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Sanity Plan Success Stories – Raising Kids Far from Home

February 16, 2018 By Sara M. 1 Comment

One of the things I love the most about the Sanity Plan is getting the opportunity to see how other people put their own Sanity Plans in action. The following post is a guest post written by an American woman who is raising her children abroad. I got to know Emily through a writing group we belong to and found her story incredibly interesting. I hope you do, too!

A Sanity Plan: Three R’s that Keep My Life Abroad Balanced 

As an American mom married to a Czech, keeping a healthy life balance while raising children abroad is a top priority. My family has lived in the Czech Republic for more than 13 years now. Many Czech friends, my own children, and my mother ask me why we don’t live in America, or when we’re planning to return to the US. I used to ask myself the same thing.

Now, I can’t imagine leaving.

Over the years, I’ve tried to understand where home is for my family. Like many expats, I’ve had moments where I’ve wanted to pack my bags and wave goodbye to the Czech Republic for good, and I’ve had moments in the US where I’ve longed for the day of my flight to arrive to take me back to Prague.

On good days, I am at home in my adopted country of the Czech Republic. Beer is cheaper than water, there are more castles per square meter than in any other European country, and Czechlish is my family’s language of choice. I thrive on the atmosphere of growth that comes from living in a country different from where I grew up, where even going to the store to buy meat can be an adventure.

Then, there are the bad days. When the supermarket clerk gives me a cold stare that brings me to tears, or the heating goes out, and I don’t know the right words to say to the serviceman in Czech. When my children are embarrassed that I can’t speak Czech like a native, or I yearn to chat with my mother but realize by the time she’s awake, my day will be halfway gone.

Despite believing that making a home in the Czech Republic was the right decision for my family, I do miss my roots (a lot).

To help me feel grounded in my life abroad, I have created a Sanity Plan that I like to call “My 3 R’s.” Based on rituals that I can do wherever, whenever I need to feel balanced, “My 3 R’s” are an essential part of keeping my own sanity. These rituals are what I give to myself to keep my passions alive, my sense of humor intact, and to remind myself of who I am beyond the labels (mother, wife, teacher, writer, fill in the blank).

My 3 R’s:  w(R)iting, Reading, and Running

Writing (and friends who write)

Years ago, I met two Americans in Prague who liked to write as much as I did. One evening a week, we shared our stories over dinner. With encouragement from my friends, I began to write a weekly column called Half-n-Half for a local newspaper.

The column was a way for me to make sense of the cultural differences (and similarities) that I observed while living in the Czech Republic. Even when I had more important things to do (change diapers, help with homework, or teach English lessons), whenever I stopped writing, I grew grumpy and irritable. So, I picked up my pencil.

Writing was how I took a step back from my life. It was also a way for me to connect with other foreigners living in the Czech Republic and Czechs living abroad.

The other day, my preteen daughter asked me why I spent so much time writing my stories, if I didn’t get much money from them. While I fumbled to answer, getting emotional and half apologizing for my dedication to something that wasn’t putting money into our bank account or food on the table, my daughter answered her own question.

“I think I understand, Mommy,” she said. “It’s kind of like my dancing. I love dance, even if I’m not going to be a prima ballerina.”

Running

To balance my writing, I run. I am not a hard-core runner. I don’t have sleek abdominals or toned arms. I run to keep the witch inside me at bay. And, I run to let the witch out. There is an ongoing inner monologue when I run. Some days, I sort out a writing dilemma or a work problem, other times I rehash a conversation that didn’t go as planned. I think about my children and what is going on in their lives. I look at the trees or the creek that winds along my trail. Or, I stare 7-8 feet in front of me and will my legs to keep moving.

When I see other parents pushing strollers or walking with children on bikes in the woods, I often feel guilty. But, I don’t run home to coerce my children to join me. They have their own sports classes and activities. Running is my time.

On my birthday, the kids and I do a family run (at their request). When we finish, my daughter says, “I wish I had the time to run like you do.” I tell her that any time she wants to run, I would be happy to have her join me. And I mean it. I tell her that running makes me a better mom.

