Fresh mint & chocolate chip cookies

Yesterday after over a week of not venturing out to the stores, I permitted myself to pop out for some fresh veggies…. because #fresh. I also wanted to nab a basil plant because I love basil on basically everything (anyone else obsessed with trying to keep one actually alive for more than one week ?! No? Just me. Ok. Whatever).
I struck out on the basil but Sprouts had these gorgeous large mint plants on sale and once I took a whiff I was SOLD. 🌱
I came home and realized the mint plant had this awesome -looking recipe on it.
Cookies with mint ?! Worth a try.

I want to digress for a moment and acknowledge and appreciate the space that we are all in…
I think it’s safe to say that each morning when we wake up we realize it’s going to either be a good day …a decent day …or a pretty bad day.

And I don’t know about you but it seems like I have little to no control over how I wake up and how I feel, how isolated I feel; how lonely I feel; or how energetic and determined I feel. It truly is a day by day progression and now when I wake I am more curious than anything as to what my mental state and my energy levels are. I’ve also given myself permission not to judge myself when I’m having a down day, and instead to give myself some grace and permission to just chill out on those days. BEING vs DOING. It is ok to be sad. It is ok to sit in the pain. I’ve tried outrunning it and it doesn’t work. So let’s be ok just being in it. 💔.

Today happened to be one of the energized days, and it included a nice long run and workout this morning, painting my laundry room this amazing bright yellow color, and making dinner tonight as well as baking these cookies (and this here blog as well). I’ll take the good days when I can get them. I’ve come to appreciate them, as they seem very much without my input and outside of my control. There are some days when emotions are all over like large waves to the point where they feel almost suffocating and I can’t get any motivation or gumption to do much of anything. In speaking with friends it sounds like I am not the only one experiencing these emotional waves, and I just want to remind us all that this is such an interesting and crazy and unprecedented time AND- there is no “the way” to do it.

So ok back to the cookies. Did they turn out well ? You bet your Topo Chico they did!
Substitutions: I used one stick of butter and skipped the second using coconut oil instead. I used coconut flour. I also just used one cup of mini chocolate chips because two felt like a LOT when we already have 3/4 cup of cocoa/cacao in there. And I upped the salt and used large granule pink salt because I have learned I like those little salty bits in cookies lately. Who knew?! 🧂

ALSO and you know what’s coming — yes— I stuck the dough in the fridge for 10-15 minutes before rolling out the cookie balls on the pan. Because I’m basically a pro now and this is what pros do. 👩‍🍳. I flattened the dough balls just a bit to give them some size as a flatter cookie.

Verdict:

Gang - yes- these are a win. Wow. And since I’m an overachiever I went ahead and paired one with some Talenti matcha ginger ice cream. Bingo. 🎯

Recipe below:

Orange Cookies

So—— in the leadup to the lockdown, I doubled-down on sources of Vitamin C, including oranges and Tangelos…. and now I’ve got a few more than I can probably eat…. well, maybe not but you know what I mean. (When in doubt, bake cookies #amIright). Let’s be clear -this only involves the peel so yeah, I’ll be eating the rest of the peeled oranges…. but I digress.

Who craves an ORANGE cookie? I sure didn’t. Until tonight…. went in search of ones that don’t require frosting or “Caster sugar” (WTH?) and found this one - super simple. Sold.

Naturally, I used far more orange 🍊 peel than the measly 4 tsp the recipe called for (hello people I’m trying to dress cookies up as health food)….

I subbed coconut flour for regular flour. They turned out GREAT! The smell of oranges from the oven was a win all by itself.
beverage: blended one of the peeled oranges with some ginger juice and ice. Yum. Sliced the other orange.

So yes, friends, it’s 🍊 on 🍊 on 🍊 tonight. Because #immunity. 😘

Turmeric & Red Lentil Dal

So — I bravely grabbed a package of organic red lentils thinking they could keep well for awhile if stores did end up closing down for awhike …. I recalled reading that these lentils are gluten-free AND fairly high in protein (approx 1 gram per TBSP, not bad). PLUS- let’s just admit, they are PRETTY.

Alright… so then I went in search of recipes and quickly realized most red lentil recipes are soups- which just isn’t doing it for me right now…. And then BOOM, I found this one for Turmeric and Red Lentil Vegetarian Dal (one-pot!).

Hi -yes - you had me at ONE POT.

And also turmeric (see my previous posts on this superfood).
This dish did NOT disappoint. It was easy AND it is SO good. Highly recommend.

Butternut Squash & Bean Curry

YUM. I’ve been making this recipe for a few years now -it never fails to please the dinner guests, especially those who are vegan /dairy free / Gluten-free.

Plus it’s GORGEOUS with all of the pretty colors involved AND it freezes really well — I love enjoying the leftovers later!

RECIPE: https://www.lecreuset.co.za/recipes/butternut-squash-butter-bean-spinach-curry/

Notes:

I usually substitute a couple fresh jalapeños sliced finely for the “1 mild red chilli, seeds removed and chopped.”

I buy the squash precut from Sprouts (lazy, I know).

I add tomatoes because I like the POP of the color red in there.

Finally - I like serving this over rice; it feels more like a meal than simply soup, and it’s more filling (and lasts longer for leftovers, too!).

*Since we are currently dealing with shortages of many foods in stores, I was not able to buy Vegan broth this time so I used chicken broth - so if you’re serving vegans/vegetarians, you’ll obvi want to sub the broth for an animal-free option.

What’s leftover -What goes into the trash, what goes into recycle, and into compost? Well … I’ll tell you: 🗑 = the broth package since tetrapak isn’t recyclable. The Cans and plastic container go into ♻️ . Peels from onion and garlic go into compost bin 🌱!

What’s for dinner ?

Today, someone on Facebook posted, “hey let’s share what we’re making at home tonight - what’s everyone cooking?!” as a way to unite over food. And help those who don’t normally cook, prepare their meal … Which I loved.

I’m even more focused on food choices and meal prep right now than usual, because I feel like what I eat (and how I eat) are two things I can still control in a world with so much out of control. And food prep has a way of slowing me down... As does sitting down with a cloth napkin, beautifully prepared and staged (healthy) food, chewing each bite slowly.
While looking outside at the snowfall.

so- here’s what’s for dinner:

…turmeric kombucha because #guthealth

….bean pasta because #glutenfree (and check out that protein!)

