Over the years, I've noticed that when I plant flowers or anything into the ground or a pot, new business comes my way. This is why I have made gardening part of my morning routine on weekdays. Normally mornings are a good work time, and are best spent with me at the computer writing, designing, bookkeeping or emailing out business ideas. But come Spring, I allow two or three mornings of my work week to include some form of gardening in my yard after I go for a run.

This week, the theory proved itself again. On Monday, which is usually a day when I execute tasks and send out emails, I spent it pulling what seemed to be dead growth that didn't survive the winter. My lavender bushes, which are normally very hearty, didn't seem to be springing back, save for 1 teeny tiny new growth, which I did save and re-rooted it. I manifested a new cherry blossom willow tree in its place in the left front corner of my yard. That morning, two forms of new business came through:

• A positive update from a corporate sponsor for a partnership at Tin Shingle that we are all very excited about because we'd be officially blogging about a nation-wide story-telling mission of small businesses, and
• My first "yes" for advertising on my local blog.

That's a good morning, right? Then on Thursday, I gardened again, this time to commit to a vision for some dead space in our back yard. I committed some space to be the official garden for the butternut squashes, where they could spread out comfortably instead of taking over our yard, and I seeded another area of bare space with wildflower seed, hoping the mix of wildflowers would just look awesome back there until we got another plan. I also took some spare bricks and lay a very small brick walk over the bare earth that usually just grows weeds. I figured that the brick would at least block the weeds until we got a better plan. Don't get impressed - this is just me literally picking up a brick and putting it on the ground. No leveling of the ground was involved.

Well...soon after, a new small business joined Tin Shingle, and this business is a professional handyman/woman service in a truck that comes to your house to finish your DIY projects that you don't finish! One of the things that inspired the founder to create her business, ChecklistNYC, was when a handyperson laid tile on her kitchen floor but didn't level it. HA!! My husband would appreciate that as he scratches his head every time I lay these mini-brick patios all over our yard without leveling the ground (ps: our house came with a pile of old bricks in the back...so I just put them in places that need borders or mini-patios).

Later that day, the contract for the corporate sponsor also came through.

So...you bet I garden to make my business grow! I get clarity from the fresh air, Vitamin D from the sun, and everything just makes sense so that I can sit down at my desk and accomplish whatever is on my list.