Happy Birthday FlyDesign!

5 years ago today - An Anniversary  Reflection:

2 weeks prior, I had gotten unexpectedly let go from my job at a time when life finally felt as if it was going to level out a bit. Of course I now realize I was naive, because as many of us know, life never levels out for too long... there's always a dip, a drop, a sharp curve, or a cliff's edge waiting for us at the next corner. But I indeed felt lost, disappointed, defeated, and a sense of betrayal.

Regardless of how real those feelings were, with Hope in my gut, I made a decision at that particular cliff's edge... To jump. There was no security net there to catch me, yet my foot did not strike the stone below. Little by little, I grew wings on the way down... And over time, I began to fly.

That cliff's name was Entrepreneurship. And my little corner of that world would become an entity known as FlyDesign. Over the last 5 years, my purpose has gained clarity. I am no longer just the Freelance Graphic Designer I started out as... I am a Helper of Souls and a Lover of People. Sure, graphic design and brand development is a large part of what I do, it helps me to feed my family and put a roof over our heads, and I love everything about the Art of Visual Communication... But in 60 months, it's become so much larger than that!

People need to brand much more than just their businesses... They need to brand themselves, their families and their lifestyles. They need to jump off their own personal cliffs with Hope in their gut and nothing there to catch them if they fall. They need to grow their own wings on the way down! And if I can be the one to help someone do just that by their encounter with me, even if they never need the services my business can offer them... then I am truly living in my higher purpose!

So today I stand before you, on FlyDesign's 5th Birthday... And say thank YOU! Thanks for helping me grow, and learn to grow others. Thanks for referring design business and people who need LegalShield memberships my way... Thanks for the words of kindness and encouragement in letting me know that I have positively influenced you in some way at some point with something I have shared. It's because of you all that I will keep flourishing and helping people to better themselves.  

Cheers to the next 5 years and beyond!! Thanks for sharing in my Joy and Mission to be a change agent in the lives and hearts of people. -SB ❤️

#flydesign #theskyisthelimit #flyhigh #beblessed #5yearsold

Small Creatures, Big Lessons.

Today on my walk, I intentionally went a little slower and looked up. The whole way once I got to a certain part of my route, because I had noticed something the day before and today I was determined to count them. 27... 27 spiders (that I could see) have made their own high rise apartments in the power lines that run between all the people homes. I normally hate spiders, but today (because they were 20ft above my head) they taught me a life lesson. You see, they're spiders. They have one purpose in life... Eat insects, and eat them often.

So they simply do what God designed them to do. They build a remarkable home for themselves in the form of a geometrically woven piece of silky, sticky thread that is somehow magically produced by their own bodies, and that home doubles as a live trap to catch their food. I guarantee you they aren't worrying about where that thread will come from or if there will be enough of it to go around, or if they can climb high enough to get by the light source which attracts all the delicious treats. I promise you they aren't fretting over having enough food to eat or where it's going to come from... They just trust the process of their life.

I want to be like the spider. I want to do what God designed me to do. I don't want to worry about where things I need are going to come from or if there will be enough to go around. I don't want to fear climbing high enough to get to the source of that which nourishes me. I desire so much just to trust the process of my life. And to just live.

So today, learn a lesson with me from the spiders... The littlest beings of Creation are the best teachers. ❤️

Until the next #doseoftruth,

Shannon Busick

Conquering the Enemy Within... Break the Chains

"Conquering the Enemy Within" - Reflections of a Recently Attended Conference... with Dr. Felicia Shaw

A week ago today, I attended a conference by this title. By the end of it, I felt I had been given a revelation about the "enemy within". It's applicable to anyone - regardless of what you believe - because there is always a battle of good and evil going on in and around us. We are often our own worst enemy, and the way that we speak to ourselves, we would not tolerate from anyone else... so why do we allow it from our own thoughts? It's time to take a stand.

We live each day within the invisible boundary lines of, this thing we have come to know as, our comfort zone. Its shape is unique to each and every one of us. The true irony of the comfort zone is that we really don't experience any authentic comfort here - and it's not even all that safe. The enemies within each us live here, and their negative chatter is loud! But yet, it has the most persuasive and peculiar way of making us stay. Especially when we try to leave... their voices are deafening! And we plug our ears with our fingers and yell out, "Fine! Fine! I will stay here! You're right, you win - who am I to think I can venture outside of what I know?" And so it is.