…fresh lettuce with balsamic dressing, tomatoes and almonds because #realfood and it’s fresh and who knows if we can keep buying fresh foods for much longer …

…and sweet potatoes because #colors and yum and carbs.

Dehydrated mushrooms & Heritage Wheatberries

One of my MOST favorite things about being both a summer AND winter shareholder with GoFarm is the crazy assortment of items I get in my weekly share.

Many times, there is a new-to-me item that I have to go home and research, to figure out how to prepare it and what its benefits are, etc. Honestly, becoming a GoFarm shareholder a few years ago (and then joining its board, and becoming a sponsor as well!), is what has really prompted my interest in cooking and meal prep…and has blossomed into my love of cooking foods and really enjoying the process as well as the mindFUL consumption of these items… with gratitude to the local farmers growing these items in super small batches, within a few miles of my home, often picking the fruits and veggies just a few days before I get them and eat them. I can honestly say I can taste the difference AND feel how it makes my body feel better…. these items are organic, grown with sustainable soil practices, grown by local farmers who lovingly tend their small plots with care, and then sell them to GoFarm at a very good price to earn their fair wages.

The entire growing and distributing process is intentional and, therefore, I take the matter of preparing and ingesting these foods far more seriously. It’s been the opposite of mindless consumption - it’s been an exciting, interesting, intentional journey. I love ALL of it. 🙏🍃.

So — this week’s share presented me with 2 new challenges: dehydrated mushrooms and this strange grain-looking stuff called Heritage Wheat Berries (“turkey red”). Both were grown/harvested locally. So… what do I do with them, I pondered?

First - I researched how to cook the wheatberries (which by the way- these heritage grains are a HUGE hit among the gluten-light crowd, however yes, this is a gluten food but in heritage ie non-GMO form. Read more about gluten pros and cons, and the WHY, here).

I soaked them in hot water in the rice cooker for an hour or so, drained the water, added new water in proportion to the cups of grains and then used the rice cooker on “brown rice” setting to cook them fully. Yum. They are soft kernels with a lightly-nutty flavor. I toyed with making it into a risotto, but wanted to avoid all of the butter today.

Soaking in hot water in the rice cooker.

Cooked by the rice cooker- fair warning this took awhile.

Second - I took the dried mushrooms, put them in a bowl with boiling water, and let them rehydrate. You may be surprised to learn that this process of dehydrating-rehydrating does NOT remove the nutrients of the ‘shrooms -or their flavor! They came back to life and I set them aside for later.

Rehydrated!

Then - I went in search of a recipe that would allow me to use them together, plus this gorgeous carrot and beets I got in my share this week (as well as some yams and an onion I have here that I want to cook):

Look at that carrot and those beets !

VIOLA! I found this recipe which I thought would be PERFECT for tonight’s dinner for myself and my dinner guest.

The main course paired really well with the gorgeous greens salad- ALSO from this week’s GoFarm share! (That’s right, farmers are growing greens indoors, using greenhouses and other methods -what a TREAT to have fresh, locally-grown and organic greens in the middle of winter!).

In a nutshell, I am REALLY happy with how this dish turned out. It is SO good. Highly recommend.

And for dessert … my first experience with star fruit- paired with pear and blueberries ! Yum 😋!

Matcha Sugar Cookies on a cold snowy night

So — I find myself down with the sinus infection that’s making its rounds, plus a bonus addition, an ear infection which I apparently got from flying on planes with said sinus crud, which sent it right into my ears. What am I, like, 5 years old? I didn’t even know adults got ear infections. The worst part is that my ears have been full since last Wednesday, so I’m going on a week strong now of just barely being able to hear. Occasionally the ears will “pop” and clear, but then they fill back up again.

So - -that plus the 20-some degrees outside plus snow that’s been falling (again -sigh) most of this month now, and I’m hunkering down for a chill night at home. And- the urge to bake once again came up for me. I took stock of what I’ve got in the house with a mostly-empty fridge after weeks of being gone and found I’ve got just the stuff to make matcha sugar cookies.

Googled recipes and found this one, the simplest and easiest one, which looked delish.

Batch one I made with my preferred sugar, pure unrefined cane sugar, which is brown. Hence the brownish/greenish hue… while they taste good, I had to admit the color isn’t super appetizing.

So I baked up a second batch using white sugar and they look MUCH cuter in their bright green color!

I baked them a full 15 minutes and once again refrigerated the dough in the fridge 10-15 minutes before rolling into balls to bake on the pan. They came out BEAUTIFULLY. Lightly brown on the bottom and soft inside. Yum. This IS the cure for cold snowy evenings.

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Wonder Women: Demi

I first met Demi through my membership in this wonderful organization called Wealth Factory a few years back. (If you’re an entrepreneur, definitely check them out). She is part of the WF team, and specifically helps WF members with their WHY - their soul purpose, their core stand, their mission statement…. Working with her was instrumental and candidly changed my outlook on many things inside and outside of my business.

We remained in touch, doing some coaching and also growing a friendship, after my time with WF ended.

Last October 2019, I was finally able to participate in her Soul Purpose Live and let’s just say life hasn’t been the same since. The breakthroughs she facilitated for me, and our entire group, through the work that she does around Soul Purpose and her latest approach called the Miracle Paradox, changed my life forever. My path since October has been completely altered by the work that we did there. My insights and visions for my future and the way I want to BE in my life, were revealed to me. I began to see more of the blindspots I’ve been working on in the last few years, and even more important, got in touch with my true calling/purpose and what I want to do with it in my life.

More on that all, at a later date.

For now - I’m once again back in SLC here at WF for a Soul Purpose Live, but this time I’m honored to be here as part of her leadership team, helping facilitate the small group discussions and helping more business owners have similar breakthroughs and “ah-ha” moments. Today -day 1 of 2, was nothing short of magical - full of miracles- manifestation - bringing things into the light that people have kept in the dark - and seeing people really step into their purposes, their brillance, and out of their “shoulds,” or their striving (exhaustively so) for perfection, standing up and declaring what they want for their lives, and committing to rush into the “cave” they’ve been dreading, in order to discover the treasures they’ve been seeking.

You might be surprised to learn that many successful business owners are actually exhausted, totally burned out, they’ve lost their love for their business, they are giving their loved ones their scraps, their health is taking a toll, they are constantly chasing on the hamster wheel and don’t know why, they’ve discovered how lonely it is at the top and how isolating perfection and leadership and living inauthentically can be. Yes-they have big bank accounts and they’ve accomplished a lot. Yes- that’s all amazing. But suddenly they find themselves at a cross roads, or struggling with what’s next, and they come to an event like this and do the work with Demi and they realize it’s time to make a change.

