The most important lesson I have held onto since beginning my stationery company has been to live by the mission statement: Plan Everything And Succeed (PEAS). I lean on this every time I face a challenge, and I am uncertain of what the outcome may be.
Once my 4 pound yorkie, Georgia Weeda, was trampled and had to be hospitalized until she could eat, drink, pee, poop and walk. I remember the first day I had to leave her in the hospital in an oxygen chamber and I was so afraid of the uncertainty, would she ever be able to recover and come home? I called every two hours to see if she had reached any of those milestones in her recovery, and the answer was always no. The next day, I decided I was going to plan her successful recovery. I was going to prepare her space to come home to. I planned to spend the day at the vet. I planned to pick up McDonald's chicken nuggets and a cheeseburger! I was a woman with just a prayer and a plan! That same day, I was able to get her to walk, to drink, pee and poop. All she had left to do was eat! When the vet saw how motivated she was with me there, she said, "She needs you, just take her home! She will eventually eat." And she did eventually eat the next day, it wasn't McDonalds, it was Southeast DC Carryout Wings that my Husband brought home LOL!
That was the first time I realized that PEAS was more than a mission statement. It is a way out of those moments of uncertainty. Having a plan gives you direction, motivation and strength to push through the doubt. That same year, I would stay with my Stepmother for a month in rotation with my siblings to care for her and my father as she battled Multiple Myeloma, a cancer of the blood. And again, with a prayer and a plan, I started working on all the things necessary for her to come home. I prepared a wound cleaning station, I filled her fridge with prepared meals, I organized the linen closets, laundry room and pantry. We hired a contractor to come put safety handles in the shower and bathroom. The plan was to prepare for her to come home. When that would be, we didn't know. But working on that plan, left no room for doubt. It meant she was coming home. And she did! Here we are on year four and she is still fighting cancer every damn day, but she plans to be here for as long as she can!
PEAS does not have to be a big life changing moment. There are times I have had a big project with a short deadline that starts to give me anxiety. Every time I start to feel that overwhelm and fill my mind with doubts of success or accomplishment. I tell myself, you have to have a plan to succeed. Stop spiraling and start organizing your plan. Strategize for a successful outcome. And I have never failed myself. I continue to be more and more successful in every endeavor because of the simplest acronym, I carry with me. P. E. A. S., Plan EVERYTHING And Succeed!