How Living Authentically Changed the Way I Set Goals
A few years ago, my word of the year was REAL.
I felt a deep desire to be as authentic as possible. Where in my life was I trying to belong instead of stand out?
The word REAL was also about my re-releasing the REAL LOVE series. I redesigned the covers, polished up final files, and released them in paperback for the first time ever.
To say I was excited was an understatement! But while that process was rewarding, I can look back and see how stressed I was doing it. Why? Attachment to the outcome.
I told myself that success = a certain number of units sold. And that meant not hitting that number = failure. Not a very empowering outlook.
For creatives and writers, this kind of pressure can lead straight to burnout. That’s what happened to me. What did I do? I began shifting toward a more mindful, empowering approach. I began doing everything, including goal setting, with ease.
Now, living authentically for me means that the outcome gets to be the outcome, and the journey gets to be the fun part regardless.
It's the process of flipping over stones to see what surprises are hiding underneath that is the best part of the whole thing, anyway.
How many times in my life have I disallowed joy because I didn't hit a target that I made up?
There's a better way, friends.
Does having this outlook mean I don't have aligned goals? Absolutely not! But I have learned how to touch lightly instead of hold tightly.
I posed this question to a friend recently: How do you hold a baby bird?
That's the same way you must hold your dream. Give it room to flutter and shift, without squeezing it in fear that it might fly away.
This shift in perspective is what helps me stay in a high vibe creative energy—even when the results are unknown.
I talk about this and more inside The Lemmon Society when I’m encouraging and teaching creatives how to build a sustainable writing life or manifest their goals without burnout.
👉 Are you ready to make the journey as delicious as the dream. We have room for you!