Needless to say I can’t get enough of this -watching the transformation that Demi facilitates and letting people get to their own aha moment in their own time - it’s incredible. Many tears are shed at these events- in large part because Demi creates such a safe space, a container if you will, where total strangers within hours of meeting, are being completely vulnerable and digging into stuff they’ve buried for many years. Demi has this magical and instinctual way about her where she can lead people right into it.

I cannot say enough about this woman and how she shows up in the world - and how she’s curated this incredible group of strong women to support her in this event, and what it means to show up as a strong woman and be in this sacred sisterhood that Demi has created for us. We are having our own breakthroughs. And more and more I see the physical manifestations of the stresses and sicknesses entrepreneurs suffer as a result of not listening to their bodies -their gut -their heart -as they continue to strive, drive, force, push and keep going. Demi is setting in motion such healing work here, that these people and their families and legacies will be forever altered as a result.

Furthermore, it’s fun to be in a group where the breakthroughs pop like popcorn and as a result of Demi coaching someone else, we are each benefitted with our own takeaways. There is so much opportunity for healing, growth, and true authenticity in this space. And it’s a product of the environment that Demi creates and fosters. She has this gift and power to read the room - to see what’s needed and go there. Today she threw out her carefully created agenda an hour into the session because she saw where the room needed to go. She ended early due to the deep work done and the sense of fatigue and needing to let people marinate in what had been done thus far.

Can you imagine how powerful it is for her to let people see that some of their biggest pains and heartbreaks have actually led them to their greatest gifts and abilities to have impact?

That MOMENT of discovery is INCREDIBLE. 💫

She is changing lives- businesses -families- communities…. and I’m so grateful to be part of this process, alongside our incredible leadership team of strong and inspiring women.

My life’s latest surrender experiment is “working,” as without letting things just unfold in the way they are apparently meant to, I would not be here and I would not be privy to this experience or this work. For the longest time I pigeonholed myself into the “I’m a lawyer” box, which allowed room for little else. Now, the creativity in my brain has come alive (thanks to the camera and the Soul Purpose live event in October) and I see new and incredible things unfolding… doors opening for me with opportunities and experiences I could never have imagined nor envisioned…. I read Michael Singer’s “The Surrender Experiment” in 2018 and enjoyed it but frankly, it felt far-fetched and unrealistic. Now though, as I’ve moved away from VIGOR and into SURRENDER — as I’ve moved from forcing to BEING, as I’ve focused more on HOW I want to show up, rather than WHAT I want to DO, I find myself referencing and recommending the book often.

If you’re “Stuck,” or questioning “what’s next,” or you don’t feel clear on your why or your purpose or you just feel something is OFF and you don’t know why, perhaps your body is even manifesting some physical symptoms that it’s time to make a big change…. I highly recommend coming to Demi’s Soul Purpose Live at some point in your near future. I am working on a website and socials for her in order to make it possible for folks to learn more about this event. Stay tuned. For now, find her HERE.

““And we live in a society that invests huge amounts of money and vast quantities of energy in ensuring that we all stay lost. A society that invests in creating unconsciousness, which invests in keeping people asleep so that we are just passive consumers of products and not really asking any of the questions.””

— The American Life Is Killing You, The Medium

“But the problem is that you’re miserable and shallow and quite possibly unhealthy and a little dispirited and you’ll likely die of either heart disease, cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's, or suicide in the not so distant future — statistically speaking.

Or you’ll make it to old age with this all too common deathbed regret — wishing you had the courage to live a life true to yourself, not the life of what others expected of you.

Despite living in the richest country on the planet with a gargantuan military (and budget) to keep you so-called “safe,” you’re frightened and unhappy more than ever before. Seems your material abundance and chronic hustle and “good citizen” ideals have done nothing for your happiness or well-being.”

Read more of the article quoted above, HERE.

Simple Pleasures: Hosting Friends for Dinner

I tell you what. I am absolutely in love with cooking for friends and getting people together at my house. And for those reading this who’ve always enjoyed it, let’s just say this is a somewhat recent revelation of mine.

I used to stress out about having people over and it felt like work. The house had to be spotless. The dishes and napkins had to be perfect and the menu complex and “amazing,” and so on. I made it harder than it needed to be and in so doing made it exhausting and therefore rarely hosted.

In recent years- probably a combo of quitting alcohol and eating out less; embracing a vegan and then plant-forward lifestyle, I started getting into meal prep using plant based menus and a few new utensils for my kitchen like the Le Cruset pan and rad food processor among other things. A new and proper knife set, some cloth napkins, a newfound appreciation for produce (especially locally grown produce!) and a desire to up my game of nourishing my body as well as possible — led to more and more cooking and learning in my home kitchen.
…with that came some confidence that I could serve these foods to friends with good results.

The setting down of perfection as the goal and the embracing of authenticity instead allowed me to move away from caring about my house not being “perfect or spotless” and towards embracing the chance to connect with my fellow humans over a meal.

My house isn’t dirty or cluttered. It’s lived in.
It doesn’t look like it came from a magazine and not everything matches or is trendy and that’s ok. True friends - the people we want to invest our time into- don’t care.

And candidly if the house really is a mess or the meal is gross, these are the people who would love me enough to simply say that.
How refreshing.

…last night I invited a few of my neighbors and a new guy over for dinner, and got them all together for a meal; it filled me with so much joy. True joy. True connection. True laughter. True community. It was wonderful.

It ended up being a very jalepeno- forward meal… along with jalepeno flavored chips, I made one of my fave dishes- a vegan curry using butternut squash (including jalepenos because I love to add them to this recipe), served over rice and then I also made veggie fajitas (including jalapeños) (with optional ground beef) as well as homemade salsa.
With you guessed it- jalepeno in it. Recipes below.

My neighbor Nancy made the gorgeous raspberry pie. Erica prepared the pretty appetizer tray.

…we had fun. We laughed. We learned about each other. It was fantastic.

Ages ranged from 4-70s or so.
How beautiful is that ?!

Matcha Protein Cookies: Victory Round

Ok - I still had matcha protein powder to use up (and candidly, after so many smoothies, I’m looking for ways to bake with it). ;)

I am hosting friends this weekend and want to have some yummy cookies to serve for dessert. So- I went looking for a new recipe for protein cookies.

