Choose your true friends wisely.

Sriracha kitty isn't my only true friend.

I wrote about the necessity of making friends not too long ago.  We all know that friendship can fall into several different categories, with a large differentiation being between true friends and acquaintances. My previous entry was mainly addressing the latter.

True friends are hard to come by, but they tend to stay forever when you have them. Take my friend Tim, for example. Tim and I met at The University of Alabama, and we both celebrated our weirdness together and continue to do so. We love each other in that "I'll be there for you regardless of how crazy you become" kind of way.

True friends stick up for you when no one else will, and they appreciate you for who you are -- not who they want you to be. True friends respect you -- your relationships, your goals, your obligations -- and they DON'T take advantage of you. The same cannot be said of acquaintances.

True friends don't bleed you dry. Instead, they fill you up.

I have so much gratitude for those I call true friends that it can be overwhelming sometimes.

DELEGATE. DELEGATE. DELEGATE.

I am going out of town this weekend, and Sriracha helped me pack cooking supplies for our trip.

This week has been one of those weeks where I've dreamed of cloning myself in order to DO ALL THINGS. I've also thought about diving into a black hole in hopes of augmenting the space-time continuum such that I have at least 40 hours in a single day.

When science catches up to my schemes, I'll be golden. Until then, I must rely on others to give me a hand when I feel like my head is underwater. I have so many plates spinning right now, and they'd all come crashing down if it weren't for an awesome support team and, in my personal life, my dutiful husband.

My younger, less-experienced self would try to do every single task on whatever list of to-do's I had going. Now I am enabling myself with the ability to rely on others. I will not, however, let this newly adopted philosophy turn into laziness. Instead, I will focus on the strengths of others and be mindful of their availability and focus so I can align my delegated requests with their goals and the goals of my organization. 

Time to adapt

Since most of my blog topics aren't very visual, I am just going to start posting pictures of my cat -- because aren't cat pictures the reason the Internet was invented in the first place?

Up until last Tuesday, I was in a sort of rut coming off of a big race with months of build up and realizing how much I had settled into a routine in other aspects of my life. One of those aspects happened to be my career  -- I found myself getting feeling stumped at work with major renewals falling through or new business opportunities going completely dark.

I wasn't getting lazy, per so -- but I was feeling jaded.

The service I sell (managed marketing automation services with a demand generation/sales acceleration component) is very complicated and usually takes about an hour to explain. It also requires a deliberated decision and a considerable budget. Most of the companies I have been working with just didn't seem to have available funds, and those that did already had a similar program running internally.

The account management portion of my gig was limited only to our marketing automation clients, most of whom already have an established program with zero intent to change. As of last week, I've inherited the entirety of our client base -- managed service clients included -- and a much heftier quota.

So here's to adapting quickly, and being forced out of my rut! And to new beginnings and achieving ALL THE GOALS.

Learning to say No.

Someone cue the Bill Withers.

If I were to really focus on one lane of self-improvement that would have a super positive effect on my professional life and general well-being, it would involve focusing on realizing when others are taking advantage of me and then finding the strength to keep it from happening.

Don't get me wrong; I love giving to others -- whether it be my time or any other commodity I have to give. Giving brings a sense of selflessness and keeps my stinginess  at bay, and I feel it is necessary to do in order to be a good person. And then there's that whole karma thing. When it comes down to it, the benefit of the receiver is the major draw.

This week was rough in terms of feeling sucked dry. My workload doubled. I was ripped off. I witnessed consecutive non-contribution and let myself pick up the slack. I felt deeply betrayed by someone who should never betray me.

I'm thinking back to when I was once denied a job because I "seemed like the type who couldn't say No."

Starting today, I am going to say "No" more. I am going to decline volunteer requests that I cannot realistically meet. I am going to deny friends who dip into my pockets on a regular basis. I am going to stand my ground and not feel bad about it. 

I am going to forgive, but I am not going to let people run over me.