Reading

For my family of bookworms, bedtimes stories are the cherry on top of the ice cream sundae. Ever since they were babies, I have read aloud to my children each night. Reading is the one consistent way (in addition to speaking to them in English) that I balance their Czech school education and the Czech culture that surrounds us. It is also the one time a day when each child receives my full, focused attention.

As each child learned to read, our ritual was expanded. Now, I rotate through their rooms at bedtime, starting with the youngest. He reads a few pages in Czech, then I follow with a story in English. My older two children read on their own. On busy nights, my daughter listens to my youngest son read while I do dishes and pack school lunches. Then, I come to read to him.

Even (or rather especially) when the day has been crazy, for these few moments, I focus only on the time my child and I have carved out for one another. And the stories we share together.

 

Most days, I don’t have time to do as much writing, running, or reading as I wish. But, by following my passions a little every day, I hope my children see that their own dreams (no matter how wild or crazy they seem) are valid and real.

Do you have rituals that help you keep your life sane? I’d love to hear about them in the comments. 

 

Emily Gates Prucha teaches English and writes about raising multilingual children in the Czech Republic – the land of beer, castles, and Krtek (The Little Mole). Find her stories about Czech culture online at Half-n-Half for The Prague Daily Monitor and prague.tv. As far as Czech traditions go, she doesn’t like being whipped at Easter but having a carp swimming in her bathtub at Christmas suits her fine.

Do you have a Sanity Plan that you’d like to share? Please pitch your guest post to thesanityplan@gmail.com. 

Filed Under: Parenting, Success Stories Tagged With: balance, habits, kids, motherhood, sanity plan, writing

Sanity Plan Success Stories – Embracing Your Dream Career

March 21, 2017 By Sara M. 11 Comments

Today’s success story comes from a friend with a very similar journey to my own. What I love the most about her story is that it demonstrates that everyone will have a different Sanity Plan, but the end result will be the same:

a sane & manageable life. 

Joelene Wolfe is a mom, wife, marketer, and the creator of Happiness Depends. After many years of following someone else’s dream, she took the big leap to finally follow her dream of acting. And now she is helping others take the 1st step toward their dream career on HappinessDepends.com. 

We’re all a little kooky at times and that’s totally acceptable.  Life would be boring if we weren’t.  However being totally insane and unhappy… now that’s not my cup of tea.  You see, at one point in my life I was miserable.  I was trying to convince myself and everyone around me that I was happy.  Let me tell you, that was exhausting and it nearly drove me to insanity.

I spent my entire career working in the corporate world.  Somewhere deep down inside, though, I knew that it wasn’t what I wanted to do but I was afraid after so many years to make a change.  I mean, that’s usually what holds us back – fear.  Right?

I would come home from work and tell my husband that I was dying a little everyday walking into that office.

Even still, I tried to convince myself otherwise.  My typical day was filled with feeling anxious, unappreciated, and literally like a fish out of water.  There were days that I literally couldn’t breathe. I was not in my element at all.

Here’s the thing… I wasn’t young anymore.  I had an established career that I worked at for years and who the heck would take my dream seriously anyway?   I left that important little detail out.  Didn’t I?  So my dream since the wee age of three was to become an actor.  Yup, you read that correctly.   I also forgot to mention that I was just over forty years old.  I guess if we are to dream, we might as well dream big.

I knew that things at my company weren’t going well and a few of us were ultimately laid off.  Most people would have buried their heads in the sand but not me.  Nope.  To the contrary, I heard angelic music playing in my head.  I was ready.


So, I decided to put an exit strategy in place – my own personal sanity plan.

It was kind of like one of those action films when there seems to be no hope.  Then in the nick of time, the main character goes against all the odds and finds a way out of the situation.  Well my story was exactly like that, minus the special effects and camera man, but you get the gist.

Insanity no more!  No more being tied to a desk doing something I didn’t love for people who didn’t love me.  I seized the moment after many years of procrastinating and shushing my dream. I did not overthink it. I just decided to take that first step.

