Pressing Pause

Many of us have hit a wall of late.

A big moment where we’re looking at our work in the world and perhaps asking ourselves:

What is the point in all of this?

First of all,?I feel you.

Second, consider this a reminder from me to you: you have the utmost ability and permission to not know the answer just yet.

When I started my company, filling notebooks with endless pages of notes and back of the napkin computations on what it would take to replace my previous salary, I had no idea what I was doing or what would unfold next. I was just racing around like a squirrel on Adderall, doing my best to drum up anything that would result in revenue without a clear picture of what my end game or goal would look like.

I wish I could say 5 years in that I feel like I have a clear vision of where things are headed next, but candidly speaking, it has felt daunting to determine what will happen ahead, let alone to plan “accordingly”.?

I know I’m not alone in this, which is why I’m sharing about it. I want to break through any barriers that have kept us quiet about the uncertainty and unease a lot of us are feeling as part of a work culture that champions only talking about the grand and good stuff in our business worlds.

It is time to acknowledge that nearly every business leader I know has been pivoting to the point of pure exhaustion over these past 3 years—it’s no wonder we can’t clearly plan for what’s ahead.

It can feel impossible to hold space and have a clear vision if you’re teetering on the edge of—or fully immersed in—burnout.?

This is why the only thing I’m recommending this week is to?do less.

That email or blog post or piece of content you’ve committed to producing on a cadence?

Press pause.

That new offering that you “have” to launch next week?

Check in with your gut and see if it really resonates with you to do it now or not.

Sometimes in the absence of clarity, we just keep pushing and working in hopes that our ongoing execution will lead to answers.

When what we may really need to do most is to slow down or let certain things go entirely to open up space for new strategies and ideas to be born.

It can feel uncomfortable and unnerving to be out in the unknown.

But know that you’re not alone.

I’m right there with you, reminding you to press pause wherever you can this week and see what shifting slowly down may lead to.?

— Madeline

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