So… for those unaware of what a rose bud is, it is the stage of a rose’s life cycle before the bloom. (As seen in picture) We all have heard the saying “Stop and Smell the Roses” meaning to take time to enjoy the rewards of your work. This could tie into an earlier blog I wrote called The Journey vs The Destination depending on where you are in your life. You could be in the Journey or Destination stage. This is focused on the Journey.

We really haven’t finished anything. We are working hard. We have set ourselves up for success but there is no tangible reward for us to “enjoy”. We need to celebrate the quarter, half, and three-quarters done, also. We need to celebrate progress. We must celebrate movement. I believe that many goals aren’t accomplished because we give ourselves no reward during our pursuit. It gets very difficult and can seem impossible in certain stages. Taking the internal militant approach can get you through some rocky scenarios but it can fail. Sometimes you don’t need a kick in the *ss from yourself. Sometimes you need to celebrate yourself. Well, most of the time you need to celebrate yourself. Celebrate being better, smarter, more experienced than yesterday. This will make you self-sufficient and in turn make you extremely equip to handle the hard times. The pre-accomplishment celebrations of self can be that push you need to get to the next phase. You know, the one that you thought a kick in the *ss would.

I recently took a family trip. I am embarking on a music career (check out the music page) that involves lots of ups and downs. Lots of unknowns and fear. Lots of surprises from strangers and disappointments from those who I considered close to me. The trip was to celebrate one of my daughter’s birthday, but I was also celebrating being able to take the trip. Fund the trip. I was celebrating living a life outside of the corporate world. I was celebrating being my own man. I’m in no way comfortable. I’m in no way complete in my journey. I absolutely have miles to go in my music career. I had a ball. I smiled. I laughed. I loved. I played around. I ate whatever. I spent. I lived. It was exactly what I needed. It may be what you need.

In closing, it may seem silly smelling rose buds but at times you need to remember it was once just a seed. When I first made my choice to take this leap of faith it was 18 months prior to doing it. It was just the same talk everyone else I was working with stated. The difference was I did it. Not everything but I’m moving. This seed was in the ground a long time. It’s out of the ground but it hasn’t bloomed. I’m choosing to smell it anyway. The seed could have easily never been planted. It could have been planted and not watered. It could have been planted, watered, then crushed. Analyze your life right now and celebrate yourself. No one can do it better than you. No one knows the entire story but you. Cheers to your damn self!

Food for thought…. You do the dishes!