Kristen Marie's Blog

Kristen Marie Schuerlein is Moving

Come see my new homes....

My Company: Design Duo Inc

My Expression: Vision Translator

My Musings: Musings From The Midpoint

Intentional Living

As silly as this sounds, when I declared Affirmagy's tagline to be "intentional living" I'd never listened to an Abraham-Hicks CD, nor had I ever cracked one of their books.

Funny how life works. Fast forward 5 years. Today what Abraham calls "Segment Intending" is a huge part of my life. Segment Intending is all about setting an intention for the next segment of your day. Whether it's driving from meeting to meeting, making a call, or getting ready to go to sleep, the idea is to be mindful, present and conscious of that which we are creating.

If you are interested, consider buying The Law of Attraction 5 CD set by Abraham- Hicks. It's what I listen to every morning, and in the car everyday. And it's made a huge difference in my life!

If you are curious to see Segment Intending in action, go 'friend' my buddy Thach Nguyen on Facebook. He's committed to sharing his intentions throughout the day. Very cool!

1853 days

1853 days ago Affirmawraps made their debut in a fashion that set the tone for what Affirmagy is all about. It was February 14th 2005, Valentine's Day, and 120 Abundance blankets were given to ministers at a New Thought gathering in San Diego. One by one they were given as a gift to see if wrapping people in positive affirmations was a good idea. (Can you believe I ever wondered that?). Giving Abundance away, just to see people respond, was a powerful experience in itself. Choosing to build a company that would ultimately touch the lives of tens of thousands worldwide was when my life totally changed. (I still remember the knot in my stomach as I wrestled with stepping into this new venture)

Affirmagy came into the world BEING what it believes; the world is a better place with more Abundance, Joy, Love and Inspiration in it. Affirmagy believes that we are that which we speak, we attract that which resonates with us vibrationally, and that we are the creators of our lives.

It's funny to say "Affirmagy believes" like its an entity. In many ways is it.... and in many ways its simply a philosophy, a way of being in the world.

In reality, those things that Affirmagy believes are what I believe. Although I've never said it like that before. From day one it was vital to me that Affirmagy not espouse a certain viewpoint or dogma. This company - this philosophy - isn't about faith or religion or theology. It's very very simple. It get more of what we want, focus on what we want.  Get it in our space, our language, our thoughts. Peace, Wholeness, Gratitude. Whatever it is for you. Simply choose.

That was what wrapping ourselves and those we adore in Affirmawraps has been all about this past 1853 days. What a journey.

Thanks for being on the ride. Thanks for supporting, watching and cheering us on all this time. And thanks for knowing that our lives are exponentially better for everyday that Affirmawraps were sold.

Now, Affirmagy lives in a new way, a new expression. But it's still the same. It's all about focusing on what we want. And going for it.

Fitting It In: The Birth of Affirmagy

Last night I realized how powerful the idea of "Fitting It In" has been in my life. It's how I started Affirmagy..... just fitting it into the cracks and spaces in my life.

I heard once that if you cut out 1 hour of TV a day, you'll gain 365 hours a year to do other things. 365 hours divided by 8 = 45 work days... that's 9 weeks of 8 hour days! Imagine what you could create in over 2 months of worth of work days. Amazing!

By fitting Affirmagy into my life, my life has never been the same. Just taking those first few steps in having the courage to dream.... to think through how we could even produce a blanket with words on it was shift in thinking. How do you DO that? What would they say? How would we let people know about them? How would we write them? Is this doable?

Having a good idea is a wonderful thing. Making the time to explore, nurture and give it shape is something altogether different.

I am not sure what exactly compelled me to follow my heart and create Affirmagy. All I know is that by choosing to fit it in, we've touched tens of thousands of people. And brought more love, Joy, Gratitude and Compassion into the world.

Not bad for a little idea on a napkin.'

What idea do you have that's waiting to come into your life? Is it time to start finding the time to fit it in?

Emotions Are Magnetic

When we found out that our US manufacturer had closed their doors, I paused for a moment, and said "Ok, well, something really great must be in the works!" By choosing to be joyous about the situation I took what can seem like a disaster as an opportunity to transform and move into another direction. I made it cause for celebration.

Choosing to be upset, worried, freaked up and an emotional wreck is certainly a viable choice when something of this magnitude happens. But why? What would upset and worry have gotten us? Well, more upset and worry.

Our emotions are incredibly magnetic. They have the power to instantly create a set of circumstances that get you more of what you are feeling.

More upset attracts more upset. More joy attracts more joy.

I remember the day we found out we literally had no way to produce our product any longer. And we could have chosen to let this event have a destructive impact on our lives.

Instead, we chose to be in joy, and receive this news as a gift. We got into the mindset that this was the beginning of a whole new wonderful journey, and that in releasing what we thought would be the pathway for Affirmagy, we stepped into a whole new realm of possibility.

Nearly a year later, I am here to tell you the view on this path is remarkable.

Defining Success

I've never not been successful at something before. I always make it work. I am an entrepreneur through and through. And prior to Affirmagy, I started Design Duo Inc, a graphic design and marketing studio. I've always made DD work. Through our start up years in the 90s, through the dot com bust in the early 2000s, through Graves' Disease that seriously set my butt down for the better part of 2004.

