Anountcment! It’s official! Even though I don’t have all the details yet
This is a super exciting and kind of frightening announcement. My URPS is retiring. Yes the time has come to let the poor thing off the hook and stop making it come to a job that aggravates and irritates the otherwise feeling pretty good neck and shoulder injury (Unrelenting RePetitive Stress injury= URPS).
How is it gonna happen? I don’t know. How’s it gonna work? I don't know. But that is part of why I am blogging about it.
So this all came about last weekend when, after years of saying “I can’t do this anymore” while working at the dog grooming job it finally stuck. For some strange reason it sunk deep inside me and clicked! “I can’t do this anymore.” Hmmm.
When stop means stop
So the following work day I had another conversation that sounded all too familiar because I have been having it for the last two years! It went something like this.
“Well, I could just let the dogs that stress me go. And then I can keep the ones that are easy and don’t stress me out. And then that will help pay for stuff, and I won’t be working so hard and it will all be great!”
This all sounds totally acceptable until this starts;
“ So I can keep Cupcake because she is here a lot, and I can keep Oda because her parents don’t speak English and I don’t want to have to explain everything to them, and I could keep Odie and Ursala because they are supper easy, and I really like Mo so I will keep him, and oh Matilda is easy I will keep her and, Max and Char are super easy and they are so cute so I will keep them, and I like Pompoms family so I will keep her, and,…..”
You can see the problem because soon the list is so long that it’s like, well it’s like I’m still grooming dogs!
Yet other all too familiar conversation is as follows;
“If I keep grooming just a little longer, then it brings in a little extra money and I can use it to pay for stuff like my new business, college, paying extra on the house, buying a new car, having the house remodeled and,…
Again you see where this is going, there is an unlimited amount of ways the money could be used, and in the end, the realization is,…
“I have to quit does not mean I have to slow down, or that I can keep just a few. It means quit, cold turkey, end of story, because if I don’t stop, it doesn’t stop!”
The Hows and the Whens
Well I could stop this month, or I could stop next month, or I could stop the next month which would be September. Stopping this month isn’t really possible because there are a few things that must be paid for, and also it isn’t really enough time to get all my affairs dogs in order.
Now I promised myself that when this day came I was gonna have a big party with flowers and cake. Since I sometimes play with flowers and find it a lot of fun, I will do the flowers, and since I sometimes play with cake, I could do the cake, but do I really want to? Hmmm.
Anyway all of this happens to coincide with my birthday. My fortieth birthday~ The day I declare my independence. The day I start to run my business enterprises instead of them running me. And I am starting a new chapter in my yoga business too.
So now it has turned into the “Retiring from dog grooming, starting new yoga stuff, 40th birthday party!” And there will be flowers (Sunflowers and bright greens button mums), and cake (yes a cake and I really want a wonky cake), and sushi I adore sushi (the veggie kind, that is unless I can talk my friend into making real sushi Tahitian style!)
Okay so the party is all shaping up. Whoo hoo party on friends!
The Stop Date! Oh how to choose.
Well if my party is on my birthday that means I don’t want to be grooming after that date because I will be officially retired! So that means not stopping in September. And if I am making my own flowers and maybe my own wonky cake, then I will also require time to prepare for my party! (oh the house is a disaster! Much work to do there.)
Quitting in July is kind of a non-choice because I have to get all the puppies through at least one more time, so, that leaves August. Interestingly, my dog schedule just kinda stopped in my calendar in August. There are no dogs on my books past Aug 24th so I could set that as my final day, or I could set the Saturday before as my final day. I will have to work that out!
It’s a date!
I officially resign from grooming dogs on or near Aug 24. And until then I will work like a dog with the dogs.
Unhappy thoughts are floating around with my happy thoughts of freedom. This feels weird. I feel guilty. Those poor doggies, who will make them look pretty now?
No guilt! You must do this for yourself, for your health and the betterment of mankind growth of your healthier business.
Time to set the plan to paper! Set the plan to action! Oh and to get comfortable with the plan. That may be the tricky part.
Note to foot~ I mean foot note- I love my doggie clients and this is really hard for me. I built this business from nothing, and it’s like I am letting my little thing just go away. On top of that all my little doggie clients who are so sweet and their way awesome parents who have been so supportive through the whole process. I love and appreciate them all and will do whatever I can to help them find a good replacement. Hugs to you all!