Mommy Ginger
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My Plan for My Life

There was a day when Zeeka asked me about heaven. She asked me, “Mom, where is heaven and how is it like there?” To that, I replied that heaven is where you want it to be. If you think that it’s a place where your loved ones are and you’re happy, then this or your life here on earth is heaven. If you think that God is also here with us, then maybe this is heaven.

I’d like to believe that there is something after this life when we pass away and I believe in God. How I think about life though is not a means to get to a better place (like heaven), but a vehicle to actually make this world that we live in a better place. Why wait for that better place when you have the power to create positive changes NOW?

I have a plan for my life, and this is how I view it to be:

This is my plan for my life. I know my handwriting sucks.. haha! Please bear with me!

So my first 25 years was really for learning, making mistakes, rising back up and trying again. My tip for those who are still in this part of the “life line” that I’m showing, just explore and try to do things that you’ve never done. If you’re scared to try, write down what’s the worst thing that could happen. You’ll realize that the worst thing isn’t as bad as it may seem.

Currently, I’m in a situation where I know what I stand for and what I believe in. This is where we usually find ourselves, make our own choices, see what we consider valuable and try our best to make a change in this life by utilizing our own actions.

This is also the the time that we try to grow our circle of influence. Because why not?

Just some thoughts about influence. Wanting to gain influence is not a bad thing. What you need to think about is why you want to grow or gain influence. The reason why I want to grow my circle of influence is that I have realized that the you can make huge positive changes when you reach more people. Think of it this way — the magnitude of the impact that you can create will obviously be bigger when you have a bigger circle of influence.

This is the reason why politicians or people in the government can make rules that affect the lives of a lot of people. We gave them our votes. Having said that, I digress… I have no plans of running for office. Haha!

What I stand for is really empowering the micro and small businesses and professionals in our country. I think most of you who follow my blog and vlog (https://youtube.com/gingerarboledavlog) know this and know my plan for my life.

Another thing that I’d like to do and Frances and I are really trying hard to spread the word is to connect every women to other women who can support them. We are doing this using the Lean in PH (https://www.facebook.com/groups/leaninph/) a Lean In Network that we started here in the Philippines.

Moving on, in my 50s or probably 60s and onwards toward the end of my life, I’d like to focus on helping younger people who also want to make their voices heard and who want to make this world a better place.

At the end on my life, I want to be able to say that I left the world knowing that my daughter is living in a better world because I tried to make it a better place for her.

Where did all these self-reflection come from? Haha! Just wanted to share this super duper nice feature that the Belle De Jour team has created.

This comes with a FREE eBook/Workbook that you can download here: https://shop.ilovebdj.com/blogs/news/ginger-arboleda-on-nurturing-your-gift-of-self

This really inspired me to share my thoughts today. Now, for you reading this, I’d love to get to know you. How about you?

Where are you now? What are you doing? Do you have your own life line? Share it with me by leaving a comment below or leaving a comment on social media and use #GINspiration.

Some other articles that you may want to read:

What is Life All About? (My Easter Reflection)

Make me Love you More… (an Ode to Life)

Dear Life,

It’s been 39 years of both exhilarating and boring moments.

Even with the boring and the not-so-great moments, you’ve wheedled your way into making me love you more with the charm of true love, the excitement of a new born child, the thrill of building businesses and the passion for writing and blogging.

First of all, I thank you for introducing me to a jocular and charming man. To be honest, EJ was not quite whom I expected to end up with for a life partner. You always had me end up with the “brute” and not the “brains” (no offense to my ex’s whom I am all friends with…). After months of getting to know him though, I knew he was THE ONE.

Me with my silly husband, EJ 🙂

And after several years of marriage, I still think him to be the man who inspires me to be the best that I can be. I love how smart and funny he is. I’m such an intense person that I thank you for giving me someone who’s more chill. Let not his “chillness” be mistaken for lack of drive. He is the most driven person I know with great leadership skills. I really admire and respect him. He’s a great father and a great leader. He could challenge me at anything, and there never is a dull moment with him. I am grateful for showing me the path that led to him.

The next thing that made me love you more is the minute I laid eyes on this feisty little baby, who could not be swaddled. Looking into Zeeka’s eyes makes me think that I have nothing to worry about. She has the confidence, the values, the inquisitiveness and curiosity, the drive and the attitude to take on the world by storm.

