words by tara.com

Many years ago, I had a small business in the direct selling industry and I loved it! I sold beauty products, but what really excited me was the opportunity to help other women grow their businesses too. A couple of older women, who were top sellers, took me under their wings, taught me everything they knew, supported me, and were equally excited to see me succeed and I did.  What also was a tremendous part of my success was my relationship with God and understanding how he played a major role in that little business I was slowly growing. God gives us all different types of dreams and for some, that includes working for themselves. His word has a lot to say about business, integrity, ethics, service, and being in a relationship with customers.  Since starting wordsbytara.com four years ago, I have come to understand, even more, the importance of being in alignment with Him.  My new ebook, Business God’s Way: Encouragement for the Woman Growing A Small Business, is being released

Short Musings  is a random collection of writing ideas of 300 words or less. Resistance. When we resist the pain, it blocks the new thing that is trying to emerge. The more we resist, the more the pain intensifies. Lean into the pain and accept what is to begin to heal and ultimately transform  yourself and your life . Service. Everyone has something they were created to do in this world; even if you don’t think so, you really do. Our purpose and God-inspired dreams are always bigger than us because they are about honoring God and serving others. Our gifts, talents, passions, and experiences are not meant for us to hold onto and never share them with others. Instead, a God-inspired dream is how our purpose is expressed. It is essential to understand this, honor it and then do something about it. Life. This is how life works. We do our part, and God does His. But in the process, we must not become attached to a specific outcome simply because things do not always

My latest work on www.speakthewords.com. Maybe we are not supposed to fulfill our dreams, but instead, lay the foundations for future generations to carry out the work and complete the dreams. This was the thought that came to me as I sat down to write this piece. I also thought about what it could mean for each of us who are the bearers of dreams we hope to see manifested. I came across an audio version of a lesser-known speech entitled  Unfulfilled Dreams  given by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. one month before he was assassinated. In it, he talked about King David’s dream to build a temple and how he died before carrying out the vision. Dr. King said, “At so many points we start, we try, we set out to build our various temples. And I guess one of the great agonies of life is that we are constantly trying to finish that which is unfinishable. We are commanded to do that. And so we, like David, find ourselves in so many instances having to face the fact that our dreams are not

Short Musings  is a random collection of writing ideas of 300 words or less. Dreams. Every day, we are given a chance to live fully and intentionally. Part of that involves doing what we were created to do and living our dreams. The dreams I am referring to are that no matter how hard you try to ignore, avoid, or run away from, you just can't because they are in you. The dream He has placed in your heart, the one that just can't let go of no matter how crazy or illogical it may seem,  that  is yours to do. Stagnation. There is a purpose in being stuck. And when we enter those times where nothing seems to be changing, we need to have open hearts and minds to be present for the lessons this season of life wants to teach. The times of stagnation are when we are standing on fertile ground, ground that is primed for amazing transformation and blessings to grow from and for the movement of life to begin again.  Gratitude. At its core, giving thanks is about perspective an

A new guest post at createwritenow.com I recently forgot the importance of trusting my inner voice. My life was changing, which meant there were decisions I needed to make, but instead of deciding, I found myself reverting back to an old habit of overthinking everything. I was spending too much time in my head wrestling with the choices, weighing the pros and cons, and searching for guarantees that didn’t exist. Whenever I feel overwhelmed by the need to make big life decisions, I cling tightly to what is familiar and comfortable despite knowing that change is necessary and inevitable. Realizing what was happening to me, I reached out to a friend and was reminded I needed to go back to the blank page. I am an avid journal writer, but I tried to figure out everything in my head instead of writing. This gentle reminder led me back to my journal and to one of my favorite techniques, called the Four Questions. Without fail, these questions always help me gain clarity abo

The idea of creating your own opportunities is not a new one. For ages, people have been “making lemonade out of lemons,” creating their own paths when there seemed to be none.  I once read a book where the author recalled the ups and downs he experienced on his road to success. During one particular point in his life, he found himself out of work, and employment prospects were nonexistent. In the book, he wrote that since he could not find a job he went out and created one. He created for himself the thing he needed the most at that particular time in his life.  Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, "Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” Sometimes the path that is before us may not be the right one to take. Sometimes there is no path and we have to figure out how to create our own.

Part Four of the Dream Makers Series You have a dream. A dream you have held for a long time. You have thought about it. You have fantasized about it. You have talked about it. You have created a plan for it. Perhaps you have even made attempts to live it. But then something happened. Maybe fear and doubt got in the way. Maybe life pulled you in a different direction. Your obligations and responsibilities demanded more of your time and efforts. Or maybe you started to go in the direction of your dreams, and then you quit. What you once thought was possible, you now think is not possible at all. But… the dream has not died. It is still alive, beating strong within the deepest parts of who you are. No matter how many times you tried to ignore it, pretended it did not exist, refused to take ownership of it, it remained. It has never gone away. Your God-inspired dream will not leave you. It is what you were created for and is directly tied