“Amanda, I know that I’m waffling about jumping into this program with you, and I know that you can help me. I just have been so disappointed with all of the other programs that have promised to help me finish this book…”
I asked her about the programs she’d signed up for – what kind of format they were delivered in, what kind of support she was offered (group or individual), etc. As she shared about the programs and the THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS she had paid TO GET NO RESULTS, I could feel my skin burning with rage.
While I was intentionally managing my breath and responses, a part of me was screaming at the industry that I’m in, where many preach success as an expert/messenger but don’t tell the whole truth about what it takes to become successful: THERE ARE NO MAGIC PILLS WHEN IT COMES TO WRITING A BOOK!
“Amanda, I just don’t know what to do. I know my message can change the world, but I’m starting to feel like I don’t have what it takes to write the book and get it out there. I wasn’t able to finish any of those programs…”
Another deep breath before I spoke to her wrongly calculated defeat. “Look. From what you’ve told me, you’ve been extremely successful in all of your education and careers. You listed a half-dozen certifications and credentials, and that was just in one breath. You are NOT a failure. These programs were simply not a match for your strengths and natural method of succeeding.”
She took a deep breath and I continued, “The reality is that you know what it really takes to achieve a goal, and you purchased some programs that were not in alignment with what YOU really need to achieve a goal. In all of the programs you have succeeded in, what were the keys to your success?”
“Well, I always had access to a professor or tutor, and I always worked with the others in my class or group to increase my learning and my accountability.”
“And did any of those programs offer one-on-one with an expert or group support?” I prodded.
“No…they didn’t. Oh my goodness. Amanda, that makes so much sense! I’m not a failure, except that I purchased programs that were not compatible with my way of learning and achieving!”
“Right. And don’t be too hard on yourself. In my experience, these programs RARELY WORK for anyone, because WE ALL DO BETTER and ACCOMPLISH MORE when we have one-on-one support and a community to hold us accountable and take the journey with us. Plus, the sales tactics of some of these folks you’ve talked about are very powerful. They’re really good at making Magic Pills look like the real thing.”
When we had finished our conversation and I hung up the phone, my whole body was trembling.
I thought about all of the marketing and training I’ve seen over the last decade and how so many good-hearted, well-intentioned, and super-powerful messengers have crossed my path with this same story. Tens of thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands, of dollars in the hole with no results to show for all of that investment, let alone the time, energy, and stress that was involved.
A few days back, I shared Key #1 – CLARITY about Your True Intention. It was focused on YOU and uncovering YOUR PURPOSE and MESSAGE. If you missed the blog/email and the audio I shared, CLICK HERE to access it now.
But clarity about your True Intention isn’t enough.
Yesterday, I shared Key #2 – CLARITY about The REAL Journey. It was focused on helping you see that there is a journey between the current version of you and the one that can powerfully deliver your true intention to the world. If you missed the blog/email, CLICK HERE to access it now.
But clarity about The REAL JOURNEY isn’t enough either.
Like my messenger friend above, you need CLARITY about your Strengths and your natural Method of Succeeding…and to only choose the programs that are in alignment with those.
Getting clear on your strengths and transferring all of your methods of success over to the new goal of becoming a powerful messenger
IS THE ONLY MAGIC PILL THAT WORKS.
There are a lot of formulas out there…that work for the people who are offering them…but not necessarily for everyone else.
And after a decade of working with powerful messengers, I know for sure that EVERYONE has their own formula for their success. They may need some additional knowledge or skills to accomplish a new particular goal like writing a book or a signature speech, but the minute they bail on leveraging their strengths and methods is the minute they lose their momentum toward their goals.
That’s one of the reasons Resolutions never become a Revolution…
and some goals keep hitting the resolution list year after year
with no forward progress.
That’s why I’m so focused on helping messengers develop their individual plans for success – plans that leverage their strengths and allow them to bring all of their goal achievement secret sauce to our process. They customize their own journey…and I adapt to it…and often learn new wonderful ways of approaching goals.
If you’re ready to develop your own customized plan and make sure your Resolution to write your book, develop your signature speech, or craft curriculum turns into a Revolution this year, then check out my New Year’s offering: Give Your Message Wings in 2017.