HERE was the one I decided to try tonight. I cut the sugar it calls for in over half, and instead used a bit more salt — and I went with the larger granular salt. OH. MY. GOODNESS. The chunks of salt in the cookies combined with the subtle matcha taste/sweetness, combined with the dark chocolate chips. Good grief, folks, we’ve got a winner.

Also - can I just say (albeit sheepishly) how MUCH IT HELPS To put the dough in the fridge for awhile before prepping the cookie dough balls on the pan?! Talk about PERFECT dough-balls, which translates to PERFECT cookies (and far-less-messy fingers). Wow. All this time of rushing to get the cookies in the oven, and that 15 minutes in the fridge made all the difference. Old dog. New tricks.

Do yourself a favor and make these.

For the protein powder I used the MODE (now known as ATAQ) matcha protein powder.

Tonight I’m pairing the cookies with caffeine-free AVEDA The’Tea (licorice-forward tea, yum).

Cacao muffins - er, cookies...

My beloved next-door neighbors had to say goodbye to their VERY beloved 15-year old Golden Retriever, Gator, this weekend. We’ve known it was coming as his health declined, but it doesn’t make it any easier. I’m learning that I really love baking for others to show I love them and care about them and am thinking about them. As I’ve tested out my various cookie recipes on them, they’ve given me their candid feedback and no question they’ve tended to prefer the ones on the sweeter end of the spectrum as opposed to “sugar-free” ones ;)

So- I went in search of more superfoods in my cupboards combined with just-sweet-enough recipes to deliver them some feel-good foods in their time of heartbreak … . and VIOLA! I found this one that I liked: Cacao Muffins! In fact “they” say we should eat it every day!

What is so great about cacao (other than it’s been sold to us as the health sibling of milk chocolate which we all love!?!).

For starters, “Cocoa is one of the richest sources of polyphenols. It’s especially abundant in flavanols, which have potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.” And my personal favorite perk: mood enhancer! “In addition to cocoa’s positive impact on age-related mental degeneration, its effect on the brain may also improve mood and symptoms of depression. The positive effects on mood may be due to cocoa’s flavanols, the conversion of tryptophan to the natural mood stabilizer serotonin, its caffeine content or simply the sensory pleasure of eating chocolate.” - Source HERE.

So-it tastes good, like chocolate in fact, helps my mood and contains antioxidants and offers anti-inflammatory effects. Yes HELL yes.

My Notes about the recipe linked above: I was all out of honey so I substituted a little bit of good ol’ basic sugar along with applesauce for honey, and I used coconut oil instead of butter. I also used Bob’s Red Mill Almond Flour.

In a nutshell …. these muffins did NOT work out, at all. They baked into crumbly crumbles… I am sure it was user error or perhaps I pushed the ingredient substitution too far. Either way- not successful here.

Rather than toss them out, since they were so full of good quality ingredients, I called an audible, emptied the muffin wrapper contents into glass/plastic containers, added some oats and will add almond milk and warm at the office this week for a delicious breakfast treat. Muffin fail. Nevertheless, she persisted.

Next- I switched to making cookies. Oats and cacao, please, google …

Recipe HERE.

Yes… much better. Cookies, flowers, and card — delivered to my wonderful neighbors tonight. And that’s a wrap of this weekend! Tomorrow is Monday, #letsdothis.

Quick run to the store for flowers. And TP. Just the essentials.

And a bonus squirrel sighting in my backyard today. ;)

Simple Pleasures: The Joy of the Night Ride(s)

Last night I rode my ebike to and from our local bike advocacy meeting (Bike Jeffco). The ride itself was pure joy for me. Everything looked and sounded differently in the dark- and I felt like I had the whole place to myself.

Life looks different viewed in the beam of a bike headlight. It narrows ones focus. The sensory perceptions of sounds and smells is also heightened. The wind was quiet and the sky was clear. I didn’t want it to end.

---

Saturday night provided another opportunity for a blissful night ride. I rode from home in north Golden down to Morrison for dinner, which is about an hour each way. Yes it got cold, and my hands froze a few times digging the camera out. But the images, and learning how to shoot well at night, made it so worthwhile.

The Pursuit of Happy-less: jarmazing

I’m having fun these first two weeks of 2020 working on ways to include and incorporate more LESS in my life. Yes that’s poor grammar- but it’s my way of saying I’m really feeding off doing away with stuff, combining stuff and even more importantly, reducing and eradicating waste- extra plastic- extra crap that I didn’t need and won’t buy again and can do without and can lengthen the lifetime of what I’ve got… that kind of headspace.
I present Jarmazing. This company makes plastic and stainless steel pump tops that allow you to convert BALL glass jars into your last-ever spot for shampoo/lotion/soap and so on.
I walked around my home and office collecting all of the half-used containers of hand soap that had accumulated. Read: I hadn’t paid attention to what I already had and just kept mindlessly buying more. Ugh.
I grabbed them all up and one at a time placed them upside down over the ball jar to drip inside. That in itself is a fun stress reliever. ;)

… the various soaps combined to make a different color AND given different densities it became a layered soap in the jar. Like a cosmopolitan of hand soap. Winning. I threw those plastic soap containers into the recycle bin, never to be replaced or repurchased again. I’ve honestly got enough hand soap here for a nice long time. And when it’s time to refill- trust me I’ll be looking for a different option that doesn’t involve buying something in plastic.
….homemade soap recipes anyone ?!

And PS- these lids even fit on tiny ball jars and other misc jars you probably have sitting around- such as this one above, it’s the coconut oil I buy from sprouts!

Wonder women: Julie

I have an incredible village of wonder women female friends. Male friends too, yes, but my heart truly lights up at the chance to spotlight my female friends. I have noticed among my friends- these amazing women- they tend not to see their own brilliance … their light shines so bright and I am just one of the many beneficiaries of their light and love- and yet they often cannot see it for themselves.

…as my wise coach Demi says, when it’s the water we swim in daily, we can’t see it for ourselves.

So, if nothing else, this new foray into photography is giving me a chance to capture the beauty and brilliance of my friends - and to show them just how wonderful and special they are.

…today I got to ride bikes with my friend Julie- a successful business owner and mom of two great kids.

She just started riding and racing bikes 6 years ago- when she was 40!

