What’s the Opposite of Cold Turkey?

Perfection ultimately killed my progress.

I didn’t have all the time in the world, yet I found myself fretting over synonyms in each blog post and even worse, finding time to weakly attempt twitter. I lost time setting up my email list and its opening kickoff series as if I were going to send out regular emails. (But you should still join it. I’m the very opposite of spam… practically non-existent! So there really is no harm in joining! C’mon… it could be fun!) I sweat the small things before pushing Publish on a blog that could have gone out the week prior. (#strikeone) I went from zero to sixty with my new routine, which, by the way, I hate routines. (#striketwo) I tried to post daily on Instagram, tried to finish twelve new-to-me crafts and, on top of that, aimed to publish an SEO-perfect blog weekly when I don’t enjoy writing enough to do so. (#strikethreefourfive)

In 2017, I full-throttle committed to a creative plan that was 100% achievable. 

Until I added in all that extra FLUFF mentioned above. When you have a tiny audience, that’s really all it is! Sure, it will help a blog grow, but if I don’t have time to create and share content, there is nothing for the blog to grow from. Somehow I sucked myself into managing a blog with no content to manage, leaving no time for me to create! I got so hung up on where I wanted to be in five years that it resulted in me trampling over my own foundation that first needed to be laid. That is a bad place to be.

Knowledge Can Paralyze

I’ve been so caught up in being prepared that it put me in this state of fear to actually start. I convinced myself that I needed all of the answers to succeed. How many of you remember everything you learned from a textbook in high school? *Crickets* Now how many of you remember how to ride a bike from when you were five years old? Testing your knowledge by way of action is incredibly valuable. Get out there and fall. Stumble through your mistakes and aim to do it better next time.

Squashing the Perfect Monster

Instagram offers so many fun tools that are equally just as terrifying! Going live is intimidating (no undo), yet creating stories (can redo) feels like wasted content. But BOTH allow for awesome growth opportunities! Going live would get me out of my has-to-be-perfect rut, and stories aren’t actually wasteful; they create conversation and don’t “threaten” the perfect grid (sarcasm) with your imperfect lighting. Each allow me to connect with my followers, learn their questions and passions, which in turn would allow me to create content they want to see! It’s a beautiful cycle that helps kill the monster that is perfection.

So tell me. What is the opposite? Hot ham?

Related: Who’s Behind It All? | Naming the Blog | 2017: My Most Creative Year Yet

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