Well, I was challenged last week, to once and for all, define my comfort zones and figure out the plan of action to break free from the bondage I experience here... to conquer the enemy of negativity that dwells here and to take back the power that was ALWAYS mine. But I realize now, that for each comfort zone I break--there will be another that lies in wait... to kill, steal and destroy all that I believe in. The challenge is - to keep fighting and to NEVER give up and settle for the furniture and accessories of mediocrity that decorate the space of our comfort zones. Regardless of how long it takes! Every day is a challenge of our own individual complacency... Will we fight?

If we will, we will win. We are created to be more than conquerors. Amen?

One of my favorite "life quotes"... by Marianne Williamson

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

The Little Black Box

I always enjoy sharing with you, the life lessons that I am continually being taught, and more often learning the hard way. (Just my stubborn hard-headedness my mom used to say I had. God rest her soul... I am so sorry Mom, LOL I totally understand now where you were coming from!) These are what I have coined #adoseoftruth ... and sometimes I just get blown away by concepts that are so simple in nature, but have a super profound impact on every aspect of our life...

For example: Each and every minute of the day is filled with Stimulus > Response scenarios... You know, the whole "For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction..." thing?

Something stimulates us and *POOF* we respond to it... Good, bad or anywhere in between. What I have recently been working on realizing though, is that we do indeed have a choice that we are presented with in between the stimulus and our response, and THAT is where the power really resides... Kind of in a secret hiding place of sorts... for sake of conversation, we will call it The Black Box.

I mean really, how often do we just react to something without first asking ourselves... "What is an appropriate response to this situation? What response will yield the most favorable results for everyone involved?" Quite frankly, we don't. We just forge ahead, emotions usually leading the way, ending up with an often less-than-stellar result, and then...The Blame Game is cracked open and we roll out the Dice of You Do This, You Don't Do That. Yeah, that's always fun.

Holy cow!! How different could our lives be if we could just harness the incredible power of that black box between the Stimulus and our Response... And just take a moment to ground ourselves there before we forge ahead!?

I sincerely pray today, that we all will be able to take notice of that special space and our choices that we have there. We can literally change our lives and the lives of those we love, and the ripple effect will continue beyond what we could ever imagine. Keep your eyes open! Opportunities knock constantly.

Until the next dose,
Shannon

Ownership...

The evening last night was thick with the anticipation of many of us, waiting for first day of the next year to finally arrive. And it's here... it's 2015. Now what? What makes today different than any other? What makes this day different than any other January 1st that has ever arrived before? For me, I have one word that keeps speaking to me... Ownership.

By definition, ownership is the act, right or state of possessing something. Well, what if that "something" happens to be that which you do not want? Or even that which you do not want to admit is yours? I spoke in my last entry about life being a presentation of a series of chances and choices. And our life's path gets marked out by the decisions we make concerning those. The beautiful thing I like to focus on, is that at ANY given moment, we can take action and embark on a new path. We don't have to settle for the way things have always been, and we don't have to believe the lie that we are incapable of change, just because, "that's just who I am."

My personal January 1st will be filled with a few normal things. Externally, we will take down the tree and decorations and put them away for a new holiday season that is 12 months away. I will work on some laundry, do some piled up and smelly dishes, probably have a minor scuffle with my kids about their rooms being cleaned, try to make sense of my home-office and do some much needed filing... and I will make a trip to the gym. Seems like a pretty run of the mill, ordinary, mundane day. Nothing to profound and incredible going on here!

Ah, but internally... that's a whole other story unfolding. You see, today... I woke up and got on the scale, to find myself 10 lbs. heavier than I was on my wedding day, just 7 Saturdays ago. I have gained and lost these same 10 lbs. now since 2012. And admittedly, I have not been comfortable in my own skin since about 2009. So I have a choice to make... am I going to let yet another year go by in which I allow myself to believe the lie that, "that's just who I am." OR, am I actually going to stop giving myself good lip service and do something about it? The daunting thing about it, is that first, I have to go about losing those same 10 lbs. again that I have lost so many times before... and this time... go beyond it and get back on the path to a healthy lifestyle. It will only be accomplished through the act of showing up every day and claiming ownership of the things that I say that I want.