I've co-owned a seasonal consulting company.

I've helped starts up take off, and watched as they've stumbled.

I've run non-profit boards.

I've bought and sold investment real estate. All on my own. Little old me.

I set me sights on something and I make it work.

I always make it work. Until Affirmagy. And then I experienced what it's like to not have something work. To spend all your money, chasing your dream. To follow your gut, your passion, your vision up and down and in and out.

To step into the great unknown. To leap without a net. To put your own financial health and that of your business partner on the line. To be scared to death and in action anyway. To listen to that deep still voice, and follow it. To have the courage to set it all down and celebrate the journey.

And I've learned the true power of choosing how to define success.

Affirmagy was an idea on a napkin in late 2004. I didn't see it coming. I didn't see it enveloping my life for the better part of three years.

I didn't see selling my house (in totally committing to Affirmagy, I gave myself 2 years to make it work... having a house and a yard would slow me down, I thought. So the house went and I downsized. Turns out I sold at the height of the market in April 2006. Talk about unseen blessings)

I didn't see at the end of three years together, my man - who was in my life from 2005 to 2008 - would tell me he thought I didn't have a viable business and he didn't think I would be successful.

I didn't see not taking a paycheck for 2+ years, and that my business partner would come to work day after day, month after month, because she believes in me.

I didn't see the tens of thousands of lives we touched. The letters. The stories. The days I would read emails from our customers and I'd cry and cry moved by the compassion and love human beings are capable of expressing.

I didn't see getting partnering with Chicken Soup for the Soul, and Susan G Komen. I didn't see creating fundraisers for kids to go to church camp, and raise money to go to take care of elephants in Thailand, and build schools in Malawi (my thanks to Linda Reppond for reminding me). I didn't see articles in national newsstand magazines, and being considered by a senior producer for the most popular daytime talk show ever. O my! I didn't see the hundreds of people I've met and letters I've received. And the countless who told us our blankets helped them say the things they couldn't when their loved ones were transitioning. 

I didn't see getting on QVC and the financial heartbreak that it was. And the blessing it became.

I didn't see grieving my identity as the owner of Design Duo after 10 years... and having to reconcile that it wasn't a step backwards coming back and being that again. (To my shock and delight our past clients we THRILLED we were back in the design/marketing/branding game. I had no idea we left a hole when we stopped taking new work in 2006).

I didn't see gaining such deep levels of strength, resolve, resiliency and fearlessness that were either a part of me already, or that I gained during this journey.

And I didn't see that an idea on a napkin would shape the rest of my life by not fully taking flight. You can call Affirmagy a failure. I call it one of my greatest creations and greatest successes to date.

In the coming days I'll being sharing the lessons I've learned and the incredible gift this company has been in my life.

Stay tuned.....

Since November 24th...

I was having lunch with a good friend earlier this week, and she made an amazingly good point "Kristen, people want to know what you are doing. Tell them."

As I pondered that idea while enjoying my chicken Phad Thai, I realized she was right. I've been super quiet about what I am doing these days... mostly because, well, I am DOING things (you know, heads down, rocking and rolling)... and partly because I don't know what to say. OK...

"I never got Affirmagy profitable. It never fully took flight."

There, I said it.

The past couple of months have been filled with amazing things.... incredible things.... sadness, celebration, success and good old "some how, some way, we gotta make this work". I've started two blogs that I've never made live.... one celebrating 40; and the other about Design Duo, the other me. The "me" before Affirmagy. The me again, in a whole new, powerful, passionate way.

As I am writing this, I've made a decision. This is my blog. At least for now. I still believe - perhaps even more passionately than EVER - in designing a life you love. So, for the time being, this is my blog. My voice. A place for all the shades of Kristen Marie.

Affirmagy never fully took flight. At least not how I thought it would.

And I can't wait to tell you why it's been one of the best successes of my life!

Abundance Affirmawraps Spotted at a James Ray Event!

Terri Levine (the guru of coaching and a dear friend) sent Abundance Affirmawraps as gifts last holiday season to her VIP clients. Check out this totally fabulous man modeling his Affirmawrap at a recent James Arthur Ray weekend event.

How cool is this? (I so love my life!)

Affirmawords & Gratitude Monday.

(Wondering where Gratitude Monday went? Check out Affirmagy's new blog Affirmawords.com. Click here to visit.)

"Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude." - Denis Waitley

When we seek to serve, everyone wins!

One of the things I love about being in business is the opportunity help people. At 21 I heard Zig Ziglar share an idea that at the time in my life was a revolutionary idea: to get what you want in life, help others get what they want. Simply said: Be of service. Once I truly wrapped my head around that idea, my business life has never been the same.

Last fall, while I didn't realized it, a new way of helping more people was taking shape inside Affirmagy in a very organic, effortless way. Youth groups from all over the country started buying our blankets, and selling them as a fundraiser at church. They started telling each other about their results. And they started telling us amazing stories about their success. One group sent kids to winter church camp for the first time, another bought all new AV equipment to engage kids and grow their youth ministry, yet another funded a trip to Thailand.

When we started to dig a little deeper, we discovered there were lots of really cool ways we could help more and more youth groups fund their big dreams. And that's were the big idea for Positively Fundraising by Affirmagy began.