Good morning, all! Got your coffee? Or tea? Or *shudder* morning cup of water? Good.
You wanna know what I've had on my mind for the past few days? I've been thinking about how I whine and complain and get all stressed out because I haven't achieved my blog dreams yet, when there are two MAJOR factors I am forgetting to include.
Factor numero uno: God has a perfect timing for everything. Not some things. Not the easy things. All things. If it hasn't happened yet, then it's not time yet. *note: some things are never going to happen because He has other plans, but that's a whole other post subject ;)
Factor numero dos: If I am really honest with myself, I haven't given it my all. I've worked hard, and I am proud of that, but there is sooooo much more I could be doing, and so much time I waste that could be spent on blogging and #allthebloggythings.
REAL Hustle is Purposeful Hustle
"Hustling" is a popular thing right now. If you search Pinterest you can find umpti-bazillion (that's a number, right?) pins that read something along the lines of "5 Side-Hustles to Make More Money" or, "Why I Hustle To Grow My Blog".
Hustling just means working hard and smart. And I want to "hustle" too. But Hustling also has to have a greater purpose in order to really succeed. My purpose for my blog is not to make money and work from home (as much as I long for that, dream of that, and am working towards that). Rather, my purpose is to share the gospel, share the truths of God's word, and share encouragement with the world- particularly women.
If I for one second think that I can gloss over my purpose and still have a meaningful career that will succeed, I have lost sight of what matters.
My dreams of working as a full-time blogger only matter and only work if I put my ultimate purpose first, and my dreams regarding that purpose second.
I want to hustle hard, hustle smart, and hustle with purpose. I want to work harder than I've been working- being willing to skip out on some relaxing or fun things in order to get to a point where I have more freedom to do those relaxing or fun things because I've reached my goals. I have to say no to some good things now, in order to reach the great things I am aiming for!
And I want all of that hustle to be focused in the right place. It is absolutely possible to work towards a money-making blog, while still putting God and His truths first. I can focus on my ultimate purpose- making sure I stay true to that- and still work hard towards being a full-time blogger. Those two things are not mutually exclusive. And for that I am very thankful!
So first of all, don't lose sight of your primary purpose. And secondly, if you are working towards something, put in the work. Have you really done your best? Really? Or are there things you could have done better, or put more time and effort into?
Happy Mug-spiration Monday, friends!
And before you leave, make sure you enter the Giveaway (below) I am a part of, put on by Brittany of Grace Love Life! There are some awesome prizes to win.
I want to hustle hard, hustle smart, and hustle with purpose. I want to work harder than I've been working- being willing to skip out on some relaxing or fun things in order to get to a point where I have more freedom to do those relaxing or fun things because I've reached my goals. I have to say no to some good things now, in order to reach the great things I am aiming for!
And I want all of that hustle to be focused in the right place. It is absolutely possible to work towards a money-making blog, while still putting God and His truths first. I can focus on my ultimate purpose- making sure I stay true to that- and still work hard towards being a full-time blogger. Those two things are not mutually exclusive. And for that I am very thankful!
So first of all, don't lose sight of your primary purpose. And secondly, if you are working towards something, put in the work. Have you really done your best? Really? Or are there things you could have done better, or put more time and effort into?
Happy Mug-spiration Monday, friends!
And before you leave, make sure you enter the Giveaway (below) I am a part of, put on by Brittany of Grace Love Life! There are some awesome prizes to win.
Grace, Love, Life's First Blogiversary Giveaway
In honor of Grace, Love, Life's first blogiversary I have teamed up with a few other amazing bloggers to give away an amazing prize package! We are giving away books, a journal, a coffee mug, and more! If you want to enter, all you have to do is fill out the entry form below. You can complete as many or as few of the tasks as you would like but the more that you enter the better your chances of winning will be! The giveaway will end on Friday, September 23 and the winner will be announced the following week. Please enter fairly. This giveaway is only open to USA entries only because I have to be able to afford to ship this to the winner.
Here's what's Included:
- Green and Gold Tote Bag
- 'Keep Calm and Pray On' Coffee Mug
- Love Never Fails Journal with stickers and pens
- Two Home Decor Prints from Craftivity Designs
- Coloring Book with Colored Pencils
- Black Raspberry Vanilla Candle from The Peculiar Treasure
- My Letters to Amy by Kimberley Schumacher
- Girl Talk by Jen Hatmaker
- Idol's of the Heart by Elyse Fitzpatrick
Good Luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Very well said! I love hustle with a purpose. Keeps you focused on the purest reason for doing what you do. And God does have His perfect timing. It's the waiting on Him to reveal it is the hard part! :) Thanks for sharing! And I'm excited about the giveaway, such cute items!
ReplyDeleteElizabeth, I am glad you entered the giveaway! And thank you! Yes, God does have a perfect timing. We just have to "hold our horses" and be patient ;)
DeleteThank you so much for being a part of the giveaway!
ReplyDeleteThank you for having me, Brittany!
DeleteLove, love your writing, Kristin! There's just something so real and relatable about the tone that you use and it's contagious! Love this so much. I love that you're always staying focused on your purpose!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Summer! This comment means so much to me and I appreciate it. And I am glad you enjoyed it!
DeleteSo much inspiration and good stuff in this post! You've really given me a lot to think about with respect to my goals and purpose so thank you!!
ReplyDeleteWell good! I am so glad it was an encouragement to you!
DeleteThis is so great! God says to work at everything with all of our heart, and it's so important to take that to heart and truly work at EVERYTHING with all of our heart! That is something I still need to get better at! :)
ReplyDeleteWe all do, Abbey! We all have some way in which we aren't giving God our all and aren't fully living how we should. We just have to keep trying and trusting God to carry our imperfect selves through.
DeleteThis post is very smart. Seriously. You are 100% right that if you're hustling to make money and not with purpose, you will only ever get so far (and probably burn out and be sad you didn't achieve your dreams) ... even if you get there it will be an empty victory.
ReplyDeleteI need to sit down and redefine my purpose.
xxox
Laura @ www.cookwineandthinker.com
Exactly, Laura! Our accomplishments won't matter if they are hollow and without any real substance.
Delete"My dreams of working as a full-time blogger only matter and only work if I put my ultimate purpose first, and my dreams regarding that purpose second." <--- this Kristin is everything!! IT's so true and such an important reminder. Its crazy how easy it is to lose/forget that perspective but its the only perspective for success!
ReplyDeleteRachel | www.theconfusedmillennial.com
Thank you so much, Rachel! It really is! Even if we achieve good things, it will be very hollow if we don't live out our purpose!
DeleteThank you for your thoughtful, inspiring post! It's so important (and often difficult) to stay focused on those long term dreams and goals when you are bumping your way through the day-to-day. Recently, I've made it a practice as part of my morning routine to write down three specific intentions for the day (i.e., express gratitude, make someone smile, think first, etc.). Interestingly, while these intentions are not at all productivity driven, the simple act of writing them down (which takes less than five minutes) seems to be having an amazing impact on both my personal and professional lives.
ReplyDeleteThat is so cool, Renee! It's so interesting how little, tiny steps towards a better day can end up making a huge impact! Thank you for sharing that!
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