In a time of uncontrollable outcomes, what are the elements of your life and business that you can control? For so long, we have been conditioned to create a system of inputs and outputs that provide us with some form of systematic results. Those expected outputs give us comfort, but don’t necessarily challenge us.
So, what can you control?
- You can control your responses. I know this is a hard one for me sometimes, too. We are flooded with plenty of responses to our messages, and just plain exposure to others messages, that make us feel triggered. Here is the key: you don’t have to respond. If you are presented with something that isn’t positive, constructive, or is just plain mean, turn it off and walk away. It is not worth a second of your time and energy.
- You can control your audience. This is where the power of your personal email or client database comes in. Don’t let your social media followers dictate your message or success. Bring the control back in to your own equity – and that is the audience members that you have already established and are growing.
- You can control your trajectory. The most important thing I have learned in life is that big goals take time. It will not happen overnight, and your success trajectory is entirely in your control. You have the ability to put in the amount of work that you feel serves you best. You have the ability to decide when and how and who. You have the ability to ask for the business, pivot your business, and make new connections that will continue to inch your way forward.
- You determine what success looks like. Yes – you do! Success to me may look completely different than success to you. Success does not have to mean a certain number of sales, or a certain dollar amount earned in a fiscal year. Success can mean taking back moments of time, or providing solutions to others. You need to get comfortable with what you are really going after – for you and you alone. It is easy to let others tell you what success should look like (as they are most likely sharing their version of success).
Take a deep breath my friend, and give yourself some grace and some time to realize that control is not always a concrete element.