Have you ever reflected on defending marriage and how you personally can stand up for traditional marriage? This week I definitely did.

I’d like to start this post off with a powerful quote: “Marriage is far more than a contract between individuals to ratify their affections and provide for mutual obligations. Rather, marriage is a vital institution for rearing children and teaching them to become responsible adults. Throughout the ages, governments of all types have recognized marriage as essential in preserving social stability and perpetuating life. Regardless of whether marriages were performed as a religious rite or a civil ceremony, in almost every culture marriage has been protected and endorsed by governments primarily to preserve and foster the institution most central to rearing children and teaching them the moral values that undergird civilization” (“The Divine Institution of Marriage”, Mormon Newsroom)

This quote provides the basis for a foundational reason to defend marriage. This week I was able to study the Obergefell v. Hodges case. The Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court Case was the first case to conclude that the right to marry extends to same-sex couples. As I studied this I was shocked at many opinions and arguments, but also agreed with a few of the dissents from the Chief Justices. After studying this culturally atlering case, I gained a greater desire to defend traditional marriage as often as I can. As I studied other readings from this week, like the article from the quote above, I also recognized that as we stand up for and defend marriage, it will bring blessings to us and our society.

In the world we live in today, many people experience the choices of those who decide to encourage or participate in same sex marriage. Personally, I am close to someone that was sealed in the temple and had a wife and two daughters, but for some reason went gay and is now living with his partner until they decide to get married. It is unfortunate to see the pain and sorrow that this family went through and continues to go through because of these ever growing common decisions and lifestyles in our society. From my experience, the best thing that has helped this man’s two daughters overcome this trial and have faith to create their own life, has been for them to witness healthy marriages and to see what a real family feels like. I know that if my husband and I consistently study the scriptures and pray together, we will strengthen our foundation that will carry us and our family through the challenges of today’s culture.

I had the opportunity to teach my husband about the Obergefell v. Hodges cases. We were both enlightened on new insights. We both had similar views on the arguments, but it was interesting as I taught my husband, my perspective became more firm and my husband and I both had a greater desire to strengthen our marriage and defend marriage in the midst of our chaotic society.

This next week, I hope to seek ways to defend traditional marriage. One action item that I will do this week and invite others to do with me, is to read and study The Family: A Proclamation to The World. I will look for ways that I can strengthen my role as a wife so that I can continue to nurture and grow my marriage.

(“The Divine Institution of Marriage”, Mormon Newsroom) https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/the-divine-institution-of-marriage

President Spencer W. Kimball shares a powerful and motivating call to action as he reminds us that, “only those who believe deeply and actively in the family will be able to preserve their families in the midst of the gathering evil around us.”

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In my eyes, this counsel is of the utmost importance. Because I have such a deep love for my family and I believe firmly in the strength and power of families, I have a great desire to hearken to the counsel of President Kimball so that my family can be protected and preserved and so that I can help safeguard other families.

In order to ensure that my family is preserved in the midst of all of the increasing chaos and wickedness in the world, there are five specific habits that I will instill within my home and family. These main habits include, but are not limited to; family scripture study and prayer, family home evening, family dinner, wholesome recreational activities, and family councils.

1. Family Scripture Study and Prayer:From experience, I have come to know that consistent family scripture study and prayer is crucial to strengthening and maintaining a family. Family scripture study and prayer invites and allows the spirit to be with each family member and in the home. I have noticed that when my family does not study the scriptures or pray together every day, we are quicker to become frustrated and we can’t seem to see an eternal perspective as well.
2. Family Home Evenings: Having family home evenings is wonderful for an everyday setting for gospel instruction and teaching in the home. As we have family home evenings, each family member has the opportunity to teach the gospel and learn about the gospel in a safe environment, which then empowers each family member to go out into the world prepared to answer questions and help to gather Israel. I believe that family home evening is a great tool for strengthening a family unit in the home so that they can be prepared to go out in the world and help to strengthen other family units.
3. Family Dinner:Nightly family dinner can be difficult to maintain; however, I believe that this routine event will give family members the opportunity to connect with one another and will help the family feel secure and balanced because of the knowledge that they can always look forward to that one part of the day to share whatever is on their mind.
4. Wholesome Recreational Activities: Throughout my life, wholesome recreational activities have been one of the best ways my family has connected with one another and has developed hands on and motor skills that have given us the upper hand in many circumstances throughout life. I think that wholesome recreational activities allow a family to have joy. Wholesome recreational activities also help to take the pressure off that family members are faced with every day.
5. Family Councils: Lastly, I want to instill the habit of holding family councils at least monthly, if not weekly. I feel that family councils help family members understand one another and the goals that the family has. Family councils give voice to each family member allowing them to feel important and needed.