Sweet Little Zeeka and Moi!

She’s so sweet and loving that sometimes I wonder “what did I do to deserve such an amazing little girl?”. Life, I am so proud of her and this is something that I know I will be for the rest of years and decades together.

Life, you made me love you more when you introduced me to my purpose. My purpose of helping other business owners and freelancers introduced itself to me like an effulgent sun. Everything was clearer. I knew and know exactly where I want to be in the future.

With these businesses, you tested my values, grit, tenacity and perseverance. You also taught me to be a guide for different people from different walks of life who make up teams I love so dearly (#TeamManilaWorkshops and #TeamTaxumo). Yes, there were moments when I wanted to give up (several and too many to count) but you always showed me the reason why I shouldn’t. With these endeavors also, you introduced me to amazing people who are continuously helping me make the world a better place. You introduced me to a lot of amazing partners and new friends whom I know I will cherish for life.

Last but not the least (and definitely not the last reason why I love you more, Life), thank you for making me discover blogging more than a decade ago. Thank you for introducing me to something that I really enjoy doing. Writing is a break from everything. It’s what I love doing for my ME-time.

Me writing down outlines and ideas for my blogs before writing on the laptop… yup, old skool! hehe!

This is where I could express myself. Thank you for introducing me to this tool where I can share my thoughts, experiences and views on mompreneurship, women in the workplace, parenting, business, taxation, productivity, finance, beauty, etc.

There are so many more reasons why I love you so much more than I did before, Life. And as I enter this 39th year of being with you, all I wish is that you continue to be patient with me and stick with me as I have so much more that I want to do!

Make me love you more!

Love,

My Exciting and Complicated Life

It’s Friday and i’m working at full speed. I feel so alive and inspired today. I feel like most of you missed the bubbly and the enthusiastic Ginger, and guess what?! I’m back!

I’m sorry that I have been such a downer lately. It’s probably because I felt like I had to fulfil so many expectations and obligations. I also felt like I wanted to please people that I loved, and that became so much to bear. At times, I felt I wasn’t giving enough and, sometimes also, I felt depressed because I felt I wasn’t getting enough in return. I formulated expectations in my head, when in fact, life is just simple. I think I overthought things and aimed too high, too soon, that I felt exhausted.

I realized though that it was mostly all ME. I was the one putting so much pressure on myself. I wanted to achieve things quickly and successfully, that I lost the fun and adventurous Ginger along the way.

I was going through different animation shorts today and this was what inspired me and reminded me of myself.

On the Same Page: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_nb5wBsTaQ

What I Love about my Life

What I love about my life is that it’s always fun and exciting. There is not a day that I don’t get to learn new things. I am not much of a reader, but I love talking to people. I know it’s such a far comparison, but talking to one person for me is a lot like reading a book. When I talk to people, I am always excited as I get to discover new things and learn from their experiences, perceptions and thoughts. This may be probably the reason why I love blogging, also. Blogging allows me to meet various kinds of people, and share things that I learn from their stories.

Moms-11

I love that I have so many ideas that I want to do and so many goals that I want to achieve. Here’s the thing, people. Never let other people say that you dream big. Do shoot for the stars and let go of your fear. How do I do it? How do I let go of that fear? I just do things, because I know that even if I fail, love will help me survive. People who love you will always be there for you, but even if you feel that you’re alone and no one gets your dream and ambitions, remember that you have enough love for yourself to get you by. Have faith (even if you don’t believe in God or the idea of a god) that their is a bigger plan to all of these things — that there is a higher purpose.

A Moderately Complicated Life

When people say that they don’t want a life of complication, I get it. Who would want drama in their lives? But in the same way, who would want to be doing things that you don’t love? Why would you give up your dreams or the person who truly makes you happy, when you have a chance at it and a chance with that person? Why would you purposely miss a bus ride when you know for sure that it will take you to Disneyland?

Life, in general and basically, is complicated. I’d give anything to know how to live every day “perfectly” (oh, that can be a super hero power that I’d wish for) and make perfectly, non-regrettable decisions, but I can’t. We all can’t because of this fact — we are only human.

I think we should aim for a moderately complicated life. It makes our life more interesting and worth living. I think what will make it moderately complicated is if we try to do things that we have always wanted to do, but were always scared to do. Sometimes, the thing that scares us the most is the thing that is good for us. We can make our lives moderately complicated yet fulfilling and exciting when we pursue our passion (yech! overrated phrase, I know… but really true, so I apologize if I had to say that).

