The biggest question I’m getting from my clients and community is, “How do I make a plan for my business if 2021 continues to be a sh!t show?”
(because what else do you call 2020?) 😂😭❤️
I have a friend who instead of cussing, just says 2020.
What the 2020? 2020 You! <hehe, I’m quite entertained by this.>
When you think about possibly planning things for your business in 2021, you may have some opinions about that.
Perhaps you can relate with what I’m hearing from clients and colleagues:
… How do I plan when I’m still grieving the loss of… my father-in-law passing… my mother passing… another Black man getting killed?
… I don’t have energy left after I process everything that’s happened so far this year.
… There is another lockdown and I have to homeschool my kids.
… I just don’t have the energy to get my hopes up only to have to pivot one more time.
… What do I really want to give my life-force energy to?
… What really brings me joy?
… What really matters to me?
… What am I craving to create?
… How can I create change in the world AND grow my business, this feels overwhelming at times?
… I’m waiting to fully exhale after the US election. What’s he gonna do now?
Take a breath.
Drop your shoulders. Release any tension in your face and jaw.
Inhale. Exhale.
[Resource: If you’re having trouble sleeping, consider getting the Insight Timer app if you don’t already and look up the sleep meditations by Jennifer Piercy. They are amazing. I had the pleasure of meeting Jennifer in person last year and she’s a lovely human, too!]
While we’re doing our inner work + our social justice work + building our business + navigating a global pandemic + supporting racial equality + living through political tension + every-day life + other life events, please hear this:
It’s okay to rest.
Before moving on, I fully acknowledge the extreme privilege it is to rest, let alone suggest it to you. I understand that not everyone has the privilege of resting right now. A genuine thank you to our essential workers and healthcare heroes in addition to people who are on the ground floor fighting for social justice every day.
I keep seeing posts about “Rest is a form of resistance,” as in it’s a rebellious act. #yes
I love what @pollyhearsymentoring says: Sometimes the work is doing nothing. #yes
My suggestion on how to plan for 2021 is to first rest.
Why? We must create space to receive insight about what we desire.
Then we create space to receive the things we desire.
Clarity can’t come to a crowded and overwhelmed mind.
Things we desire can’t show up if there is no room.
As you think about 2021, allow rest to be part of your marketing plan.
For you mamas out there with young children, resting may sound like a laughable invitation. Start with two minutes of breathing.
A client of mine. Suzanne, uses the term “deep rest” in her work (OH, I love the sound of that) and honestly, most of us don’t know how to do that very well.
Our culture of capitalism, working hard, perfectionism, and “pushing through fear” has trained us to always be pushing.
Then add the formulas from the online business world that tell us to work harder for just a bit longer and if the formula doesn’t work then you’re not doing it right or there is something wrong with you. #toxicmarketing
Remember this: someone just made these formulas up and enough people started believing it so that it became the culture we are baked in – the air we breathe.
Then we realize we can no longer breathe that way because it’s suffocating our souls and we want to innovate our way forward using intuition, love, grace, and self-compassion, which can’t possibly fit into someone’s 6-step bullshit formula.
We want to build our businesses. And rest. And do work that matters. And change the world so our kids don’t have to fight for equality because equality and love are the NORM, not the exception. This is big work.
Give yourself permission to rest… to breathe… to fill your cup.
Creating things that really matter is not a quick sprint. This is ongoing and we must have the capacity to keep creating.
As you think about what’s next this year and in 2021 – chances are, it will require an expansion and deepening of your capacity. What can you really hold? What do you have space for? What do you really desire?
It’s time to put down the shoulds and the things we do by default.
The Space Between.
And when we put the shoulds down – that’s the space between. We know the past is not something we want to bring into our future. But the future isn’t clear yet.
So there we are – in the space between. The void between the two worlds.
It’s tempting to go back to what we know – even if it’s slowly shutting us down because we’re used to it.
It takes courage to be in this void to wait for clarity.
This is the space where we rest. We breathe. We paint. We cry. We homeschool kids. We cook. We eat Cheetos for dinner. #truestory. We have a work-from-bed day. We don’t turn on our video on Zoom because we just don’t have the capacity.
It’s all okay.
An Invitation:
Every year, I host some kind of event for the solstice.
I’ve decided to expand my traditional Solstice event and guide you through how I create my year, including looking at my money relationship, honestly looking at the five elements of business to see what needs some love, and also let go of what I no longer want to carry with me into the new year.
After that, I create my Soul Vision plan – the vision my soul has for me. Not what my mind wants. Or my marketing training tells me I should want.
What’s my Soul Vision? I put that on paper and it becomes my anchor for the year. It becomes my reminder when I lose track of what matters.
I’m guiding you through this on December 7-11 during my Soul Vision Planning event. There are two live calls and some videos delivered to you during the week.
You can join me here.
It’s $40 if you live in US, Mexico, or Europe and $30 USD if you live in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or India. There are two prices to honor the conversion rate to the US dollar. If you don’t see your country listed, reply back to this email and my team will confirm your global price.