Growing up, my parents made sure to instill these habits into our family. We were not perfect at them all the time, but we did them often enough to the point where my little siblings began to remind my parents of having family home evening or saying prayers before going to bed. At the same time, I noticed and continue to notice in my own marriage, that when we are not consistent in following through with these habits, that there is less peace in our home and we have to work harder to be closer together. I  know that it is not always easy and no one is perfect, but I do know from personal experience that striving to do our best and striving to uphold all of these habits, or traditions if you will, is worth it and it will bless your marriage and your family forever.

My goal for my husband and I is to do our best to put the Lord first as we incorporate these habits to ensure that our family is preserved throughout this earth life and into eternity.

“Only those who believe deeply and actively in the family will be able to preserve their families in the midst of the gathering evil around us.”

President Kimball, October 1980, “Families Can Be Eternal” https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1980/10/families-can-be-eternal?lang=eng

Welcome to my Blog! In today’s crazy world there is so much sadness and contention in marriages and I am not about that. On my blog you’ll see uplifting messages and insights about the things I learn about marriage and maybe even some real life experiences that I have gone through or will go through!

My husband and I have been married for just over a year and a half. Look for posts about us and our adventure through life!

Over the course of the past few months, I have had these words playing over and over in my mind. I hope to always live by them. The phrase that I have come up with is to always “strive to do my best so that I might thrive in all the rest”.  I like the word strive because it is not a dead-end word, it implies that you need to consistently be working towards something. Thriving is one of my favorite words because it is such a fun filled word, but also allows for the idea that you can continually find prosperity along your journey and you can always overcome what you are going through in order to achieve success in any situation.

I came up with my phrase entailing both of these words because to me it means that if I am always trying to learn, grow, and work hard with an optimistic, but grounded perspective, I will thrive along any path or journey that I might encounter in this life. If I were to give a final lecture about what I have learned over this last semester of classes and real-life situations, I would focus my counsel on the phrase I developed because it will be a good reminder throughout the journeys that we will all take on. If I were to give one last piece of advice to someone wanting to begin the entrepreneurial journey, I would suggest to take a look at themselves and really learn what their dreams, goals, and aspirations are. I would advise them to reflect on their skills and weaknesses and seek to strengthen them.  In addition, I would recommend to look at the eternal perspective and hold on to it, make goals, meet wonderful people and make lasting connections, and then jump right on to the hard work train and don’t get off. Lastly, I would encourage them to never stop learning and to love and live life to the fullest always looking for ways to serve the Lord and His children.

If you’re considering starting a business, I’m sure that you have thought about the risks. So let’s talk about them and my thoughts on the risks that you might face.

In my personal opinion, there are many risks along the path of entrepreneurship that intimidate me and scare me, but they do not intimidate or scare me enough to drive me away from the goals and passions that I want to achieve.

Loss of time: One of the biggest risks of entrepreneurship is loss of time. As you become more involved in developing and growing a business, your time is not always yours and it is priceless. Learning to balance your time will be a worthwhile skill to develop and that initial loss of time will seem worth it as you see success in your business and gain a little more time for yourself as you learn to manage and delegate more effectively.

Financial Loss: This risk is intimidating and may not seem worth it in the simple mindset, but in time, as you have methodically planned and established a successful business and have kept a long term perspective, you will eventually see a return on your investment and the initial financial struggles or pains you had to endure, will seem miniscule. You might even realize that the principles you learned as your endured those begin financially strapped times, helped you become who you are and helped you achieve the business success that you have.

Failure: Failure can be a risk that is sometimes overlooked out of fear or ignorance. I think that if you go into the creation of a start up with a positive perspective of failure, you will be more optimistic along the journey and will be able to see the benefits of making specific decisions instead of just getting burnt out. Failing will actually help you see a bigger picture and help you gain more knowledge.

Although entrepreneurship requires taking risks, they are worth it in my eyes because of the developmental process and the end result of successful entrepreneurship.

