What scares you when it comes to growing your business?
There are a LOT of things in building and growing an online business (or ANY business for that matter) that will seem big and scary and intimidating at first. Some people never progress beyond a certain point because of it.
I often quote a coach of mine who says: “You can have growth, and you can have comfort. You just can’t have them both at the same time.”
Growth is by its very nature uncomfortable. It causes you to stretch outside of your comfort zone and do the things that are hard and scary. When that happens, your brain may start sending you signals to retreat back into that quiet comfortable place and just forget about it.
Brains will do that. They have a built-in mechanism for protecting you from those scary things, and they’ll stop at nothing to keep you away from “danger,” and in the safe space.
But if you’ve ever done something big and scary and pulled it off, you know that magic can happen when you tackle the hard things. Good stuff is going on out there, just outside your comfort zone.
Don’t get me wrong, having a comfort zone is a good thing. It’s important to have a safe, comfortable place for peace of mind and recharging your batteries.
But sooner or later, if you want something more, something bigger, something NEW, you’ll need to stretch a little. That’s why every year, I join Kelly McCausey’s Stretch Yourself Challenge.
I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t have great big huge results every single time. Heck, some years I haven’t even been a “finisher.” (That just means I haven’t completed the designated requirements to win a prize.) But I always get something valuable from the experience, even without a prize.
Whether it’s a new connection with another entrepreneur, or a new insight into my own personal obstacles, I’ve never been sorry about doing the Challenge – not once. And sometimes, something truly magical happens.
This year has been a tough one.
When it came time to sign up for the challenge this year, I very nearly skipped it. But I decided that my apathy was a good sign that I needed the challenge more than ever.
I started the month feeling pretty “blah” about the whole thing. Of course I jumped into the forum and tried very, very hard to manufacture the excitement I’d need to carry me through a month of stretching, but I was distracted and not all that thrilled.
Then, in a completely unexpected way, and at a completely unexpected time, I had a breakthrough moment – a moment where I got some clarity about what I’ve been doing (and NOT doing) in my business that really took my breath away.
I suddenly just knew I hadn’t really been serving my own needs very well – but on top of that, I hadn’t been making my knowledge and content as accessible to my audience as I could be either. After all, content marketing is about making that content AVAILABLE, right?
I have reasons (excuses?) for why I haven’t done it very well, and I’ve had PLANS for a long time to do it better, but this month I finally got really, really clear on what’s been going on. And that clarity makes it so much easier to tackle the problem head-on.
Suddenly, the challenge got exciting!
I posted about my epiphany in the forum, and had some wonderful feedback about it, including some ❤LOVE❤ from some very dear email subscribers who are also doing the SYC.
So why am I telling you all this?
I want you to know that sometimes, when you start S-T-R-E-T-C-H-I-N-G out of your comfort zone, you may be 100% on board and excited…and then your brain starts sending you danger signals.
You may think the universe is telling you that you’re making the wrong choice because it seems like all sorts of bad things start to show up right after you start to shift and grow.
Other times, you may feel like your enthusiasm just isn’t there and you aren’t sure you want to stretch at all, but then you do, and WONDERFUL things happen.
Stretching is like that. It’s unpredictable and often scary. But it can also be exhiliarating and rewarding.
If you’re ready to do a little stretching, a little growing, a little improving – or a LOT of stretching, growing, and improving, I recommend you get the Self Study Version of the Stretch Yourself Challenge.
What Is Stretch Yourself Challenge Exactly?
The SYC is a content marketing challenge that comes with a training manual PACKED with challenges that you get to use to improve your business. And even though it’s a self-study training, you won’t be alone!
You’ll also get access to the private member’s forum, where you can ask questions, get feedback, report your successes, and meet new potential JV partners and collaborators.
Joining will give you the tools and opportunity to examine where exactly in your business you want growth to happen next, and the training to make it a reality.
With the Self-Study Stretch Yourself Challenge, you get to stretch all year long, and it’s made easier with a guide that shows you what to do, and the support you need to keep from retreating back to your comfort zone.
