CELEBRATING YOUR STAMPIN' UP! ACCOMPLISHMENTS FROM ...
CELEBRATING YOUR STAMPIN' UP! ACCOMPLISHMENTS FROM ...
CELEBRATING YOUR STAMPIN' UP! ACCOMPLISHMENTS FROM ...
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alancingact<br />
savoring<br />
every moment<br />
kristi stoughton<br />
executive<br />
Hudson, New Hampshire<br />
Monthly Events: 10–12<br />
Average Monthly Sales: $3,251<br />
Kristi’s advice for<br />
new demonstrators:<br />
“Be wise about how you spend your<br />
time,” she says. “Pacing yourself<br />
is the key to longevity. Don’t aim<br />
to be a shooting star, burning hot<br />
and bright for a short period of<br />
time—aim to be a real star, burning<br />
steadily for years and years. Step<br />
back for a moment and ask yourself,<br />
‘Will this activity help me grow my<br />
business?’ Make goals and to-do<br />
lists that you follow faithfully. Don’t<br />
look at the big picture and say, ‘I<br />
can’t.’ Break it into steps and say, ‘I<br />
can do this one thing, and then I<br />
can do this next thing.’ Those little<br />
actions build upon themselves.”<br />
Maintaining a healthy balance<br />
between business and family<br />
allows Kristi Stoughton, an<br />
executive from Hudson, New<br />
Hampshire, to live life to its<br />
fullest and enjoy every moment<br />
she spends with her family.<br />
That’s not to say that finding<br />
and maintaining that balance<br />
doesn’t take work. “Life is busy<br />
and there are so many demands<br />
that it’s easy to lose sight of<br />
what’s valuable,” Kristi says.<br />
“Sometimes I start spending<br />
my time on whatever need<br />
is the ‘loudest,’ not the most<br />
important.” But finding the<br />
right balance is worth the effort<br />
and the discipline it takes to<br />
maintain. “My sons were just<br />
babies when I became a Stampin’<br />
Up! demonstrator,” Kristi<br />
comments, “and now my oldest<br />
is a sophomore in high school.<br />
The time goes so fast, and I<br />
want to savor every moment. I<br />
definitely don’t want to miss my<br />
children’s growing-up years by<br />
spending all my time working<br />
on swaps!”<br />
To avoid wasting valuable time,<br />
Kristi diligently manages her<br />
business schedule. “I evaluate<br />
each activity to make sure it is<br />
something that will actually<br />
grow my business and not just<br />
busywork,” says Kristi. Adding<br />
that to the advice of her upline,<br />
Family: Husband Brian; sons Cameron (15) and Colby (12)<br />
Amy Johnson, Kristi has<br />
employed a couple of “stampin’<br />
angels” who cut and sort for<br />
camps and classes, pack her<br />
workshop folders, and make<br />
door prizes, along with “a<br />
million other duties.” “Having<br />
stampin’ angels has allowed me<br />
to focus on the businessgrowing<br />
aspects of my business,<br />
so I have more time to spend<br />
with my family.”<br />
Kristi credits her husband and<br />
two sons for helping her<br />
maintain a healthy balance<br />
between work and home. “My<br />
husband, Brian, is my biggest<br />
cheerleader and supporter. We<br />
talk about what direction my<br />
business should take, and he<br />
has the best insight on how to<br />
balance work and family. He is<br />
truly my partner in this<br />
business, just as he is my<br />
partner in everything. My sons,<br />
Cam and Colby, help me find<br />
balance and perspective by just<br />
being who they are. They are so<br />
hysterically funny, and they<br />
keep me from taking myself too<br />
seriously. They help me laugh<br />
and enjoy life, which is a very<br />
important part of balance.”<br />
Goal setting has also played a<br />
large role in Kristi’s success and<br />
in her ability to find and<br />
maintain balance in her life.<br />
Kristi admits she has a “lovehate<br />
relationship with goal<br />
setting, but I can tell you one<br />
thing—it works!” Goal setting<br />
allows Kristi to “pace myself<br />
instead of just working like a<br />
crazy woman all the time. It also<br />
gives me specific actions to take<br />
instead of just wondering what I<br />
need to do next. There’s real<br />
freedom in being able to say, ‘I’ve<br />
finished all of the goal steps on<br />
my to-do list today. I think I’m<br />
going to go play a game with my<br />
kids, and then I’m going to take<br />
a bubble bath.’”<br />
For Kristi, a balanced life is<br />
“putting first things first—using<br />
my time and energy on the<br />
most important things in life.<br />
In my case, that means putting<br />
God and family first. I find that<br />
if I keep the correct priorities,<br />
the rest falls into place.” ■<br />
14 www.stampinup.com