Business Trouble... Part Two... The Event

I keep trying to write what happened then ended in my leaving Mary & Martha suddenly but the words just don't come. After much prayer I realize there is probably a reason for that so instead of all the details I will share the "cliff notes" version.

At the end of January was the M&M Leadership Conference in Arkansas. I was sad to not be going as a director but I was hopeful that it would re-charge my batteries and inspire me to move my business forward. I covered in the last post that I had a less then stellar relationship with the new National Sales Director, so I also hoped that this would give me a chance to try to mend that relationship. From a less positive aspect, I have seen some business choices being made that from a business standpoint led me to believe that the business might be in trouble and I was hoping to hear some things to indicate that things were in fact fine.

I was among a small group of top leaders who flew in two days early to be in some company produced videos and got to spend some quality time with some good friends and even got to know one of the top leaders I had never had a chance to get to know. I was having a great time and although there were some moments that were less the fabulous I was still hopeful. The actual conference began Friday morning and it was all going great. We spent the day touring the DaySpring/Mary & Martha home office and then in the afternoon move to the conference center to begin the actual sessions.

After the evening session ended I was talking to some friends when the aforementioned staff member pulled me aside and told me we needed to talk. She started by asking me if "I had something to tell her" and quickly started asking questions about my new business. She then told me there had been an accusation made about me trying to sponsor people for my new business at the conference. I assured her this was not true but it became clear she either did not care or believe me as I was informed I could no longer be part of Mary & Martha, I could not remain at the conference and I could not remain in the Mary & Martha sponsored hotel room I was staying in. A lot more was said but what it came down to is I was kicked out of my hotel room, the conference and the company based on an accusation without being given a chance to defend myself or even know the names of my accusers. I am purposely leaving a lot of detail out but suffice it to say since this all happened at about 9 PM what followed was one of the longest nights of my life. I was over 1000 miles from home and scrambling to make arraignments to leave the conference while dealing with the emotional turmoil of losing the business I had built from scratch and worked on for nearly eaves day of the last two and half years.

Thankfully I had a dear bloggy friend right there in Fayetteville who I had already planned to vist at the end of the conference so I called Conny (from An Ordinary Hausfrau) and asked if I could come visit early. She and her whole family were GREAT and so welcoming... They made me feel right at home and gave me a place to heal and some fun distractions until it was time to fly out.

Here are some pics from our explorations and "girl time" together...

 The face was because I was on my tippy toes as that face hole was really high! 

There is this gorgeous mural in downtown Fayetteville that says "Enjoy Local" I made Conny and her girlies pose in front of...

Look... There they are! 

This is the original Wal-Mart in Bentonville, AR... I did not feel the need to get out of the car and go inside as it felt like a "been there/seen that" moment! 

We also got to catch up on some southern favorites I can't get here... Krispy Kreme, Sonic, Chick-fil-a to name a few! So clearly the whole weekend wasn't a loss...

That being said, I have spent the last month or so picking up the pieces and trying to move on. Just yesterday I finally had the first contact with anyone from the home office and am hoping I can now find some closure. 

I will be back in the next day or so to share all about my new business venture! 

Thanks for listening,