Before I get started today, I want to highlight a couple of LearnDoBecome community members who are doing such an amazing job! We call these “STEP Wins” because they’re members of our Steps to Everyday Productivity program.
This first one is from Judy:
”I’ve been doing STEP for about a week now…. I had really hit bottom when it came to being disorganized and dissatisfied with how my life was unfolding. I have so much to be grateful for but the PAPERS and PILES were just eating at me all the time. I wanted to share that even though I’ve only just begun, the clarity of mind and the ability to actually accomplish so many things this week is blowing me away. So far the most valuable parts are the CBNAL (Context-Based Next Actions List) and the concept of 10-minute microbursts. Instead of looking at my clock and saying, “I only have 10 minutes before I have to leave, so I might as well just scroll through my phone…” I ask myself, “What can I accomplish In 10 minutes?” and then I go do it. I’m knocking off tasks left and right and my brain feels so much clearer. I’ve also done a brain dump of all the projects I had spinning around in my mind, and those are on a white board now, unsorted but categorized as to which of us is responsible for it. If this is all I get from this program (and it definitely won’t be) it’s already been worth it.”
And this one is from Kathleen:
Aren’t those inspiring? I just love hearing the positivity, excitement, and encouragement that comes from our members–and whether you are in our programs or currently checking out the free resources on the site, you can do this, too!
As a little side note, I’m glad to be back with you on the podcast! My broken shoulder has been healing for several weeks, and I just started physical therapy, so things are looking up!
All right, let’s dive into today’s discussion about motivation.
Do you ever experience a constant, perhaps low-grade stress behind the scenes as you’re working to transform your life? But would you prefer to feel light and happy while you’re moving forward on the things that matter most?
Today I’m sharing a little of what’s been going on behind the scenes over the past few years, and I hope that the lessons I’ve learned along the way will be valuable to you.
Whether we’re focused mostly on “getting organized,” or we’re feeling stress around something like parenting, health issues, finances, or relationships, it’s normal not to have everything figured out at the beginning. However, even a slight shift in what motivates us can make a big difference.
In one sentence, here’s what’s changed for me: I used to be motivated mostly by fear–then I became motivated mostly by duty–and now, after several years of reaping the consequences of living like that–and finally doing the personal work to change things, I truly feel motivated by love.
This might sound strange to you, and it’s a little uncomfortable for me to share my weaknesses so publicly. But I’ve been around long enough that I know I’m not alone when I struggle, so today’s podcast is for those of you who might struggle like me.
And while I’m still trying to lock in the “motivated by love” feeling in every area of my life, today I’m focusing on my professional work–specifically building the STEP program here at LearnDoBecome.
Motivated by FearBack in 2015, when Eric and I started LearnDoBecome, we were in a bit of a tricky spot. The 2008 recession had hit us hard, and we were still figuring out how to balance a variety of work-from home jobs, four active children, and some time-intensive responsibilities in our church and community. The city we lived in was at least an hour away from the larger hubs for employment, and I worried that if LearnDoBecome wasn’t a success, Eric would need to commute hours a day to a job he didn’t like–and then our family life would become increasingly difficult.
As I recently spoke with Eric about all the worries I had back then, he was surprised. He was working right alongside me–putting in even more hours on the business than I was–and he understood that we had some decisions to make and some work to do, but he didn’t have the same stress that I had bottled up inside me. In hindsight, I would have told him how stressed I was feeling, but instead, I just worked a lot…out of fear…trying to build the STEP program and take care of our LearnDoBecome community as well as I could.
It’s actually hard for me to say this because I don’t want to imply that I didn’t care about those who joined us during the early years or that I wasn’t passionate about my work. I LOVE what we have created here. It’s just that there were a lot of other factors going on behind the scenes, and I was so, so scared I was going to fail.
Motivated by DutyThe happy news is that, with all that work and effort, LearnDoBecome did turn into our full-time employment. We’ve had nine beautiful years so far, and in my daily prayers, I continually thank the Lord for our wonderful team and community–and for the work we get to do.
But some of the middle years were a little rough.
As our community grew, things became more complex. Our team has had to work with things like email deliverability issues, tech platforms occasionally going down, and often-big decisions that need to be made in this constantly-shifting online landscape.
In fact, the last time we updated our STEP program, it was because the business that created the platform we had used to initially build it went out of business, so they weren’t going to do any further updates–like making it mobile-friendly or giving people the chance to check off lessons and mark their progress. It was a little clunky and difficult to use.
Because I was motivated by duty–and the desire to keep things running smoothly–I spent months recording new videos, figuring out a better platform (that we still use and love today), and working with our team to create a brand new version of STEP. It turned out well and was definitely a worthwhile project, but it was a project we did because we had to do it–not necessarily because we wanted to do it. Have you been there?
Motivated by LoveOver the past few years, the fear and sense of duty inspired me to do a lot of work. I’m guessing you can relate! In fact, right now, there may be several things that you’re doing out of fear or duty…probably very well. And maybe you’re handling it just fine and thinking, “April, why are you such a delicate flower?” But there came a point for me (that I’ve spoken about on previous podcasts), that my body finally “said no.”
I feel like I need several episodes to dive deep into what was happening and how I solved it, but as a quick summary, I got so stressed that I was regularly covered in rashes and could no longer digest my food properly. This led to months in bed each year with one illness or another. I kept working from my bed–because I didn’t know the stress was the problem, but when I finally started figuring it out, I made some big changes–slowing my work hours significantly, carefully focusing my energy, and deciding that I was not going to make decisions based simply on my deep desire to please others.
As I have mostly healed from my “achievement addiction,” physical burnout, and people pleasing, my rashes have gone away, I am enjoying my relationships and my work more than ever, and I feel like my creativity and spark have come back. Sometimes you don’t even know it’s gone until you get that wake-up call.
And the reason this all matters to you is because one of the main projects I am currently working on is our third official version of STEP.
I’m not doing it because of fear or duty–but because I genuinely want to create a streamlined, simplified version of the program–one that is built with the love I truly feel for our community.
Because we’ve had so many tens of thousands of people join us in STEP, we know where the issues are. Yes, we get testimonials every day sharing awesome successes, and the current program works–but we also know its weak points.
For example, we know people will get stuck at the beginning because they struggle to get their emails to zero–and even though the program specifically tells them to skip that part if it requires more time, too many people just stop because they want to do the program “perfectly.” In fact, pretty much every time we’re contacted with an issue about the program, our team says to each other, “The Revamp will solve this!”
So, as a little side note, for those of you already inside STEP, the revamp is coming–and all the changes will be given to you inside your members’ area! (We won’t delete the current version, in case you’re still working through it, though!)
And for those of you who have been thinking about joining STEP, I hope you will finally take the leap! The program revamp is almost finished, as I’m recording this podcast, and I am so excited for you to experience it!
A Few Closing ThoughtsAlthough each of us has a unique life experience, this fear-duty-love trio of motivators actually seems pretty common. I just wanted to share my story in case you wanted to look at your current motivations and make a shift, if one is needed.
There’s a lot going on behind the scenes for all of us–and I want to make sure you know you’re not alone. We’re all Becomers here, and I love that we can be a strength for one another.
Sending a huge hug! And watch out for more announcements about the newest version of STEP!
xoxo
April
And before I close, I want to highlight two more STEPpers:
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Enjoy the LearnDoBecome Directory here!
Our “Create Your Year” Podcast Series and Bonus Templates
Steps to Everyday Productivity (STEP) Program
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