My 9 step sanity plan was simple really and you can do it too.

  1. Move forward and never look back – the past is the past
  2. Only share your plan with your closest people – avoid naysayers
  3. Force yourself to take an action everyday toward your goal – little steps equal big successes
  4. Read every positive thinking or inspirational book you can get your hands on – what a difference these make
  5. Just go with your flow – that feeling inside that can’t be explained but always knows if you are on the right course
  6. Celebrate the small victories and don’t get hung up on the losses – you are worth it
  7. Learn to relish every moment doing what you love – living in the now is huge
  8. Be truly grateful for everything – both the things you have and things that you want
  9. Envision yourself as the person you plan to be – in all your glory

It really works. Through this process I finally realized that I wasn’t here to live out someone else’s dream.  My sanity plan was solely to live out mine.

So I am thrilled to report that I have been acting for over four years. I have been in many commercials, TV shows, films, videos, ads and many other wonderfully crazy gigs. The great kind of crazy!  I have met so many amazing people and at the end of the day I am proud of myself.  That first baby step led to a life I never thought possible.  In fact, if you would have told me 5 years ago that this is where I would be, I would have thought YOU were the insane one. Yet here I am.

So my advice to you is this – if you are in a career that is not in alignment with your heart, don’t get overwhelmed with all the details of how to get there.  Just decide on your sanity plan and take one small step every day.

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life and don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. Most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.”  —Steve Jobs

Take that step. Live your dream. Be happy.

 

I love hearing inspirational stories about how people find what really works for them.

Do you have a Sanity Plan success story to share? Let me know in the comments or contact me here. 

Filed Under: Success Stories Tagged With: career, dreams, passion, work

The Sanity Plan Success Stories – A Flexible Freelance Career

January 24, 2017 By Sara M. 19 Comments

I met the owner of our next success story online. I was inspired by her commitment towards developing the career she wanted, even if that meant trying out many things until she found what worked. Here is Carrie’s Sanity Plan:

 

My name is Carrie, and I’m a registered nurse turned freelance writer. Last year I launched the Healthy Work at Home Mom to share what I’ve learned about creating a thriving business from home without burning yourself out.

I’ve wanted to work from home since the moment I became a mom four years ago. I remember sitting in our little apartment during maternity leave and deciding to check my work email. Our new baby was sleeping next to me as I logged in. I had just had her, but when I checked my email, I noticed one that said, “only 2 weeks until Carrie gets back!” I just sat there staring at my computer trying to process that. I had just had a baby! I quickly pulled up a calendar and realized I had indeed already been home with her for 10 weeks. Well, you know what happens next. I immediately burst into tears and decided to make a change.

I started researching ways that nurses can work from home and landed on medical writing. I began pitching myself to every company I could find, started a blog, and eventually landed a few freelance jobs. I slowly began cutting back my hours at the hospital and worked my last shift as a nurse at the end of 2016.

Being able to work from home for myself and be with my kids was absolutely the best decision I’ve ever made, but it still comes with its challenges. If I wake up one morning and the baby is sick, I no longer have to scramble to figure out daycare and who’s turn it is to call in and how I’m going to get in to the doctor. However, I do have to figure out when on earth I’m going to get my client work done.

Here are some of the strategies that have helped me the most:

  • Time blocking – I now have a weekly schedule with chunks of time for all of my projects. This has saved me so much time. Each time I have work time (during kindergarten and nap time), I know exactly what I need to do, so I don’t waste time feeling overwhelmed. On Mondays I edit and write outlines. Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays are for billable client work. On Wednesdays, I work on my blog and shoot a Facebook live video.
  • Embracing my season – It’s really easy for me to look at what others have accomplished and feel discouraged. I have big dreams and just want to get there. But I always come back to the fact that the reason I started freelancing was to be home with my kids, and that’s where I am. They won’t always be this little and need this much help, so I’m embracing my season. I have plenty of time to build my empire 🙂
  • Believing in myself – I think when you are working on a big goal (like leaving your 9-5 to work for yourself), it’s easy to doubt yourself. I certainly did. While my husband and family always believed in me, no one else understood what I was trying to build. No one thought this was possible. That’s where I had to decide that I was going to do this, even if I didn’t know exactly how. Every time I took a step forward, the next right step found me.

