I got some shitty news a few weeks ago.
My doctor told me that because of the nature of my pregnancy (higher risk than Melania’s ankles), I had to be on modified bedrest until my due date.
That’s FOURTEEN WEEKS of sitting with my feet up. No travel. No exercise. No standing in front of a room teaching for 3 days straight.
Now I’ve been through bedrest before but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t make me a little bat-shit crazy. I was also disappointed because I had planned this epic live event for this spring and I was juuuuuust about to announce the date. And to add a cherry on top, my husband and I are in the middle of building our dream home which requires frequent trips to the construction site, tile store, lighting store, etc.
When I got the news about bedrest, I felt so frustrated, so stuck. I was planning on being ‘RACHEL, THE PREGNANT WARRIOR PRINCESS’ not ‘Rachel, the blob who doesn’t get out of bed.’ I complained to literally anyone who would listen (read: my poor husband). I couldn’t let go of the fact that I had plans and all my plans were now cancelled.
Then I talked with my team about what this meant for our business and we were trying to figure out when we would reschedule the event or how we could make up the lost revenue.
And I had this BIG realization.
Your constraints are actually your benefits.
My clients are always telling me that they can’t do what their business needs because of their very unique, very specific, oh-so-out-of-their-control situation. I call bullshit. That’s exactly why you can do what your business needs. There is always always always a way, and the ability to find that way in the middle of a life stuff / medical event / my wifi won’t work / my computer is broken / my kid is home sick for a week, is what will make you successful. While everybody else is giving up because it’s just “impossible,” you’re making it possible.
And in that box of constraint is where we find the most creativity and the most commitment.
So instead of seeing bedrest as a death wish for my Q2 biz plans, I could look at it as an invitation from the universe…to try something new.
I told my team, HOLD THE PHONE! Why are we cancelling the event just because I can’t travel or stand in front of a room for hours?
“Well…because you can’t travel or stand in front of a room for hours,” somebody pointed out.
“Then I’m going to do the event sitting, in my bedroom.”
I’ve always wanted to do a virtual event but I wasn’t sure if it would be successful and I was worried that the attendees might feel like they were missing out on the in-person element. I was full of doubts and instead of facing those doubts, I stuck with what was working: live and in-person events.
Well now I have the chance to get creative, to take a risk, to potentially do something that is AMAZING. And all because I need to keep my feet up!
Make the most of what you do have
My clients often tell me that they can’t launch a new offer because their list is only 200 people and they can’t grow their list because they don’t have the time and resources without the profit from the new offer…you can see where this is headed #totaldefeat.
They’re so focused on what they don’t have (a bigger list) that they have devalued what they do have (200 people to sell to) and therefore have convinced themselves there is no other option and they are completely stuck.
When we shift the focus to the 200 people, then we can see all the possibilities unfold. 1-to-1 phone calls. Upsell to them. Get their feedback. When we work on getting those 200 people to become customers, we’re operating in reality and we’re also forced to get creative. When we’re convinced that we need 2000 people on our list in order to make money, it’s an easy way out. We tell ourselves that we don’t need to do anything today because there’s nothing we can do until we have 2000 people on our list.
Sure, that client might make more money with 2000 people on their list. But they’re going to make NO money if they sit paralyzed, waiting for that day to come. What they CAN do is make SOME money right now. Using exactly what they already have.
Own your priorities
When I dug into the feeling that I was being “forced” to cancel the event and that I was “helpless” to do anything about it, what I actually saw was that I had made choices and those choices were based on my priorities:
- I chose to put the health of my baby over the health of my business, because I prioritize my children OVER my business.
- I chose to build a house this year even though I have a lot of other things going on, because I prioritize my family’s comfort and happiness OVER my business.
When I reframed it like that, it suddenly seemed like the most natural and positive thing in the world to be put on bedrest. In fact, the opposite (what I had been wishing for) seemed like the real problem: to keep working at the same pace and possibly jeopardize my health and my baby’s health. I realized that I value health and family over money, and my current situation perfectly reflects those values.
This is true for you, too. If you are willing to look closely. Maybe you don’t have time for your business because you have kids. Or you’re still working at your corporate job full time. Or you have health problems. However you’re choosing to spend your time, it’s a reflection of your choices and your priorities, and that’s okay. In fact, it’s really wonderful.
Alright, I need to wrap this up because I’ve got a virtual event to plan!
Will the event be amazing? I hope so. I’m nervous about it, I’m excited about it, I’m a little scared about it…but I’m doing it. Because I won’t let my constraints crush me. I will only let them challenge me to be even more creative.
xo,
p.s. if you want to be one of the beta attendees for my virtual workshop, you can get all the details and sign up here. This is brand new for me and so I’m offering the full-day event at a reduced price. Sign up before April 5th and get a box of workbooks and goodies delivered to your doorstep in time for our workshop.
