How to Gain Perspective When It Comes to Growth

A lot of us turned to social media when the worldwide pandemic hit in 2019, which is somewhat expected to save businesses and sustain lifestyles. 

According to research, the average time spent on social media per day is 145 minutes or almost 2 ½ hours per day. This does not include business-related scrolling, marketing, and management as digital entrepreneurs. 

Let’s break things down to gain perspective.

In any stage of business, there is an endless list of things to do and systems to implement. When we are building anything great from a house to a garden to a business there are stages involved that really must be followed with some sense of order to achieve a desirable outcome.

Let’s look at building a house first. It starts with acquiring a prime site to build it on, beautifully architected blueprints to ink and communicate our vision, hiring a general contractor to navigate the project, and connect you with the support needed to execute the project like plumbers, electricians, finishers, inspectors, etc. It takes patience and flexibility throughout the process. 

There is a system when it comes to construction. You obviously can’t wallpaper until the walls have been framed, drywalled, and prepped. You wouldn’t think about installing fixtures until the plumbing and electrical were in place. Step by step, layer by layer each part of the process builds upon the former. You can’t rush the process.

Here’s a pro tip

It’s not a question of IF an issue is going to arise but when it does how am I going to handle it? Of course, we have deadlines in place and estimates in hand to manage expectations but as life wisdom has shown us, expect obstacles and be ready to come up with solutions with a cheerful attitude. This growth mindset will help you go far.

The same philosophy and systematization apply to planting a garden. The foundational elements must be well-thought-out including a location that faces the sun, the health of your soil, which plants grow best next to which, your watering system, etc.

Once you have your building blocks planned and organized, you have to follow a logical order to reap benefits. You may be anxious to bite into a fresh-picked, juicy, and garden-ripe tomato but it’s not feasible until the seed has been buried in the ground, watered, and attended to daily. There is a natural nurturing that allows what we desire to flourish. Patience and perseverance are 2 must-have qualities to attain anything worthwhile.

Once we lean into and practice delayed gratification there is a deeper sense of satisfaction. 

This brings us to the dilemma of wanting all the things in our business at once. Of course, it’s exciting to build something great and enjoy all the things that come with success like a huge social media following, a full client roster, industry recognition and features, a diversified portfolio including passive income, a consistent stream of cash, an impressive impact on the world, and a healthy profit margin.

It all sounds wonderful! And it’s all possible. But the reality is it’s not all possible all at once.

If we expect that it is we will set ourselves up for a path of disappointment and failure. We will fall into the trap of the dreaded imposter syndrome - never feeling worthy or good enough. We will start comparing ourselves to others online kicking up feelings of inadequacy and anxiousness. It will be difficult to put our best work out when we are always looking at what else is left on the list vs. practicing being mono-focused on the task at hand and giving it 110% of our efforts.

This is not a pretty scenario nor is it an ingredient list for success.

Perspective is defined as “a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view.” The cool thing is that you get to choose your thoughts from moment to moment. Not only that but you can shift a negative or non-supportive thought into a better feeling thought by just being aware and practicing flipping the script.

This is very powerful.

Virtues in Action explain, “Perspective means the ability to see the bigger picture in life. Perspective is about being able to see the forest as well as the trees, to avoid getting wrapped up in the small details when there are bigger issues to consider.”

To me, the bigger targets when building, growing, and scaling a business are:

1. Does my work cultivate joy?
2. Am I making a difference in the world?
3. Do I feel excited and expanded daily?
4. Am I giving it my best and only comparing it to my previous baseline?
5. Am I committed to showing up and playing full out?
6. Am I approaching my work as worship and surrendering into success?
7. Are my relationships mutually beneficial where all involved profit?

Having this high level of thinking and being eradicates small thinking. It sets us up for sustainable success and allows us to enjoy the journey. Trust me, if you were to wave a magic wand and receive all the things at once, I guarantee you will lose out on precious personal and spiritual growth opportunities as well as a deep sense of gratitude and fulfillment.

To patiently pursue the art of growth and being present and grateful with each step we take towards our goal.

Until next time my friends...breathe joy,
Kc