Over the Edge about……Turning Ideas into Action!

My office has CNN constantly playing and as hard as I try I just cannot NOT peek at the headlines scrolling by as I pass the TV. The monitor is in our café break area so when getting coffee, or visiting with a client or just walking to my office from a conference room I read…..“EARTH IN PERIL,” “America’s Gas Crisis” (yes, America’s.. not the world’s), “Market Plummets,” “Teens in Crisis,” “Record Foreclosures, Financial Industry in Ruins” These headlines are enough to send anyone running! So what is a person to do?

The book Courage to Create, by Rollo May, was written in 1975. As you read the quote above, it would appear that the headlines of Rollo May’s day were no different. The earth changes, cultures shift, climates (albeit scary) change. If you recall, much of the area where we live (in the Triangle region in North Carolina) was once covered by ocean. Our home, farms and feet stand now on what use to be an ocean floor.

Things change! Do we sit and let the “Economy in Demise” or “Earth in Peril” stop us in our tracks feeling as though we cannot make a difference in our world or do we launch ourselves out in the face of challenge to start that business we’ve always wanted or to save one child at a time or to paint the beautiful painting that tells the story burning in your artist soul of the world as you see it.

What are you waiting for? What holds you back from putting your “Ideas into Action?” As Rollo May says… if we stop, “we will have surrendered our chance to participate in forming the future.” Your future! Our future, your children’s future! So I start here with one simple story of a woman who I am over the edge about:

Over the Edge subject of the month…… Kelly Sawyer, Vendor Administrator, IT ePMO, Teleflex Medical & CEO of Aunt Kittie’s Gourmet Treats.

The Big Idea
Kelly Sawyer, CEO of Aunt Kittie’s Gourmet Treats, has chosen not to surrender! Kelly was in search of a healthier snack for her two year old son. Four years ago, she became very unhappy with the treat and cereal products on the grocery store shelves. Every box she picked up was filled with Trans Fats, which is has been proven to be an unhealthy fat especially in your children. For those of you that are not aware, Trans Fats are when manufacturers add hydrogen to vegetable oil--a process called hydrogenation. Hydrogenation increases the shelf life and flavor stability of foods containing these fats; however these fats are not Trans fats increase the LDL cholesterol which can increase the chances of heart disease over time.

Exhausting her search for healthier and tasty selections, she had one option left, make them herself. Baking is a passion for Kelly so this was not a bad option at all but little did she know as she sent her child to playschool and kindergarten, teachers and other children would have an opportunity to sample these tasty “Berry Delishes" Blackberry Oatmeal bars and cookie treats. It was not long after she started baking treats regularly for her son that Kelly began to receive requests for bars and cookies from teachers for the classroom and friends for their own children. Kelly began to take her passion of baking to the next level and started to make packages for friends and teachers. The more she made the more requests she received.

Passions into Action

Kelly bakes in her home. She loves to cook but taking her passion and making it a business was foreign to her. We discussed the first three things Kelly did to get her started in converting this passion to a full fledge business. First Kelly sought out others how have been successful at the business of baking. Then, having a graphic arts background, she designed herself a logo, secured her domain and company name to start a website (www.auntkittiesgourmettreats.com) , designed a very simple website from a template offering and found some cool bags to package her treats.

The legal side of the business was very important and Kelly is fortunate to come from a family of lawyers so she leveraged her family to offer recommendations on best practices and legal things to consider.

Then came the hard part… how to sell her treats and to who. Kelly points out here, with no fear noticeable, that one Saturday morning she and her son (who assists mommy all the time), were baking she decided to wrap up a fresh warm batch of “Berry Delishes” Blackberry Oatmeal bars and run over to Southern Seasons while they were still warm out of the oven. She admits that she did not know what prompted this moment or how she mustered up the confidence but she did and there was an instant recognition that if she was going to make this business a success it was all up to her.

In a matter of minutes she is standing with the baked goods manager of Southern Seasons while her son is running wild throughout the Southern Seasons bakery department. Her nerves rattled, hands shaking and legs feeling weak… she offers the manager a taste. For a brief moment everything stops, then in the next moment the world is different. Southern Seasons decides to carry Aunt Kitties Gourmet Treats.

8 Secret Recipes for Success:

So what is it you can do now, while you are working to put an idea into action? Here are eight secrets to rekindling a passion and turning into a business.

1. Leverage the talents of your family and friends in the beginning. Everyone that loves you wants to see you be successful.
2. Starting out with just rekindling an old passion while you are gainfully employed is a wonderful way to explore ideas and passions that may turn into businesses later in life.
3. Balancing it all… is next to impossible but involving family makes it more fun and is far more quality time spent together than watching TV or playing video games.
4. Prioritize, prioritize, and prioritize! Work demands and family come first. Knowing when you are ready to take the plunge and make your passion a full time job is important. Kelly loves the way things are now. However, she has a great desire to be the next Ms. Fields. When the time is right she feels she will know it.
5. Carpe Diem- Life is short- if you don’t love it don’t do it!
6. There is never enough time… “Did I say prioritize?”
7. As for age: No matter what age you are… you must work for what you love to do. As Kelly notes, “Anything in this life takes SWEAT I fully believe it takes 99% perspiration and 1% talent.”
8. Take risks … safely!

The world will continue to change. There will be headline news for eternity’s to come. We can stop and surrender or we can participate in creating a new future. Do you surrender or participate? It is your choice?

Where does Kelly see her business going? “I would love to be the CEO of my own successful company the next Ms. Fields or Ms. Sawyer! And I am doing this as a single full time working mom! I believe I could franchise these bars in the future once I reach that stage. That is my dream.” It is rare to hear a story of turning a passion into a business while you work a full time very demanding job in a Fortune 500 Company as a working single mom. I think it is just simply ……… Over the Edge. You can reach Kelly by visiting her website: www.auntkittiesgourmettreats.com

Let me hear from you about what you’re passionate about. I love comments and connecting with my readers. Please email me any thoughts or responses you may have the articles or a topic you may have interest in. Anything you’d love to share concerning any of the Over the Edge past stories or ideas on future stories is welcome, email me at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it subject: Over the Edge. Visit my blog at www.cladventures.com for past Over the Edge stories. Check out www.dreamsacrossamerica.com!