Thoughts from this week…

Finding balance is a huge factor in success and prosperity. Prioritizing the responsibilities in my life and making sure to find balance amongst those responsibilities is crucial to success. Strengthening my family and marriage is always more important than any job or temporal personal desire.

Money can be thought of as “The root of all evil”, but in my opinion, money can make a good man better as he serves and gives aid to those in need as he prospers. Money also gives us opportunities to learn and grow. I was intrigued by the Article “Attitude on Money” and the rules for prospering that were listed. If we aim to put the Lord first and keep an eternal perspective as we manage our life and money, we will prosper.

Rules for Prospering

“Rule 1. Seek the Lord and have hope in him.

Rule 2. Keep the commandments, that includes the temporal ones, tithing and fast offerings.

Rule 3. Think about money and plan how you can become self-reliant.

Rule 4. Take advantage of chances for learning so you will not be ignorant of these matters. Education, as President Hinckley has taught us, is the Key to Opportunity.

Rule 5. Learn the laws upon which the blessings of wealth are predicated.

Rule 6. Do not send away the naked, the hungry, the thirsty or the sick or those who are held captive.”

Interview with Ward Andrews, Founder and CEO of Drawbackwards.

Advice:

From Ward’s expertise and experience he was able to provide meaningful counsel. He offered the wonderful advice to take care of yourself first so that you have the energy and the ability to effectively accomplish all of the other responsibilities and demands of a business and of life. Along these same lines, it is important to be spiritually strong and well balanced in all areas of life so that you will be prepared to face the challenges that will arise in business. A piece of advice that really influenced me and motivated me to improve was to make sure to take time to recharge or take breaks. This will allow you to be more effective each minute that you are working. Ward mentioned that from his personal experience, it is important to get married young or get serious about what you want to do when you are young so that you have a focus and a motivation to figure out how to make things work in order to set yourself up for success. Lastly, Ward recommended that if there is someone or something in your life that is waying you down or limiting your potential, remove the distraction from your life and look for other ways to keep your mind clear and focused.

Lessons Learned:

 One of the greatest lessons that Ward learned happened when he started taking on more business projects. He noticed that his company was starting to grow and he was trying to do everything himself. In order to effectively manage the increase of projects, Ward decided to hire a Project Manager. From this experience, he wished he had hired the Project Manager earlier on, however he learned that when your company starts to grow and take on more business, it is important to notice early on and hire the right people so that your business can continue to grow faster and become more profitable. Another lesson that Ward has learned throughout his journey is that it is evident that we will make mistakes, but the mistakes we make are there to help us to refine and improve our skills and business operations. Making mistakes can be frustrating, but if we look at them with a positive perspective, we can see why the mistake was made so that we don’t do it again and we can see where we can improve. I thought it was interesting that Ward said that on the job training was effective in helping him develop new hands on skills and introducing him to different sides of a business that he was not taught in school. An impressive factor of Ward’s business principles intrigued me. Bootstrapping. As he strived to fund his business, he learned that you do not always need loans or financing. I was impressed that Ward had the goal to always “work from what [he] had”. With the way he decided to run his business, he was slowly able to bootstrap it without any debt. He was able to use the money earned from projects completed in order to fund the rest of the business expenses. To this day, Ward maintains 100% ownership in his company. It was also fascinating to hear that after Ward graduated college and began working and putting to practice the things he had learned in school, he was able to see that he wanted to focus more on software than on website design. Schooling is great for setting the stage for your career, but as you go out into the real world and utilize the knowledge and skills developed in school, you will be able to find the niche you need to succeed.

Ward’s business provides exceptional service and meets consumer needs and it is proven by the well-known companies he has worked with. Ward has successfully built a profitable business upon inviolable principles and practices from the ground up. One of the most important things that I learned from this interview was to prioritize and balance the responsibilities in my life and to make sure that I am taking care of myself so that I can be as effective and efficient as possible.  One day, I hope to follow in Ward’s footsteps in “designing business success”.

Disciple leadership may seem contradictory, but when we look into the deeper meaning, it can be a great tool for you, the individual, and for others whom you may associate with.

At Brigham Young University- Idaho, we learn to become disciple leaders as we prepare, teach one another, and ponder and prove. I believe this is a great way to become and remain a great leader. Jesus Christ is our ultimate example and He is the ultimate example of a disciple leader. As we prepare and study, we empower ourselves with the knowledge to go out and teach others. When we are able to teach others, it gives us the chance to ponder what we have studied and taught and then also the opportunity to prove what we know to be true.

