leadership

I haven't written in this for quite some time. I just haven't had much to say lately because while I've been keeping busy, it's pretty much the same old, same old.

We've been working really hard in the store and this week, the product starts coming in! I'm so excited because this is where I will be especially helpful. I'm really good at merchandising and setting up displays. It's going to be so pretty once we're all done.

It's been a pretty awesome experience for me so far. Last tuesday I decided that I was sick of working in the downstairs, so I told all of my coworkers that we had to finish up the downstairs that day because I refused to work down there on wednesday. Well, the goal was accepted as a challenge by myself and everyone else who worked that day. And we accomplished the goal! We were all so excited to finish up the downstairs.

Because of my success in the downstairs on tuesday, when we got into the store on wednesday, everyone turned to me for direction on what to do in the upstairs. I was stunned, but I rose to the occasion and took charge of the work that day. It did not go unnoticed. One of my managers thanked me for taking charge and being the leader that day.

The next day, I was ready to get back into the hard work and finish this stuff up. Twenty minutes in, a higher up (similar to a district manager) came and said he wanted to reassign me. He had me help out an employee from another store who was setting up our antiques. That was pretty neat, being able to help decorate the store. I was a little concerned that I had been pulled from the harder work because it was unsatisfactory. I talked to my manager and it turns out that, nope, it was not because my work was unsatisfactory. It was because I have an opinion and I'm not afraid to voice it. Which is seen as a very good thing.

I'm so excited that I have been able to set myself apart from the others and step out as a leader in my store. I always strive for the best and it makes me happy that within a month I have already started showing myself as a strong personality and an effective leader.

In other news, Melissa and I are having another sale on saturday at the flea market. I think I'll be lucky to break a hundred bucks out of this, but whatever I make will be more than what I had before.

lindsayallison

workin' hard

I have been so busy the past few days! My new job is totally awesome! It's been pretty interesting being on the construction site where the store will be. Things are really coming together and we're hoping that the bottom floor will be ready very soon for us to put the finishing touches on fixtures and what not. The top floor still has quite a ways to go.

I got my first battle injury today! We were sliding two by fours down a chute we have and the girl sliding them down lost control of one just as I was turning around to grab the next board. I wasn't expecting it and so it slid right into my left knee and rebounded on my right one. I have a technicolor bruise the size of a half dollar (maybe even bigger!) on my left knee. It's all kinds of blue and purple, lol! But I don't mind. It only hurts if I put pressure directly on the spot.

I'm also very actively working towards trying to unload some of my things. My very good friend, Melissa, had a great idea. Sell the crap you don't need and start actively paying down your debt! She went through her things and found a bunch of stuff she wasn't using. Then she talked to her friends who donated items for her to sell so she could keep the profit to pay off some bills. She actually did very well at the sale.

So many people wanted to donate so much stuff that we're going to have another sale at the end of the month and this time, I will have some stuff at the sale too. I want to make a few extra dollars, but more importantly I feel like it's time to lighten the load.

I am holding on to so much stuff and most of it is just trinkets from the past ten or fifteen years that really don't mean anything. Sure, there are items that have sentimental value, but most of what I have is just crap.

My next big goal is to buy a house. I'm very excited about this idea. I really don't want to rent again because I feel like it's a waste of money. Anyways, when I finally get to the point where I can buy a house, I want to be able to start over. I want to have only the possessions that mean something to me and then I want to rebuild a home from the ground up.

The best way to do that is to throw away, sell, or donate the things I'm not using or are just plain garbage. This plan is really killing two birds with one stone because before I can buy a house, I want to be 100% debt free. And with this sale, that will give me a boost to getting there!

I'm really excited about this new direction I have. I've been drifting for so long and now I have a goal, a plan, and a hell of a lot of motivation to get there!

lindsayallison

back to work!

I am so excited about my new job! Orientation was on Friday, April 1, and I was just stunned by the information I learned about my new company.

They are 100% dedicated to employee and customer happiness and to giving back to the community. They are green in every possible way they can be green. This company is not about the bottom line, it's about the people. I wish more companies understood that to make the bottom line, you can't worry about the bottom line. You have to make your employees and customers happy and that will take care of your bottom line.

Panama City was fantastic. I had a glorious time! It was so nice to have five whole days with absolutely nothing to do! Unfortunately it was raining most of the time so I didn't get much beach time. But I had a fabulous time anyway.

Not much else to report. Just excited to go to work tomorrow.

lindsayallison

panama city

Tomorrow is my last day at Staples. After that I have five whole days off and I am headed to Panama City to see my bestie, Felicia for a few days. I can not wait to get out of here and not have to worry about a thing for a few days.