I love to see how other people create their Sanity Plans and put them into action. Creating a job that provides the flexibility to combine two dreams at once (motherhood and business ownership) is quite an achievement. Inspired? Read more on how to build your own Sanity Plan here.

Do you have a Sanity Plan success story to share? Let me know in the comments or reach out to me through my contact page. 

Filed Under: Parenting, Success Stories, Work/Life Tagged With: basics, business ownership, dreams, entrepreneur, family, goals, motherhood, parenting, productivity, sanity plan

The Sanity Plan Success Stories – A Salon for One

January 4, 2017 By Sara M. 16 Comments

As I continue to work on my Sanity Plan, I am noticing people all around me with Sanity Plans of their own. I am always keeping a look out for how people take steps (big or small) to accomplish a goal or even change the direction of their whole life.

Today’s story is about my wonderful hair dresser. I’ve known Teri for about 4 years and have had a front row seat to watch how she was able to manifest a significant change in her life. I know it will inspire you as well.

I first met Teri in a fancy salon in our downtown historic section. The setting was gorgeous and I always felt like a pampered queen when I went there. I didn’t mind the extra expense because I typically only go once or twice a year (read: lazy mom-do). I’d been passed around to a number of ladies until Teri cut my hair, and it looked great and stayed great for months. I also looked forward to our conversations about life, kids, marriage, writing, and business. The business talks were my favorite subject as I have my MBA and she was working on her BA in Business at the time.

Teri’s Sanity Plan

Teri had more than 20 years of experience in hair care, with a considerable list of devoted clients. She was growing tired of the politics at the salon and was concerned that her customers were not getting the best experience. Teri made a decision to venture off on her own.

She rented a tiny shop less than a mile away and set up a single chair and washing station. She and her husband updated and decorated the space to capture that modern salon feel. Teri worked to set up her business, learning each step that was required along the way.

The Results

I was a little apprehensive for my first visit because I’d really enjoyed the ambiance of the previous salon. But the experience was actually so much better for me, without the chaos and the noise, and we easily continued our ongoing conversation. It was private and cozy, offering a very different feel than I was used to.

The best part of this change, which took an enormous amount of courage, is that I have never seen a more happy and relaxed business owner. It’s been the better part of a year and I can see the true joy and relief she experiences in being her own boss and having full control over her career.

Her favorite parts?

  • Setting her own schedule
  • Having a private space to serve her clients and be creative
  • Getting time to talk one-on-one with her customers
  • Keeping more of the profits from her work
  • Being able to work alone if she chooses
  • Learning all aspects of business ownership and salon operation

What is so inspiring to me about Teri’s change is her devotion to the process. She made a decision, set her plans in motion, and followed through. There was no waffling, no back and forth, or letting her fears of the unknown stop her from achieving this dream. She negotiated a peaceful transition of her personal clients from the old salon (most of whom she had brought there). And she is conscious of tackling each new process with measured precision, allowing for time to learn new skills before beginning a new project.

Thanks for the inspiration, Teri. Keep up the good work!

Do you have a Sanity Plan Story? Contact me to set up an interview or recommend the story of someone you know.

 

Filed Under: Success Stories Tagged With: balance, dreams, entrepreneur, flexibility, goals, mom boss, sanity plan, success

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Welcome to THE SANITY PLAN! Here you will find my attempts to restore order in my crazy life post kids. I'm just getting started & I have a lot to say. So far I've written a lot about my perspectives on parenting (sorry, it's where I am at), but I'd love it if you followed my journey to improve my habits, get more organized, redefine my career, and generally live a good life. Or, you can follow just for the entertainment, I promise there will be lots of that. Do you want to learn more about building A Sanity Plan?

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