[BCC 017] Your State vs External Forces
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What an insane couple of weeks.
Last week I wrote about the impact that measuring while planting had on my ability to show up and do the work. Getting some crappy results after just a few days threw me off course, and made it harder to keep the energy and momentum up.
So today is a follow up. An adjecent lesson learned.
Don't Let External Forces Determine Your Emotional State
I've learned numerous times over the last year the importance of mastering your emotional state. How you show up throughout the day matters more than I'd ever realized.
So much so that I have a "ritual" of sorts that I go through when I get home, to transition from work to home life.
It's only about 20 steps from my car to the front door, but in those 20 steps I tell myself that it's time to switch gears, to turn off the business brain, and to be the "hero" that my wife and boys deserve.
I'm not perfect by any means but this one ritual has made this year full of so much fun and gratitude, despite the lockdowns, the quarantines, the pandemic, the economic uncertainty. I knew that I had the ability to "show up" and be a good dad.
There were even a few days where I left work early because I got frustrated and needed a "win", and there's nothing like three boys running to hug you first to get your spirits up.
But that's a good example of the lesson I learned this week. I was relying on external events in those moments to lift my spirits, rather than the other way around.
Like I said, I'm not perfect at this.
After last week, I decided to be more consistent at showing up. To not get stuck in a rut, to add in some habits that help me have energy and motivation like drinking more water, exercising, going on walks, and sleeping a full 8 hours.
It all helped, but the biggest shift was my mindset. I told myself on Monday that it's time to raise my standards, and set a NEW standard for how I want to show up every day.
I couldn't have expected what happened next...
Things Happen When You Show Up
I prefer to call it "grace", but some call it "luck". But this week, the opportunities started flowing.
Sunday night we had a call with our mentor & business advisor to raise some money for Benchmark. I landed a new, unexpected course partner for Craftsman Creative, and lined up TWO other calls with potential course creators.
It's the exact opposite of last week. Now, did my emotional state cause these events to happen? NO. But I was able to immediately be present because I was already in that state, and the calls and the opportunities happened in part because of how I chose to show up.
Your Emotional State Needs To Come From Within
The lesson for me this week, that I'm grateful has been reinforced with such impact - is that your emotional state needs to come from inside you, not determined by external events or forces.
Don't let people, events, failures, successes, or situations throw you off your game. Decide how you want to show up every day - at home, at work, everywhere - and set a new standard for yourself.
With that in mind, I did a live training on Monday about goal setting and yearly planning, and it will help you go deeper on getting into the right emotional state, as well as show you the way that I plan out my year to achieve the goals I want to achieve.
You can watch it for free here:
It's a complimentary lesson for the BUILD coaching program that I have put together for next year. A small group of creatives, artists, and freelancers who want to build a resilient creative business next year. I'd love for you to join us!
You can sign up at build.craftsmancreative.co