Have the Courage to Say "Why Not?" & Become the Fire: Why I'm Thankful for Elisa Schmitz by Holly Budde

What I’m thankful for today (and every day) is a story that may take you some time to read. I’ll start with I’m thankful for my friend Elisa Schmitz.

Many years ago I was tired, stressed and an overworked mom of two young girls whose husband worked out of town. And because I didn’t have enough on my plate, I had just started commercial real estate training. I started a blog outside of real estate, talking about my adventures. Initially, it was exciting to me to be online and seeing what would happen. I love new adventures and certainly, way back then, blogs were new adventures. Writing after the kids went to bed was also therapy for me. One day I received a message to reach out to Elisa and write for her at her startup, 30Second Mom. My first thought was, "Who me?” But I did it anyway.

Courage whispered, "Why not me?"

To my surprise, she did reply! I’ve been writing parenting and real estate tips ever since, for the company that she has grown into 30Seconds. I am so thankful for that! But it doesn’t end there.

I am so thankful for such a strong support system helping me turn my attitude and our lives around! Elisa and my peers taught me I didn’t have to be perfect. I didn’t need to overthink my plans. They were all learning and growing, the same as me. In fact, failure was no longer just an option; it was almost wished for so we could pick up from the lessons that failure taught us and go again (as crazy as it sounds). We formed a bond of friendships completely online for many years – many of them are my best friends to this day – from all walks of life and phases of their journeys.

It’s because of that crew and Elisa herself, I can sit outside on the patio tonight bundled up reading Elisa’s book, Become the Fire, take this makeup-free selfie, and tell you how thankful I am for it, with confidence. It’s because of them I have been able to grow and be confident in my real estate career, parenting and my personal life. The “Why not me?” became my mantra.

Recently, Elisa met one of her goals: she published her first book, Become the Fire. She asked me to be part of her launch team. It’s amazing. She is amazing. I encourage you to read it. Flex your confidence muscle, too! Learn from her, and from the women she highlights throughout her book, that everyone is the same. Seizing the opportunity is the difference. Not birthright, Ivy League schools or rich parents, but effort! You can do it!

I am thankful today and every day for my 30Seconds family, friendships that have influenced me beyond my wildest dreams, and how they have impacted my life. I’m thankful for every meetup we have had, Twitter parties, failures, conversations, tips I’ve written and tips I’ve read, the courage all of that gave me in my real estate business here at home, my writing passion and the opportunity to be part of it! Elisa, when you read this, THANK YOU. You just have no idea.

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