Why you need to get "dirty" if you really want to succeed
Back in my competitive soccer playing days, I used to loathe the beginning of those rainy day, mud-bowl games.
My cleats would get progressively heavier as they soaked up water from the grass, my socks slowly started to saturate and the moment when the game was about to start and we had to peel off sweats and run out in to the pelting, cold rain in shorts and our thin jerseys.
It felt like cruel and unusual punishment.
The whistle would blow and I would tip-toe around, poke tackling, gingerly passing the ball and "princessing" my way through the game until I finally (and rightfully so) got leveled by an opponent.
And just like that....there I was, stunned, eyes wide open, sitting in a muddy puddle, soaked, dirty and pissed.
It was like a switch being flipped on and, just like that, I was back IN THE GAME.
Mud on my face, drenched and my adrenaline pumping.
The instant clarity in my conviction to succeed and the desire to be ALL IN for my teammates was the igniting force that drove me to play as hard as I possibly could, no matter what the conditions were like outside.
The rain, the cold, the slippery field...none of it mattered.
I was in it and battling and I flat out refused to lose.
And, by no surprise, my entrepreneurial journey has felt a lot like this muddy field episode...
In the first few months after launching my business, I sheepishly told people what I did, I changed my title weekly, questioned myself on the daily and wanted everything to be "just so" on my website, in my copy and in every single little thing I was doing.
I was terrified of getting "dirty."
I would do whatever it took to avoid getting knocked down.
Until I did.
Multiple times...when I least expected it...and there I was sitting in that same puddle....muddy, cold and pissed.
But more ready than ever before to roll up my sleeves, put my big girl pants on and step in to my role as the CEO of my life and business.
Being an entrepreneur takes grit.
Stepping in to our roles as The Soul Fueled CEOs of our businesses and lives is not for the faint of heart.
But it's one of the most thrilling things you will ever do in your lifetime if you go all in.
Sometimes that means making unpopular decisions or telling your family you can't do dinner tonight because you're in launch mode.
Sometimes it means flat-out losing the game...with crickets chirping, no one coming on your call or joining your program.
And then there you are, staring at yourself, questioning whether or not this is going to pay off in the long run.
But I'll tell you what happens next...
Somehow, in between the tears and the frustration and the mountain of self-doubt, you remember WHY you chose this path in the first place.
You remember what it feels like to help someone change the course of their life and, in doing so, you help them change the course of HISTORY for their family and for the people they are going to serve.
You remember that the road to success in your life has never been a straight line....that there has ALWAYS been a method to your madness, even if you can't explain it to your mom and dad.
And above all else, you trust that voice inside yourself.
You believe in that bigger vision for your life MORE than the sting of any failure you've endured.
You know that each time you step on to the field, each time you show up to a client coaching session and with every single email you send you are tethered to a higher purpose for your life and the work you were put here to do.
True fulfillment begins when we say YES to our dreams, over and over again, no matter how muddy that road gets along the way.
Because courage does not exist without fear.
Keep going.
PS - Ready to roll those sleeves up and get serious about your brand + biz strategy? Click here to apply to work with me.
