The mental chill is worse than the cold ... [🐝U]

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It's OK to lose a battle
What matters is you are fighting the war.

I've been thinking about that a lot lately... usually while
→ thawing out frozen fingers
→ arguing with the county over permits
→ watching my batteries drain in the cold.

The past week or so has tested every ounce of patience, creativity, & perseverance I’ve got.

It’s reminded me of something I keep relearning the hard way:
Persistence isn’t always about bulldozing through …
Sometimes the smartest move is to stop pushing & start pivoting to go around.

When pushing through isn’t working

How to know when it's time to pivot & try going around instead of through the challenge.
It's not giving up ... You're not "quitting" on the goal. You're just taking a different road.

It may seem like it's going to take longer 

But at least you'll get there.
Same goal, different path

I’ve learned a lot about that determination from my mom.

Mamma Mia was the definition of stubborn & determined grit.
For her 90th birthday, she got a “yes week” … whatever she wanted (to eat / buy / do) … my answer was “yes”

That included riding a gondola to the top of the mountain.
… in a snowstorm

That wasn’t enough.
She also wanted to walk around outside.

Did I mention my mom was legally blind, hard of hearing, & needed a walker?
Imagine how difficult this must have been for her.

She wasn’t able to walk all the way around. The wind & snow make it too difficult for even able-bodied people … but she DID get what she wanted.

She constantly reminded me that grit doesn’t always look like pushing harder.
Sometimes it’s about refusing to give up on the view you came for.

That’s where I get it from… the part of me refusing to quit on the view I came for.

I'm rethinking a lot because of the cold, the snow, & the county's changing red tape to get things built.
→ No heat.
→ Running out of battery power because of either no sun or too cold for my little portable system to charge.

This last week wrung me out … patience, creativity, perseverance… all of it.
The cold gets into your bones, but the mental chill?
That’s way worse.

The mental game no one tells you about

I should be further along.

& while - logically - I know it's going to “take as long as it takes” & I can't control Mother Nature, contractors, or County employees...

Emotionally, it's frustrating & patience has worn thin.
Still, underneath the frustration is absolute clarity.

I know what I want.
I can see that future so vividly

& I'm sure I'll look back in a year or 2 & roll my eyes ...

It's all definitely a learning experience.
I can laugh about it most days, but some nights … yeah, it’s rough.

But can we just get on with it please?
So I don't wake up curled up in a fetal position because I rolled over & lost a couple of blanket layers?

Losing the battle, not the war

So if you have a call with me & see me a desk instead of in a tent or trailer, you'll know I lost the battle.

But I'm regrouping to continue fighting the war.

My “war” is to:
→ get out of the city
→ live & work remotely
→ be off grid

Surrounded by trees & wildlife instead of traffic & annoying neighbors.
Because this isn’t just about escaping the noise & traffic & “Karens” …

It’s about creating a space to think, breathe, & just BE.

Think Grizzly Adams with tech 😁

When I look up into the sky, I want to see the stars, Northern Lights & the Milky Way …
not headlights & streetlamps polluting the view

I should add HEAT & a solid shelter to that …
I’m already enjoying the Northern Lights & I’ve seen the Milky Way by poking my head out the tent door.

What about you?

We're 6 weeks away from a new year.
That means we've got the holiday season ahead of us 

Perfect time to "give up" on our goals for the year ...
It sounds like a valid reason.

I'd challenge you to consider it an excuse.

Maybe you're telling yourself you’ll “start fresh” in January.
But be honest … how have all those other New Years resolutions worked out before?

You haven’t failed.
You just hit a detour.

Rethink instead of restart

Just because you didn’t hit your targets this year doesn’t mean your mission is over.
You may have lost a battle or 2 hitting your goals this year.

You can still win the war.

What if instead of waiting to restart (or walking away) you rethink?
You may have lost the battle of achieving your goals for the year.

You can still win the war.

What if instead of trying to "do it all" you do a little bit.

Gift yourself time

It's a time of gift-giving, right?

In the US it's a time of giving thanks.
Canada started that in October.

That doesn't have to be all-day football or a 20-pound turkey or a house full of people.

It's whatever you want to make it ... Just like your business.

So this year, forget the gadgets & gift card … gift yourself time.

I'm not talking hours a day.
Start with minutes.
How about just 15 of them?

That tiniest commitment can change everything.

1% better every day

Did you know that 1% of your day = 15 minutes?

Seriously!

Get up 15 minutes early 
Go to bed 15 minutes later 
Maybe lock yourself in the bathroom & extend your daily constitution 

It's about the quality of the time over the quantity 

Set a timer 
→ Write a social media post.

Still have time?
→ Make a connection request with someone who engaged with your post.

Oops, ran out of time?
→ stop anyway … doesn’t matter if it’s mid-sentence or a blank screen.

I know this one seems counter-intuitive. It’s difficult to do. Our minds crave completion. We want to wrap things up.

Stop when the timer goes off.
Try it for a month.

 The Pomodoro Method talks about 33 minutes & 33 seconds.

That doesn't work for everyone ... Especially around the holidays. 

I have things like LinkedIn as appointments on my calendar with reminders.
That doesn't always work. OK it's mostly not been working. 

Because my days on certain times of the year aren't as rigid in scheduling. 
I can't tell Mother Nature to hold off on the snowfall because I don't have time to clear it off the tent … or dry off the dog before getting back in the trailer.

But I can schedule a post after scheduling the newsletter.

& I can scroll the feed, repost/comment while waiting for the water to boil for coffee.
(yes, it's instant when camping to keep the garbage & cleaning to a minimum)

& if you take an honest look at where your time is going, you can find a few minutes here & there to do SOMETHING too.

It's always going to be better than nothing ... for your business but - more importantly - for your mindset.

This only works if you actually show up for yourself.
& that’s where accountability steps in.

You’re the boss … & employee

Accountability partners can remind you.
But they can’t do the work for you.

Real accountability starts by talking to the person in the mirror.

Remember, while you're getting started, you may be the boss but you're also the employee.

As an employee, how likely is it you'd have a job in January if you took 6 weeks off?

When you’re showing up for yourself (& your dreams) even in small ways, that’s something to be thankful for (& proud of)

Gratitude in the grind

Be thankful you get to build something … even on the messiest of days
Be thankful you're here to do a little bit better today.

In the past month, some clients have dealth major health challenges
→ heart attack
→ cancer diagnosis
→ surgeries (unfortunately, more than 1)

We’re not guaranteed a tomorrow.

The best gift you can give yourself (& your family in the long run) is time to get closer to your dreams.

I'm thankful for you.

I appreciate the subscribes, opens, the clicks ...
Even the unsubscribes.

Am I where I planned to be with my newsletter?
My off-grid living?

Not even close … for some things

But … I totally smashed it out of the park with others.

So I can choose to wallow in where things fell short.
Or I can commit to focusing on what’s working.

I'm thankful I have the opportunity to work towards realizing my dream of living off-grid (in a warm cabin) ...

Even if what's in my head now isn't likely to be what it's going to look like exactly.

It means someone's paying attention.
That maybe, my messy middle, is useful to you too.

& the reminder couldn’t have come at a better time

Because I’m stepping back from the property for 24 hours.

So I give myself the space to see the “battlefield” & find a different approach so I can keep fighting for what I want.

I’m recharging … literally & figuratively

You can’t control the chaos

There's only 2 things we can control in life ...
Our actions & our reactions.

The rest? That's just weather.

It's not always going to be perfect.

Stepping back isn’t surrender.
It’s strategy.

You haven’t lost.
You’re regrouping!

Make it a great “regrouping“ week!
EG

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