I wanted to have an entry about this, because I know that I am not alone. I know that someone else out there today, wants to change. Emotionally, physically, mentally, spiritually, relationally, financially... WE ALL DESIRE SOME FORM OF BETTERMENT. Often times, in all these areas at once. But sometimes, we just have to pick one and start somewhere! I know when I get overwhelmed, I shut down and do nothing... and Lord knows, THAT'S not helping ANYONE! :)

So today, I take Ownership of this: I have struggled with stress eating, I have struggled with an addiction to all things sweet in the world, I have struggled with self-confidence because of some imaginary standard I have allowed culture to put in my head about what I should look like... but I am not going to lie to you and say that it wouldn't be nice to look "like that." I have struggled with being consistent and being a woman of my word. BUT, this doesn't have to be where it ends. And sometimes being public with things means you step out and gain people who will hold you accountable to what you say you want to accomplish... That's a risk I am willing to take.

OWNERSHIP: January 1, 2015 > I am 5'2" > I am 194 lbs. of a kindhearted, spiritual, positive, compassionate, loving, strong and beautiful woman... who is a new wife and a heck of a mom. This number on the scale isn't indicative, in ANY way, of the value I bring to people's lives and the encouragement I can give to someone. It is an indication of the amount of gravity pull I have on the earth. I just want to make it lower so my dang back doesn't hurt all the time anymore!

Cheers to your own new year! What are you going to take ownership of?
Until the next dose,
Shannon

Why I Waited for Marriage...

If there is one thing I know, it's this #doseoftruth... Every day is filled with chances and choices.

I have two children, that I love with my everything. They are a most amazing product of a relationship that was just not meant to last, it never resulted in marriage and it just crumbled from our immaturity and a pure lack of solid foundation. A relationship is a series of choices, made by two parties, with results that change the course of history for everyone involved...even the new lives that are born from it. The end product is a story to share that creates a beautiful tapestry. If you have ever studied a tapestry, you know this: The front side is a true work of art, intricate details and inspiring design... but the back side is just, well... quite frankly ugly. A convoluted series of knots, criss-crossed lines of fabric and plenty of loose threads, It's the perfect analogy to life.

From the side everyone can see, the side we display to the world, we can appear quite lovely, very put together and whole... even darn close to perfect! But the reality is, on the back side of the tapestry... where all the choices we are faced with and the chances we take are located... that's where we live. That's the Land of Authenticity... that's the side we should be showing everyone, and not be afraid to do so. Because honestly? People really don't want to be fooled by your seemingly perfect life that you think you need to front day in and day out... the people around us want us to be genuine. We should be encouraging each other to share the raw parts of ourselves that make us human! Front your mistakes, your fears and doubts, your flaws, your struggles and your inadequacies because that's real. Forget about what you think represents "normal"... this is ALL of us... THIS is what's normal. Embrace it.

I digressed. :) Why do I share these things with you? Because I have the desire to be transparent, to live out the things that I believe to be true, to live a life that's consistent with the person that I show to the world, and not to be ashamed of the backside of my tapestry. So I go back to my kids... one of them is a young lady who will be 13 just two short weeks from today, and she is such a gift. "From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked." (Luke 12:48) She has been given and entrusted to me... and sometimes, not only do I not feel worthy, but it also scares me! "God, she is way too precious, and I mess up too much! You know this about me for You are familiar with all of my ways." And He answers, "Yes, I am. And I know you will do right by me. I trust you Shannon."

Wow. So what do I do with that? After a few years of being single, I took a chance and began a relationship with a man, a relationship that I knew was real and solid and gripped my heart with a force that only life-changing love can. And now I was faced with a choice... do I wait for marriage? Or don't I? Do I live out my desires in a way that's totally acceptable in our world? Or do I put my desires on hold because I claim I believe in a God I trust, and because I have a soon-to-be teenage daughter at home who is witnessing this all unfold... and unfortunately she does WAY MORE of what I DO in this life and far much less of what I SAY!?