I am super excited about starting my new job, but I realized today that there are some people that I really am going to miss at Staples. It's been kinda rough saying goodbye to everyone, but everyone has been super sweet to me and some have even said some really nice things to me.

Today I got to meet my Dad's new girlfriend. She was super nice and sweet. My Dad seems to be really happy these days and that makes me happy.

Gah, I'm super sleepy now. It's bed time for me!

lindsayallison

mast general store

I have a new job! I couldn't be happier right now!



I got the call yesterday morning that the job I applied for about a month ago came through and I will be starting on April 1st! I'm going to be an employee of the new Mast General Store that is opening up in downtown Columbia at the end of May. I'm excited because we're being brought in early so that we can help set the store and get it ready for the grand opening. How cool is it to open the doors to a store that you helped to create? I am SO excited!



I went into work yesterday with my letter of resignation. I knew that it would be upsetting to management because my job is not easy to fill. It's not something you can just jump into, you need a good bit of training for it. What happened next I was NOT expecting.



My manager got pretty upset at the news. I tried to tell her that there were options for who could replace me, but all she could say was that she wanted me at the store because I do a good job. I went back to work and a few minutes later she asked me to come back to the office when I had a minute. She asked me if this was just about money, blah blah blah. I didn't really want to get into everything, but what it came down to was she did everything she could to convince me to stay. She offered me more money and wanted to know why I was unhappy.



I told her I'd think about it, but I knew that my mind was already made up. I just couldn't seem to get her to understand that. Today, my district manager came up to me and asked to speak with me in the office. I asked if I was in trouble, even though I knew what this was about. That's when the ass-kissing started. He told me I was never in trouble that I was great and fantastic and blah blah blah.

He made a strong case (well, as strong as he could) for me to stay with Staples. He offered more money and wouldn't stop talking about all this money I would supposedly be getting if I stayed. He kept talking about how great I am and how I'm one of the best experts he has out of 50 some-odd copy and print experts he has. It was all very flattering, and I know why they want me to stay. But my mind was made up. I sat and listened politely while they talked, but I WANT to leave!

I'm so excited about this new store and I couldn't make them understand that. My DM did NOT have a happy look on his face when I declined to stay. He even said "Yeah, it may be fun but it's still work." If I hadn't already had my mind completely made up to leave, that would have done me in. Because my stress levels and my unhappiness is a much bigger factor to my leaving than the money. There isn't enough money they could legitimately offer me to make me stay. I want to be happy.

My only concern is that I flat out refused them and their offers to keep me here. I really hope that they won't be, I won't say nasty because I don't think either of them would outright be nasty, but I will say rude. I'm hoping they won't be rude or angry with me over the next two weeks.

In other news, I got myself back on my budget. I will be honest. I went on a food bender the past two weeks. I will not divulge how much money I have spent on food, but it's been a lot. I hit such a low point and was so stressed out and depressed that I couldn't seem to stop myself from eating. Man, I was hungry all the time! I knew that I shouldn't spend the money, but the justification to do it was stronger than the justification to not do it.

But it is all behind me. I adjusted my budget to compensate for my...er, problem, and I have myself back on track. The cool thing is, I was still able to allow for more gas money AND I am going to be making more money starting April 1!!

Anyways, I think I've got things back on track. At least, I hope so.

lindsayallison

consistency

It's been such a weird week for me.

Sunday night ended with devastating news about a very dear friend of mine who suddenly passed away. The funeral service is tomorrow afternoon. I think that once I say goodbye, I'll be able to move on and get back to the happy place I've been in recently.

I am having a problem with consistency. It's something I've struggled with for my entire life. I want to do something but I never seem to follow through on it.

The biggest thing I'm concerned about is my weight loss. I have lost (to date) 45 pounds since I was at my heaviest. I know that a big part of this was not eating out so much, and learning to use portion control. My weight loss has plateaued recently and I know that that has a tendency to happen. What I'm concerned about is I can't seem to stop eating. I'm eating out again too much and I'm eating too much in general.

I had started doing yoga. I loved it. I loved how I felt after I did it. But I can't find the motivation to do it this past week. I know that if I go and get food while I'm at work that I'm just spending money I shouldn't be and that it's just unheatlhy. But I can't seem to stop myself. My justification for doing it is stronger than any justification I can think of to not do it.

It's been a very big struggle for me.

In other news, Felicia is in town this weekend and I'm super excited. We're making plans for me to go down and visit in her in Panama City in a couple of weeks. I'm really looking forward to getting out of town for a few days.

lindsayallison