A text message changed my life. On the evening of September 7, 2008, I opened my husband’s cell phone while he was in the shower, to read: I can’t wait ’till you’re finally free and all mine. No more sharing. Those few words tore my world apart in an instant.
I’d been with this man half my life, since we were sixteen years old. We had an eight-year marriage and shared three beautiful children, including twin girls just over a year old. We’d been through it all: buying our first home, then losing it in foreclosure; being overjoyed when I got pregnant with our second child, then devastated when I lost it six months into my pregnancy. I thought we’d seen everything, but this I never saw coming.
I never saw it because everyone knew he loved me just a little bit more. They say in every relationship one person does that, loves the other more. The kids and I had always been his entire world. No part of me ever questioned that he’d jump in front of a train to save us if he had to.
I was all he ever wanted. Until I wasn’t.
I set his phone on the bathroom counter and without a second thought, threw open the shower curtain, turned off the water, and said; “Get the fuck out.” I watched him pull on his shorts in the hallway, still dripping wet, one leg and then the other as I pointed to the front door. He kissed our son goodbye, tossed his ring in my general direction, and walked out slamming the door behind him.
He never came back.
Things had not been perfect between us prior to that day, I can’t lie. We’d been struggling financially to the point of desperation for what felt like forever. We’d lost our home the year before and were forced into bankruptcy after our twins were born. Our life was in a noticeable negative tailspin. Losing everything we’d worked so hard to acquire had destroyed our pride and left us both feeling useless, helpless and miserable. I’d done everything I could think of to cut our budget and make it so we could pay the bills and still eat, but every month we fell further behind.
On the day he left, I didn’t have five dollars to my name. Our electric, water and gas bills were all past due, with shutoff notices pending, and the rent was late. I hadn’t worked in over two years, and the economy was in the middle of a deep recession. The car title was in his name, as was our bank account. Overnight, I went from desperate to stranded and destitute, with no way to provide for my three small children.
That night, I laid on the cold hardwood floor in our living room, my hair matted to the side of my head with tears that had finally run dry from my own dehydration. The only thought that floated in my semi-conscious brain was, “How the hell can I do this?” I’d tried so hard to think of a plan, anything, but nothing came, except that question over and over again. It seemed completely impossible. Yet somehow in that moment survival mode also kicked in, and with it came even more questions. Of course we’d have to move right away, but where? I didn’t have family who could take us in. And we’d need to sell everything we owned, but how? And I’d need a job, but doing what? And how could I afford to work when daycare would take up most of my salary?
All night these questions swirled in my head without answers.
The sense of utter helplessness was all-consuming. I was no stranger to hard times. I’d grown up in extremely difficult circumstances and had struggled all my life. I already knew what it felt like to go hungry, to not have a roof over my head, or a bed to sleep in at night. But this was different. Being resilient and scrappy is fine when it’s just you. But when you have children to feed, it’s a new kind of panic that washes over you in overwhelming waves. In the past I had always relied on #TheHustle to get me through anything; it was comforting knowing that no matter what came at me, I would always “find a way.” But this time, I knew Hustle alone would not save me, and I had no bright ideas.
In moments like these, I think we are faced with two options. We can give up, fall apart and disappear. Or we can fight. I knew I could never just give up, but I didn’t believe I had what it would take to fight. Not this time.
That was about the time my girlfriend Charise walked in the door with her arms full of Costco boxes. She’d thought of everything: diapers and formula for the girls, dinner for the next week, and even enough cash to keep the electricity and water on. That is the moment that has defined my #RelentlessPursuit. That is the moment I Hustle and grind for.
Something inside me snapped in that moment. A light went on, deep in my core, followed by a burning desire to never put myself or my children in this kind of position again. I made a promise to myself right then that I would not rely on anyone to provide for my family. I wouldn’t borrow money from family members; I wouldn’t beg for help. I would somehow pay my girlfriend back, and figure out how to handle my business on my own. Before I’d always just thought I was unlucky and entitled to what little help I’d ever received. All my life I’d told myself this story, and believed it. Nothing good ever happens to me. I work twice as hard as everyone else for half as much. That was my core belief. And as a result, that was my life. No one ever told me that my life was the result of my thoughts, my beliefs and my actions. I believed that the only thing I could control was how hard I worked (#TheHustle), but that on its own left me feeling like I was drowning in quicksand, no matter how hard I worked, the results never showed. It took the catastrophe of that night, when my world collapsed in an instant, to spark within me a desire to drastically change my life.