For 3 years and 4 months I waited. It was one of the most extremely difficult tests I have ever put me and another person through. I waited because I wanted to honor God with my body and with this amazing gift of a man He blessed my life with. I waited because I had made the choices and took the chances that led me down a particular path in this life before... and even though they produced some amazing elements of my tapestry, I had the chance to try again and to be different this time. I waited because I wanted to set an example for my daughter, at a critical time in her life of self-discovery, that she can be different than her peers... IF she chooses. I know that regardless of the seeds I attempt to plant, she will continue to get older, and she will make her own choices that ultimately have NOTHING to do with me... and those choices may lead to mistakes, consequences and results that will change the course of history for everyone involved. BUT, no matter what path her life takes, I will forgive because I have been forgiven. And I will love because I have been loved. And I will teach her to do the same, because I have been entrusted with her life. Thank you God for the lessons.

Until the next dose,
Shannon

New Chances...

"Today begins the first day of the rest of my life." That's really something to think about! That's #adoseoftruth for sure! It is my hope that if you pull nothing else from this entry today, that at the very least, you will take that thought and apply it to your morning EACH and EVERY day from now until your last breath. It's a short statement, so it's nothing that you can't memorize, and it puts things into a correct perspective. In the morning, when you wake up, yesterday no longer matters. Things you said may linger, things you did may feel fresh... but feelings aren't facts. The FACT is... it's now in the past. Today is new, and with that is a NEW CHANCE to live again. So... how can we live differently?

I spent about 2 hours today in personal reflection at one of our local coffee establishments... it was very intense. I was in a room of people, but yet my only company really, was myself. And I don't know about you, but sometimes, when you come to those "look in the mirror" moments, it's not always pleasant to be in the same room with that person. For me, this entire year has been like one long session in front of the mirror... asking things like, "Who the heck are you? Who do you think you are? What the heck do you really want? What is your purpose to fulfill while you are here? Where are you going? Where do you really want to go? When are you planning to achieve ABC goal? How do you plan to achieve it? And most importantly, WHY, WHY, WHY do you do what you do every day? Those are some tough questions to answer sometimes... and if you have ever had this talk with that person in the mirror, you know where I am coming from. And if you haven't... I would like to encourage you to have one soon.

I thought I would share with you, my personal solution that I have derived from all the reading that I do... (one day I can share with you a few of my favorite life changing reads if you want?) Each and every day, this is what I am in the process of making a habit for my life. Obviously, what works for one person isn't going to work for everyone, but you can at least modify the plan to fit your life. :)

SHANNON'S VISUALIZATION/HEALTHY DAY STARTER:

Begin by spending a few minutes in complete silence. Visualize that your mind is like this small body of water, a pond say, and that it's been disturbed by something being thrown into it. Seek to get it motionless! Not one splash, not one wave, not one ripple. A completely STILL pool of water, reflecting perfectly the sky, clouds and tree line above it.

Once your "water" is still... being to imagine "your perfect day"... you will have to figure out what that means for you. For me it means:
- I have given God the first, and therefore best part of my day.
- I have read something in the Bible and meditated on it.
- I have read in full, Psalm 139.
- I have read 10-15 minutes of one of my personal growth books.
- I have spent 30 minutes moving my body.
- I have showered and gotten myself ready for the day. (I work from home, so this is necessary!)
- I have spent 15 minutes reviewing my goals, and planning my day.
- I have read my daily affirmation list.
- I have completed my "2 exposures per day" for LegalShield.
- I have followed up with at least 2 people for LegalShield.
- I have been on time to each place I need to go to that day.
- I have maintained at attitude of joy throughout the day, despite my circumstances.
- I have treated my children, my fiance, and each other person with respect.
- I have provided encouragement to at least one person.
- I have laughed at least one good laugh.
- I have shown respect to myself by speaking to myself in love.
- I have went to sleep with a clear and peaceful mind, and will awaken ready for a new day.

Now, will all this go exactly as I will? Probably not, but it's certainly an amazing place to start! After visualizing your own "perfect day"... it's time to go TAKE ACTION and live it out as best you can. After all... TODAY MATTERS!

I also encourage you to jump on this wagon with me, and revisit your own list EVERY DAY. (Mine is in a spiral notebook that I carry around with me.) Remind yourself of this commitment to betterment and living in a state of constant Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control. Eventually, after much practice, I KNOW this will be a way of life. Good luck fellow Conquerors! May much Peace, Love and Light be with you. and flow from you onto the lives of those around you.

Until the next #dose...
-Shannon