Thirty-One Conference 2015

I'm really excited to finally be sitting down to write this and share about my conference experience! I've been very busy since I came home, but fortunately it's been a lot of fun stuff including my first double-digit long run in almost 2 years (10 mile race next weekend!), a cookout with J's coworkers, a 14-mile bike ride that was part of a friend's birthday celebration (he did 40 for his 40th!), and the Cleveland World Festival today. I've been loving getting to spend so much time outdoors this week :)

Now, on to conference...

 

I have to say that I really wasn’t sure what to expect from the conference, so I tried to go in with an open mind. And I am so, so glad I went.  Just in case anyone was worried, I didn’t leave there wanting to quit my day job and just sell Thirty-One for a living. ;) If anything, it strengthened my commitment to using my talents to change lives... and my talents are much more about teaching than sales :) 

My top 5 takeaways:

1. I’ve already shared this on Facebook, but love your journey.  Stop comparing yourself to others.  You don’t *need* to know where you are going to end up (this is a big one for me!). Everyone moves through life differently. There’s no sense in feeling sorry for yourself because others are “doing better” than you. We all have a different journey, so focus on the path you are taking and try to enjoy the ride. Choose to be happy where you are.

2. Success without joy is worthless. Not that every moment is going to be amazing and perfect. Work will be hard. But it has to give something back to you and not just suck all your energy.

3. The question “How is someone’s life better after crossing my path?”  It doesn’t have to be something life-changing every day. But what can you do to help someone feel a little bit brighter?

4. How to stop catastrophizing. Again, another big one for me. The speaker who talked about this suggested, after thinking of your crazy worst case scenario, acknowledge that thought and then try to think of an equally crazy best case scenario. And then find something much more likely in the middle. I’ve been working on this and it seems to work well so far!

5. Whatever your vision is, keep it in front of you. Remind yourself of it. And replenish your energy from goal fatigue by celebrating small milestones along the way.

Of course, I got some great business ideas, too. But those 5 things are so incredibly valuable for helping me be the best possible version of myself in ALL aspects of my life.

Here are some other things I loved about the conference: 

New products and patterns

 

 This is the new Fashion Games bag. It comes in three different colors and they're all lovely. It would make a very nice work bag. 

 

Those of us who like more neutral colors are in for a treat this season.

Those who like blue, green, and teal are also in luck :)

Here's a great setup of all the different totes Thirty-One offers! We have a bag for that :)

Kitchen organizing ideas!

Awesome things Thirty-One does for consultants

Like I said, while I'm not going to quit my day job,  I am definitely feeling inspired to help others discover the Thirty-One opportunity. The company really is good to its consultants, does so much to give back to the community, and is all about empowering women to do good in the world.

All of this is included in the new consultant enrollment kit! $99 for over $400 in products and business supplies to get you started. I have several of the items in this kit and they are great. I use them all the time! 

Conference amenities. We got all this just for attending the conference! I'm really excited about the Soft Utility Tote and the Everything Crossbody (on special in August)!

New personalization options

  

I love the new "I (heart) ________" design!  You can customize the color of the text and of the heart :)

 

The large initial is another new option coming soon for our bags!

You can now get the Thirty-One Gives logo on your products. What an awesome way to help others learn about the Thirty-One Gives charity!

Thirty-One celebrity encounters

I was randomly selected for a photo op with Thirty-One founder Cindy Monroe! Pretty awesome :)

I also met Janet Kinkade, who designs Thirty-One's new JK by Thirty-One jewelry line.

Other fun things in and around Columbus

I finally stopped at Grandpa's Cheesebarn on the way down to Columbus. Oh my goodness. Cheese heaven. I want to go back and eat more samples and buy more cheese.

Shakespeare in the park with my awesome friends who let me stay with them conference weekend. You guys are the best! 

And, of course, the aforementioned friends' adorable little kitty :)  I don't get to spend a lot of time with cats, so it was fun to hang around two of them for the weekend.

And that's it from me for now! I hope everyone had a great weekend and that you found something in this post that helps you strive towards the life you want to live :)