Showing posts with label I Need the Happy Ending. Show all posts
Showing posts with label I Need the Happy Ending. Show all posts

Monday, December 1, 2014

The First Step To Being Happy is YOU

For several years, all I wanted was to be happy...I was very broken, felt unloved and extremely unimportant. Part of that feeling came from the lack of ever having a loving relationship and lots of disappointment and the other part came from the fact that like many people, I was fooled into thinking happiness was only defined by having a loving relationship, a fancy house, an expensive car and money to buy all the things I wanted. I would look at people around me who seemed happy and they had loving marriages, were dressed in the best clothes, and had lots of "things". They were taking fabulous family vacations, giving elaborate birthday parties and their Christmas's were like the ones you see on TV commercials with extravagant trees, beautiful decorations and loads of gifts. 

I often felt like a failure with all of this around me, and always wondered why it was not my life. I worked very hard, had so much love to give and yet here I was a single mom who had been divorced twice that struggled to give my kids all of the things that I wanted to give them no matter how many hours I worked because I was doing everything alone for quite some time. We rarely had the money to go on big shopping sprees for back to school like I did when I was younger and I always felt bad for that. We never took a family vacation because I was afraid to take the time off of work. When you are self employed and take time off there is no paycheck waiting for you when you get home so I always allowed that fear to stop me from doing it. Seeing happiness around me made me really sad and I had a hard time being happy for other people who had what I wanted.

Then one day after reading a passage in one of my self improvement books I realized a truth... a fact that changed my life. That fact was that the first step to being happy was loving yourself. I had a self realization moment that very second. My whole life flashed before me and in the end I concluded that I was not happy with who I was at all. I had low self esteem and very little self worth because I allowed things from my past to haunt me. There were decisions I had made that left me feeling unworthy of love and success and because of this I was unconsciously manifesting a life of unhappiness and struggle. I was unknowingly punishing myself for all of my mistakes.

The most amazing moment in all of this was realizing that I was in control of my happiness... that all of the "things" that I thought would bring me the happiness I desired had nothing to do with it at all. That began my path to all that I had ever wanted; a path that I am still traveling Slowly, but surely my attitude began to change. I started learning how to love myself despite all of my mistakes, faults and imperfections and decided that spiritually I was perfect.... a perfect disaster maybe, but I learned to be proud of all that I had done wrong, all that had happened and I started to move on from it all. It was then that I was living in the lowest point of my life and it is also when I decided I would share my story with the world... I wrote my first book.

I began to love who I saw in the mirror and thought that perhaps one day, a special someone would come into my life and appreciate me for who I truly was and what I had gone through in my life. I found happiness in finally knowing and accepting who I was. I no longer hid all the ugly things from my past pretending to be perfect, I became proud of them because it had formed who I was and who I would eventually become. 

Even though I still hope for love and acceptance from someone that I can share my life with, I love and accept myself... and that is the most important thing you can do when looking for happiness. God loves us with all of our imperfections and if He does, so should we. Love yourself like He does and life just gets better.

Something else that happens when you learn to love yourself... you begin to love and accept others for who THEY are... your heart truly changes and when you look at someone, you look at their imperfections and mistakes with admiration, understanding and compassion. When you have accepted your own faults and imperfections you simply begin to judge others less. The most freeing thing was when I stopped caring about what other people thought of me and instead began caring what I thought of me. We will never make everyone else happy, someone will always disagree with our actions, choices and lifestyle but we CAN make ourselves happy; trust me, that is a much easier task. When you realize that happiness is a choice, it's an easy choice to make; it takes no arm twisting. 

So....you have two choices in life. You can get swallowed up with all that is now or you can begin to imagine and glorify all that can be. I ask....which will you choose? 


Have a wonderful Monday... and a wonderful week. Pass this one along, I am sure many people out there need to love themselves a little more, and we ALL need to find happiness.



Until next time...

xoxo

Shells


                                                   

                                                          

















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Sunday, November 16, 2014

How Faithful Are You?

When I sat down to write this post, several instances played in my mind; moments in my life that I look back on remembering how I handled them WITHOUT faith. The most prominent one that came to mind was when I became pregnant the summer after high school graduation at the young age of 17. Several people around me... especially family members were extremely disappointed and told me that I had ruined my chances of ever being successful in life. 

