We now have almost 50 sales reps selling our inspirational cards, journals and notepads to stores around the country. That may sound like a lot but we have a long way to go. From what we can see, small business people are still struggling as much as they were last year. It seems like whatever improvements in the economy we hear about on the news haven’t really hit Main Street yet. Thankfully, our products are reasonably priced and carry positive messages of hope and encouragement so we’re off to a good start. (People need encouragement more than ever these days.) We get requests from many of you for stores in your home town that carry our products but as we said, we still have a long way to go. One step at a time. If you know any stores that would like to carry our line, please let us know. (And if they place an order, we’ll send you an assortment of free products as a thank-you gift.) One step at a time – with the help of our friends.

Blanchards Restaurant is thriving, despite the economy. The number of tourists visiting the island is still way down from past years but we’re doing well. Our staff is as energetic as ever and truly love what they do. Last week we had a private party and it was a blast. We set up a bar on the beach and everyone watched the sunset over Meads Bay while sipping rum punch and nibbling crispy grilled shrimp drizzled with a soy-sesame sauce. It was one of those perfect nigts we’ll all remember forever.

Lots of hard work and plenty of patience pays off in the end. If there’s something you’d like to do, the first step is to believe in yourself. You really can do it! We never thought we’d be able to have two businesses at the same time but here we are, figuring things out as we go along. Take one step at a time and don’t expect everything to go smoothly. Just face each obstacle head on and make the choices that take you where you want to go.

Good luck and keep in touch!

Now that we commute between Florida and Anguilla, we’re very aware that it takes a little extra effort to connect with nature when you live in the suburbs. Sure, there are beautiful tree-lined streets and green backyards but that isn’t always enough.

What does nature have to do with living what you love, you might ask. To us, the answer is clear. When you spend time in a natural environment, something truly magical happens. Mother Nature soothes your spirit, sharpens your senses and in turn, inspires you to focus your thinking.

As soon as we arrived at our new home in suburban Florida, we felt an immediate need to locate nearby walking paths, streams, gardens and parks. To our delight, we’ve discovered new places to visit every week: Japanese gardens, boardwalks through the Everglades, nature trails, deserted beaches with only a few fishermen, botanical gardens, quiet ponds and lakes, farms, and bird sanctuaries.

If you need a shot of energy and inspiration, we urge you to spend some time outdoors. Even just a short time in a natural environment can have a positive impact on your well-being.

For those of you who have asked for more information about the boxes themselves, that’s easy. We have 21 designs in a variety of sizes and colors. They’re all made in the U.S.A. using recycled paper. But the best part, as many of you have pointed out in your e-mails, is that each box has a secret Live What You Love message inside. So once you’ve filled your boxes with whatever gift you’re giving – cookies, soaps, exotic teas, holiday ornaments, candy or whatever suits your fancy – not only is there no wasteful, disposable packaging, but there’s an extra hidden gift that remains true long after the box has been emptied.

Again, thanks to all of you who have fallen in love with our Little Boxes. We truly appreciate your enthusiasm!

As we get more settled in our new Florida home, we’re reminded of how every person in your life contributes to your happiness. It’s not just about your family, coworkers and close friends. It’s about how you interact with everyone in your community. For instance, the phone rang yesterday and a cheery voice on the other end said, “Hi! It’s Charlie the painter. Remember me? I was just thinking about you guys and wondered how things were going for you.” Charlie had indeed done some painting for us when we first moved in a couple of months ago. Never in a million years, however, would we have expected such a freindly call that had nothing to do with business or painting. He was truly just checking in. And a few days ago, we were driving to the warehouse (actually just a self-storage unit) and Dale, a local contractor that did some work for us, waved as we passed each other on the road. We’re used to waving at everyone in Vermont and Anguilla, but in a big city in Florida? That was a surprise. Then there’s Wendy, the wonderful real estate broker who found our house and sent us a personal e-mail the other day just to say hello. Nothing to do with money or business.

The point, of course, is that when we talk in our books about surrounding yourself with people whose company you genuinely enjoy, we want you to know that we mean all of the people in your life – not just the most obvious. We chose to do business with Charlie, Dale and Wendy not just because they’re good at what they do, but because we liked them. We really, truly enjoyed spending time with them.

Although we all have our own definition of what it means to live what you love, relationships are the common denominator for all of us. Everyone we meet contributes to how we feel and how we look at the world. Try sharing some personal thoughts with a store clerk or a taxi driver. Get to know some little piece of who they are. You’ll be amazed at how a new friend – even one who passes through your life for just a few moments – can put a smile on your face and make your day that much more rewarding.

The struggling economy hit us hard in Anguilla this year and although our restaurant is holding its own, we’ve all suffered a bit financially. There simply were not as many visitors to the island as usual and there was absolutely nothing we could do about it. We also had the misfortune of getting tangled up with a resort project on the island that had to close its doors due to a lack of available financing. We were stuck in the middle of a difficult situation and lost what we thought was reliable income there as well.

Following our own Live What You Love advice, we knew we had to make some changes. As drastic as it sounds, we sold our house in Vermont. We’d built that house with our own hands and loved it dearly. But in the end, a house is just a house. We bought a smaller, more manageable home in Florida just a few weeks ago and are thrilled to be here. Travelling back and forth to Anguilla will be much easier now, taking less time and costing less money. Phew!

