Work Archives - Catherine Hughes

April 21, 2022

Progress

Progress requires the courage to take a step towards your goal.

We tend to overthink our goals. Thinking we need a grand gesture. The go big or stay home mindset.

But the journey starts with the first baby step. The very first step will enact the force of momentum.

Momentum is a part of physics. According to Newton ;

“An object at rest remains at rest, and an object in motion remains in motion at constant speed and in a straight line unless acted on by an unbalanced force.”

Start the motion today.

Take the first step today. Make the second step tomorrow. Slowly, keep moving forward.

Each day moves forward in your journey. A journey you have the choice to direct or be directed by outside forces.

Choose and move forward.

The daily choice to take the next step is the only thing you need to make progress.

It is all up to you.

April 16, 2022

Show Up

Show up

Do the thing you want to do.

Show up for yourself. You don’t have to do it for anyone but you. You may think you can put it off. And honestly, you could put it off, and no one but you would know.

You need to do it.

Show up.

Simple.

Simple, but not easy.

July 9, 2021

When I worked for a company, we did a mid-year review and a final review each year. The mid-year was done with your boss to make sure you were on track to meet standards for the year. In essence, so there would be no surprises as your final review.

It was the final review where what you accomplished was compared to the goals set by myself and my boss at the beginning of the year. Was everything accomplished? Did you go above and beyond what was expected? Did you not meet standards in an area? If so, there were systems put in place to help you meet standards the following year.

Because a review at mid-year was completed, the one at year-end wasn’t supposed to have surprises. It often did. When I stopped working for a company, I was grateful to never have to go through this process again. And I am certain my boss was just as glad to never have to give me another review.

The thing with the review process is it keeps you on track.

Continue reading “Mid-Year Review”

December 30, 2020December 30, 2020

I Failed 2020

I have started my annual review, and I just have to say, I failed 2020. Yup, no bullshitting here, I just didn’t do very well this year, and if I am honest and needed to give myself a grade, I would be hard-pressed to say I earned anything other than an F.

I do not say this lightly or to be funny.

I simply did not rise to the challenges this year gave me. In fact, I crumbled under a few of them. I think this grade was fairly earned. Continue reading “I Failed 2020”

December 28, 2020December 28, 2020

Hitting the Reset Button

I have had a hard time hitting the reset button. It is easy in so many ways to stop a downward spiral; you just need to stop and restart. Hit the reset button, so to speak.

Yet, December, or maybe most of 2020, has been a bit of a wash. I mean, the year started out well. There was a bit traction in my business. I met with artists, had positive responses to emails, had conferences scheduled, and then everything was canceled. Continue reading “Hitting the Reset Button”

December 27, 2020December 27, 2020

Going After What I Want

It appears I stopped showing up. I stopped moving forward, and I just stopped going after what I want. And I don’t mean in a holiday craziness kind of way. I just haven’t even done the everyday things I had been doing.

I pulled out my weekly planner, where I write down my daily to-do list. It starts on a Monday and then goes through the week. When I looked at it, the last week I had used it was the week beginning November 30.

It had been almost four weeks since I had last used it! Four weeks! Continue reading “Going After What I Want”

December 8, 2020December 8, 2020

Being a Beginner

Being a beginner at something is interesting. You have no built-in belief you should be good at it you are just learning. Most likely, you are willing to learn and take instruction. You may get a coach or take lessons. You read articles, watch videos and listen to the experts on how to do this new thing.

Being a beginner brings a willingness to listen, to practice and to fail. Continue reading “Being a Beginner”

December 3, 2020

The Undone

My list of all of the undone stuff is overwhelming. And what is worse, most of the undone tasks don’t even make it to the to-do list anymore!

It’s strange how there always seems to be something I just don’t want to do. It may be something I perceive to be hard; it may be something unpleasant. But mostly, it is just stuff I am procrastinating doing. Continue reading “The Undone”

December 2, 2020

Doing the Hard Things – Walk Away From the Cupcake

Doing the hard things are well, hard. Not that doing them is difficult; it could be simple to do, yet hard to do at the same time. Like this, explaining something in circles.

Doing the hard thing could be saying no to something you want to do but know you shouldn’t do. Like eating a cupcake is easy and choosing not to is hard. At least for me it is. But if I want to have the energy to get through my day and honestly, be able to button up my jeans, I need to do the hard thing and walk away from the cupcake. Continue reading “Doing the Hard Things – Walk Away From the Cupcake”

December 1, 2020November 30, 2020

Making a difference

Sometimes, you don’t know if what you are doing is making a difference. You show up every day but don’t see a change.

Sometimes this is because the work you are doing is creating small changes—nothing you see with your eyes. But over time, others will see the difference. An example of this might be working out, you don’t see the 10 pounds you lost, but others notice it.

Other times, you just do work you believe in and hope someone gets value from it. But honestly, you may never know in your lifetime unless someone tells you.

Today, someone reached out to me through my DMS. My posts on Instagram had inspired her to create today. I have been posting daily for months, hoping someone would get value from what I was posting. I would never have known, but someone took a moment to send a message. It meant everything to me.

So there are two important ways making a difference in this story:
1. Keep showing up and doing the work you believe in. You may feel like you are speaking into a void, but someone is getting value from your work. And honestly, your daily practice is making you better.
2. Let someone know when something moves, inspires, or even makes you laugh. Your kind words may be the difference between someone continuing their work or stoping it.

And doing the first can cause the second, which in turn causes the first. And life is just a little bit better.

Be blessed –
Catherine