That week I sold everything we owned on Craigslist and filed for divorce. I took the money I made from our belongings to pay for first and last month’s rent on a really tiny, super-shitty two-bedroom apartment. I had just enough left over for one more month of rent and a few groceries. That was all the money I had in the world: I didn’t even have a bank account. My sister convinced me to get on food stamps, just until I got on my feet, and though I cried when the case worker took my story, I knew I had no choice. I applied for every job I could find, but interviews were few and far between. When the second month came and my rent money was gone, I sold my wedding rings on Craigslist for a fraction of their value; enough for one more month’s rent. When the women came to pick up my rings, she looked around our little apartment at my twins running around in their diapers and said, “I don’t want to know. Please don’t tell me the story.” She didn’t want my “bad luck” giving her new wedding rings negative juju.
Things were certainly bleak, to put it mildly. It was terrifying, yet at the same time there was a new spark of hope deep inside me that wouldn’t go away. Now I was in control of my future, and that was a whole new way of thinking about what was possible for my life. I remembered an Oprah show I’d watched where she’d talked about changing your thoughts because they have the power to predict your future. I mentally traced my life back five, ten years, and realized that everything I worried about, feared and stressed about, had become my reality. That was a huge revelation for me. I saw it plain as day: I’d created all those “misfortunes.” I’d created that life. That was all the proof I needed of the tremendous power of my thoughts, even if it had only worked in a negative way up to that point. I knew I had nothing to lose, and the possibility of possibility brought hope in a way I’d never known before.
My book Hustle Believe Receive is how I went from a newly single mom with nothing, relying on state aid to survive, to an executive of a software company in just eighteen months. It’s the story of how I manifested four future boards in six years, and completely changed not only my life but my children’s. It’s how I went from living in a “poor me” world, to being a take-charge-of-my-future badass. It’s the tale of how I learned to dream HUGE and what it felt like to live out those dreams quicker, and bigger than I’d ever imagined, often without spending a dime of my own money! It’s how I learned to work smarter and not harder. It’s how I Changed my Crew. And it’s the story of how, for the first time in my life I learned to truly be grateful, live a “pinch-me moment” kinda life, and how I found my joy.
be.”
Ready to work with me? Learn more about my coaching and schedule a free consultation to learn how you can live your dreams!
Sarah Centrella is the best-selling author of Hustle Believe Receive and #futureboards
Author | Life Coach | Motivational Speaker and single mama. I'm a chick on a mission to prove anything is possible for ANYONE. My story featured in the New York Times, Steve Harvey Show and NBC.
Thank you so much! I found myself today feeling guilty for dreaming big! I am a single mother with big dreams and after reading your story it has givin me hope! bless you for sharing your story!
I'm so glad my story gave you hope, because you should never feel guilty for dreaming big (though it's natural and I did it too). Just know that anything you can dream and are willing to work for you can make a reality!!! If I can do it anyone can!
Thank you for sharing your story, it is inspirational and i have read it at just the perfect time
I truly beleive the law of attraction works! Your story was so powerful! As for me, I started applying the principals to my life to make extra money during a time when I was unemployeed. Several weeks later I got a ramdom email with this AWESOME way to make extra cash and it is working! You can do this too, and more than likely, if you are reading it, it is because you also attracted this into your life! I was of course sptical at first but had nothing to lose and tried it. Now I am sooo glad I did and I know for a fact the law of a traction truly does work!
The Gaurdian System – Earn $100 – 50,000 quickly and easily with paypal!
This Works. It was reviewed and proven on Oprah, CNN, 20/20 and various highly respected U.S. TV and radio programs.
"THE GUARDIAN SYSTEM"
To get started just copy this whole page and paste it to your documents. Simply follow the instructions below and in 2 to 4 weeks, you could have as much as $50,000 in your PayPal account or even more.
Most people respond to this program because of the low investment ($10 USD) and high profit potential. There is no limit to the income you can generate from this (you can just do it over and over!) If you follow the instructions, you will reach thousands of people.