She is a natural; she’s gifted and she’s strong and she learns fast. She’s also usually smiling, she’s a wonderful listener, and she is so kind and supportive.

Today was #newbikeday on her new TREK, so I talked her into letting me photograph her new bike and first ride on it.

Really though, I couldn’t stop smiling each time I snapped shots of her riding. Thinking to myself- “ you are a beautiful badass, Julie!”

Here are my favorite images of her:

The True Cost

Last night I watched a documentary called The True Cost, recommended to me by my friend Heather. She and I committed to one another that in 2020 we won’t buy any new or used clothing. This started after she watched the movie before Xmas. I love goals like this and said yes but then after watching the movie said HELL YES.

I woke up in a different mindset this morning and found a plastic shopping bag just a few steps into my morning walk. I decided to use it to pick up trash. I’d also brought my camera along and low and behold saw things through new eyes that I was glad I could capture - like dead fish and birds swimming near plastic bottles … I felt heartbroken. In fact - I should be out doing my Saturday bike ride right now but I can’t stop thinking about this and felt compelled to post my feels as soon as I got home and got my images uploaded.

…my heart feels so sad.

I feel disgusted. With myself and my consumption. . . With we as Americans and -we as humans.

I feel powerless also- like, what can one person really do to make a difference? And I also feel compelled and empowered to try.
Even if it’s just picking up trash every morning on my walks and taking photos and writing blogs and making mindful and intentional decisions with my money and my purchases.

This morning’s trash collection:

Yes I carried that shipping flat for awhile until I found a trash can to lean it on.

And then I saw something wonderful -

And it ended my walk with a smile.

Turmeric cookies

“The most active component of turmeric—and responsible for many of its health benefits—curcumin is known for its powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. It’s been shown to influence more than 700 genes in the body, and it can inhibit both the activity and the synthesis of enzymes that cause inflammation. ”

— https://www.nwphysicians.com/the-benefits-of-tumeric/

In what has become a series I could have called, “baking with superfoods,” I now present the Turmeric Cookie … What gives with the blog posts of cookies? Honestly, I’m loving this process of learning how to use my camera, what images I like and don’t like, paired with using items in my pantry that cost me money and have not been used. Today, my eye stumbled on the bag of turmeric powder; a purchase I use only occasionally to make Turmeric Lattes (google it, they’re yummy). I have been on a turmeric kick in the last few months after learning it’s a powerful natural anti-inflammatory. Best consumed with pepper for maximum absorption, I was hoping it would be my new ibuprofen … .

Ok so no, it doesn’t work quite like that. But the power of this stuff is undeniable. So - I went in search of recipes using Turmeric and the first one that popped up was TURMERIC SUGAR COOKIES! Yes please.

HERE is the recipe I found and used.

I made one major change : instead of using all of that sugar, I only used 2/3 cup of sugar and substituted the rest with shredded coconut.

I also used coconut flour and GF 1-to-1 flour (both Bobs’s brand) instead of processed gluten-filled flour.

Next, I debated what beverage might pair well with them… . I pulled out my non-alcoholic drink stash and settled immediately on the Seedlip Citrus. As a non-drinker for the last 2 years, now going on 3, I’ve been following along with these companies making “dry” spirits- especially those who promise no sugar (or stevia or monk fruit, gross!). This one is my favorite so far. It’s not cheap- but neither is alcohol, so I figure I’m still coming out way ahead.

I added some seltzer and an orange, and stirred with my favorite drinking utensil: An Infinity Straw. Yum.

So — what’s so great about turmeric, exactly?

Well - the benefits are almost too numerous to list! But the takeaway is that it really, really helps with inflammation and oxidative damage. More HERE.

“A tablespoon of ground turmeric offers 29 calories, nearly a gram of protein, 2 grams of fiber and 6 grams of carbohydrates. It contains minerals such as manganese, phosphorus and potassium. Turmeric also contains magical nutrients — the kind that practically cast spells to keep you strong and healthy.”

— https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/why-ls-turmeric-good-for-me

Chocolate Coconut Oat (and Flaxseed) Cookies

Continuing on with this theme of “how empty can I get this pantry?,” I regarded the two untouched containers of oats with frustration. Two? Really Megan? Luckily one of them had a great recipe on the side for some cookies, and all ingredients were already in the pantry so I went for it.

These cookies turned out GREAT. Super easy to pull together and great texture and taste!

This one got me thinking… what’s with all the hype about flaxseed, anyway?

“One tablespoon of whole seeds contains 55 calories, 3 grams of fiber, 2 grams of protein, and about 2,300 milligrams of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), a type of omega-3 fat. ALA has been shown to help decrease the risk of certain inflammatory diseases like diabetes, arthritis, and heart disease. Flax seeds are also an excellent source of magnesium, manganese, and thiamin and a good source of selenium. They also contain gamma-tocopheral, a form of the antioxidant vitamin E.”

— https://www.mensjournal.com/food-drink/10-ways-eat-and-cook-flax-seeds/

“So, what, exactly, makes flaxseed a so-called “superfood”? Today, we understand that a big part of its value is related to the presence of omega-3 fatty acids, which have been shown to fight inflammation and help in the functioning of major organs.”

— https://m.activebeat.com/

Sold ! And — here’s the recipe:

We Broke The World Record !

The Longest Static Cycling Class Guinness World Record is Now 28 Hours!

Ryan Avery, Breaking History at L, and Michael, Guinness WR official, R

Forgive me if this blog post is a bit rambling, semi-intelligible, and with random gushes of emotions (tears on the keyboard causing inherent typos) … we are fresh off the finish of our 28-hour-long cycling class which culminated yesterday (Dec 2) midday. From there, it’s been a haze. How in the world did it get to be Dec 3? We essentially stepped into a time warp and are just now re-acclimating to planet Earth. Brain cells are sluggish and the body is …well. It’s about like you’d imagine after pedaling around 90-100rpm for 28 hours. (That’s 151,200 pedal revolutions if you’re counting!).

Yes- the riders’ bodies are all wrecked today. 25 of us pedaled for 28 hours on spin bikes and today we take stock of the carnage... It pales in comparison to the feels of SUCCESS, FINISHING, NOT GIVING UP, TEAMWORK, the amazing support from our VILLAGE, the love from FAMILY AND FRIENDS, and the overwhelming emotion of achievement.

WE were ALL scared of this goal. We were ALL scared of its unknowns.

