Embrace Change

Why is it when our kids leave home and go off to college it is the most traumatic change of our lives?  Then when they come home from college on break it seems to turn our world upside down.  Don’t get me wrong, I love my son being home.  However, I have decided I also love the routine and calm in my home when it is just my husband and I. 

This shows how quickly people can adapt to change when you welcome change and look to the positive outcomes like in my case, more quality time with my husband. 

 This also rings true in the work environment.  During times of growth companies experience inevitable change; change that some find more difficult than others. Everything is going along great, you get used to your jobs, daily tasks and responsibilities, and it becomes comfortable.  All of a sudden something occurs that rocks the happy boat whether it’s new policies and procedures, new people etc.   The way I see it, it’s all in the way you approach it. When you resist change, you don’t allow yourself to grow and experience new possibilities.  When you embrace change you may open yourself up to new ideas and opportunities for self betterment. I have listed a few changes that I took on that I feel have enriched my life from both a personal and business standpoint. 

 1)      Texting:  I resisted texting at first. I had to accept this change in order to communicate with my son.  This is how our youth communicates like it or not.  Sending and receiving a simple text has allowed me to stay in touch with my son and his daily activities.

2)      Website:  Several years ago I did not see the value in our company having a website.  I was convinced medical practices did not have the time to shop for their medical supplies on-line.  I decided to try it out and we invested in a website.  Our website now drives a substantial part of our business by generating the bulk of our new business each month.

3)      The big one…16 years ago when my company I worked for was bought out and I was about to lose my job. I was angry.  I wanted to quit immediately.  How dare they?  Instead of casting off negative energy and cutting off my nose to spite my face, I embraced this change.  I helped the new company transition through the buy out.  In turn this allowed me the biggest opportunity in my career…. to create Danlee Medical. 

 So I guess what I would like you to take away from this is yes, sometimes change can be hard but the benefits we stand to gain from change often times are immeasurable.  May we all welcome change in our lives and recognize that it is change that actually drives our futures.

Joni Walton
President -Danlee Medical

A Mom’s Lesson Learned

 

Was it worth all the times I had to work late?  When I look back, every picture my son drew of me was surrounded by hearts and I always had a big smile on my face.
All the times I felt guilty for taking time to go to the gym.  My son is an accomplished athlete.  Health and exercise are important to him.
I have always tried to treat everyone equal, be good, and always be sweet.  My son treats everyone with dignity and respect and says his mom is one of the nicest people you could ever meet.

It has been important to me to work hard for everything I wanted.  My son is now an honor student, earning a scholarship and going off to college.
For his college application, my son wrote an essay about who he admired most.  I was so surprised when he chose me. He said he would describe me as determined and its what he admires most.  He said I have the ability to balance work and family.  He wrote that I was a successful business woman but even a greater success at being a mother.
People sometimes ask me if I could have done anything different what would it be?  I always reply “not have worked so hard and spent more time with my family”.  Were my feelings of guilt unwarranted all these years?
I have been told that when I talk about my son, my eyes light up.  It is not surprising, I feel so much pride at the wonderful child he was and the man he has become.  When people tell me I should be proud of my accomplishments, I know they are referring to my job as a business owner.  But I am always thinking about my job as a mother.  My job as a mother will never be done, being a mother lasts forever.  It is one I gladly do everyday for free.  My reward is the smile on my son’s face.  That means everything to me.

All Mothers strive for perfection and live with underlying guilt.  I knowthat all my goals as a mom will probably never be met.  I have to ask myself maybe it’s not always about the time we spend with them but really about the examples we set.