Listen, I’ve certainly had my time as an expert of both (1) procrastination and (2) focusing on multiple things when trying to reach big goals.
Let me know if this is or has been you:
- You have really great goals/ideas (such as starting a business, consulting or writing a book) that you keep putting off.
- You split your energy between different goals you want to pursue and as a result, you’ve started multiple things but they’ve never been fruitful.
It’s not that your idea isn’t important or good, or (like your inner critic will shout) that you’re lazy. Your goal is amazing and I know you can be motivated.
The problem is actually simple but difficult to overcome. Your vision of what you’d really love to do (whether it’s using your gifts to help others or selling the thing everyone always asks you for) is on a PEDESTAL.
Take a walk with me here…
You put your idea on a pedestal and unintentionally- subconsciously -develop the feeling that the only way to keep it perfect is to keep it conceptual.
As long as it’s a glorious idea inside your head, you don’t have to worry about putting in long hours just to find out it didn’t work.
Your idea is safe as long as it’s grand in your imagination and you haven’t launched it to a place where you could disappoint yourself, or where people could possibly reject or criticize it.
Your inner critic is whispering that you can never be labeled a failure if you never really try to complete the thing.
Maybe you put someone’s similar idea on a pedestal and tell yourself you could never do it as well as they did. Therefore, as long as you keep your goal in the privacy of your notebook or vision board, you will never pale in comparison to someone else’s success.
What is at the base of all this? FEAR.
I know we can sometimes get tripped up by the fear of success but whew, the fear of failure? Yeah. That’s the one messing us up.
The fear of failure, the fear of not living up to the pedestal we place things on (unnecessarily) causes us to (1) procrastinate, and/or (2) always seem to be focused on a new goal.
You’re afraid. I’m afraid. We’re all afraid.
We’re scared we don’t have what it takes. We’re unsure of how others will perceive our ideas until we actually put it out there and see what happens.
We’re afraid that we will invest time, energy and/or money in a plan, but not reach all of our goals… UNTIL we acknowledge that some progress is way better than none. And that some progress is better than worrying about not making progress, while also not making any progress.
This pedestal problem will not go away with more of the same or by willing it to be different. It will go away by taking a different approach.
Thinking differently.
Acting differently.
BEing different.
Are you ready? If starting a business is something that has been on your vision board year after year, if you’d love to retire early and do something you’re passionate about, if you already have a side hustle and would LOVE for its growth to replace your paycheck, I have a few secrets to share…
Comment and let me know what’s sitting on a pedestal in your mind?
In Spirit,