In the business world, disciple leaders help empower their employees and coworkers. I like the example of Commander D. Michael Abrashoff, the former commander of the USS Benfold. In just one simple example of his great leadership, he decided to close down his quarters and he decided to eat with the crew – something that no other commander ever did. What may seem like little acts like this resulted in great outcomes. Commander Abrasnoff decided to lead by example which in turn created more retention and a better crew. If we can humble ourselves enough to lead by example and truly become a disciple leader, we will find more joy and success along our journey.

“We each have our own dragon to slay, but we each have the talents and courage needed to slay it.”

A Field Guide for a Hero’s Journey

Whether great or small, often or rarely, everyone experiences some sort of challenge in their life. In order to overcome challenges, we need to prepare for them ahead of time as best as we can and learn from our previous challenges.  Currently, I am in the middle of the challenge of making some difficult and potentially career altering decisions. I am faced with the choices of staying at my current job being paid less than I could be somewhere else, quitting my current job in the next couple of months to become a stay at home mom, accepting a flexible bookkeeping offer, or looking for a completely new job somewhere else.

Fortunately, I am blessed with the best boss you could ever ask for. He is the Controller for our company and is wonderful to work with. After a long process of meetings and conversations with my boss, the general manager, and the owner, my amazing boss came in and talked to me. He gave me great recommendations, advice, and encouragement.

The two recommendations that my boss gave me were to not compare and to not burn bridges. Making sure to not compare is important in any aspect of life, but in business it will enable me to make the best of my own situation and skills. It will also free me from any feelings of discontentment. Not burning bridges is crucial to progressing in my career and in any business. My boss said he could never see me burning any bridges, but it is good to know in general so that if there comes a time when I need a good recommendation for another job, any former employer will willingly offer a wonderful recommendation for me. He advised me to do what’s best for me and to not be afraid to notice my value and say something about it if I feel I am not being compensated fairly. Lastly, he gave me some great praise and encouragement that helped me feel valued and capable of so much more. In fact, he said that he wished that I could work for him forever because I am the best employee he has ever had and even if I didn’t work for him forever, he would give the best recommendations to anyone for me.

Now, I still do not have an answer from the Owner and the General Manager, so I am still in limbo as far as making a decision, but as I move forward with this challenge of figuring out the best decision for my family and my future is, I hope to keep an eternal perspective and remember the advice that my boss gave me.

One last thing that has helped me have a new perspective on overcoming challenges has been from the readings in A Field Guide for the Hero’s Journey. I really enjoyed the principle that “We each have our own dragon to slay, but we each have the talents and courage needed to slay it”. This principle motivated me to develop my talents and move forward with courage as I overcome obstacles in my life.

What drives you? Passion or money? Here are some of my thoughts for the week…

To be honest, this week has been different from any other week because I am at loss for what my real passion is. Some things at work have rocked my perspective a little bit this week and it is difficult to pinpoint if I would prefer to make more money or pursue my passion.

A few questions that I would love to ask successful entrepreneurs would be, what has helped you find your passion, what has motivated you to pursue your passion, and has that helped you make money?

In a presentation that Guy Kawasaki gave, he spoke about how you shouldn’t do something because you want to be rich, you should do something because you love it. He motivated me to really reflect on what I love and what I want to pursue in life.

What is passion without working to perfect and refine your passion and skills? What makes money worth earning and growing without the ability to have patience and mastery. As I finished reading Mastery by George Leonard this week, I really reflected on how I can improve myself and achieve mastery. I want to find my passion, pursue it, master it, and if possible make money doing it! If I am to succeed in this quest, I need to be diligent and dedicated. By pursuing a lifelong path of learning to master myself and my skills I think I will have the ability to remain diligent and I will be able to find joy as I pursue my passion, while also enjoying making money doing it.

Going forward, I have set some personal goals. Those goals have been partially inspired from the advise from George Leonard and partially from my own desire to improve. Here are the five goals I am going to work on over the next 2 months that will help me live the path of mastery throughout my life and that will help me pursue my passions:

1. Be patient with myself and enjoy the routines and practices in my life.
2. Take time to meditate and ponder in the morning.
3. Maintain great physical health by exercising and eating healthy.
4. Live every moment of every day with intention.
5. Remember that I am on a lifelong journey, not trying to reach a final destination.