For the last year, I've had the same project on my to do list – my next book. Last April, I made it my Destination (the bigger goal you're working towards in a map) for the quarter. I made VERY little progress on it. I was disappointed, but I learned: I have a lot going on that I'm not willing to put aside to give this my 100% attention. (I'm equally excited about this book and my online and in-person workshops.)
So I adjusted. I got more specific. In Q4, I set the goal to just finish the outline. Well, that didn't really work out, but I DID work on it every week and got a lot clearer on what I'm really writing.
In 2014, I decided it would be one of my big goals for the year: I'm going to write and self-publish this book sometime during the year. (It's also alongside my goasl to teach at least 4 workshops around the country (1 down!), and to create one completely new digital class (coming soon!), and overhaul Pay Yourself (done!) and to continue to add content to the Solo Mission.)
I looked back at what I'd already done, and what else I had going on and I decided that I would be satisfied if I wrote on it every weekday. That went great through February, but when Pay Yourself got crazy, it went out the window.
Now we're at the beginning of a new quarter and I've got two options:
- I can be bummed that this project I'm totally in love with hasn't gone farther. I can recognize that my life is too busy for this project. I can give up on it, or put it aside, or let myself fall out of love with it by judging its progress too harshly.
- Or. I can look deeply at what's gone well so far. When did I write the best bits? What could use expanding? I can review what specifically led me to put it down. How can I protect against that? I can learn the lessons of this book – what does it need from me?
You have the same choice.
It's time to review the last quarter and everyone inside the Starship and Solo Mission is busy looking back and making new maps. (I'll be sharing the review worksheet for free here, if you want to play along.) They are finding bits they are proud of and bits they wish were different. Between all of us, there's a big list of things that didn't get done. There is a big list of mistakes.
If you find a big list of things you didn't do: You are not alone. This is a normal part of growing, expanding, and trying new things. So the question isn't “Why didn't I succeed?!”, it's “What now?”
Pay attention!
This is an important moment. This is where you find out what kind of business, success, and life you're going to have. It is this disappointment (and how you choose to handle it) that determines whether you have a business or a hobby.
If you're committed to your dream, your business, and what you want, you bounce back. You become resilient.
The reality is, everyone falls short. Everyone misses the mark. The difference between success and failure is what you do next. Do you give up or scale down your vision? Or do you make a new plan?