As we get into 2020, this phrase keeps popping into my head “do the work” I think of Eleanor Roosevelt’s quote: “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”
It’s easy to be “busy” doing things we think are important in our business, work. Does any of this ring true for you? Spending hours online searching for something related to your business then getting sucked into click-bait on the internet; scrolling through Instagram for inspiration; reading books and more books on x,y,z topic; worrying about your website or what to call yourself – am I a strategist, life coach, business leader, who am I? These are all things I know I’ve done. It’s important to learn and important to do research. Then there comes a time when you have to do the work, and do the thing you probably don’t want to do. If you’re an introvert like me, maybe it’s doing a Facebook live or making a cold call to someone or posting something you’ve been wanting to post but were too worried about what other people will think. Can you relate?
Well, friend, my advice is to jump in and do the work. In a world of distractions I have some ideas to help keep you focused.
1. Put that phone on airplane mode. That way you won’t get any notifications to interrupt your flow. To take it a step further, just turn it off. If you have an AppleWatch put that baby on do not disturb silent theatre mode.
2. Designate a day or chunk of time where you are “untouchable” I recently read an article on Harvard Business Review called “Why You Need an Untouchable Day Every Week” It’s basically what it sounds like, it’s a day where you do you undisturbed. If you want to get shit done, get away.
3. When you need to pause, pause. When you’ve hit a wall, get up and move. If you’re inside, get outside. If it’s a blizzard outside, walk in the space where you are. Do something physical. Movement can help you reset. Do some jumping jacks, wall push ups. Get the blood flowing.
4. Plan ahead, so that when it’s your untouchable day, you’re not wasting time asking yourself, now what was it I needed to work on.
I hope this is helpful for you. If I can support you, don’t hesitate to reach out clarissa@clarissastudio.com