When I needed those who were close to me the most, backs were turned away and noses turned up. At this time in my life, I did not believe in God, my faith had been damaged as a child when my sister Teresa was killed, so I did not turn in that direction. I remember simply taking all the negative things people said about my situation and turning that into drive, passion and an undying motivation and desire to show them that they were all wrong; that's all I had to go with at the time so I went on a mission to MAKE things happen. Prior to finding out I was having a child, I was on a path of destruction, drinking every weekend and most nights when I came home from work. I had dreams and goals and had worked since the age of 13... but at the rate I was going achieving those goals may have been hindered by poor choices and sadness that was swirling deep inside me, so that pregnancy was a blessing disguised as an obstacle.

Fast forwarding my life to a year after Cierra was born... I was now a single mom who owned a salon and had purchased my first home, I was proud of this and felt I was well on my way but constantly struggled; everything came the hard way. When she was 2, I married her father but after only two years our marriage ended... another painful road block that left me sad, I felt unwanted and unworthy of love. I was led back to drinking and going out on the weekends trying to find a "guy" to fill the void in my life that I was feeling. After several failed attempts of meeting and dating that "awesome" guy, I was left with a broken heart and the thought that it would never happen for me. I was a young mom and simply felt that nobody would want me and my "baggage" so I threw myself deeper into my career and looked to drinking when I felt that emptiness. Then... I decided on a whim that in order to have a better life I needed to get out of the small town I was in and start anew, so I packed up and moved to Tampa, on a leap of chance knowing only one person who lived there.

It turned out to be a good move in the long run for my life and certainly my career, but over the past 15 years of being here I have had many struggles, have had 3 more children, another divorce and a failed long term relationship. I have hit several dead ends and learned many more hard lessons. It seemed for so long that no matter how many steps forward I took... there were always more steps back. There were many times when I wanted to just give up. Luckily that burning desire of wanting to prove that I can do it still lives inside of me. 

Back in 2005 when my faith was renewed, life as I knew it changed dramatically. It was not that I stopped struggling or that everything from that point on was "peachy", but when I hit those walls, when I was in the storm, I knew that I did not have to do it alone. In fact... all that I have to do is ask God to take over... to hop in that driver's seat and take all my worry. pain and sadness away. Miraculously, He does and I feel at peace. What I give back to Him is to utilize all the talents and drive He gave me in every way that I can, to keep Him in my heart and to share with others my journey. In my mind, that is the role I am to fill in this game called life, the rest I give to Him.

It is hard for me to imagine trying to get through all of the obstacles of everyday life without faith now, and I am baffled that I survived it for so many years. I am SO thankful that no matter how long I had my back turned on Him... that God never gave up on me.

I have had people ask me how I do it... how I can just hand it over to the "big guy" and not concern myself with worry of  how everything is going to turn out. I guess all I can say is that once you have a circumstance where you have nothing left, when your own efforts are exhausted and you truly have no choice but to surrender it all... you won't be able to understand. I was in that place... I had that moment and that is when God showed me His true grace. He brought a non-believer back to faith... TRUE faith and since then, every time I feel defeated, worried or pained, I quickly remind myself of the day He showed up in my life, showed me He was real, took it all away and solved the problem at hand. Because of that I do not stay swallowed up in worry, sadness or pain; I know how to find that peace.

So how faithful are you? Many people talk the talk and say that they are faithful Christians, that they "believe", yet they are walking around worried, sad, angry, pained and defeated without that feeling of peace in heir heart. It is SO hard to fully trust in something that you cannot see... I get it, I was once that person, but I promise you that once you have experienced what can happen when you just GIVE IT TO GOD you will always have your place to turn, and are left with unbelievable comfort. You will believe because you will FEEL it...  I know that seeing is NOT the only way to believing. 

Today... I want you to take whatever worry you have, take whatever is ailing you and ask God to take it .... then believe with your whole heart that He can and will. Cry out for help, be specific in your request and then wait, for God's timing is the best kind. Allow that weight you feel right now to be lifted off your shoulders and let Him carry it. After many years of trying to find that "awesome man" that would fill a void... I can happily say that I found Him and His are the most loving arms I have ever been wrapped in.

I truly appreciate ALL of you.... I hope that you can take something from this post today and that you don't just think I am trying to push something on you that you don't want to believe. I am sharing... not judging. I am letting you know how I do it... so take from it what you will and I hope you find peace in your storms.



Until next time...

xoxo

Shells


                                                   
                                                          

















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Monday, July 28, 2014

What to Do When you Feel Defeated

We have all had days... weeks, some of you may have even months or years when you feel completely defeated, depleted, drained, not knowing what to do next or where to turn. THESE are the pivotal moments; the moments that will define and determine our future. I have never met a person who has achieved success who has not first failed... several times in fact. The one who fails most yet keeps going wins the biggest. A person's drive, ambition and determination must be bigger than their failures, they must be paramount to their obstacles. THAT is the mindset that changes the moment, and the actions that come from that moment will affect the outcome.

