When you hit the grand old age of 50, you find that you have worn many hats over the years… and it is fun to look back at what all you have experienced.
To help pay for college, I was in the United States Army Reserves. That just happened to be about the same time we had a little Persian Gulf Conflict and my unit was activated. Queen of the typewriter, I was on duty to process soldiers who were activated and shipping out, while most of my hospital unit went overseas.
I ended up owning a restaurant and catering company with one of the best partners in the world: my mom. We learned a lot over that 10 years – with a perishable product, labor intensive industry and long man hours! Featured in many TV segments, newspaper articles and even on a radio show, we finally decided that it was time to move on to something else.
That is where I met my husband, Andrew. We have been married for 25 years now. Crazy, right?
As the restaurant was wrapping up, I joined Tupperware Brands and rose quickly through the ranks. For years I enjoyed being part of the largest vehicle fleet in the direct sales market, training at both Regional and National events as well as helping others use it as a vehicle to make their dreams come true. My adoption story was even featured in their National Sales Force monthly magazine. It was fun traveling everywhere from Hawaii to Europe, and on their dime.
Now for the best job ever: being a mom. On June 17, 2006 I had the blessings of little Miss Sarah added to my life and it is a new adventure every day! You can learn more about her on HER site (See it HERE) but it has been important to be the Girl Scout Leader, Dance Mom, etc. Who knew that she was going to state college at the age of 9? Be a public speaker? Publish 20 books before she turned 12? She keeps amazing me daily!
That takes me to the world of Social Media and blogging. It all started with Operation $40K, and saving $40,000 in less than a year so we could sell our house and buy a larger one with no bank loan. As a former professional chef, I cover recipes. There are also travel, parenting, and other lifestyle concepts that I talk about: basically living a champagne life on a beer budget. Soon, I was giving lectures to libraries and financial institutions, then came the books.
Soon the Professional Social Media Influencer Network that I founded came about, and how I help other bloggers connect with brands and make money for both parties.
Not only am I the head of PSMI, I’ve been blogging for 10 years, have 19 active sites, do public speaking, and have published over 500 books. I have nonfiction, cookbooks, planners, travel, journals, fiction, and romance. Bestsellers are mixed in there and I am now mentoring others on how to self publish – and profit!
My journey isn’t over yet, but it has been one heck of a fun ride so far!