FINAL MILEAGE CHART

None of us had ever been on a spin bike more than a few hours.

Most of us had never ridden a regular bike for even half of that time.

We rushed towards something that scared us a lot - and we said “HELL YES, LET’S DO THIS!”

“I will tell you one of the best feelings in the world is to take an idea and make it real, with real people, for a real cause! The thing that surprised me the most was every single one of us finished and we all had things that we had to push past and get through! Every single one of us in the room were tested at some point throughout the 28 hours which made the attempt and the record all that much better! I am proud of the leadership Megan showed, I am proud of every single person in that room, and I am thankful for every volunteer who showed up and made this world record happen! There was a six hour stretch where I was in so much pain I thought my knee had a knife in it and I didn’t know how I was going to get through the ride. With the help and support and love from everyone in the room I can say with complete certainty that was the reason why I kept peddling! Keep dreaming BIG, doing BIG, and of course... keep Breaking History!”

— Ryan Avery, Rider, World Record Holder, & Host of Breaking History

“Surprised: everyone finished. Highlight: the actual structure of “classes” and how quickly the instructor was able to change to avoid injuries. Lowlight: the entire class starting to bonk at the same was alarming but it only(thankfully) lasted 15 min on the minimum. Advise: don’t tread lightly into over12 hr anything endurance without a structured plan and allow time to train your body. Lastly: do not do these 12+ hr endurance adventures without a true friend; that endearment goes a long way when one truly gets in a bind. Love is the most powerful endorphin we can tap into; I say use it!!!”

— Cheryl Gaiser, Rider & World Record Holder

Images by Natalie Starr:

“Are there words to describe how we all feel right now? I’m not sure there are ... To take on a GIANT goal with so many unknowns (that candidly scared me a LOT), to add a lot of public attention and press and buildup to it, (thereby risking a giant public failure if we weren’t successful), to ask 100 people (riders and volunteers) to donate their time and energy to this big thing with no guarantee of success, to pair it with a really important cause that means the world to me and to the most important people in my life, and to put it all out there and risk it all in such a big, public, insane way…. Well.
Let’s just say my word right now is jubilant!”

— — Megan Hottman, Instructor, World Record Holder & The Cyclist Lawyer

My pre - and post - event photos:

Just because the event is over, doesn’t mean our fundraising is! We are still going for our $100,000 goal and our fundraising site will be up into January. Please consider donating to our effort:

http://peopleforbikes.org/breaking-history

“Knowing that this WR attempt was going to be quite the feat, I spent a lot of time riding my bike in preparation. I felt ready to reach deep into the tank, but I was not prepared for how big a role my fellow riders would play in my success. While I was the only one that could physically turn my pedals, I was floored at how quickly our group came together and truly became family after 28 hours of cycling together.”

— Thomas Stott, Owner, Elevation Running, World Record Holder

“Mantra’s.....I loved that we had them up on the mirror, mine was “trust your journey”. A tie for me is “passion is contagious”. I think we proved both of those over the 28 hours. You believed in us and we believed in you on the journey we where all about to go on together for 28 hours as a team, there was much energy, passion and quite frankly love in that space the there was no doubt we where going to finish the journey together. We were all feeding off each others’ passion to raise money, make cycling safer and set a Guinness World Record. I made some amazing new friends, Tim, Heather and I-Ling, among others. It reminded me that I needed to get out of my comfort zone more often socially. I loved seeing everyones’ family members come in to see them, hi five, hugs etc. So good. We did something incredible for the greater good and the best part is we where all really giving without expectation ...... sure we were going to set a world record, but it was all bigger than that.....and we knew it. I teared up several times in the early morning hours thinking about what we where doing and what it was all for and meant.......
For me the Hardest part was 1:30am, I was having some GI issues similar to you I imagine, I managed them with some Waterloo as well as Chicken and Stars Soup, one of my go to endurance event foods, Favorite Songs .....I love the Remix stuff, Armin remix of Jump and Faithless, can’t get no sleep.......and the Cyndi Lauper Time after Time Remix, to be honest :)
Thanks again for everything, life changing event and that is an understatement.”

— — Andrew Christman, Owner, Pedal, World Record Holder

“I want to share how impressed I was with this event and team. My words feel so inadequate. Megan and Ryan, I love the planning side of big events as well as the execution. I thought that you were just phenomenal in both. To everyone else, never having met a single one of you beforehand, I am humbled by the camaraderie and teamwork displayed. The encouragement and pats on the back- both literal AND figurative- before, during, and after the ride blew me away. Thank you. I was there to represent SRAM, but if that’s true, it was simply the most incredible business trip of my career! It was way more.”

— — Dave Schweikert, SRAM, World Record holder

“When I arrived for my volunteer shift on Monday morning, I really wasn’t expecting to see all 25 riders still on their bikes, but not one rider had dropped out! Amazing...since they had already been riding for 24 hours and were still going strong. I think this was a result of great leadership, athleticism, positive attitudes, willpower, teamwork, and camaraderie. It was very exciting to watch and awesome to see the team break the world record. Congratulations!”

— — Maureen Massidda, World Record Volunteer

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Eliminating Clutter ... Freeing Up Energy.

This is unacceptable.

Did you know that your stuff could literally be killing you?

It could be causing or contributing to mental health issues, like depression or anxiety, and it could be causing or contributing to procrastination, and general feelings of unhappiness and overwhelm?

It’s true … and the studies confirm it.

“...clutter can negatively impact mental well-being, particularly among women. Clutter can also induce a physiological response, including increased levels of cortisol, a stress hormone.”

— https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/03/well/mind/clutter-stress-procrastination-psychology.html

I don’t know about you, but I refuse to let “stuff” drag me down. After years of mindless consumption, paired with a home big enough that storage space wasn’t a limiting factor, I got really clear on how full my life was awhile back and I’ve been on a mission to change it. For the last couple of years I’ve been really intentional about clearing more white space in my home and at my office. And sometimes, it’s taken me clearing a space or area to fully and finally realize the impact that the previously-cluttered space was having on me.

Have you ever cleared an area and then when you spend time in the new space, you feel lighter, more at-ease, even breathing feels easier, your heart rate noticeably slows? Yeah. Me too. And I want that for every room and space in my life - my home, my garage, my office, my car, my drawers and cabinets. I refuse to let my “Stuff” cost me more than it already has - the price I paid to own it, the time and energy I invest to store/maintain it, and the mental energy expended on looking at it, trying to decide whether to move it, keep it, donate it, sell it, throw it out.

