There are lots of people out there right now telling you how to get where you’re going.  That’s great.

But the first step is knowing where you are.  Because the directions are different depending on where you start. (One size does not fit all).

This step is often overlooked and underplayed by those who are going to help you make $10,000 in one week.  Mostly because they are telling hundreds of people at the same time and not allowing for individual differences.  Being off your very own, really true trajectory by even one degree can send you wandering, lost, and not understanding why since you “did everything right!”

For instance, that step about having thousands (and I do mean thousands) of names on your list (you know, your opt-in list – the one where folks have said, “yes, indeed, I want to hear from this person.”  The maintenance of which, at the level of thousands, is going to cost you about $100/month).  Why thousands?  The response rate on-line is about 1% (this is not theory, this is experience talking and I don’t care what anyone else says!).  Not only do thousands give you a good base to start from, but you can also offer that base $$ to sell whatever it is you’re selling (which means they get a percent).

So let’s say you aren’t quite there (there being the requirements of the above paragraph).  Where exactly are you?

Can you write it down?

Because if you can’t write it down in about 3 sentences, you don’t really know where you are.

So try this:

Get Clear on What You Want

1. Take a sheet of paper and time yourself: for 5 minutes write down everything you want.  The sky’s the limit.  In fact, there really isn’t a limit.  Write down everything.  Money is no object.  Dream big.  Wait – dream the biggest you’ve ever dreamed.
2. Take another sheet.  You’re on a roll.  Now write what you want for 10 minutes.  If you can’t write for 15 minutes (steps one and 2)  about things you really really want, this is where you are:  not very clear about how big you can dream when you clear away limiting thoughts.
3. Take another sheet.  This isn’t timed – give yourself at least 1/2 hour of uninterrupted space for this.  Go back over what you’ve written. Read all of it.  Choose the one thing that feels “hot” – that is, the thing that makes you feel excited, the thing that you want more of NOW.  The thing that would have you meeting the day bounding out of bed with a “hell, yes! I can’t wait to get on with this day!”
4. Don’t feel that excitement?  Go back to 1 and start over.  Got your hotspot? Proceed

Get Clear about How It Looks

Let’s say your hotspot is:  I want to be a successful artist.

Yet more exercises (let’s face it:  writing ideas down forces you to bring abstract, half-formed ideas into concrete reality.  If you can’t do this, you don’t know what you want).  Take a sheet of paper and write the answers to the following questions.  Don’t think too hard.  Just write.  And yes, you have to write or this won’t work.

What does successful mean to you? Write a definition.  Do not use the dictionary.  This is your very own definition of success.  Make sure you cover all the nuances.

1. What is your perfect day as a successful artist?   Start with “I wake up at….” and end up with “___ hours later, I am ready to rest, happy that….”  Take it hour by hour if that helps, or in blocks of time if that works better for you. 
2. What is your worst day as a successful artist?  Even the perfect job has it’s down days.  Plan for it and these days won’t catch you off guard; you’ll know how to handle them.  Use whatever structure works best for you.

Do You Know Where You Are?

Answering this is a journey.  Where you are will change as you get clearer and clearer about what you really want.  As you write out your best and worst days, what you want may shift.  Repeat these exercises regularly until you are crystal clear about where you are in you life.  Your best and worst days are the begining of a map about where you want to go.

Need a bit more structure for all this?  Check out Module 1:  Get Clear – The Rest Will Follow.  It works for artists and non-artists alike!  Need yet more?  I have room for 2 coaching clients – send me an email at info@TammyVitale.com and let’s get you ready to start 2011 with a hearty “Hell, YES!”

Hang around.  We’re going to talk about all this some more.   If each of us finds our “Hell YES” life, we will change the world for the better.  Are you in?

Wylde Women’s Wisdom

If this were easy, we’d already be there.  Which means “there” is not important.  “Here” right where we are is where all the good stuff is happening.  Tammy Vitale