CAN YOU SPARE SOME CHANGE?

No, I don’t want your money! What I mean is, can you spare some time to reflect and look at what’s going on in your life that needs to change, and then do whatever it takes to make that happen? Here's an example. I constantly rushed around and became so accustomed to being stressed out that stress became my “normal.” Monday through Friday I left the house an hour early to make a commute in congested traffic that shouldn’t have taken more than twenty minutes. By the time I arrived at work I was so keyed up the mood was set for the day and I couldn't slow down. Year after year my husband and I both worked ourselves into a state of exhaustion until one of us realized we had to take a vacation before the pace we were keeping had a negative impact on our health. It was a wake-up call that brought me to my senses and sprung me into action. I booked our flight to Kauai, a car, and rented a condo in Poipu Beach. The next morning I informed my boss when we were going and I arranged for a temp to cover me in my absence. I was so firm when I told her our plans I didn't get any resistance.

The morning of our departure the airport shuttle came for us fifteen minutes late and freeway traffic was making such slow progress I was sure we wouldn’t make it to the airport in time. My heart pounded until we arrived. After we checked our bags and passed through security we went to a restaurant for breakfast. I kept checking my watch, impatient to board the plane. My husband’s cell phone rang—a business call—life as usual. 

 ~

We arrived! My husband knew the way to Poipu Beach and drove us directly to the condo. On the way, I drank in the sunlight, awed by the deep red soil and lush vegetation. Ancient mountains in the distance dotted the countryside. Kauai is a paradise where papaya trees grow alongside the road and tropical flowers bloom everywhere. By the time we drove beneath the tree tunnel I knew we were almost at our destination.


I was anxious to get settled and felt it took the clerk much too long to check us in. Our internal clocks were operating from totally different perspectives. The condo was beautifully furnished and had a spectacular ocean view. I opened the sliding glass door and the breeze caressed my face. The sound of breaking waves and the rustle of palm trees embraced me and felt like a soothing balm. Tropical birds sang, “padda pah pah, padda pah pah.”

Almost in a trance, I settled back on the couch and said to my husband, “I remember this; now I remember this feeling. I haven’t felt this way since the last time we were here.” My shoulders relaxed and the nervousness poured from my body like running water, replaced by a feeling of inner peace and well-being. I’d surrendered to island time. I was being mindful and living in the moment.

 ~

Two characters in Good Fortune, Michael Hamilton and Wu Chow, are over-achievers. They focus only on work and neglect the rest of their lives. When Michael gets laid off he's completely lost and doesn’t know how to process what's happened. Several weeks later when he meets Jennie Greene at a bookstore and invites her to coffee, they talk about themselves and Jennie is such a good listener he makes a confession.

             “Until a few weeks ago I was an executive at an advertising firm. My job dominated my life. Now I don’t know what to do with myself and all this free time.” He adds, “I was so busy I didn't even allow myself time off to take a real vacation. Work became my identity.”

Later, at his friend Eric Brewer’s house, Michael talks to his wife Susan, a licensed therapist. Susan listens as he expresses his feelings about losing his job and his frustration with his situation. Susan says:

           “I don’t want to make you feel worse. Look, the important thing to recognize is, by driving yourself to achieve in school and business, you were so driven to succeed that you didn’t leave yourself enough time to develop your personal life. What have you got without your career that defines who you are now?”

“Nothing,” he admitted. He averted his eyes for a moment. “It’s depressing, but I don’t know what to do and I’m feeling kind of lost. Everything I was—or thought I was—is gone.”

 ~

Wu’s circumstance is the mirrored image of Michael’s, exactly the same but opposite. He has a wife and sons and manages Good Fortune family restaurant. His job is secure and even though he can make his own schedule, instead of taking time off to be with his family he chooses instead to work long hours and neglect them as the excerpt below reveals.

Anna and the boys spent a lot of time without him despite the fact the restaurant was so successful he no longer had to prove himself to anyone. Instead of celebrating his achievement with his wife and children, he imposed pressure on himself, believing only he was qualified to run things at the level he wanted. He forgot his father’s lesson: “Learn to delegate authority to others. They will appreciate the opportunity to earn your trust.”

At night he played host in the dining room, networked parties, and bought customers drinks. He put in so many hours at work he rarely, if ever, was home for dinner anymore.

Wu’s father, Tong, waits patiently for the right moment to confront him. When it finally comes he says:

“For years I have watched you work tirelessly in your effort to amass more and more money for the future, never seeing what it cost you in the present. You achieved affluence years ago. Nonetheless, you have felt driven to accumulate a greater fortune without realizing the irony of your endeavor to obtain what you already have.”

Michael and Wu both have to make life altering decisions and change their priorities. They each have important life lessons to learn while they embark on personal journeys and discover how to overcome difficult challenges. Tong's gentle wisdom will guide them in totally different ways.  Please read Good Fortune and find out what happens.

