Hello after so long!
It has been way too long since I last reached out to you. It’s about time I do. You see, it just dawned on me that I have quite the story to tell you about my crazy, ever-changing life.
Do you even remember me? You may have joined my list from the Paper Cleanse or the Instant Clarity Toolkit. Or maybe you just found me on social media somewhere.
The last few months of my life have been nothing but a whirlwind. Let’s start with the month of April, when I rented my very first, commercial location for my photography business. Ever since that, life has certainly taken over, yet again.
It started with that first bold move. Then, more madness followed. You see, my husband was the Operations Manager for a company, which brought him more growth & grief than he’s ever experienced (that’s its own separate story). Well, the point of it is that in May, we decided that he should resign that job.
At that time, my photography business was bringing more income in one week than he could in one month. We decided that he would support me in the business and I’d focus on growing it.
Never have we felt more freedom, fear, and excitement than at that moment. Fear was probably one of the biggest feelings. What if we don’t make it? What if we fail? What if my business can’t provide enough to take care of my family?
We transitioned easily into full self-employment and started to see the realities of the lifestyle. “Okay, now it’s sink or swim,” we decided. The daily hustle of making money began. All we did was think, eat, breathe, making money. We became two business machines, taking turns making sure the kids were okay, tended to, and entertained. Excited about the “freedoms” that self-employment brought us. But were we really free?
Fast forward four months later.
We’re now entering yet another chapter in our crazy lives. Here we are, realizing that in order to achieve the full freedom we dream of, it doesn’t end at being our own bosses and running our family business. We became- for lack of a better word- workaholics.
I’ve stayed up late every night. I’ve been editing until the wee hours of the night, returning emails, following up with leads, doing a little bit of marketing here and there. My husband, looking at the numbers, doing his best to support me, and starting his own business. All while trying to simply survive. We brought in enough to pay the bills, but there was nothing left over to live. No time to simply enjoy our life and our kids. Is this really what our lives are meant for?
So what was the next unimaginable move we could make to help us move from hustle to more freedom?
Getting rid of the monkey on our back, the evil four letter word- Debt. To do that, we’ve undertaken a new project. We’ve decided to sell our house. Insert gasp. But why this? How will this even help us? Why give up the house of our dreams?
Okay, here’s the back story.
The house that we currently live in, is a miracle in itself. In October, it’ll be five years since we finally closed on this house (which took six months). We were looking for our first home when we found it. One that could fit our growing family and in a location that was safe(I was pregnant with my first at the time).
We stumbled upon our house the day it was listed on the market. It was a 4,200 square foot foreclosure. It had more updates than imaginable and the previous owners had unfortunately lost it. We jumped on the opportunity and got the house for half the value! So now, we have this house that has enough equity in it to help us get out of or reduce our debt by at least 75%.
So what’s next you ask? What will you do once your sell your house? Well, that’s what we’re still figuring out. I want to take you on this journey with me while letting you know about the other things that I come across or create in the meantime.
I’ve started many projects and haven’t finished them. It’s time to bring you in on this messy, exciting journey of mine. I call it “Chapter Two”.
My husband and I don’t plan to quit anytime soon. We know what we want out of life and we’ll keep going until we reach that. It’s the messy stuff in between that most people are too scared to talk about.
I write this to simply inspire you to take chances, even when it’s scary. You’d be surprised at what you’re capable of when you don’t give up on your dreams. Keep your eyes on the prize, regardless of what the journey looks like.
I’m going to share my life with you. I’m also going to share what helps me get through the hard times, how I have a successful business, and how I’m taking life on with a vengeance by living the best life I can. There’s more to come so keep your eyes out!
Humbly,
Iviana