The first thing you need to do is go to PayPal.com and sign up for a free PREIMER or BUSINESS account. (You must have this type of account and not a personal account, “ otherwise you will not be able to receive credit card payments and this will limit the income you can generate).
Step 1:
Send a $5.00 US dollar payment from your PayPal account to THE FIRST e-mail address on the list below (No. 1) by using  the PayPal 'Send Money' feature and be sure to include in the email subject "Payment for Internet Marketing". THIS KEEPS THE PROGRAM LEGAL.
Step 2:
Then send another $5.00 US dollar payment to the 5th person on the list (No. 5) with an email that says "Payment for Internet Marketing 5th".
Step 3:
Once you have done that, REMOVE the 1st email address on the list and place YOUR email address at the bottom (position no. 5). Then move the 2nd to 1st, the 3rd to 2nd, the 4th to 3rd, and 5th to 4th. You now become the 5th email address on the list.
DO NOT TRY TO PLACE YOURSELF IN THE FIRST PLACE. IT WILL ONLY REACH THE PEOPLE YOU SEND IT TO AND THEN YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS WILL BE REMOVED FROM THE LIST. If you do this, the way it was designed, it will reach thousands by the time your email address gets to the top.
Here is the list:
1. jshank_music01@yahoo.com
2. b_grove@rogers.com
3. Jay_boy16@hotmail.com
4. lilchris1978@gmail.com
5. leighahrutkay@yahoo.com
Make sure your email address is the same as the one you used to open your PayPal Account as this is the way you will receive your payments.
Now that you have paid the 1st and 5th person and sent them both an email (via your PayPal account), place your email address in the 5th place.
Step 4
POST YOUR LETTER.
Post it everywhere! You can post on message boards and newsgroups (there are thousands). You can send an e-mail to your own e-mail list. Post it to any newsgroup, forum or comments section that you feel people who see it would be interested benefiting from this method as well. Use blogs, social networking, pintrest, and online classifieds. You may need to post it close to 200 times to get the results you desire, but there are over 100,000 places you can post this. And remember, the more you post, the more you will earn!
IT IS YOUR JOB AS THE 5TH PERSON ON THE LIST TO ENSURE THERE ARE AT LEAST 20 “PAYMENT FOR INTERNET MARKETING 5TH” REPLIES.
The 5th person is the Guardian of the System – YOU!!!
Now the fun begins. As you wait through the 4th, 3rd and 2nd slots for your work as Guardian to pay off, thousands of others will become Guardian and keep the program moving.
Once you get to the 1st position, it means thousands have been working the program since you started. All of those people will then pay you as the 1st and you won't believe the kind of money that has been generated. When your name (email address) reaches the 1st slot, 900 to 15,000 or more people will send you $5.00 dollars each. You could easily make up to $50,000 USD.
Keep in mind – the most you spend is $10 dollars. And you are guaranteed to earn $100 because as guardian you commit to at least 20 replies (each one paying you $5.00).
The Guardian system is based on people helping each other out. This program is completely legal and will generate a lot of money very quickly.
HERES A COUPLE OF TESTIMONIALS:
Mary Gatters, Columbia, SC
said on Oprah show: I only have one thing to say to you. OH MY GOD! I sent out 142 copies in total before 20 replied like the instructions said. Then I went on a short vacation. When I got back my account had over $32,000 dollars in it already and the money was still coming! I'm still floating on air (especially with my new car). I thought the "Guardian System" sounded cheesy, but now I realize it is the formula that makes this letter really work! THANKS.
Richard Barrie, Boulder, CO:
I was shocked when I saw how much money came flooding into my PayPal account. Within 3 weeks my account balance has ballooned to $22,449. At first I thought there had been some sort of error with my account.
Wishing you wealth and success,
Leigh Ann Hrutkay
Shel I commend u I believe faith endurance u really did it I have hope I can too lynney
Shel if any hints please email me
Sounds good but if you don’t have many friends or lists or your not really into facebook Twitter etc
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I spent years of my life chasing the carrot of more money and more time all because I believed that if I just worked hard enough, I’d eventually get there…
Yet all I needed was one simple secret technique that turned everything around for me… the secret that allowed me to get more, while doing less!
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