It's Not Over Till It’s Over

You wouldn’t turn a movie off 10 minutes from the end.

So don’t give up on your goals now.

There are still 3 days left of 2020.

And a lot can happen in 36 hours.

Nothing important happens until the last minute, anyway.

Frodo didn’t take the ring to Mordor in the first film.

He took the ring to Mordor right at the end of 11 excruciating hours of extended screenplay.

So if you haven’t hit your 2020 goal yet, it’s because you’re currently sitting through your own painfully extended edition of Lord of the Rings.

It might feel like all hope is lost.

But when you give up before it’s over, you’re missing out on the very best, most important time there is. The last minute holds magic.

This is the best bit.

The final three days of 2020 are yours for the taking.

And if you’re willing to give up showers, sleeping, and cooking, you’ve just bought yourself a bunch more time.

Kidding. Almost.

Make it happen.

It's not over till it’s over.

When Stuff Goes Wrong, Get Back on the Horse

I’ve had one of those days where everything seems to go pear-shaped.

• I forgot to record the first part of my workshop

• I had food in my teeth the whole time I was talking and didn’t realise

• I got a headache and fell asleep in the middle of the day, putting everything behind schedule

• I accidentally sat in a puddle (yes, really)

Even though none of these are real problems and won’t affect me tomorrow, it still made me CRINGE and want to run away and avoid all of my responsibilities.

But even though it sucks, I’m still choosing to show up for the things that will move me towards my goals today.

Because I want to be the kind of person who shows up even when she doesn't feel like it.

I spoke in another blog post about how Will Smith says he doesn't care what his in-the-moment feelings tell him. He says that what he feels like in the moment never gets a say in his success.

Feelings are short term. Results are forever.

You Didn't Come This Far to Only Come This Far

Keep going, you’ve got this. There’s nothing more to say.

Gift Yourself Your Full Potential

I believe in effort.

And showing up every day.

And never giving up.

And making sacrifices.

And doing the work even when you don’t feel like it.

I subscribe to the hustle.

But I do NOT subscribe to misery.

If putting a lot of effort into your goal makes you miserable, you need a new goal.

When you choose a goal you love working on, it feels good to make a sacrifice. It feels like exactly what you’re supposed to be doing.

The hustle IS the flow.

The effort IS the enjoyment.

The work IS the play.

The dictionary defines hustle as "energetic action". But nowhere in it does it say anything about self-destruction.

Hustling doesn't mean pain.

It means gifting yourself your full potential.

Choose Your Own Danger

“Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold.” – Hellen Keller

Oh, girl. You’re speaking to me.

There’s danger everywhere.

So why not go after you’re wildest, craziest, most impossible dreams and experience the danger that comes with that?

What’s the alternative? Experiencing the danger that comes from regret.

That sounds way worse.

Go wild. Go bold. Take the leap. Do the crazy thing.

People don’t become great by passing up opportunities to develop greatness.

Choose the danger that comes with being bold.

It’s more fun that way.

Note: this was just me pep-talking myself into making a bold decision right now. Done.

Three Questions to Ask Yourself When Nothing Is Working

1) Are you working?

I’ve experienced many times when I thought “it” wasn’t working. But really, I wasn’t working. I wasn’t doing any work!

2) Is the action you’re taking directly linked to the result you want?

I spent years doing actions I hoped would bring results. But I didn’t actually know if they would.

Find out what will guarantee your result if you do it. Do that.

3) Am I believing it is working?

Choosing to believe IT IS WORKING is so much more powerful than telling yourself, “it’s not working“. When you tell yourself “It’s not working” your brain will try to search for new solutions, instead of sticking with it.

It IS working. Keep going. You can do this.

The Middle is the Trickiest Part

Right now, I'm in the middle of creating several goals.

The middle is the trickiest part.

The beginning has motivation from the initial spark of excitement.

The end has the final push "almost there" feeling.

The middle is like being alone on a desert island – that I CHOSE to go to 🤦‍♀️ 🌴

It's the grind.

The hustle.

I know I'm being tested to see how bad I want it.

To see if I'm willing to stay up late and get up early.

To see what I'm actually made of.

If I'm going to walk my talk.

(And y'all know I talk a lot of hustle-grind-keep-going-whatever-it-takes-never-give-up)

But it's one thing to say it.

It's another to do it on the days when all I want to do is anything but working on the goal.

Today's pep talk to myself:

Do not give up.

DO NOT GIVE UP.

You can do this.

You WILL do this.

It's decided.

It's already done.

Now make it.

Attack Your Goals With Gazelle Intensity

I first heard this phrase from Dave Ramsey, who talks about attacking your debt with Gazelle Intensity.

(Gazelle's can run up to 60mph in short bursts).

The idea is to work as hard to get out of debt as a gazelle works to run from a cheetah. 

But I also find this phrase helpful in other areas – goals. You can attack a goal with Gazelle Intensity.

I did this to grow my Facebook group.

I zeroed in on the most important actions I would need to take, and then I went for them like my life depended on it.

Every single day for several months, I took action toward growing my Facebook group.

Not just any action – intense action.

I wasn't realistic at all.

I got my group in front of hundreds of eyes every single day and invited them to join.

And it worked in my favour.

Because when you set realistic goals, you don't have to rise to the occasion – you just get to be the same old you, who gets the same old results you usually get.

When you set impossible goals, you have to rise to meet the challenge, like a gazelle running from a cheetah.

What goal do you need to attack with gazelle intensity?

Showing Up No Matter What

Today I had a horrible headache.

It made me question if I should even show up for my goals when I'm unwell.

Should I really still expect 100% from myself?

Yes.

It might look different to show up when I'm unwell, but I committed to showing up every single day no matter what.

For better or worse.

In sickness and in health.

If you commit to picking your kid up from school, you pick them up from school. Period.

It doesn't matter how bad your headache is.

Even if you break your actual leg.

You find a way to get them home.

You don't have to drive them home yourself on your broken leg.

You can ask someone else to pick them up.

But it's happening.

The kid isn't staying at school overnight.

It's our job to commit to the outcome we want 100%.

The only difference is how we do it.

So today I slept half the day SO I could be ready to work in the evening.

But it isn't about me taking a break from my dreams.

That IS me showing up for my dreams.

Anyone can perform when they feel full of energy.

The real test of dedication is when we're sick, tired, and broke.

Show. up. for. your. dreams.

But only always.

Every Day is the Last Day of October

What if you decided to show up every single day in October like it was the 31st of October?

What would October look like if every single day you acted as if there was only one day left to hit your goal?

1st of October = Give it your all

2nd of October = Give it 100%

3rd of October = Give it everything you've got

4th of October = Crush it harder than ever before

...31st of October = Celebrating like crazy because you surpassed your goal like a total boss.

Imagine where you could be at the end of this month.

It's like that movie, 50 First Dates.

Drew Barrymore's character has 24-hour amnesia, so every day Adam Sandler's character gets another chance to make a first impression.

Except this is 31 LAST dates with your goal.

Every day is another chance to crush it like it's the last day before the deadline.