People who do not know me well may assume that I never feel defeated, mainly because I seem like the energizer bunny that never runs out of battery smiling from ear to ear most of the time, but I have broken down more times than I can count. I have run marathons on a rat wheel feeling like it would never stop and if it did I would likely fly across the room and hit a brick wall head on. What made the difference for me is that my dreams were bigger, my desire was paramount and my reasons for wanting to achieve grow as I continue through life. I don't know why I am wired like this, and quite frankly, as odd as it may sound it's both exhausting and exhilarating doing all that I do making me wish at times that I were more common; I never will be.

When you have a passion for something... mine happens to be helping others in whatever way that I can... it drives you whether you are holding the wheel or not. What I have learned is that only about 2% of the population are like this so if I could bottle these traits and sell them on Amazon I figure I would be a gagillionaire. (It's a word in my dictionary) Since I cannot bottle it, or squeeze it into people by syringe, I will continue to inspire people through my blogs, my books, social media pages and do what other great leaders before me have done... I feel that I am meant for more, I have a purpose and it drives me to do all that I do. I choose to lead by example.

I may not be a millionaire yet... but I am hopeful that it is in my future to be one. The burning desire to be something extraordinary is not for the wealth I may gain but because of what I will be able to GIVE when it happens, and I honestly cannot wait.

I had a hard time tonight trying to come up with a blog topic so I just started typing... this is what came to mind and I have decided to end it with an excerpt from the new book I am writing, and I hope that it is something that will inspire you to never quit.



There is nothing more worth it than the act of perseverance... 

It's the elderly couple who have been together for 50 years that still hold hands and look at each other with loving eyes; they know what they had to go through to get this far. It's the woman holding her brand new baby, totally exhausted after being in labor for 24 hours feeling happier than she has ever been in her life.
It's the man who stands atop the mountaintop with tears of joy in his eyes, hands sore, knees scraped and muscles defeated, looking down in disbelief at the climb he just made. It's the person who had a dream to be something one day who is now living that dream yet will never forget the journey, the sacrifices and the moments they wanted to give up.

So often, we let go... we throw in the towel when things seem too hard. Most people are more willing to never know what it's like to succeed than they are to do what it takes to make their dreams come true, to make their marriages last, or to divide and conquer so that they will have an inspirational story to tell.

I challenge you today to NEVER GIVE UP.. to persevere and continue on with what you are trying to accomplish until it happens. You have nothing to lose and your dreams to gain.

If you are failing at nothing... you are not opening your mind, your life, or your heart to experience new things. With everything new comes failure, with failure, comes success and lessons of what not to do again. If you want your happy ending.... you must pursue it with intensity because only YOU can make it happen. ©shelleygiard
#goingafterthehappyending #book2 #shelleygiard #inspirational#motivational 

 xoxo

Shells


                                   
                                                          
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Friday, March 21, 2014

World Down Syndrome Day... March 21, 2014





3-21

Every year as this date approaches, I reminisce over the years and think of all the things my little munchkin Abrielle has accomplished, not only in the past year, but in the years of her lifetime... despite the things that most people would consider obstacles. Although she is not yet jumping over sidewalk cracks, she sure CAN run fast; and has more carefree playing than many kids I witness. Although she is not talking as well as other 4 year old children do, she IS speaking purposeful words, and understands everything I ask of her; in her world at 4 years old, that is considered a small miracle. As I have watched her grow, I can tell you that the time she takes to learn and process things is minuscule compared to the hurdles she has jumped along the way and something deep down tells me that time she takes is what allows her to be so joyful all of the time; I have learned from her...


Smiles rarely leave her face and NOTHING is really a big deal. Her time is like "Jamaica time, mon" and who doesn't enjoy that concept? Many years ago I had urgency about everything I did; I think MANY of us do; it's the world we live in. A world of instant gratification, instant credit, guaranteed whatever's we want everything now. Society has no patience for the concept "your time will come" or "take time to grow" we run around in a hurry and miss out on the beauty of our journey; I have learned from her...


She loves without conditions, she hugs for no reason and truly cares when you are hurting. She is the first one to come running when her older brother is crying, even when it's a tantrum just to give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. She meets no strangers, as she offers love to everyone around her no matter the social class, color of skin or physical appearance; to her we are all the same; I have learned from her...


