I am so committed to making 2019 the year of purpose that I thought it only fitting we do it up with a Monday motivation that embodies what I think of when I think of my word of the year.
It really didn’t take me long to find the perfect quote for this month.
“Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction.” ~ John F. Kennedy
Ya’ll let’s think on that one for a bit and let me tell you why I think this is the perfect quote to start this month. (Yeah I know it’s the 7th but whatevs man, it’s the first Monday of the new year.)
How many times did you say, “well I tried,” when you finally gave up and threw in the towel? If I had a dollar for every time I thought or said that I made an effort or tried to do something, I’d be rich; retirement would be on my radar and I’d be traveling around the world.
Even as recent as last year I kept telling myself I was going to do certain things; pitch more magazines, respond to someone with a great writing gig, exercising, eating more leafy greens so my INR numbers would be more stable.
Somehow, I would always fail. When I failed, it always came back to not putting in enough effort. I’d give whatever it was I wanted a go – for about a week.
I’d lose interest.
I wouldn’t follow through.
I didn’t have a plan.
It wasn’t a clear plan.
I simply wasn’t committed.
Reasons, reasons. I had a lot of them. When I found my quote for this month, it all made sense: My purpose wasn’t clear enough. There was no set direction.
Why did I want what I wanted? Was it really something I wanted or was it something someone else wanted that I thought I wanted to? If I really dig down deep, moving to Alaska is the perfect example.
It was something my husband desired; not me. I wanted it because he did but I didn’t have a purpose in it. He did. And so he made it work out. His efforts have worked out for us because it was something he wanted. His plan was clear and he was committed. He followed through.
I love him for this. Yes, it all worked out but not because of me; but in spite of me.
Let’s look at it from a career standpoint since this is why this quote speaks to the heart of me.
Do I want to create a more fulfilling career for myself? Sure, I know what I desire but my objective was never very clear. I didn’t begin to hone in on what I truly wanted until late last year.
When I’d look for freelance work, I’d look for just about anything; social media, design, data entry, transcription, writing, marketing – everything I knew I had a shot at getting BUT I wasn’t following through on most of them. I’d pitch to places that offered decent compensation or email but when it came to doing the work once I had my foot in the door, I’d put in nearly no effort or bail altogether because it wasn’t something I was truly interested in.
Writer spoiler alert: If you don’t care, even minimally, for a topic or want to learn more about it, you’ll always write crap.
What I needed to do, what I am doing now, is getting clear on the direction I want to go in. Yes, I need to make an income but it has to be something I have interest in. I told a friend not too long ago, that I wanted nothing to do with running someone else’s social media. I really don’t. When it comes to writing, I know what topics I’m good at, what interests me, and what I’m willing to write about; it’s time to stop pitching the ones that only appeal to me because of the compensation attached.
I can even apply this to my health and I’m sure you can too. Since being diagnosed with heart failure, I’ve done what I thought I could to change things. I followed doctor’s orders, took the medicine, limited activity, but it turns out, my direction was unclear, my purpose was unclear. Why? When I’d had enough, when I told myself the doctors I was currently seeing weren’t going to EVER be able to fully care for me, I got honest and sought out answers. I went to the EXPERTS in congenital heart disease and made a plan. I’m sticking to it and in the end, it will be the best thing for me.
There’s a saying in the blog community; know your “why”. Your “why” is your purpose. Your why will point you in the direction you need to go. And when you know your why, your efforts will pay off.
Happy Monday friends!
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