Oh, I know you know it. That worry that you have to know what exactly you're doing, before you do it (especially something you that you care about sooo much, like selling your handmade goodness or your writing). You have to know what your Thing is. This worry can be compounded by people (like me!) telling me that you need to focus in on your you-ness, in order to stand out.
But wait! Before you fall down the spiral of I-need-to-figure-it-all-out – be of good cheer! As I point out in the book, you figure out what makes your work special… by making your work!
Yep, you don't have to know before you get going!
You don't have to know where you'll end up or even what you'll sell or where you'll sell it.
You start by creating what you really want to create.
And then you make a bunch more.
And then, if you really want to, you start putting it into the world.
“Purpose is attracted to motion. Purpose is attracted to momentum.”
-Jon Acuff, Start
This is exactly what I mean by “explore” – you start moving before you know everything.
Because you will learn the terrain as you adventure. You will learn what makes your product special by making them. You will learn who your people are by offering your work, and then talking to who's there.
I think of it like an episode of Castle (or Bones, or The Closer). You often meet the Answer in the beginning of the episode…but you don't know it yet! You have to try things, follow leads, interview suspects, uncover more and more of the story…until you realize it was the First Guy all along! Maybe your purpose is floating around your life right now. It's probably something you're already doing.
But you're not going to identify it until you do some legwork. Until you start exploring.
So get out there and explore!
What are you exploring?
Share your story with the Party, or join us for a group exploration!
