Dig into your dirt - it's the richest soil for inspiration.

"You're making what?" It's a question I fielded a lot when I first dug into making Kiki's Mustards. Not only was it a far cry from the lane that my educational background had put me in, it wasn't even 'regular' mustard, it was mustard made with chickpeas. With no culinary background, no MBA in my tool belt, 1,500 miles from family and friends, and emotional upheaval being my guide, I chose to cook. To create. To make mustard, which I loved, with chickpeas, to add something new, savory, and fun to the world. To move the needle of my life forward instead of staying in a rut. We try so many ways to rid our lives of the hard times, of the 'dirt', the muck, the stuff we try to hid from others. Staying 'clean', presentable, in control, always seems to be the desired position to have in ones life and yes, it is. You want to feel good, healthy, and in charge. But there are times when each of us are not CEO's of our best life or our best foot forward.

That's where I was when I created Kiki's. At the bottom. Why that was the case is a conversation for another piece, but the choosing to make something of being in that position is important. We need to use the times of discontent. There are important lessons in those muddy waters, and the more we try to wash them away without really diving in, deeper, taking a closer look, I truly believe we fail to grow. Dwelling isn't the goal, but using the emotion, the upheaval of contentment, the shift in dynamics, can not only lead to personal growth, and strength of character, but also can be the inspiration for the next big 'thing' in your life.

When you get the rejection letter, the call to let you know the loan wasn't approved, the end of the relationship or friendship, before you allow anger to wash over and take the wheel, take a moment of self reflection. I know, you're thinking "yeah right, it's not that easy", and you're right, it's not. It's painful, and hard, but it's harder to let those be the moments that define you, your character and your self worth. It's a more expensive life bet letting the house not only win, but take part of your soul. So, what do you do?

Take control. Take back the you you thought you left on the table. Reflect on the situation and note the places where you may have had responsibility for the failure, while also noting the parts that had noting to do with you, and see what you can learn from your piece. When you take responsibility for what you brought to or detracted from a situation, from a presentation, from a lost promotion, etc, you can learn what aspect of yourself may need work. You can also see that you're worth more than giving up. Maybe the lost promotion can lead you to turning that side business into a Plan A. Maybe the presentation tanking, can lead to focusing on a new path for your organization. Maybe the loss of a relationship can open you up to meeting new people who are more alined with your soul center. Either way, learning from the failures allows us to not drown in them, it enables us to take the power back and not be defined by them.

It took me this extraordinary mustard creation to realize my worth. Crazy? To some, maybe. But I'm not defined by others opinions, not defined by my past, I make my own definition of my life. Join me, the view from the mud pies I have made from my 'dirt', from each of my failures, from every loss, is truly breath taking! There's always time to dig into you dirt so stop avoiding it dive in.