problem solving. But I know, over the past two years, I nurtured and developed another facet of me: my creativity. I've grown to be VERY passionate about re-designing, staging, and event planning. All of which are so far and away removed from what I spent the majority of my life's hours doing.


Where do I go from here? What's the next step? Is there a manual for me to read? Is there a job description for me to follow, and maybe even "tweak"? My location (Florida) plus the economy have some of the odds stacked against me. Life has thrown me some lemons, and it's up to me to not only make the lemonade, but present it in a way that makes people wonder where can I get more?! In other words: sell it. But what is my "it".


I need to put my heart up on a shelf. I need to let go of the disappointments of my past. I need to believe "something" good WILL come from all of this. Everything happens for a reason. Loyalty working at one place for sixteen years wasn't all for nothing. It was all to strengthen me for what I will do next.


I just need to focus.