EVEN WHEN YOU ARE NOT DOING YOUR BEST, YOU ARE DOING YOUR BEST

Am I being lazy, or is it really not the right time?

That is what I hear when things aren’t going exactly as someone planned. There is really only so much we can control and when we know we have done our best to make something happen, then all we can do is wait.

That is the hardest part.

Coming to know the difference between waiting patiently for something to happen and being lazy is a big part of being comfortable with not knowing and developing a trust in yourself.

My first coach told me, “Even when you are not doing your best, you are doing your best.”

I interpreted this to mean that although I know I have done better, if this is all I can do now, it is the best I can do for now.

That may sound like a nice positive spin to get yourself off the hook, but there is no question that forgiving yourself for your momentary lapse in excellence is much more productive than constantly hanging shit on yourself.

The standard I recommend is taking an honest look at the effort you’ve made.

If you have done everything you can think of (including getting outside, additional support) to approach a project or a desired outcome, then it is time to let it rest.

Let the power of that effort have some time to mature.

Maybe you’ll find a better way later, or maybe it was meant to show you something else about yourself but never came to fruition.

If you are not in action, and if you are hiding from what you say you want, then you are sabotaging your efforts.

You know deep down when fear is getting the best of you. Break the goal down to a bite-size piece that you can chew off now.

The other possible approach would be to re-evaluate your goal to ensure it is really something you truly want. If it doesn’t feel that way, the desired outcome may very well be something you felt you should do.

And I can tell you now, leaps of faith cannot come from ‘should’.