The Finish Line

Tonight is it.  This is my last outstanding assignment for my last class of this semester.  I have been through ups and downs.  I have panicked and rushed to meet deadlines.  I have submitted assignments while driving in the car to different cities.  But I have finished this semester.
Things haven't been easy for me this semester.  A lot of changes in my goals in life happened while I was taking this course.  The thing that has been amazing to me has been that each time that I seem to be wrestling with something, the lessons in this course have perfectly fit those situations and I have come out of each week excited to continue on my journey to success.
As I reflect upon my journey, I can't help but think about the talk from President Thomas S. Monson titled, "Finishers Wanted."  This talk was highly appropriate for this week's lesson because it talks about finishing what you started.  This course may have finished, however the road to success has just begun, for me.
As I sit here, I am thinking about my 5 beautiful babies asleep in their beds.  My success depends on how well each of them turn out.  I have many ambitions.  I am involved in this fundraising capital campaign for the Noyes Fine Arts Foundation and have taken on a role as Executive Director for the Katy Children's Choir.  Both of these things are amazing.  I am working in an industry that allows me to mix my love of music with my love of business.  However, my success in life will not depend on how well I do in these positions.  My success will depend on how well my children turn out.  If I fail as a mother, nothing else will matter.
Taking this course as a 36 year old woman gives me different perspective on things.  I feel as though I have a better understanding of who I am.  This course really makes you dig into who you are, what your talents are, what your goals are and what you are willing to do to get there.  I feel that because I have already had to figure out who I am, my path in this course has been easier than it would have been had I done this when I was 18.
Jim Ritchie has made regular appearances in both the reading and the videos required for this course.  I have learned a lot from him.  This week he encouraged us to think about who we want to become in order to become peak performers.  He then made statements of "I am" when listing the qualities of a peak performer.  The statements are as follows:

I am financially self-reliant
I am physically fit
I am identifying my skills and talents
I am a product of what I eat
I understand the value of humor
I am a leader
I am creative
I am mentally tough; I don't complain
I am a communicator
I can motivate without depreciating others
I am like the great enlightened masters of history

These "I am" statements felt as though they came straight out of my journal.  Every item on this list is something that I am constantly striving to achieve.  Jim Ritchie states that successful leaders have these qualities.  I am striving to be a successful leader, and I am trying to teach my children how to be successful leaders.  I feel as though I am on the right path.
For those students who take this course in the future, I recommend that you take the time to truly reflect on who you are when completing the assignments.  Writing my own personal code of ethics and "I will never" statements came at a perfect time for me when I was making a big decision.  Being able to instantly use what I had written gave me direction at a time when I needed it most.  I feel as though I have been put on the path that I am supposed to be on and that I am well on my way to the rest of my life.
The goal now is to cross that finish line.  Right now, at the beginning of my journey, the finish line is but a dot in the distance, but every day it gets closer.  Some days are drudgery, and some days are exciting and fun, but each day that I complete with another step towards my goal of achieving success is another day that I get closer to that finish line.  Even though the path that I have chosen is not the path that I would have seen coming when I was 18, I love that this is the journey that I am meant to be on.
Life is crazy and hectic and there are so many options.  This is why the Introduction to Entrepreneurship class has been so fantastic.  It has helped me take all of my options and aspirations and narrow them down to one focused goal.
 I want to be involved in something that is bigger than myself so that when I die, my children will have a positive legacy left behind for them.
That is my finish line.  When it comes, I want to be ready.  That is why I am putting one leg in front of the other and am working tirelessly at achieving my goal.  It is for my family and my children.