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Health & Fitness

Work and Remember to Live

Inspiration from a tea bag quote

As many of you know, I’m the mother of three girls co-owner of Bacci Chocolate Design and The Chocolate Truffle, active member of the Reading North Reading Chamber of Commerce, Town Meeting Member for Precinct 5 in Reading, Member of the Civic Group Making Reading Better, a contributor to the Reading Patch Mom’s Council and a blogger for the Reading and Winchester Patch.  Recently, I have taken on a new position with Sanborn Place, Homecare and Day Services www.sanbornphc.org. If any of you knew me back in college you knew that I commuted and took a full time course load, and worked “full time”  at one of the many jobs I held in the Burlington Mall (I had worked for three different stores at the same time.)

It’s been eight years since college and the trend still continues, but this morning a reminder came to me as a quote on my tea bag “Work, but remember to live.” Wow! Work? I work because I have to. Live? I’m certainly living, but am I really living? We are a society that encourages treating oneself because it’s good for us. We mentally need to take time for ourselves.  I keep a post it on my computer which is a note to myself:  “How will I spend my 20 minutes today?”  Sometimes I give myself 20 minutes, sometimes more.  I work because I have to, but because I love to.  I take on projects that have synergy and positive connections. Through the positive I have clarity to focus on time management. One night last week my daughter said to me “even though you’re doing a lot now you seem to be getting more done.”  If you look closely at the dust in my house, you’ll know what I’m not getting done! However, what I’m learning about myself is I love to be involved and feel like I’m accomplishing something. My husband Carlo and I are the third owners of The Chocolate Truffle and since 2003 we have grown the business to national recognition and added a manufacturing division which sells to other specialty stores such as Whole Foods and Stonewall Kitchen. I constantly remind myself when something or someone is a negative I need to move myself away.  In business when a customer is a negative I refer to them as a “bad profit”. I remind my staff that they’re not our customer, and we can’t compromise our business philosophy to accommodate a non customer. Work, but remember to live. Work and be true to yourself in your business and you will be successful.

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