Let me share a great story of triumph, endurance, and how life can change in a single moment. Pictured here is Patty Sledge and Jerry – she is an emerging artist in the jewelry business (www.beadallyoucanbead.com), he is…well, I’m getting ahead of myself.
Last weekend Patty particpated in her second emerging artist show at the Americas Mart – a wholesale forum for retailers/buyers to showcase, buy and sell merchandise. It is a very expensive venture, a great risk, and a real roller coaster ride for your emotions. The show was four days. And for the first three days and 5 hours…not much was happening except a few buyer contacts and feedback on her emerging line. With only 57 minutes left in the show, and after a long adventure in planting seeds…Jerry arrived in the booth. Jerry is a national representative who sells merchandise to stores for vendors like Patty…she produces, he sells for her nationwide. And that is exaclty what he wants to do for Patty. In this moment, her business changed forever. It is the hope and dream of every creative person to have someone represent their work nationwide.
The great part of the story is not the triumph, it is the underdog sticking it out until they get the win! It is the person who has the courage to endure the bad to get to the good…it is the deserving creative working hard in their studio in silence to create something out of nothing. It’s the tears of fear that turn to tears of joy.
I hope this story encourages you to keep going – keep up the hard work – keep creating, inventing, writing, editing, adjusting…whatever you are doing, just keep doing it. When you plant enough seeds something is bound to grow. Give it time, be patient, stick to it…and you too could find your Jerry!
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