Last winter I was surprised to find Mary Kay in Ghana!  Who would have thought that there was a market for cosmetics in a supposedly Third World country?  But there it was, the big sign over the store.  I did not go in to check out the African line of products, but I snapped the picture of the sign.

The other day I  read the passing of Zig Ziglar on Carol Finlayson’s website, http://carolfinlayson.com/  Talk about synchronicity and serendipity!  I had wondered why and how I was going to use it when I took the picture.  Now I know.

You could say that both Mary Kay and Zig Ziglar played pivotal parts in my life, though not in obvious ways.  That is the loveliness of life.  It is full of gifts and subtleties for us to find and unwrap.  Sometimes it feels like Christmas Eve with the tree all decorated and the lights blinking off and on.  Now you see it.  Now you don’t.  You have to be ever so quiet and still or you might miss Santa coming down the chimney.

You’re wondering what I am talking about, I am sure.  I am not quite sure if I know myself!  I only know that there is this magical moment, of recognition that something important happened.  Maybe it is a recognition that I am living the life I was meant to live, that everything in it had a purpose.

Mary Kay came into my life quite accidentally, or so I thought at the time, for I do not like selling anything, much less doing a home based business.  But there I was, caught up in the craziness of the thing…phone calls, home parties, begging all my friends to have parties….  I invested $1500 in products.  And I did give it a good go though I hated every moment of trying to sell.  So how can I succeed in doing something that I do not like?  No way, of course!

I took a few courses in the process of becoming the salesperson that I could not be.  One of them was a motivational speaker sponsored by the Underwriters of Saskatchewan, those life insurance people.  And his name was Zig Ziglar.  He was a small man and not very impressive looking, but he sure can talk and motivate!

He could not motivate me enough into becoming a successful Mary Kay consultant.  I might as well have tried selling insurance instead! It would have been less costly to me.  But he did motivate me in more important ways.  I recognize that now as I listen to him again in this video.

I think by now I have rid all the evidence of my failed attempt at being a salesperson.  Though I have failed, I do not consider myself a failure.  I guess the secret for me is that you cannot succeed doing something you do not like.  Some secret!