On "Wow" Moments
2014 has been my most favorite year yet. It's been filled with hard-fought victories, bittersweet realizations, and a deeper connection to my work than I've ever had before. When you're just getting started, you have a hazy idea of how you're going to make an impact. But when you're a business owner, you see – and feel – that impact on the day-to-day.
Because of my work, I'm helping brands touch the types of people they want, so that they can pivot their business in a more human direction. I'm helping them slough of years of jargon and misplaced promises, reworking sentiments that never really took off to become messaging that can live at the heart of their business for years to come. This month, I learned that part of Lexicontent's Emotional Targeting workbook helped a fellow business owner who I love, respect, and admire understand that they're uniquely qualified to launch a nonprofit honoring the legacy of a life through art. Wow. I don't say these things out of pride, but rather, the humble realization that the tiny role I play in all of this helps to orchestrate the grand scheme of things, so that people's lives will be better for it.
It's a wild thing, learning to approach my work with respect knowing that what I do helps people take the next first step towards becoming the brand, business, or leader that they've always wanted to be. Serving as a healer, teacher, and clarifying doula is a role that I've slipped into quietly and powerfully – a form of self-realization that feels good, that feels right.
You start to watch yourself doing things you never realized you could do at your age, heavy lifting and heavy thinking that people didn't think was possible, and you think -- wow, I'm doing this and it's actually working. Because of our early success, Joseph and I are taking sure, steady steps towards things we've always hoped to do thanks to the freedom of our work. We're daydreaming about saving for a barn studio in the next few years, seeing the country, planning our wedding, and raising a family. We're enjoying life now, and we're planning for the life we want to live over the next few years, too.
On the other side of celebration is the realization that you can't take everyone with you. There will always be people who are consumed with doubt, who struggle with their own self-worth and lifetimes of regret. Their suffering is too much to carry, so they try to push it onto you instead. To move forward, you've got to make a choice: leave this weight behind or be dragged down by it. I've made the choice to move forward. Turning back now isn't an option. My life is all the better for it.
Lexicontent has so much to be thankful for on the cusp of Thanksgiving. Since our launch, we've partnered with a global experience design agency, an interactive agency, a user experience consultancy, a small business serving pet owners, a photographer seeking a fresh voice, a psychologist working with clients through the expressive arts, a chef turned holistic health coach, and several independent web developers and household name branding experts who are known for making waves among the design community.
We are blessed.
We are thankful.
We are filled with gratitude.
We are hungry to put more good work out into the world.
When I'm not working, writing, meeting or mindmapping, I'm spending my time writing the manuscript of my previously mentioned book, scheduled to release this time next year. I'm starting to find my rhythm, writing just enough each evening to make progress without forcing it. I've figured out that if I write X amount in X time, the book will be written by X month, which leaves X months to get it illustrated and ready for publishing. I'm also really excited to meet with two colleagues I admire so much, who have been instrumental in our first year of success, and who are publishing books themselves soon. Surround yourself with great minds.
In 2015, one of my biggest goals isn't to spread myself more thin. It's to write something that's scalable and helpful to hundreds, thousands, even. As I work each day, I'm identifying common pain points in hopes of addressing them in my writing, so that what I produce is applicable to all – not just some.
It's Friday afternoon, about 4:19 here. Spending my last hour of the workweek in quiet reflection is something that I get to do – wow. It's in these wow moments that I realize that I'm exactly where I want to be. And the best part? I'll never have to say the words, "I wish I would've started earlier." The risk is worth that peace of mind. Irony if I do say so.
Cheers to your weekend!