Question: Why is it SO easy to make a split-second decision in a store to buy something, or to click online to order something, but we will let analysis paralysis freeze us in our tracks when it’s time to dispose of the thing? The decision fatigue around what to do with something once it’s in our homes should be reason enough not to let anything else cross the threshold and ever come into our home again!

Case in point: I’ve got a gorgeous TAG watch I bought myself back in 2012 when my law firm started doing well. It was my “reward” for a successful year, and in addition, I thought a successful lawyer “should” own and wear a nice watch. I had buyer’s remorse so badly the following week I tried to return it, but the jeweler said no. So it’s been in a box in my drawer - where I see it daily - and I feel contempt, resentment, and regret when I see it. It’s not my style - I prefer my trusty Garmin Fenix 5 watch on a daily basis! And it feels wasteful - knowing if I’d invested that money, the amount I’d have now in a bank account makes my stomach turn.

And yet I’m frozen in my decision about what to do with it. I’ve contacted watch consignment sites, they will only offer a fraction of what I paid for it. I’ve had the battery replaced, intending to list it on E-bay or Craigslist, with the note “brand new battery installed” … . only to let it sit and watch the battery die over another year of nonuse. The amount of bandwidth I’ve devoted to this one purchase is insane. And it eats at me. Anyone else relate to this conundrum of how to eliminate the things from our lives which no longer serve us?

We must be ever-vigilant about letting things IN. I often say “stuff is pernicious.” That one chapstick you buy in the checkout line, that one race T-shirt you bring in from the SWAG bag they gave you, that one scented candle that joins the other 2 … one at a time, these small items seem innocent, but all of a sudden BOOM they are overwhelming as a whole and the dilemma about their elimination begins once again. There is no doubt we must be FIRM in our management of what crosses the threshold and comes in.

Here are some of my tips (rules, actually, I thrive with hard and fast rules):

1) I check the mail and throw away all junk and catalogs in my garage (recycle bin); they never come in the house. Same for handouts, flyers, business cards … STOP IT BEFORE IT COMES IN!

2) At events like bike races or triathlons, I decline the “goody bag” at registration. What about that really cool t-shirt though? (I mean, I paid for it with my entry fee…). Rule: Only 20 t-shirts in my house (ahem, I couldn’t even wear them all in a month if I tried, but it’s a long ways from the original 62 I used to have). If I am bringing in a new T-shirt, then one old one has to go. I’ve gotten really picky about their material and fit, and only the best survive the cut.

3) I force myself to put all like-items together in one spot and refuse to let myself buy more until they are gone. Example: I just found 3 bottles of nail polish remover in my bathrooms. Because they were spread out, I didn’t know I had 3. I put them all in one spot, and will not buy ANY more until these are gone. Same for candles. And chapsticks. And smoothie supplements.

Taken from this article: https://lifehacker.com/calculating-the-value-of-time-how-much-is-your-time-re-1749954358

“....most people base their decisions on gut feelings or guesswork and never calculate what their time is actually worth. Everyone has an hourly value, but very few people can actually tell you what that number is.”

— https://lifehacker.com/calculating-the-value-of-time-how-much-is-your-time-re-1749954358

4) Before I buy an item I think about what it will really cost me in terms of time with upkeep, maintenance, storage, and I think about how likely it is I’ll be able to resell it. “Be careful what you own, because it will own you,” by Tyler Durden in the movie The Fight Club, is one of my all-time favorite lines, because it’s SO true. To be honest, this acute awareness has stopped me from many recent purchases. It keeps me from buying clothes, purses, jewelry, and toys/electronics. I just don’t want to invest the hassle they will require of me. Before I bought a treadmill last year for my garage, I thought long and hard about the time and money I’d spend getting it serviced, and what will eventually be involved in moving it if I sell my house. I opted to make the purchase because having it here versus having to drive to a gym, was worth it to me. (Plus, I trained my dogs how to walk on it, so it’s a household win, especially in the winter).

5) Don’t let the stuff into the house to begin with! (kind of like Rule #1 above, but adding on). Make your desires known for friends and family. I would much rather be gifted a donation, an experience, or a dinner out, than a “thing.” I don’t like hurting people’s feelings, so I used to accept their gifts and then would dispose of them when the time felt appropriate. But then I thought, that’s insane. Why let people spend their money on stuff for me if I’m going to get rid of it? So, I’ve been explicit in my asks for gifts — donations to nonprofits I love, or flowers, dinner, or kombucha. I’d rather have people’s time than a present. And I would rather not have them buy me a thing just for the sake of giving me a present. It also applies to just not buying stuff in the first place. Just decide you’re not going to do it. I set 4 big goals in 2018 and one of them was “year of no shopping.” This made it SO easy to just say no. I’d hold something in my hands, even try it on at times, and then I’d default to this amazing clear rule of “no shopping” and I’d return it to the shelf and walk away. The ease of saying no to impulse buys with such a clearly-defined rule was amazing. NO decision fatigue. Just NO. Also, I began to really appreciate items like flowers, a good cup of coffee, a new book (these were my shopping exceptions) a whole lot more. Gratitude for the little things- and I never once missed the inevitable buyer’s remorse that follows most of our purchases.

““Once it’s in the house, it’s really hard to deal with. You get attached to the things you own,” she said.”

— Dr. Saxbe, as quoted in https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/03/well/mind/clutter-stress-procrastination-psychology.html

Ok -those rules are all well and good, but what about the stuff that we already own, that we want to dispose of? Here are the options I’ve used that have worked, and one that I have yet to try but which comes highly recommended to me:

1. Ebay: best for smaller price-range items, like used cycling kits, used nice clothing, purses, jewelry… . the Ebay app makes listing things FAST and easy, and I try to have 4-5 things listed at all times (but no more than that, as shipping them can be time consuming and I don’t like having 10 things to ship out at once!) so there’s always some turnover and movement… . Beware the costs and fees associated with your listings, however. One thing I’ve done to keep myself motivated is to assign an intended use to the sales proceeds. The money used to be my benevolence fund: I’d use it to pay for anonymous services for friends, without them knowing, or use to make donations. Now, my partner Russ and I have committed to both having items listed on ebay at all times (both of us having way more cycling apparel and accessories than we could EVER possibly use), and we’ve agreed to use that money to pay for our Tuesday night date nite outings. “Hey honey, want to have sushi? … Sorry, no, I only sold $10 worth of stuff this week … Cool — let’s split a veggie roll!” It helps us stay inspired to keep listing. I recommend using paypal to accept payments for some added seller protection. Note, however, I have been screwed a time or two -the buyer has ended up with the item and their money back, after opening a dispute on Ebay/PayPal. So-don’t ever list anything that’s TOO valuable.

