Alina Mugford of Translation Link

Winner of 2009 Small Business Rookie of the Year Award

Sara Hand, Joy Beyond Freedom

Awarded 2009 Finalist

Small Business Rookie of the Year Award

Popularity: 75% [?]

I hit the ground running this year, yet I am ever so much more sensitive to keeping balance in my life. I have really had to reflect on what my priorities are and how I want my life to reflect those. With increased opportunities for growth and success, there are increased opportunities to fall off the wagon and go spirally down the “if I could only go faster I could do it all” path.

I have realized recently that the reason many people don’t recognize the first step out of balance is because you can’t live by a measure you don’t have. You can not recognize that your priorities are blurring if you have never fully identified what your real priorities are. Priorities have to do with the things you most value, not the most recent crises you think you must solve.

Pretend for a few moments that there are no fires to put out. Take a few minutes, and make a list of the relationships and people that are most important to you.  Write down the activities that most energize you and give you the most joy. How do you feel about the quality of your life? Are you able to operate at a maximized physical condition for yourself, and if not, why?

Making life changes is not about getting it All right. This road involves opportunities. You will fall. To believe you won’t is unrealistic. However, babies don’t quit walking the first time they fall, they just have to keep getting up until they get it right.

 Are you living life or is life living you? Do you spend a lot of time running from one fire to the next, so busy taking care of “have to” that you don’t remember what a “want to” looks like? Find out what the measure for your life is. Find out the things that you would die for and then live for them. That is Joy…Beyond Freedom!

Popularity: 27% [?]

Joy…Beyond Freedom is really about the journey, specifically the journey that I have personally been on and how that relates to others. Freedom has many meanings as there are people to define it.

Many contemplate freedom as some incredible destination. But beyond freedom, what then? The journey is about enjoying the trip to freedom, about the changes we make along the way, and about “what then”. What happens when we get there and what comes next?

“It’s about change!”

Popularity: 26% [?]

Call it a mid-life crises, an identity crises…who cares what you call it…what do you do about it?  You feel like your life is out of control! All you do is work, whether it is at your job or simply trying to keep up with the details of life. Sometimes you just want to escape, but you are too responsible to just bail.

Could there really be a healthy and safe way out?

You were in a terrible relationship. You worked up the nerve to leave, yet why do you still feel so bad?

You have the perfect family, a great job and to everyone looking in from the outside, it couldn’t be better. Why do you still feel something is missing?

Living a life of joy is really possible, and is not confined to perfect circumstances. Plenty of people have plenty of money yet money, an abundance of personal time, or even the perfect life partner doesn’t guarantee happiness.

Popularity: 20% [?]