“Losers are people who are so afraid of not winning, they don’t even try.” (Grandpa, Little Miss Sunshine)

So…my plan for this article had been to write about everything I’ve accomplished in the last two weeks and the steps I’d taken towards fulfilling the next set of goals on my list. At least that had been the plan.

Of course, life had other plans for me, like a broken down car, and a child who just doesn’t understand why Mommy can’t play right now. And every time something took me away from actively trying to accomplish those goals, I’d feel awful.

Sure, I got out the press release for Create Magazine on time, and I wrote my book proposal. But I didn’t submit it, and as of last night, the proposal was 10 days past my self-imposed deadline. And on top of that, I’m nowhere near where I wanted to be with my website update.

So when I saw the movie, Little Miss Sunshine, for the first time two nights ago, the line, “Losers are people who are so afraid of not winning, they don’t even try,” really hit home. Hard.

Then a friend of mine helped me put things in perspective. He helped me realize that I am trying – that regardless of my personal fears and insecurities, I am making a conscious effort everyday to meet my goals and rebuild a successful business. A successful businessman himself, he explained that in business, goals are merely guidelines. Things can happen unexpectedly and deadlines get missed, but there’s always tomorrow. And as much as I hate to admit it, he’s right.

So after talking to him, I revisited my to-do list, and looked at what was done (my press release), what needed to be done (writing this article), and what could be done tomorrow (typing up and submitting my book proposal.) And…yeah, maybe I was slightly over zealous with my three-month plan. Or maybe it’s a case of poor planning. The truth is, that while I hadn’t expected my plan to be without bumps in the road, I certainly didn’t expect to run into them so soon.

Fortunately, though, I’ve just started this process, and I can make adjustments as I go along. So, I’m going to take my friend’s advice, and reprioritize my goals…I mean “guidelines.” And yes, I’m going to start thinking of my three-month plan as more of a guide to help me reach my ultimate goal: moving my office out of the bedroom. It’s funny how just changing “goals” to “guidelines” seems to take the pressure off a little, but still motivates me to action. Man, how I wish I’d figured that out sooner!

So to recap: I made a three-month plan of things to do. I met one of my deadlines, and missed one. I learned that I may have bitten off more than I can chew, once I actually started working on my list and came across that first bump in the road. But with a little help from my friends, I realized that the bumps are nothing in the grand scheme of things, and I’ve regrouped, refocused, and am ready to get right back on track to meet my next set of goals…whoops, I mean guidelines.

Join me next time, as I continue my journey Out of the Bedroom,
Tamar Wallace | Principal, TAMAR Graphics