Overcoming Obstacles is not Linear Work
Becoming an entrepreneur brings a lot of obstacles to the day to day. But this is true for anyone starting something new in life. From small challenges around how to spend my time throughout the day to larger things like what will help drive more traffic to my website or social media accounts, there’s no shortage of to-do’s. Because there’s always something I could be doing, there are things that inevitably get left off the to-do list based on limited time, energy or money.
There are some particularly daunting things that perpetually get left off my list and I can say I don’t have the time or energy to do them, but my prioritization skills are adept at choosing the things that feel possible today and I make sure those tasks get done. For the past few months, the one thing escaping my attention has been creating consistent content for my Instagram account. This felt hard because I hadn’t done it before, it felt extremely vulnerable to put myself out there in a personal way and it felt intimidating to have to consistently keep up with the content once I got started. Some of these things still feel true btw!
Pushing to do something you know is good for you but that is uncomfortable, scary or just simply something you don't want to do, is hard. But here are some things I've learned.
Overcoming Obstacles takes more than just a Plan
Give yourself Time + Space to Start and Stop
When you’re doing something for the first time or maybe doing something familiar but that is really difficult or scary, it’s totally fair to start and stop and start again. Those pauses are so important to allow your mind and body the space to prepare, adapt and land in this new space.
It also makes the starting process feel more approachable knowing that you can take a pause if/when you need to. So if there’s a lower barrier to entry to begin, perhaps you can take a risk as it feels a bit less scary.
Hopefully this first takeaway can also allow you the grace to learn something new about yourself in this process.
For me, in the previous attempts to start a social media account I realized I was focusing on the outcomes of how many likes this will get or how many new folks this will reach vs. the process of being myself and talking to the people who I want to reach.
During the ‘Stop’ -- Take note of what support you need to try again
What are some of the reasons why you stopped?
If it’s lack of knowledge…
Can you fill the knowledge gaps by learning a new skill?
If it’s lack of time or energy…
Can you find someone to help for now?
If it’s lack of motivation…
Can you work to understand the true impact of what you’re doing and why it matters in your life today?
Set + Reset Expectations
Staying realistic about overcoming obstacles can be really difficult. For me, this is true because I feel like I’m letting myself down or missing the mark if I don’t accomplish what I’ve set out to do on the timeline I’ve established.
Reframing what success looks like and understanding the learnings we gather along the way are just as important as finishing the task has (and will be) a lifelong challenge for me.
In this social media example, I asked myself if my goal was to be a top influencer with millions of followers…the answer was pretty quickly and clearly ‘No.’
So I started focusing on what I know and what I wanted other folks to know about my work…definitely helped melt a bit of pressure once I stopped comparing myself to Beyonce ;)
Keep Moving (even if it’s backwards)!
Build in some cushion for those starts, stops and learnings to wiggle their way in
Assess where you need support and what that looks like
Gut check those expectations
Give yourself some grace to do hard things
So, why not do one scary thing left off your to-do list today?
— A
