Picture this.  You are holding an empty glass in one hand and a pitcher of water in the other.  Every time a stressful episode occurs in your life, you pour some water into the empty glass.  A big pour for the upcoming work deadline and a small pour for a parking ticket, and so on.  Your glass is now full and your shoelace snaps, which prompts a tiny drop of water into the glass – enough to make the water spill.

The size of your glass depends on your stress tolerance level; no matter how big or small your glass is, when it’s full it’s full!  Just a snap of a shoelace is enough to make someone “lose it” if her stress level is at maximum capacity.  Women are often over-extended; we tend to juggle many things at once – especially during this time of the year – which makes us more susceptible to stress.  

Several years ago, I developed a stress management workshop using the word “STRESS” as an acronym to emphasize important techniques inherent in stress management.  These are not new discoveries, but rather common sense.  Sometimes common sense escapes us when we are confronted with challenges, so I am sending a friendly reminder to take care of your mind and body!  Here’s a short synopsis of the workshop... 

   
back to HeelsConnect...

    
If you read “Passion, Anyone?” and the “ABOUT” section, you know our mission and how HeelsConnect was conceived.  After my epiphany, I started calling hundreds of women around the country – some I knew personally and some I was referred to – and began to share my vision.  I was overwhelmed by the enthusiastic responses.  The calls often ended with “I can’t wait to see you on Oprah!”  I was terrified that I had inadvertently planted unrealistic expectations of HeelsConnect...

I love shoes.  I love helping students. I love helping women advance their careers.
While not necessarily in that order, these three passions led me to launch HeelsConnect.

how it all began…

I moved back to Los Angeles ready for a life makeover not knowing what was in store for me.   One afternoon, I was cramming shoes in my little closet, and noticed all the heels lined up and almost connecting…it was one of those rare moments - an epiphany, if you will.  In that moment of clarity, I saw how to combine my passions and professional ambition, and how to use the iconic heels as the symbol for my next endeavor.  The burning desire to unleash my entrepreneurial spirit overwhelmed me and I felt certain about moving forward.

All I had was an imaginary company’s name. And that, crazy as it sounds, was enough for me.  At the office where you register business names, I spoke in hushed tones so other enthusiastic entrepreneurs wouldn’t hear me.  In response to my low volume, the nice man behind the counter said “who would want to steal the name HeelsConnect?”  My delusional optimism took over and naturally I replied “it’ll be the largest women’s website one day and you will remember me!”

At that moment, I didn’t have an ounce of doubt that this is what I was meant to do (well, maybe a quarter of an ounce but that’s normal...isn’t it?).  My life experiences - including mistakes that have haunted and shaped me – laid the foundation to embark on this exciting and scary journey… so I keep telling myself. 

what keeps me going...

The blueprint of my life is always a work in progress.  Transitioning from the corporate world to the role of an entrepreneur is not easy.  It required me to learn new skills which I’m challenged to apply each day and I admit it is MUCH more difficult than I had expected.  I lack the discipline to structure my day and to meet self-imposed deadlines, to set meetings with myself and so on.  And “being your own boss” sounds great in theory, and sure, it has its perks: I can give myself a raise…if only HeelsConnect paid me.  BUT, I am grateful to have created an opportunity to pursue my passion – even if it means I may not succeed and starve instead… yikes, that’s a frightening thought!

Still, I believe that the most successful people are those who have beautiful personal lives and fulfilling careers.   And they achieve this by following their passions.  They pursue their dreams by taking calculated risks - and sometimes not-so-calculated.  I’m taking a HUGE risk – not even sure if it’s calculated – and, naturally, it doesn’t always sit well in my stomach.  Somehow, though, I manage to wake up every morning and keep going, because I don’t want the greatest regret in my life to be not pursuing what I really want because of the fear of failure. 

Fear can paralyze people.  I’ve experienced this in various stages of my life.  And it has, at times, prevented me from doing what I really want – professionally and personally.   This, evidenced by you having this to read, is not one of those times.  And, since this is an era of blog transparency, you should know that I have told too many people about HeelsConnect to quit now… even though that thought has crossed my mind in the middle of many sleepless nights.  And when a recruiter contacts me, I think how safe it would be to earn a steady paycheck again.  Perhaps I will return to work for a corporation sooner than later; I have doubts just like you.

Ironically, my doubt – and others’ doubts – gives me the courage to continue to chase my professional dream.  The greatest frustration is not from failing but from living with unfulfilled dreams.  I can accept defeat; I can’t accept sitting on the sidelines.

Despite the potential of defeat, somewhere deep down (really deep), I genuinely believe that if I follow my passion – not the dollars – success will follow me.  And money will follow success.  At the end of the day, my belief and courage will guide me, and eventually lead me to experience professional bliss – what I want for you.  You never know who or what will prompt you to realize your dreams.  You just have to be ready when it happens.

next blog...

In the next blog, I’ll describe the events after the epiphany moment and what I discovered along the way.  Please send me questions on anything and/or share your story on pursuing your passion or other related topics to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it (check out the SUBMIT page for details).

suggested discussions for the comment section...

~ Do you know your passion?

~ If you have or are pursuing your passion, what advice do you have for others?

~ If you know your passion, but have not pursued it, what is preventing you?

~ If you’re trying to discover your passion, what steps are you taking?