What happened to us? I try not to share my political views on the RuffleBlog, but after hearing a very disappointing statistic this morning, I realized that my political views are a part of who I am, and I strive to share me, my honest self, with you. Take or leave it, right or wrong, they are my opinions. So, I come back to the question, what happened to us...to the American dream?
According to the New York Post, "One in three Americans believe the government should make it illegal to pay athletes and movie stars more than $1 million per year...There is more support for capping the pay of corporate executives - with 36 percent saying the federal government should make it illegal to pay any company exec more than $1 million a year."
What happened to being happy for others? I agree that some occupations are overpaid, but the wonderful thing about our country is that it is all up to you! If you want to pursue one of those occupations, go for it!! I work very hard, as do many, many women out there. Mark and I sacrifice many evenings spent with the family, instead working at the computer. I sacrifice time I would rather be playing with my daughter. We work when we would rather be doing something else, to build a foundation for our family. There are many dads out there that would rather come home at 5:30 to hang out with the fam as opposed to spending late nights at the office, but they sacrifice to pay the bills. There are other moms out there going to work everyday when they would rather be at home, but they also have to pay the bills. I do not choose money over my family by any means, but I sacrifice like many others.
We make these sacrifices now, so one day, we can offer our children a foundation of security. I hope to spend more time with my family, as my business grows and brings in more income. It is the same with many other occupations. Many of us pay the dues early on, to invest in our future. We work hard with big dreams. If your dreams have a government imposed limit, why do it? I have always been so proud to be an American, but this attitude is so extremely disappointing!! Why should our government have any say in how much income we can earn or how big we should dream?
The sad reality is that the majority of the people that support this salary cap are the bottom earners. What they don't realize is that if they want everyone at the same earning level, many small businesses would never start, many jobs would be lost. The welfare system would loose it's funding that is there to help them on their feet when things get tough. Where do you think those taxes come from...the people that pay the larger %, the people that earn more $$.
Lift and encourage others, do not pull them down to make your self feel better. This goes for so many areas of life. Don't get caught up in this selfish behavior. Celebrate the success of others and it will come back at you. Get sucked into the ugliness of jealousy and find yourself sinking in the quicksand of loneliness. Dream big, achieve big - there are NO LIMITS!!
"That a girl Amber!! As long as you are true to yourself nothing else matters!!
Your products are AMAZING, and of wonderful quality!!
A loyal customer!! ~Lisa"
"Amber, you are allowed to be a bit "negative" at times! That makes you human, of course! I hope whatever got you down has been pushed out of your mind. You are doing a great job and your products are adorable! Keep on keepin' on! ~Anna (Sweet Dreams Designs)"
What can I say...we have the best customers ever!! I just received these notes today from two of my favorite customers. I do know how truly blessed I am. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for all of your support and encouragement. This is also a nice reminder that although we are all far from perfect, and some of us are a little further than others, there are still many incredibly considerate, supportive, caring and overall wonderful people out there! When you find them, hold on tight and count your blessings. I know I couldn't do any of this without the fabulous people in my life!
Okay, so completely changing the subject...I had to share this recent pic of me and the little one. Talk about blessings!
Okay, after reading that last post, I just add to make a little addition...it sounded a little too negative for me. Although, I sometimes find myself disappointed by others actions, I have to say that for the most part, I work with some incredible people! I do what I do and find so much fulfillment in my job mostly from my amazingly wonderful customers. I receive phone calls and emails weekly telling us that we are doing a good job, that little angels are enjoying our creations, and that, most importantly, we are making people smile.
For every complaint we receive, the are 99 compliments - I couldn't ask for anything more! The fact that our customers take time out of their day to share kind words, makes me the luckiest business owner in the world. I know that business can not be all gumdrops and lollipops, but sometimes I just get so frustrated that people don't look at the bigger picture. I am so blessed that 95% of my days are spent in a positive manner, but I am human and just hate dealing with disappointment and frustration.
I literally had nightmares last night that everyone hated our products and that they were of horrible quality. I think this was a combination of dealing with a difficult vendor and a customer complaint that I just couldn't get out of my head. Man, Oprah was so right about complaints!!
When you sacrifice your ethics, you are sacrificing your legacy. When you inspire and lift others, the world has this wonderful way of filling your heart.