Green Cinderella: proof that shoes can change your life

21 worry-free days ahead

Song for the day: Three Little Birds- Bob Marley

♪♫ Don’t worry

‘Bout a thing

Cuz every little things

Gonna be alright

 
When I first found out I was laid off, my mind vacillated between 2 extreme modes of thought:

-          Exuberance: I can go to yoga in the middle of the day! I can go to the beach- RIGHT NOW! (and I did)

-          Fear: How am I going to pay my rent?

-          Exuberance: I can work on Charmone any time of day – from anywhere. I can go ANYWHERE. I am free!

-          Fear: How exactly am I going to pay for yoga? How am I going to pay for all the big plans I have? Does this mean I have to cancel cable? (btw, that is a yes)

Seeing the opportunity to slide into whatever extreme state I wanted, I made a decision. I will choose exuberance. I made a deal with myself that I will be positive, joyous, excited and happy and not allow an ounce of fear or panic to cross my mind- at least for the rest of this month. There’s something freeing about telling yourself that it’s okay to worry, but you’re just not going to worry RIGHT NOW. You’re putting worry on a shelf and recognizing that it's there, but it’s not part of you. Does that mean I'm going to spend all day at the beach chillin’? No, but I’m certainly going to spend some parts of some days doing just that. Every day I’m going to focus on what I can do that day to affect the outcome I desire- whether it’s making Charmoné more successful, or looking for work or consulting gigs. And once I’ve done all I can for that day, I’m going to play! I’m going to enjoy this time off like I’ve never been able to in the past, without fear or worry. Because I can worry in June, if I must, but I’m kind of thinking by then this whole no fear/no worry thing just might be a habit. Try it with me- who knows what we can all accomplish if we put worry on a shelf?

School Shoes – Back to Reality

Summer 2008 has quietly come to a close. I don’t know why I always find it such a shock. As someone with a late-August birthday, I’ve often greeted my birthday celebrations with excitement - Leos like it when it’s all about them - and a touch of melancholy at the imminent end to the carefree summer days of no school, a lighter professional load, and the escape of family vacations.

There is something to savor in the last weeks of summer, the beach vacation where you park the car when you arrive and walk everyplace for days. Watching my kids play in the sand for hours and grow bolder and stronger swimming and riding their bikes. That last calm deep exhale before you jump back into the long race.

One aspect of back to school that I’ve always loved is the fresh school supplies, the new clothes and especially the pilgrimage to get new shoes for the kids. No more summer sandals and flip-flops. It’s all shoes, sneakers and boots until late next spring.

I love the smell of new shoes and new school supplies. Is smells like a new beginning, turning a page in life where progress is measured by what grade you’re in, and in my daughter’s case, how many teeth she’s lost compared to her second grade companions (8 teeth,by the way).

I love that first day of school when the kids and parents are buzzing with excitement. Fresh faces and an army of new shoes marching in, heads held high in hope and anticipation of new and exciting things. I find it amusing that new shoes always look way too big on kids when they first put them on. You have to leave room for bulky socks, and they will grow, so you need to leave some extra room for that too. It’s even more amazing that within a few months they outgrow the very shoes that seemed clownish when they first put them on.

New beginnings can be scary but new shoes can help a kid take that brave first step into the unknown. I wish new shoes could do that for grown-ups too.

Being in the shoe business, new shoes represent a new beginning for me as well. Every season brings new designs, new materials and new opportunities to improve; to become more eco-friendly and better stewards of the environment. I see it as an opportunity to create the kind of company and reality that I want to live in.

Welcome back to school, kids, and welcome the Fall 2008 Charmone collection. May we all have a year of growth, learning and success!

By Lauren Carroll

Happy Mother’s Day!

By Lauren Carroll

Here’s a shout out to mothers who do so much for the smallest among us with no expectation of a pat of the back or even a thank you for the effort. It’s great to set aside a day to celebrate the best and most challenging job in the world. I have two little ones myself: a daughter, 7 and a son, 3. Being a Mother is the job that I love most and my children were one of my strongest inspirations in creating a company that offers a positive product to the world.

My last gig in “corporate America” was as a VP of marketing in a mid-sized technology company that was in management crisis. Some real shark type consultants were brought in to build up the company to try to sell it off. At the time, I had only my first child and was very conflicted when working full-time at such a demanding job and leaving my daughter in day-care, albeit a really wonderful daycare trifecta made up of my mother, mother-in-law and a great daycare provider close my home. Long story short, the new management called a meeting and told us to hate our competition. “But we don’t just hate our competitors; we hate our competitors’ mothers too” said the new temporary CEO. And that’s when I knew.

I knew I could never hate anyone’s mother especially just because they were a competitor, and I knew that I could no longer fit into that world. I realize now – as I did then – that this was just bravado to “psych up” the troops, but I realized that I needed to travel a path that better suited my personal beliefs and that there has to be a better, more maternal approach to business.

On Mother’s Day, I have a few traditions that really feed my soul. I sleep late – made it all the way to 9:30 AM this year. That’s pretty good. Followed by cards and breakfast in bed. I’m not a big fan of eating where I sleep, but the kids like it. Then a few hours of planting my annual flowers and vegetables for the year. My two little ones always want to help and usually do for small bursts of time, which is nice. I also treasure some solitude and working with the earth for a few hours.

It’s symbolic really. Tending to the earth for such a short time gives us so much in the end, a season’s worth of beauty and an abundance of food. Mother’s day does the same, one day of recognition and special attention to a Mother sews the seeds for another year of abundant giving and love.