Productivity for Solopreneurs: Insights to getting things done #119 / Annoying or motivational? "We all have the same 24 hours in a day."

Annoying or motivational? “We all have the same 24 hours in a day.”

Is there a quote that most everyone finds super uplifting or motivational, but it just does NOT do that for you? It might even annoy the heck out of you.

I’d love it if you left me a comment with the quote and why it bugs you.

“We all have the same 24 hours in a day. How are you spending yours?”

Or sometimes it’s written as: You have the same number of hours in the day as Einstein/Mother Teresa/Steve Jobs/Beyoncé/etc.

UGH.

Intellectually, I get that I’m supposed to hear that and think something like “YES! I can do anything I put my mind too!”

Instead, I’m transported back in time.

Back to when I was about a year in my business and heard this for the very first time.

I was overwhelmed, frustrated, and tired. My business was making negative money while I was doing A LOT of work.

I heard this quote and wanted to cry or scream.

All those other people had created success with their 24 hours, but I had put myself in debt, worn myself out, saw NO path out, and deeply felt whatever the opposite of success is.

I felt guilty that I hadn’t figured something fundamental out that they seemed to know and I compared everything I knew about myself to everything I knew about “successful people.”

And boy, oh boy, I judged myself harshly under that light.

Here’s the problem: I didn’t think about all the overwhelmed, frustrated, tired, self-doubt filled days that those “successful people” had.

I only saw their successes.

But I compared my worst days to their best.

And I couldn’t help but feel like someone ahead of me on the path said “catch this great tidbit of knowledge that I’m tossing to you” and I looked up just in time for a brick to hit me in the forehead and knock me to the ground.

Ouch!

Next time can I have a hug instead?

What would have been helpful, had I had the ears to hear it, was a gentle reminder that I was comparing the messy day-to-day that I felt I was slogging through to the perfectly lit and cropped picture that someone else was sharing.

Which reminds me of a couple of other quotes:

  • Don’t compare your inside to someone else’s outside.
  • Don’t compare your behind-the-scenes to someone else’s highlight reel.

Final thoughts:

  • If a motivational quote really bothers you, it’s okay. And it could be an indicator that you’re stressed or overwhelmed, which is valuable knowledge. Once you recognize it, you can do something about it.
  • If you share a motivational quote and the other person doesn’t hear it the way you do, don’t make them wrong about their interpretation. But do notice it and get curious. You might ask how they interpreted the quote and have a nice discussion about it. And they might leave feeling a bit better!

All this talk about my frustration with this quote has made me wonder if there’s a quote that you’ve beaten yourself up with in the past OR if there’s one that transports you back in time, in a positive or negative way.

I’d love it if you’d share it in the comments below.

PRODUCTIVITY FOR SOLOPRENEURS: INSIGHTS TO GETTING THINGS DONE #119

Getting to the real cause of overwhelm

“Overwhelm is not a result of having too much to do, it’s a result of not knowing what to do next.” – Matthew Kimberly

I heard someone refer to this quote over the weekend and I just had to share it with you.

I love it so much because it’s so very true.

Anytime I’m overwhelmed, that’s exactly what’s happening–I don’t know what to do next and that makes it seem like I have too much to do.

So, what do you do when this happens?

You go back to your priorities for the week. What are the top 1-3 things that you need to complete this week? 

If you don’t know that, think about what your goals are for the month or quarter. What tasks and projects move you closer to those goals?

If you have a question, but are overwhelmed and don’t have time to watch the video below then share a comment with your question or situation.

WEDNESDAY LIVE WITH EVIE #92

The role of failure in business

I was reading through posts in various Facebook groups I belong to and start reading a longer post.

In the middle of it I see this statement, “People don’t fail, systems fail.”

I found myself smiling and saying aloud with love, “OH honey, I fail All The Time. It’s a good thing.”

I own my failures.

The times that I’ve failed have been incredible teachers to me.

Have my failures sometimes been a system failure (or lack of system)? Yes.

And I’ll still own them as MY failures.

Because they are.

The biggest problem I see (and have experienced) with failure is when we use it to beat ourselves up.

Let’s maybe stop doing that (yes, much easier said than done).

So, this week for Wednesday LIVE with Evie let’s talk about the gift and necessity of failure.

You can find that replay here.

What are your thoughts about failure? Do you think it’s necessary?
Comment below and let me know!

Pity Party

Throw yourself a pity party

Over the past few weeks, I’ve noticed that some of us are coming up against our stuff.

Maybe you’re there too. Maybe for a bit, your goals felt too big and the path there too daunting. And everything that comes your way is another thing to add to your already heavy load. You feel like you’re just waiting for that proverbial straw that breaks the camel’s back.

So, what do you do?

There are several ways to handle it.

Some people stuff their feelings and try to quickly move on, ignoring the stuff. The problem is those feelings eventually bubble to the surface even stronger.

Others allow themselves to feel the stuff and continue to feel it for days.

Neither is a great option.

So, what to do?

Pity PartyThrow yourself a pity party if that’s what you need. Allow yourself to feel your stuff.

Does that suggestion surprise you?

Well, there are strings attached: set a time limit.

When you recognize what’s going on, that you have stuff to work through, give yourself some time to feel it AND set a timer. Whether that’s 10 minutes or 20 – set a timer and allow your stuff to bubble up.

Now, I realize that once the timer goes off it’s not easier to simply feel better (super easy to write, difficult to do).

So, when the timer goes off take a few deep, calming breaths.  Go ahead and do that now.  Breathe in deep through your nose and out through your mouth.  Relaxing isn’t it?

Next, think about what’s going right and what you’re thankful for.  Gratitude, it’s a great mood lifter.

So, next time you want to throw yourself a pity party, go ahead! But make sure you’re consciously making that decision.  Also, limit how long the party is and then spend some time being grateful for other things in your life.

Photo credit: Pity Party by Evil Erin via flickr