But our even bigger news is that in the middle of relocating, we’ve also started another business. Truthfully, we didn’t know what else to do. Once you’ve been an entrepreneur, it’s almost impossible to get a job. (Yes, we tried.) Unless we wanted to lay off our top staff at the restaurant and take their place, we needed to find another source of income. For those of you who know us well, it’s no surprsie that we would rather stick our necks out with a new venture than disrupt our staff. They are our family.

So here we are with business #9 (or maybe #10?) Our ultimate goal is to use all of our life experience – both the ups and downs – to inspire and encourage as many people as possible to live what they love. Our passion is offering encouragement and helping other people to realize their own dreams. We’ve designed (actually we had a lot of help – stay tuned for more about that later) a beautiful line of greeting cards, gift boxes, gift enclosures, magnets, and notepads. Every product has an encouraging LWYL message and reminds you to spend time doing something you love. Something meaningful.

And if you think we had loads of money to start any kind of business we want, think again. Our credit cards are maxed out and we’re out on a limb as far as we can go. We have friends helping us all along the way and thankfully, we had a great response to our products at the recent New York Gift Show. As we say on one of our cards, “You’ve got to take chances for the things you care about.”

Here we go again… If we can start over again, so can you.

People use all kinds of excuses for not making a change, and most people list fear and lack of money as their biggest obstacles–but it’s a lack of information that usually turns out to be the culprit. Ignorance isn’t bliss, it’s scary. Since it takes no money to research your options, why not spend a little time coming up with a list of choices that will help bring you closer to solving your problem?

Take a piece of paper and describe your problem in a single sentence at the top of the page. Then list as many solutions as possible, even if some of them seem far-fetched or out of reach. Don’t let yourself reject any solutions at this point. It’s impossible to know which one will be right for you until you weigh the pros and cons of each and every opportunity. Here’s an example:

PROBLEM: I need to get into better physical condition.

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS:

Join a gym.

Buy a treadmill.

Attend an excercise class.

Sign up for a dance class.

Walk every day.

Jog every day.

Swim every day.

Ride my bicycle every day.

Go on a diet.

Join a sports team.

Eat more healthful food.

Consider all of your options and be as open-minded as possible. In order to successfully solve any problem, you’ve got to get a handle on the various solutions before moving forward.

As children, we both tried to color between the lines. That’s what was expected and we always wanted to do what was right. When we were in college, working for ourselves was the last thing on our minds. It never even occurred to us that having our own business was something we should consider. But somewhere along the way, we wondered who actually wrote all of these rules? Who passed the law about coloring within the lines? And who decided that we should follow a traditional career path?

We stopped playing by the rules – or at least what we thought were the rules – when we finally realized that our life belongs to us and us alone. When other people advised us to follow a traditional career path rather than start our own business, we listened but moved on, trusting our instincts and taking a series of calculated risks. Advice is generally well intentioned but not always useful. One piece of advice we were given was that we were too young to get married. Thirty-five years later, we’re still happy with our life together and more than a few of our early advisors have been separated or divorced more than once. So much for living life the way other people think it should be lived.

What we’ve learned, and what we know deep in our souls, is that although fear is a powerful force, it’s critical to keep whatever we’re worried about in perspective. The best way we know how to approach fear when making a change is to understand – and be very aware – that it’s impossible to prepare in advance for everything that might happen to us down the road. It’s true that some level of risk comes with any change.  But when we worry so much about every potential problem that might arise and therefore, we never make a move, it’s time to take control.

If you’re in a position of wanting to make a change but you have a long list of “what ifs” that’s keeping you from moving forward, it’s time to change your relationship with fear. You will absolutely not be able to predict what obstacles may or may not lie ahead, so you may as well stop worrying about them now. Stop focusing on what can go wrong and start thinking about the positive affects of making a change.

Take one step – and one day – at a time. When you hit a bump in the road, you’ll find a way to deal with it. You may even take a detour and end up going in a different direction than originally planned. That’s okay. It’s actually more than okay. That’s life. Truthfully, we’ve found that those detours are usually the best part of the journey.

At the same time, we remember clearly that our most successful ventures have been started in times of crisis. When we closed our children’s stores in the early 80s due to high interest rates (we were paying 21% on an SBA loan), we found temporary jobs to keep food on the table and scraped together $4,000 to start our salad dressing business. At the time, we were 3 months behind with our mortgage payments.

In fact, we have lived through many difficult times that have forced us to gain new strength, learn new skills and adjust how we look at life. Although we now find ourselves in one of the toughest economic situations we can imagine, we’re learning more about ourselves and about how we want to live each and every day.

It’s critical for all of us to be strong and hopeful. Never give up on your dreams and goals just because times are tough. We can all use this disastrous economy as an opportunity to regroup and rethink exactly how we want to live and what we want to do. Now is the perfect time to take charge of your life.

We think the toffee is perfect as a snack right from the jar and the crumbles are simply the best topping for a bowl of ice cream. For us, living what we love means making sure our restaurant guests come away with unforgettable memories. Let us know how you like it!