Why Imperfection Is Your Greatest Ally.

2 months ago I set myself a challenge: Write a blog post or email every day for 30 days.

As a small business owner, there are many challenges that you face every day.

One of which is staying in contact with your audience.

Blog posts and emails are a great way of sharing meaningful content with a warm audience.

So I set myself the challenge of posting every day for 30 days, and I found Imperfection was my greatest ally.

 

The Challenge

So I set myself the challenge of writing content every day for 30 days.

– Just like you’re thinking about setting yourself the challenge of hitting the gym every day of losing weight every week over the next few months.

I blocked off some time in my calendar every day so I knew I would have time to write something.

– Just like you’re thinking about what time of day will be best for you to avoid the New Year crowds at the gym.

I took notes from conversations with clients or friends so I wrote about things that people actually wanted to hear about.

– Just like you’re scouring the internet trying to find training programmes that look suitable for your goals

I set myself a target of minimum 500 words each day so the content was longer form and more meaningful

– Just like you’re planning to hit the gym for a massive workout to guarantee results.

 

The Struggle

The natural procrastinator in me tried to distract me from my task

– Just like yours is going to do when your alarm goes off at 0500 and you’re supposed to be going out for a run

Writing on my pc meant Facebook, Instagram, Email were all flashing notifications at me, insistent that their alert was more important that my work

– Just like the friend who’s going to suggest beers after work when you know you should be at the gym

When I got stuck, or the words just didn’t flow, I had to work really hard to stay on task

– Just like you’re going to experience when you can’t find a park outside the gym, so you convince yourself you’ll train extra hard tomorrow, as you head home

Was I perfect?

Not at all.

Only a couple of days ago, I managed to send out a completely blank email to every one of our audience.

– Just like there are going to be days when you feel your workouts were ineffective

There were many times where I ended up writing at either a ridiculously early, or late, time because I left my day get away with me

– Just like you’re going to go for a run when you get home because you didn’t have enough time to get to the gym

There were times when I felt like the content I wrote, or the subject I wrote about wasn’t worth sharing.

– Just like your weight loss goals are going to make the food you need

Imperfection was my greatest ally, because it meant I still got things done instead of waiting for things to be perfect and never achieving anything.

– Waiting to find the perfect time to start, or the perfect programme to achieve your goals, means you’re likely to be having the same conversation with yourself this time next year.

 

The Outcome

I posted a blog or email content every day for 50 days.

20 days longer than my original goal.

Why did I go on even though I’d achieved my goal?

Because, once I had overcome the initial teething issues, it was easier to stay in the habit than it was to break it.

I’d put in place a structure that worked, and I’d shared my goal with my mentor, so I had the accountability to keep going.

 

What this means for you in 2021

The same things are going to be what helps you achieve your goals in 2021 and beyond.

The application of imperfect, regular action will see you achieve repeatable, long term success.

The worshipping of perfect, infrequent action will see you stay where you are, or worse, regress further back and feel even more unsuccessful.

I don’t want you to read something like this in a years time and find yourself wishing if only I started then

I want you to be a happier, healthier version of yourself through imperfect, regular action

I want you to see the future full of opportunities, not looking back with the regret of, if only!

 

Here’s my email, paul@ignitefitness.nz, flick me a line if you want to know how to get started on being successful in the long term.

Cheers

Paul and the Ignite team

(Or, book a time to come in for a chat)