He said it was quite unlike me.  You mean like a craft, he asked.  My husband was confused as to why I bought paint-by-number sets.

I was hosting a holiday tamale dinner (homemade by yours truly!), and decided to make it a painting party as well.

When I unboxed all the art supplies, I realized I underestimated just how many numbers appeared on each forthcoming masterpiece.  You ladies will be painting for a week straight, JD laughed as he shook his head and walked away.

Undaunted, my friends and I started the party by unwrapping tamales, then unwrapping our supplies.  NINE hours later, they left with unfinished paintings.

The following morning I told JD I wasn’t going to finish the painting.  I was overwhelmed.  It took more time than expected.  I wasn’t seeing results.  There were so! many! details!

Each day, however, I painted a little more.  I worked in small sprints because, well, I realized this painting represented building a business.

Building a business is overwhelming.  It takes more time than expected.  It rarely yields quick results.  And there are so! many! details!

It’s been two weeks since I started my paint-by-number masterpiece, and more than a decade since I started my business, and yet I’m excited to continue to see small bits of progress, each adding to the bigger picture.

As we begin the new year, I hope you find yourself ready to work on your masterpiece, regardless of how long it takes, or what progress is experienced.

To slowly unwrapping your success (and tamales),

j*

P.S. You know those conversations that start from the heart right away – the ones where there’s no small talk about the weather, no introduction… nothing but straight up honesty? That’s exactly the kind of conversation I had with Anthony Trucks on today’s podcast. Click >>PLAY<< if you want to hear us talk about everything from owning the value you bring to the world to how to be ok when people reject your offer to what I hope JD and I pass on to Luna (and a whole lot more).