Overcoming Overwhelm for Entrepreneurs On A Mission

Once again the Technology Angels have provided!! A brand new way to connect, market, network & serve. ClubHouse came into my world in late December and WOWZA what a platform! I feel like I’m back at the beginning of my career in the personal/professional development space when I just was using my voice to share my message with people all over the world. Only NOW I have 13 years of experience. Only NOW I know what I’m offering and can clearly communicate the value easily and swiftly. Only NOW I have my back end both structured and streamlined to serve my prospects and myself. Most importantly though, only NOW am I disciplined enough to know where my personal boundaries are around what I am willing and able to do and where I need to say no and swiftly so that I don’t burn myself out or blow up my business.

Here’s the thing. If you are called, have a mission, understand that you are here on the planet for a definitive purpose then the last possible thing you want is to burn out. Opportunity is everywhere and FOMO is too. FOMO (or Fear Of Missing Out) has been a big driver in the Beta version of ClubHouse because you can still at this writing only get on the platform if you have an Iphone and an invitation. FOMO is the driver that a lot of big name coaches and trainers use to “poke your scarcity button” and get you to whip out that 16 digits to invest. FOMO is also very very dangerous to run your business from.

How do I know? Because it drove me - right into almost bankruptcy (investing in myself and my business) - right into the collapse of a close family relationship (because I was more focused on the FOMO than on what was going in my OWN Home) - right into a health issue that was exponentially exacerbated by being in a hyper adrenalized state (FOMO is part of the Fight or Flight response - which includes Freezing and Fawning too - All of which are trauma responses.)

As an entrepreneur on a mission - you require ENDURANCE. You also require massive amounts of discipline to stay away from FOMO and stay focused on your own vision/mission/path of purpose. It can be brutally hard - don’t get me wrong - to start saying NO when every part of you is screaming OMG I HAVE TO DO THIS. Remember every decision made in fear - especially now as things on the planet have been both literally and figuratively “heating up” - is simply going to result in adding more fear into the world and into your outcomes.

Then what happens? Well you attract people who will aggravate, irritate and perpetuate the conditions to reactivate the FOMO again the next time someone shoves a shiny object that’s the next latest greatest most amazing thing since sliced bread way to bring you to the land of your dreams. You become trapped in the “never good enough” cycle and you end up spending your life - YOUR LIFE!! - running on fumes.

NOT GOOD. Not sustainable. Not unusual. Not Necessary.

So what can you do to prevent yourself from becoming epically overwhelmed from the onslaught of ongoing opportunity?

Here’s what I have learned are the first best steps to “guard the gift”:

1) Start immediately to say no. If you can’t do this because you are so deeply conditioned to jump to say yes then practice with “I appreciate the opportunity and I’m not available for that right now” or “I need to step away for a few moments and take some space to check in to see if I can bring my best self to this opportunity.”

2) Carve out SPACE - (use the NO muscle for this! on yourself!!) - pull everything OFF your schedule that is non-essential - and I mean it - pare it down to what would be happening if you were in bed sick and unable to get up. What stuff would you immediately let go? What stuff would you do only a teeny bit of? What stuff would you absolutely do even if you had to crawl your way out of bed to do it (Eating is essential, drinking water is essential, breathing is essential…. get it?)

3) TAKE THE SPACE TO GET CLEAR - we are all in such a state of hyperactive frenzy that is constantly being amplified and accelerated in every possible way - even with a whole year of changes from the pandemic we are still deeply in the mode of believing that things will somehow “go back to normal” but the invitation from the pandemic was in large part an invitation from DEATH itself to ask you to face up to what’s actually NOT WORKING. And can we be clear - there is a whole lot that’s NOT WORKING in our world - whole systems are crumbling before our eyes. Entire fields are being disrupted daily. Swaths of people are being “left behind” or are massively suffering. The emotional toll is vast and we have long given up the ancient and authentically necessary rituals of effectively grieving for the losses of loved ones in any formal or respected way in our societal functioning in favor of the “short term profit” goals of megacorporate entities that have our bodies, minds and emotions entrapped in overwhelm and panic buying in hopes of soothing our fractured souls which would be better served by less buying and more bereavement which is an act of praise, appreciation and blessing for the beauty of all that has been lost

4) STOP DOING WHAT’S NOT WORKING - I have a friend - she knows that if she gets foot reflexology weekly she’s able to navigate her very “squished” life with greater ease. She hasn’t had a treatment in over a year and is back to a state of such high stress that she recently started having anxiety attacks again. My first question? When was the last time you had reflexology? She hasn’t and that’s NOT WORKING for her. I made a decision myself recently - specific to both my business and my life - I’m not chasing any more and I’m not “squishing” any more. You know those times where you quietly say to yourself “Oh I can squish this in.” Then when you do - invariably something else has to give. Is it going to be your health? Will you be so out of alignment that you end up making a “squish” decision that ends up messing up the whole rest of your day? I did that in February - on my birthday no less - was headed towards my Friday massage and was running 10 minutes “early” - it was snowing - I thought I could swing into the cemetery on the way to get the date off a headstone for a family project I’m working on. My “squishing” got me stuck in the cemetery in a snow bank for almost 2 hours and no massage for me for my birthday - plus my massage therapist lost income due to my “squishing” cancellation.

5) ASK WHAT DO I WANT INSTEAD? Step 4 & Step 5 often require help. I know I have been talking all along about not going after the ‘shiny objects’ but there are some areas where you actually do need to make an investment to get support. As an entrepreneur, the level of clarity I’m proposing here - which in many cases may require radical readjustment of all you are doing that you actually shouldn’t be doing in order to realize what you actually want may require an investment in the kind of seeing & space holding that only an experienced and trusted advisor can offer. When you pare things back, simplify and structure yourself and your business for minimal effort to produce maximal results in alignment with your mission then you are able to magnetize and monetize much more easily and enjoyably. Mostly this is possible because you yourself are coming to the table with a FULL CUP and you are able to give from your overflow rather than react from overwhelm.

I so appreciate that I’ve finally learned to discipline myself to stop squishing, stop chasing shiny objects and stop stealing from irreplaceable resources like my health and my time, and stop comparing my path unfavorably relative to the slick and prettily packaged others out there who I now know are not my competition because there’s only one me and as the most valuable asset in my business it’s my job to steward myself well. Because of this - when a new opportunity like the Clubhouse platform comes along I can make both wise and intelligent choices so that I am able to create a life that’s a work of art.

Clubhouse for me has been a fantastic opportunity. Joining has allowed me to take the machete to my business and hone, refine or delete activities. Speaking, moderating, hosting rooms and now starting a club on clubhouse has been done in a measured, intentional, results oriented way. I’ve also been checking in with myself regularly - and asking - am I coming from a place of enthusiasm? If so I’m in! If I feel any remnant of FOMO I’m OUT - which also means instead of going into Clubhouse I’m going outside. So far it’s been amazing and I’ve generated 5 figure paydays as a result of being on the platform and enrolled some stellar “right fit” clients to work with me in the last 3 months and for that I am very very grateful.

I’d be delighted to see if it’s a fit for us to work together to support you to be able to shed all that no longer serves and to activate clarity, confidence and commitment to creating conscious change and a life filled with MEANING that fills you with joy and the experience of plenty of prosperity. I appreciate that you want to be seen, heard and supported. Is NOW the time for you to step into the creation of your own Wealthy Life By Design?? If you feel the calling to explore what’s possible when you let go, look in and leverage your own highest gifts then I invite you to apply for a Wealthy Life By Design Clarity Consultation with me. If you qualify my team will be in touch to get you in the schedule.