This little girl although the last of my four kids, came just in time, just when I needed smiles in my life, just when I needed a true direction and just when I needed to learn to appreciate the purposeful journey. I started my book when she was 9 months old and I know that if she had not arrived, I never would have taken the time to write it... I was too much in a hurry to be what I thought I was supposed to be; I had it all wrong; I learned from her...


                                        

We all need to slow down, we all need to take time to enjoy what surrounds us, we need to breathe in the journey and know that if we stop rushing everything and trying to have it OUR way.... GOD will show us HIS way. I promise that way is better, I am living proof; His gift of HER taught me that.


As I embark on the first leg of my speaking tour coming up in April , I wish I could bring her with me... for she has taught me so much and without her I am not sure I would be where I am right now. So today... on this 21st day of March... I celebrate the greatest gift in my life. Having three copies of chromosome #21 is what makes her so unique, and although she will not be able to wear the shirt I made her to school tomorrow because she is down for the count with pollen allergies, My baby girl WILL be celebrated just as all of these special human being should be each and every day. I encourage you to share this post and help me celebrate life.... in an extra chromosome kinda way!

                                              


xoxo

Shells


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Friday, January 31, 2014

The Importance of Being Included

Tonight's blog was actually born from a thought that I had today regarding a few recent events that left me feeling kind of blegh. I don't feel this way often, but just as we all do... I have days when I just want to feel understood, like part of "the group."  I don't mean popularity, fame, or even getting a pat on the back. What I mean is just the feeling that what you do is noticed, understood and appreciated by the people that you want it from the most. Sure, I am blessed every single day with emails, letters, texts and friendly gestures from people, many who are strangers, that are inspired by my posts, my book, and my blogs. For that, I am so humbled and truly grateful. However once in a while, I still long for the feeling that I "fit in" to feel like I am part of something instead of that lone ranger, square peg, that I have always been reminded of being. At times we all battle with our emotions, our strengths, our weaknesses. When we allow ourselves to be vulnerable our minds travel to places some can never understand.

So as I decided on tonight's topic what I really wanted to do was just bang out a poem... like I used to when I had yucky days or great days that inspired the raw beauty of a simple poem; so here it goes totally unplanned....

I am barbaric, I am confident, I am raw and emotional,
I am fearful, I am brave, I am scared, I am heroic.

I am sad, I am happy, I am fulfilled, I am empty,
I am generous, I am selfish, I am busy, I am bored.

I am loving, I am committed, I am scattered, I am solid,
I am honest, I am open, I am strong, I am independent.

I am weak, I am lonely, I am satisfied, I am misunderstood.
I am passionate, I am friendly, I am silly, I am serious.

Wrapped up in a transparent piece of paper...
I am faithful, I am real; I am me.

S. Giard-

We all struggle with feelings of exclusion, at home, at our places of work, in groups of friends or colleagues; we notice the differences between "us" and "them" and once in while that feeling makes even the most confident people feel uncomfortable. If this is something that you can relate to, know that you are not weak, you are not weird and you shouldn't even care in the grand scheme; but it is hard sometimes as we all still understand the importance of feeling included and  know how wonderful it feels when we are accepted and understood for who we are.

xoxo
Shells

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Tuesday, May 14, 2013

It's About BLOG Time!

WOW! I have lots of catching up to do! It has been 12 days since my last blog! What does that mean? Well... for some it may mean laziness or procrastination, but in my world it simply means that I have been SUPER BUSY and focused on something really important. (Unfortunately, it was more important than this.)
I usually blog even when I am busy, however with deadlines to meet I simply HAD to stay on task. (It's hard to control my mind when it's on fire.) I have been writing, writing writing! My goal is to have the book that I am ghost- writing for a client wrapped up by the end of June (fingers crossed) so that in August, I can start my next book with a hopeful release of early 2014. I am also planning a book party in Tampa for my current published title I Need the Happy Ending sometime towards the end of June if I can SQUEEEZE it in! Lots of busy work, preparation and planning; but that's the way I like it and would be bored if it were any other way. Intertwined in between all of that were three important commercial photo shoots that I had to execute looks for, one was for the awesome five member band, Wild Ginger, one was with the Tampa Bay Bucs players, and the last was a conceptual shoot on domestic violence; all of which are behind me now.