2. Craigslist: This is better for larger items and local pickups — like bikes. I’ve had good luck selling bikes on CL to local buyers, and there are ways to minimize the brain damage of agreeing on a date/time/meeting location: once the buyer indicates they are serious, I email them saying, “cash only, here is a neutral meeting space, and I can meet you on one of these 3 days/times ____.” It helps keep the back and forth to a minimum. Know that you may be stood up and you may waste a bit of time (which, ahem will encourage you not to buy something like this again in the future!)… Download the CL app to make listings with photos easy and fast.

3. Poshmark: I haven’t tried this one yet but want to for more expensive items, like that TAG watch I mentioned, and expensive jewelry I no longer wear/want. This method involves some security for you as the seller, as well as for the buyer to ensure they aren’t sold a fake. This method involves you sending your item to them for verification, they collect the buyer’s money and send it to you when they release your item to the buyer. They too have an app, which makes listing and photos easy.

4. Facebook Market place: semi-effective, especially if you list across multiple sites (for example when I list a bike, I list it on local Colorado cycling swaps as well as other swaps in nearby cities/states).

5. Garage sales/flea markets: don’t waste your time. Seriously. Hours on end for a few bucks? Refer to the above chart about the value of your time on an hourly basis…

6. Donate it — honestly, if you itemize, this is worth considering. Drop it off and it’s gone, plus tax deduction. Hate donating something “so valuable?” Well… we shouldn’t have bought it to begin with then. Stressed over which donation place to support? Do we really care which CEO is overpaid? Bottom line, ARC, Goodwill, and so on all do good things for the folks they support and employ. Don’t get hung up in minutia and stress out. Also consider having your stuff picked up for you - -Check out GiveBackBox.com for an amazing solution (use those amazon boxes AND have your donations picked up from your home, for zero cost!).

7. Bottom line -get it gone. You can roam your house in circles, but eventually, you just need to get stuff out. Don’t overthink it - get yourself in “gut mode” as I call it (for me, best done on cold weather, cloudy, crappy days) and MOVE. And don’t let those boxes/bags stay in your car —drop them off immediately. I have NEVER ONCE regretted donating or selling anything I’ve disposed of. I’ve only loved and appreciated the whitespace created by its absence!!!! STUCK? Involve a professional! Check out our friend Stephanie’s podcasts where she talks about the how and WHY to tackle elimination … . call her and schedule a consult!

Your sanity and wellness are worth it. Make some hard rules around “stuff” - like when you will/won’t buy something. Need a 2020 resolution? I highly recommend trying the “year of no shopping.” Now that we’re into the 2019 holiday season, make this a season of elimination and eradication. Remove visual clutter. Start with the front of your refrigerator, for example. Don’t keep those old holiday cards from seasons’ past. Throw all old decor you don’t like or use, recycle what you can, and do NOT go shopping on Black Friday or in the post-holiday shopping sale season, either. Count your tshirts and cut the stash in half. Then cut it in half again. Pair down your sock drawer. Get down to 3 baseball caps. Consolidate lotions, soaps, cleaning supplies. Eat what’s in your pantry before buying more. Use those stockpiled toilet papers and papertowels and actually RUN out before you buy more. Go shopping by bike -you can’t carry as much!

Recommended reading:

https://www.theminimalists.com/

https://www.theminimalists.com/etr/

https://www.lifemadesimpleathome.com/

https://konmari.com/

https://www.amazon.com/Millionaire-Next-Door-Surprising-Americas/dp/1589795474

Boss Guilt

Yesterday I came clean with my office manager.

“I feel guilty not being in the office when you’re in the office,” I told her. This was the FIRST time I’d ever raised the issue with my staff.

“Why!!?!,” she responded, “you are up working at 6am on cases and on weekends and holidays. It’s not like you’re not working.”

“I know, and agree,” I said, “but paying someone to be in the office certain hours each week makes me feel like I should be there when you’re there.” I confessed to her that I get a LOT of really good quality work done while working from home (and it also allays my dog-guilt, which is that my dogs are locked up when I’m away from the house and it makes me feel bad); working from home allows me to be uber-productive AND to have my dogs out and happy.

I know I didn’t need my employee’s permission. I’m the one who singularly generates the business and fills our funnel of potential cases, as well as the only one doing the actual lawyering that moves the case forward. I know in my heart and head, that I’m the one who is ultimately responsible for getting us paid. I know I don’t need to get anyone’s approval or permission to work from home sometimes, or to grab a midday bike ride.

Why then — is this such a common theme across the board of other bosses and business owners that I know? I mean for crying out loud, we started the business, we think about it 24/7 and we eat, sleep, and breathe its successes and failures. Why are we holding ourselves to our paid staff’s schedules and office hours?

Taken a step further - if we ARE the ones who hustle for biz dev, and we acknowledge that to be out networking and connecting with our potential customers, we literally HAVE to be away from the office… why are we confining ourselves to places and roles that don’t serve us, don’t serve our business, or both?

It all comes down to one word: Should.

“I should be at the office when my staff is there.”

“I should be leading my team on site so they’ll see i’m working just as hard as they are.”

“I should lead by example in showing my adherence to office hours so that they’ll see I don’t simply ask them "‘do as I say and not as I do’ …”

“I should be on site in case my team has questions I can answer or has problems I can solve.”

What recalibrates me when I get stuck in the should-spin-cycle?

This question:

“Megan, if you are going to stick yourself in an office behind a desk and work traditional hours and pigeonhole yourself into few vacations, being plugged in 24/7 and not giving yourself permission to work in a way that serves you best, YOU MAY AS WELL GO WORK FOR SOMEONE ELSE. Go clock in for someone else, and spare yourself the stress that wakes you up at 2am, the times you dip into savings to make payroll, the angst associated with ownership and your personal reputation and name on the line…. if you aren’t going to enjoy the perks associated with being the owner/boss, you may as well go find a job you can clock in and out for. At least then, you’ll know you can log off when you’re on vacation or enjoying a weekend.”