so i have a girl crush. and my kids have heard wayyyy too much about her.
rachel hollis, of the book, girl wash your face fame (omg, omg, the book: a must read) has been inspiring me for the last nine months since i found her on audible.com. it was fate. you know those moments, when you are in a place and just need to hear that one particular message delivered in just that one perfect way? well that was what did it. everything i have been working towards for the last four years of my life summed up by someone else's story, everything i've been fighting for and not quite knowing how to achieve coming through my ear buds. i was sold.
i've been playing around with this in my head for the last nine months. trying to figure out how to follow my DREAM while playing myself down like it's no big deal. i want to be successful and grow, i want to knock it the hell out of the park, but maybe i should just keep a lampshade on my lamp, set myself in the corner and keep my big DREAM quiet and hidden in the lowlight. stay small. but i can't. that's just not me. i'm kind of loud and aggressive and hyper when it comes to my DREAM and i just can't wait around and keep hoping it's going to come to fruition by playing it small. nope. i can't. i've allowed others to shush me my whole life.
"why would you want to open a restaurant? you have kids. don't you want to be a good mother and raise them yourself."
(implying, what? that bad mothers who work aren't good mothers at all?)
i realize today (for the past nine months to be exact), that i've allowed those people to shush me because i don't like friction. i'm a pleaser. i don't love making waves. sure, i have a DREAM, and like many others, i've been passively DREAMING it rather than going out and getting it. why? because every time i moved towards it, took that step into my DREAM, it caused friction. for my husband. for my kids. sometimes for my friends and extended family. less time at home. tired at the end of the day. not present as much as i would like to be. that motion causes friction. but that's the price to pay for the DREAM.
spent the last three years trying to make catchy. good. i set about to create a business that had wings, was self supporting, that drew people in. it was my only DREAM for too many years to count. i had to learn how to pump out great food consistently for 10-12 hours a day. then i had to learn how to hire the best people. not just amazing chefs, amazing PEOPLE. hard working and talented, sure, but more importantly ones with heart and a never-ending supply of grit and determination to be better at what they do every day. then came balancing a budget. holy LORD did i fail at that more months than not in the beginning: first way to destroy a business? give it all away in donations because i didn't want anyone not to like me. uhhhh. i will never forget when my dad sent me a quote in college that said "the recipe for failure is trying to make everyone happy." truer words.
but over those three years i have figured it out with more help and brainpower from every person i surrounded myself with: managers. chefs. friends. siblings. podcasters. self help books. because i can't stop at catchy.just being good. that was okay for the beginning. but it's time. time to be extraordinary. it's time i make catchy. GREAT.
so february 1st marked the day i decided it was time to:
GROW catchy. BIG IN 2019.
to do that i'm gonna have to get big. cause friction. be bold when there is a piece of me that likes to play it safe and maybe just a bit small. so here it is, to pursue my DREAM, i realized i have to ask it. ASK FOR THE BUSINESS. every day, right here. RIGHT NOW. so i'm calling on you all - my 1500 followers: spread the word to your friends, at your office, to your kid's schools. we do teacher appreciation lunches. we do pasta parties. we do weddings. we do corporate. WE DO EVERYTHING.
and for EVERY one of you that helps me grow, who refers me to a friend who uses us, you will receive a referral fee in the form of a gift card from catchy. to use however you choose. i'm asking you to partner with me on this DREAM. i want to expand catchy. i want to buy this building we occupy. i want increase this space and drive catchy. so big that we expand into other towns and possibly even a state or two. i'm chasing down my DREAM today and every day until 2019 is over and i can see that we grew 10% and are geared up to grow 15% in 2020.
and i'm going to keep doing it over and over whether it makes me annoyed and uncomfortable or not. who's with me?? all in favor: order lunch online t