When facing your own life challenges, I wish you success in reaching your goals toward good fortune.

Leslie Bratspis, Author
Good Fortune

Good Fortune is available on Amazon.com, Kindle, Barnes&Noble.com,  Nook & Smashwords.com 

 

http://www.amazon.com/Good-Fortune-Leslie-Bratspis/dp/1611700280/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1334187175&sr=1-1
http://www.rp-author.com/bratspis
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12242462-good-fortune

https://twitter.com/#!/LeslieBratspis

KEEP GOING WHEN FACED WITH OBSTACLES

The tale of GOOD FORTUNE commences during the 1994 California recession when companies were downsizing and unemployment was high. This sounds familiar doesn't it--as if it were today's news. The plight of my character, Michael Hamilton, is one I can personally identify with. I know how he felt when he got laid off because in December of 2008 this happened to me. The first thing I did after dusting myself off and squaring my shoulders was apply for unemployment benefits. Each week I forged ahead with a positive attitude, responded to ads, went on interviews and sent out resumes. I had great qualifications as an administrative assistant and expected I'd be employed as one soon, but I just couldn’t get hired. After a few months, like Michael, my self-confidence slipped and I became humiliated and discouraged. I managed to get hired as a cashier but after 4 months of standing all day on a very thin mat my knees became inflamed and I couldn't do the job anymore. I reapplied for unemployment and continued searching for jobs. I was determined not to give up and as good fortune would have it, I finally got hired at a job I really like that also allows me the time I need to keep writing. I'm currently working on my second novel, so everything worked out in the best possible way. While I was unemployed I kept myself motivated by editing my manuscript. I accomplished my goal of finishing GOOD FORTUNE and getting it published. Having the time to do this was something positive that kept me focused and stopped me from giving up. I felt a sense of accomplishment and this enabled me to keep going.

While writing about Michael’s emotions when he unexpectedly finds himself out of work I was easily able to draw upon my own experience. Michael goes through various stages of self-doubt and humiliation because he’s been a respected executive for 12 years and suddenly he’s sending out resumes and competing for jobs against much younger inexperienced applicants. Over lunch, he voices his woes to his best friend, Eric Brewer.

“You know, you're lucky to have a good job.” Again, he ran fingers through his hair. “Going on job interviews at my age sucks. Twenty applicants show up for one lousy opening. Most of them are kids compared to me. Hell, I’m twice their age. I feel old and . . . well . . . useless. Like my time has come and gone and there’s no future for me anymore.”

“Bullshit. You've got experience, those kids have got acne.”

Unfortunately, Eric’s attempt at humor doesn't help because Michael is forty-one and knows his age works against him. While he may have more experience and be better qualified, employers are cutting back and don't want to pay the kind of salary he's accustomed to. This makes younger job seekers more appealing. After a morning jog, he takes a shower and has an honest dialog with himself. Outside of his 12-year position at the advertising firm he admits he has limited work experience and concedes his only option right now is to sell shoes again as he did when he was in college. His aspirations of opening his own business—something completely different from advertising—is going to have to wait. He knows he has to find a job soon and selling shoes is something he can do now.

Can I do it? Can I go from being an experienced professional back to a shoe salesman? Even though it would only be temporary, it’s humiliating. He rinsed his hair and applied conditioner. I know the drill: “Take a giant step backward to advance toward your goal.” Okay, my pride is injured, but I can’t let that stop me. I can do this, I have to.

. . . Above the bathroom sink, steam misted the mirror blocking his reflection. He used the corner of his towel and rubbed a circle in the middle; his reflection stared back at him. It was apparent his recent setback had taken its toll because his face looked slightly older. He noticed a certain edge to his expression that wasn’t there before, enhanced by the small worry lines that had begun to form between his eyebrows. Well, there was nothing he could do about that. Since he would be interviewing soon, he hoped his life experience and maturity would count in his favor.

How many people currently have had the same experience where without warning their job gets taken away from them and everything they’ve invested years in building disappears? The national unemployment rate varies but I think it stays somewhere around 9%. It’s been on the news how a corporate executive finds himself delivering pizzas for minimum wage and tips to keep his house out of foreclosure and he’s grateful for the work. Another scenario on TV depicted how an unemployed executive had all his furnishing in storage and was homeless. For months he was staying in hotels while going on job interviews and paying the bill with frequent flyer miles he’d accumulated from his former high-power position. His unusual story caught national attention and fortunately, someone offered him a job.

For those of you reading this who are struggling and uncertain which direction your life is going, try to keep your intent strong and stay focused on your goal. Don’t give up when faced with obstacles. Keep an open mind and heart and you will find the way through them to success. Where you land may be completely different from what you expected or wanted, so be flexible and open to change; embrace it with all you’ve got.

During this holiday season, now more than ever, I wish you and yours good fortune.

Leslie