My Message for you Today

Embrace life, because life is fun and exciting!

Just go and do things that you love and things that you have always wanted to try. If you fail, then c’est la vie!

I Saw my Life Differently

All of a sudden, I knew that I was going to live my life differently from now on.

As you may have noticed, I have less sponsored posts in my blog now (this year). I’m sure you all know that I have been earning through brands that advertise through the site, and I don’t keep this a secret. I share my business experiences in this blog, and there is no shame in admitting that I earn through blogging. In the last few years, I have set my eyes on trying to reach a lot of people and was hoping to follow the path of my idols, Marie Forleo and Natalie McNeil. Both women made it big by branding themselves as mentors and industry experts. Marie has her own B school and people from around the world attend it. Natalie McNeil has her site SheTakesontheWorld.com and was deemed by Forbes magazine as one of the sites for women entrepreneurs to visit.

So anyway, early last year, I took on a path similar to theirs. I launched GTV, my own channel where I talked about tips on how to start your own business. I also continued my Love the Leap program which is a 3 day course on entrepreneurship. I did business and brand coaching. Aside from that, I got contracts for brand endorsements, etc.

I love it, and I still do. But recently, I saw my life differently. I realized that now, I have other alternatives and sometimes, the best way I can help individuals pursue their dreams and achieve their personal and business goals, is if I focus on the my own businesses. I realized that ManilaWorkshops.com, LoveLearning.co and MemoryCrafters.com.ph all have noble causes of teaching the core value that every entrepreneur should have, which is the willingness to learn and the desire for self-improvement.

I also realized that through writing more about what I experienced and felt every day through my blogs and my social media accounts, I could do what I really enjoy doing, which is to have conversations with people.

This year, I am bent on making every minute count. I am bent on looking at every second, every minute of my life as something valuable — something that will mean something, something that will make a difference.

 

Why We Need to be Better People

As I scroll down through Facebook updates, I see one update of a lady who was there during that horrific night in France. After recounting the specifics of what had happened during the concert, she goes on with these words. Her words got to me. “There last thoughts were not on the animals who caused all this. It was thinking of the people they loved… Last night, the lives of many were forever changed and it is up to us to be better people, to live lives that the innocent victims of this tragedy dreamt about but sadly will now never be able to fulfill. – Isobel Bowdery”

I have not been in any situation like that and I couldn’t imagine what she had gone through. I doubt anyone of us would want to be in her situation, but I admire her for exposing what we should be thinking of right now. Yes, we may wonder about what is happening to this world — why is there so much violence, violence that even involves killing innocent people. Our hearts may even be filled with anger for those who did this. We may blame a lot of people for all of these things happening, but I think what this should be is more of a wake up call.

Better People

A wake up call for us to be better people.

Better does not necessarily mean that you need to change the world. Better does not mean running for office or seeking for a government position. Better does not mean inventing a life-changing surgery that may change the medical industry (sorry, I watch too much Grey’s Anatomy and Code Black downloads). It doesn’t even mean building a huge conglomerate, let alone a company.

Better, for me, just means being in love — in love with life, in love with living. Better means waking up everyday, loving ourselves and loving how living gives us the opportunity to enjoy and grow. Better means seeing yourself as valuable and capable of making a difference in this world, no matter how big or how small. Better means living with integrity, conviction, kindness and faith. It means seeing and upholding what is fair and just. It means loving yourself so that you can love others more. It means being kind to people and respecting what they believe in even if you don’t necessarily agree with them.

Better means that we just don’t thrive with people in our community, but we mingle and interact. We build relationships — relationships that strengthen the main core of our existence which is to love. We help each other achieve and grow, learn and love. We help them move on from past hurt, heartaches, hang-ups, depression, bullying and other negativity that they may have experienced. We help them achieve their fullest potential, by actively helping them out or by just being there as a friend.

Better means realizing that minute things that we can do will impact society in a big way if we constantly do it. We need to give more importance to living intentionally. If ever something tragic happens (I sincerely hope it doesn’t happen to any of us), we need to be able to say that we have lived and loved. We have done everything that we could have done with this precious life. We have been good people and we lived a good life.