Mom of the Month - Barbara Sher

For Day 4 of the blogging challenge sponsored by SITS Girls, Standards of Excellence, Westar, and Florida Builder Appliances, I get to highlight a woman who inspires me.

Courtesy of Genius Press

Meet Barbara Sher, best-selling author, speaker, life coach and business woman. I had the pleasure of meeting Barbara when I attended her Big Cheap Weekend Workshop in NYC. Here's what Barbara promised to teach (and I assure you, she delivered!)

1. How to discover what you really want when you think you don't know. (Clue: You do.)
   
2. How to melt that mysterious resistance that stops you from going after your dreams so you can finally say goodbye to being stuck.
   
3. What you should do when you want to do everything. (Clue: Everything!)
   and finally
   
4. How to do what you love without starving to death.

Barbara and her workshop had a life-changing impact on me. She told us we are obligated to use our gifts and do what we love, and she showed us it's possible.Throughout the workshop, she led group exercises to move us closer to our dreams. For example, we pitched our wishes and obstacles to fellow attendees. In return, they provided supportive feedback and genius ideas to help make them happen. I arrived saying I want to help moms take better care of themselves so they can take better care of their families. I left believing in myself and new ways to bring joy back to weary moms' faces. What's more, in a one-on-one conversation with Barbara, she gave me the encouraging kick I needed to finish writing my book, "Praying Through Your Adoption."

My quote, which Barbara includes on her website, attempts to sum up the experience:

"A wishing well among kindred spirits, from ideas to possibilities, and strangers to friends."

How do you thank someone for helping you believe in yourself when you're accustomed to hearing the dream-crushers' voices, including your own? You put the teacher's lessons into practice. And that's exactly what I did! I came home with a drive to finish and publish my book (coming very soon) and re-launch Mommy Forward with a new logo and focus that includes live and online events for moms. Our first event is an Online Book Club for "Becoming a Mother on Fire," a book I heard about from a workshop attendee. I hope to offer other events like seminars and moms' night outs in the future.

I encourage you to check out Barbara's resources. She's sure to inspire you, too. Thank you, Barbara Sher!

• Free downloadable book: Wishcraft
• I Could Do Anything If I Only Knew What It Was: How to Discover What You Really Want and How to Get It
• Refuse to Choose!: Use All of Your Interests, Passions, and Hobbies to Create the Life and Career of Your Dreams