“Be who you are, set by example, aim to inspire.”

This is the fortune I found in my cookie as I finished up a meal of Chinese
food with my family some time ago. I decided to hold on to this fortune, as
these words all mean a great deal to me.

These words also carry over from my personal life into my professional life,
and are meaningful to what I do for a living and really how I make
my living. If you think about it, and look at each little snippet of that
fortune, I’ll bet you find that each phrase is meaningful for you as well.

So in my own life, I have learned to be who I am. I am a mom, a contributing
member to my community, and a woman business owner. I want to live my life by
following my heart, but fulfilling my dreams, and by doing some exciting things
that make a difference. This is who I am.

I try to set an example for my own children – perhaps especially for my
daughters – and show you can make a living by pursuing something that is very
near and dear to your heart. In my choice of careers, via Tiny Tush, I provide
products that I think really make a difference to the people who use them, and
even to our earth (for the obvious environmental benefits of using cloth
diapers). And when I look back to the reasons as to why I started my company
(check out my earlier blog posts!), I am proud of the fact that I chose to
follow a path that is meaningful to me and something I feel good talking about
when I tell others what I do. This is the good example I aim to set.

And the inspiration continues for me and all my family members and employees.
As a business owner, I know the quickest way for my business to fail is for
employees to not aspire to do all the good that they can. So in my role, I must
remain strategic in my focus, practical in my actions, inspirational in my
message and foresight. By remembering these principles, others on my team (and
in my family!) also feel and embrace my passion. This is the way that I aim
to inspire.

I would imagine that many of you also have examples of what you are able to
accomplish in both your personal and professional lives as well – and I’d love
to hear any stories you care to share. Feel free to post them here.

Together, we share words of wisdom that will allow each of us to rise to the
next level.

You never know what kind of deep thoughts can come forth from a seemingly
simple fortune contained in a cookie.