I get like this–when I can’t ‘see’ clearly, I stall. Sometimes it’s what to do next, sometimes it’s a name of programme, or a venue, or a price, or a marketing message. It could be big barrier or it could be a small stumbling block, but if I can’t see clearly ‘what’ or ‘how’, I can get stuck.
So if you’re having a lack of clarity issue, here are a few ways I get around it which might help you too:
- Wait: not the best tactic when you’re in a hurry, I appreciate, but very often if I think too hard about something, I move further away from the answer. If it’s a big thing I need to think about, I let it ‘marinade’ until it’s ready and when it is it always pops into my head. I don’t ignore the question but merely ‘park’ it for a while and see what turns up. If it’s more urgent, I might tackle it from other angles–perhaps look at what I know it’s not or what I don’t want to do, then what I do want to do shows up as what’s left!
- Check your notes: look at work you’ve done before, things you’ve written down, or clients you have worked with already. Often we’ve left great clues for ourselves in our own footprints. See what people have said about working with you for clarity on messages or names for things, see what people are buying now to check in on prices or look for ‘gaps’ in your own offers.
- Ask for help: get a great coach or mentor on the case, or a business friend who knows you well enough but can also be objective. This is my ‘even the best hairdresser can’t cut the back of their own head’ advice. Find the very best ‘other hairdresser' you can and get them to tell you what they see for you. Explain where you are and what you’re looking to achieve and very often you’ll find it’s on the end of your nose...
- Write it all out: journal, mind map, scribble on a flip chart or cover the wall in Post-it notes. Sometimes emptying your head of ALL the ideas you have can help you sift and sort through them.
- Go for a walk: the busier I get (especially in my head) the more a walk will sort me out. Even if for the first 10 or 15 minutes you’re stomping along thinking too hard... after a while your thinking will be calmer and there’s a chance for clarity to sneak in.
- Meditate (it’s like walking without moving): if you know you can, take some time out to close your eyes and clear your mind. If there’s no room in your head right now for the right answer, then you need to make some room.
- Trust: know that the answer is there–even if it’s hiding right now, it will make itself known at some point! And if you need an answer right now, go with your gut and take action on what felt right, right away. Most of the time you got it immediately but then made it more complicated by over-thinking it!
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