Over the last month and a half, (in my sparse-spare time) I have been reading a book called The Good Among the Great by Donald Van de Mark. It is an EXCELLENT book on the 19 traits of the most admirable, creative, and joyous people. I must admit, my initial attraction to the book was to see how many of the 19 traits I did NOT possess. I am constantly reading and learning on how to become the BEST "me" possible. Although some people find it strange that I do this, it is both fulfilling and rewarding to see how far I can push myself, to get out of my comfort zone in order to become a better person and to have that feeling that I am always evolving. But you know what the BEST part is? It is one of the FEW things that I actually do for MYSELF! (4 kids, a boyfriend, and three parallel careers don't leave much "me" time.)

I am just starting chapter (trait) # 11 and was humbled to find that so far, I possess 9 of the 10 traits covered, and have begun to work on the one out of ten I have not perfected yet. However, I can vividly remember the time in my life when these "traits" did not exist as part of who I was; I have certainly changed for the better. I can pinpoint the events, the moments, and in some cases, the books that led me to the knowledge/lessons I needed to make those changes. Reflecting on these times as I read this book has been pretty awesome.

I would like to share some of my favorite takeaways from the closing of chapter 10, which I just finished reading last night. I find them to be very useful and quite honestly, it was a nice reminder that like I say all of the time... if you love what you do, nothing else really matters... and that if you do something strictly for the "money", you will NEVER be fulfilled.

Here ya go.... I hope you think about these statements and reflect on your own life; think about whether or not you do these things or better yet, what holds you back from doing them.

Takeaways that I wanted to share:

"If you want to be accomplished, and even more, if you want to be joyous regardless of your level of achievement, find what excites you every day. It doesn't have to be the same thing that excited you ten years ago; in fact, it's very likely that your preferred routine will evolve throughout your life; as it should, to reflect your inner self; whoever that self is at any given moment."

"Unfortunately, we're often taught from a young age that the only thing that matters is achieving the goal. It's part of living in competitive market economies. Western and American cultures in particular emphasize the same message: results matter, winning is the most important thing, or even worse, the only thing. From grammar school to graduate school, what matters most are credentials, not the day-to-day joy of living, serving others, or creating." 

 "You must enjoy the process as much as the result to be fulfilled"

"Pay attention to your daydreams, particularly when you drive, shower and walk. These are times of sensory stimulation and thus open paths to non-analytical wisdom."

"Seek and learn to enjoy time alone"

"Don't believe everything you think!"

I must say that this chapter spoke so much to me. I beat myself up for years comparing myself to others. I am in a very competitive field, and being a single mom all of my life, I did not always have the financial ability to go to classes to gain further education. I did NOT go to college, only cosmetology school, and  have taken a "paid" hair workshop only once in my 22 year career. I NEVER had any "formal" makeup training of ANY kind until a month ago, because when I was learning, there wasn't anything available other than books unless you wanted  to work a makeup counter. (No thanks) Guess what? NONE of that stopped me. I read books, practiced on myself and other people and attended  a few free classes to get where I wanted to be. I not only enjoyed the process, I APPRECIATED the process because I built my career on my passions, my LOVE for what I do; in the end... THAT is all I needed. I am proof in the pudding right here. (let's make it chocolate!)

As an adult, I truly enjoy time alone;  that time becomes more precious with each thing that makes it harder to get. I will lock myself in a closet if I have to now in order to get this time to think, to erase the "busy" so I can tap into what I know is best for me. I have also learned over the last several years that "always trying to make the next buck" held me back for SO LONG! I was focused on the money because I HAD to be, I had bills to pay, kids to raise alone (I still do) however, there is much more joy in just DOING what I love. Ironically, focusing on that has presented more jobs, more opportunities and more money in the long run. I am rich... but not monetarily (if I was, I would not be driving around in a car with no A/C for the third year in a row ;in Florida might I add because I refuse to go into debt to get it fixed.)  I am fulfilled, I am happy, I AM RICH with the fruits of life, of loving what I do, how I make people feel, and sharing what I know to help others achieve and overcome. I can hold my head up high knowing  that I am often smarter than I knew, wiser than I should be for my age, but most important of all, resilient enough to keep living the best life I can.

I know that someday I will  have A/C in my car without having to go into debt to get it; 
until then, I will just burn more calories than those with it!! 




I want you to stop comparing yourself to others, be who YOU are and make the best out of that. Enjoy today, take time for you, and wake up tomorrow with an attitude that will help you grow and change in a positive way instead of one that holds you back, gets in the way and makes you feel like you are not as good as everyone else. Appreciate and find love in being unique, special, quirky, just being YOU!

XOXO
~Shells~





Sunday, August 5, 2012

31 Years Ago Today I Lost a Sister...