“I have that planned for six months out.”
“I’ll get started in about six months.”
“I’ll be ready in six months.”
Six months from now seems to be a magical time. It doesn’t matter if it’s actually January or July or October or March. Six months from now is always better. I am not sure what the allure is about6 months in the future but that is usually the date that people give me for when they will finally looking for that new job or start that new business. It’s like that golden period where apparently we have our life together.
Spoiler: You will not have your life together in six months.
Plot Twist: There is no such thing as a put-together life. Some of us are just better at carrying our baggage.
Even that friend on social media with the perfect hair, the perfect kids, the perfect spouse. You know who I am talking about- the one that always seems to be ahead of the curve when it comes to trends from dove gray living room paint to fancy Brussel Sprouts. Yeah, that lady has her own baggage even if she has found a Pinterest-worthy way of packing it. Her secret is rolling, not folding, FYI.
Trust me, I have met a few Instagram lifestyle influencers and seen the life behind the filters.
So, what do you do when life does its predictable chaotic life thing and rolls over your vision board aspirations?
DO THE THING ANYWAY.
You can plan your heart out (and you should build a strategy), but always know that even the best battle plans change when you hit the field.
Lady Victory doesn’t choose who has the best plan or the most talent, she goes with who started and then kept at it.
Like Ulysses S. Grant said, “In every battle there comes a time when both sides consider themselves beaten, then he who continues the attack wins.”
Balance is the watchword that has launched more self-help books and blogs than nearly any other concept in career development. We want balance and rail against chaos.
Sorry, Charlie. Balance is a myth. Chaos is reality.
Life has seasons, there are ebbs and flows, but you will never have a day where you have a balance between work, family, friends, hobbies, etc etc etc. When we expect chaos, when we anticipate delays, and we make consistent daily steps, no matter how small, that is when we make progress in our journeys.
Stop pushing off your dreams to wait for a fantasy time period where everything is perfect, your life is in balance, and no one will be inconvenienced. It ain’t happening, sister.
Embrace the crazy!
Bless the mess!
Use that chaos as a ladder, honey!
If you start now with consistency and conviction, you might actually get your goal in six months… instead of wishing that you had.