What if you don’t?

I focus a lot on the “What if you do?”

If you do XXX, then YYY will happen.

It’s REALLY easy to let my thoughts go to the negative when I think of “well what if I do this?”

• If I raise my prices, my clients will fire me.
• If I pitch myself or my writing, people can reject me. I’ve opened myself up to rejection.
• If I go on vacation and don’t check email, my clients will fire me.
• If I let go of a job that is sucking the life out of me and bringing me down, I’ll be scrambling for money.
• If I run for 15 minutes instead of 4 minutes at a time I’ll be tired.
• If I stop to call my Mom/Dad/Friend, I’ll be that much more behind in my work.
• If I build an email list and I actually email them I’ll be annoying people.

But looking at those examples, what happens if I don’t?

• If I don’t ever raise my prices, I’m stuck forever at one income level. I will train people I work for that prices will never go up. I will leave money on the table. I will prohibit my business growth and therefore prohibit business opportunities.
• If I don’t pitch, I won’t get as many jobs. i also won’t get to work with people I want to work with, because they might not approach me.
• (What happens if I don’t not check email? DOUBLE NEGATIVE, SORRY!) If I go on vacation and I DO check email, then I will be stressed out, half in my vacation half out, I will be unfocused on spending time with whomever I am with, and I will not be rested. (I know this because I have done it both ways.) I will arrive home feeling like I’ve wasted my money.
• What happens if I don’t let go of the job that is sucking the life out of me? I will miss new, potentially non-life sucking opportunities. I will be so focused on trying to do a good job for the soul-sucking client, I can’t even think about getting clients I love working for.
• What happens if I ONLY run 4 & 1 intervals? I will ALWAYS be stuck at 4 & 1 intervals because the only way to be able to run longer is to RUN LONGER.
• If I don’t call my parents or my friends I am missing out on time with people I love who won’t be here forever. And I know that when they’re not here I’ll wish I made time to call.
• If I don’t build an email list, I can’t talk with people who might WANT what I can offer them. I will miss out on jobs, new friendships, new opportunities to connect.

I think a lot of if I do THIS then THAT thinking is about fear. If I do THIS than THAT scary thing will happen. Ok, sure. Possibly yes. But if you do THIS then there is also the possibility that THAT AWESOME thing will happen. And if you don’t do something, you’ll miss a great opportunity.

You can’t do everything. I’m not advocating for saying yes to everything.

I’m advocating for looking at things that you might be afraid of saying yes to and examining the side of what happens if you say no? What GOOD things are you missing out on because you’re afraid?

Action: What are the things that you’re most afraid of doing in your business? 
Write them down. Then write down everything that could happen if you do them, and everything that could happen if you don’t do them.

And go from there.