Today we’d like to introduce you to Gina Scheer.
Gina, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I was 39 weeks pregnant with my firstborn when I interviewed for a promotion at work, but when I held my son a week later, everything changed. All the fears I had around leaving work and becoming a stay-at-home mom were replaced with new fears, and not the ones you’d think. I wasn’t worried about missing the big things like witnessing those first steps or hearing his first word. It was the little moments we’d never have that would add up and be the biggest thing of all. There was one line in a book given to us by our son’s pediatrician that sealed the deal for me. In Your Baby’s First Year by the American Academy of Pediatrics, I highlighted the words: “The first three years last forever.” I became obsessed with counting down to that third birthday and making every day full of positive experiences, trust building, and learning. Another thing I discovered in that book was that I could accomplish all three of those things every day with one activity: reading to him.
Later on, when I was invited by my sister-in-law to attend an online shopping party for children’s books, I was intrigued. We’d been buying books about once a month in stores and online, even with a tight budget. I went to the party and loved the books, but loved, even more, the fact that this book consultant running the party was willing to recommend some books specifically for my son. This company, Usborne Books & More, offered over 1,800 titles after all, and I didn’t know where to start and didn’t have time to browse.
There was one book that took our reading time to the next level. It’s called the Very First Book of Things to Spot. That handy book, Your Baby’s First Year, also taught me that babies need to hear a certain number of words every day for language development. The things to spot book could also be called ‘Things to Talk About’ because that’s what we used it for. Pointing, question-asking, identifying and describing. After just 1 week of using this book with him at 17 months old, his speech exploded. I didn’t waste time telling all my friends of toddlers about what he was able to do thanks to this book!
Since I wanted to recommend this book and many others to everyone I knew, I decided to turn that excitement into opportunity. I joined Usborne Books & More like a book consultant and started throwing book parties for moms who loved the books, too. I didn’t realize it at first, but by launching this online book business from home, I was giving myself a second chance at that promotion. One of my favorite things about my former job was developing people. Getting to know them, discovering their unique gifts, guiding them through obstacles and celebrating their successes. And with my new career as a book consultant, I get to do exactly that! My team is spread out around the country and includes over 2,000 incredible women. Together, we put over $7 million worth of books into the hands of kids last year!!!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’ve learned a lot about the power of families reading together at home, being a work-at-home mom, and what I really want for my life and my family.
If I could go back in time when I was obsessed with making every minute of every day in those first three years perfect for my son, I’d tell myself to not worry. Not worry about whether I’m working or staying home, not worry if I’m saying exactly enough words to him each day, and not worry about whether or not he feels loved and safe. I’d tell myself to read to him every day and know that love and security would fill his heart and language would fill his mind. Being a parent today has new challenges. We have distractions, expectations, and comparison at our fingertips. If we put our phones away and put pages between our fingers instead, we can rest assured that we’re taking care of our children’s needs!
Working at home with little ones sounds like a dream – at least it did to me! I can do it all! I can spend time with my kids and build a career. While it is what I’d choose over anything else, it has its challenges. I had to make a decision early on to put work in its place. The best way for me to do that was to ban certain words and phrases from coming out of my mouth. “Just give me five more minutes” or “Hang on, mama’s working” just wasn’t going to be said. So if I found those words creeping up and out, I’d stop what I was doing and give attention to my son. It usually meant that someone was waiting on me longer than they’d like to have, but I was at peace knowing that person waiting wasn’t my son. Now that he’s 5, he understands the difference between Mom’s work time and Mom’s play time, and he has learned to wait for work time to end so play time can begin.
Learning what I really want for my life and my family was when my business took off. I started putting things into categories of things that matter and things that don’t matter. If something was not in line with the vision I had for our family’s future, it didn’t matter. Sometimes, that was a TV show that I’d like to binge but would take me away from critical work time to get me to the next level. That TV show didn’t really matter. Many times it would be other people’s opinions (or even just my assumption of their opinions) that I wasn’t doing the right thing or doing it the right way. When you get really clear on what matters and what doesn’t, decisions on what to spend time doing and thinking about getting much easier!
Please tell us about Usborne Books & More.
Have you read any of the recent articles on the effects of screen time (iPads, iPhones, video games, TV) for kids and even adults? It’s not looking good. The biggest bummer is that iPads, iPhones, TV, and video games make things a lot easier for parents in the short term. At the moment, they let us get something done without interruption, or have a meal where we can just talk to an adult, or calm a child down when they’re losing their mind in public. Unfortunately, we’re trading an easy solution at that moment for a long term problem later on. I’ve seen it in my own kids. I thought they were melting down when I decided to plop that phone in front of them at a restaurant table, but oh man was I wrong! The real meltdown happens when you refuse that screen time later or even worse, take it away. Aaaah! We feel trapped! In a horrible cycle of giving in with screen time.
This is where Usborne Books & More comes in and changes things for families. It’s not instant, but it can be a permanent solution to this problem of screen time overload. In book parties, I don’t just talk about which books are best but how to use the best! I share tips for carving out special time for reading, even with the busiest schedule. I and our entire team of book consultants are experts at sharing the unique benefits each book offers, so parents know why and how they’re going to be using it. One of the best ways to combat screen time with books is to have a lot of books in lots of places – not just bookshelves! Baskets in every room, bags in the car, books at the kitchen table. And here’s where our team is most helpful: we help moms get lots of the books they want for their kids for free! That’s the perk to hosting a book party! It’s such a blessing to those families!
Do you think there are structural or other barriers impeding the emergence of more female leaders?
The biggest barrier that I’ve experienced has been my own guilt of pursuing a career while being a mom to young children. I don’t actually think our kids seeing us work hard and accomplish things is enough to justify a demanding career. I think our kids need us – they need our time and our attention. And that’s why I love that our company’s mission and my mission as a mom fit together so well. Reading together at home is how we can give that to our kids, even while building a big business!
Pricing:
- $75 to start a career as a book consultant!
- $4.99-$29.99 is how our books are priced!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.ginascheerbooks.com
- Email: ginagscheer@gmail.com
- Instagram: @ginascheerbooks
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GinaScheerBooks/
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
