“Remember your dreams and fight for them. You must know what you want from life. There is just one thing that makes your dream become impossible: the fear of failure.” -Paulo Coelho
For nearly three years I have dreamed of creating a community for women and mothers with ADHD.
In one of the several expensive blogging courses I have taken, I learned that you must have an elevator pitch about your website. You need to be able to explain to people what you do and why in a clear and succinct way.
So I developed a pitch. (And rarely used it.)
Having an elevator pitch did not help me to do what I really set out to do.
Those of us with ADHD tend to be good at dreaming. The execution is another story.
Doing things is really tough. Know why?
Dreaming is easy, doing is harder.
are you a dreamer or a doer?
We had a great discussion the other night in Coaching Corner about how we could be doers.
Talk is cheap
And probably a waste of time.
I have an elevator pitch, or at least I used to. I can talk your ear off about how badly I want to build a community.
Talking about it and telling people your dreams is great, but it gets you nowhere.
In fact, I have found that I feel worse about myself when I talk to people about my aspirations for my blog and then fail to follow through.
Solution: If somebody asks be specific, give your “elevator pitch.” Otherwise SHOW people your dreams through your actions.
Stop Procrastinating
In my original post on Procrastination, I talked a bit about why we procrastinate.
In order to stop procrastinating we need to put outside structures in place to support us. This is particularly true if you live with ADHD.
For many of us, procrastination is as much about fear of failure as it is about just getting started.
Solution: Spend some time figuring out why you are having so much trouble with the doing. Ask yourself if you are afraid, or possibly having trouble breaking your dream down into manageable pieces.
Get clear
No, I don’t mean joining the Church of Scientology.
I mean get clear on what needs to happen in order for you to achieve that goal you have been dreaming about. In other words, the steps you need to take.
Some of this stuff can get scary. I mean, quitting your job so you have more time to spend in your online community is a pretty big leap. (Just ask me.)
Solution: (Less scary ways of clearing your mind)
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Meditate for 5-10 minutes before you sit down to work. To get started check out Headspace.
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Walk, run, take a class. You would be shocked how much this helps when it comes to prioritizing.
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Start a journal or brain dump book. Look for patterns so you can determine what steps to take first.
Make a plan
“Failing to plan is planning to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin
This is the truth about me and my ADHD and my dreams of creating a community: I have to plan every hour of my day.
For example, the first two hours of my day are devoted to teaching for VIPKid. The next two hours after that are devoted to getting my son off to school.
Most days I either write, research, or meet with my groups in one-hour time slots from 9am until noon.
In the afternoon, private clients get one hour blocks of my time. Not that I have a ton of clients, but that is another dream of mine.
This is a pretty rigid system, but in order for me to get things done, it has to be highly structured.
And that is the whole point. We all love dreaming. What’s not to love?
I just had a vision board workshop with my A Dose of Healthy Distraction Facebook group. It was awesome!
But it also reinforced the idea that none of the things I dream about are going to happen if I don’t show up for myself and take action.
Dreaming is easy, doing is harder.
I want a community for women and mothers with ADHD.
And I am doing it. I am showing up in my groups every single day.
Soon I am going to have a group just for managing our homes. I plan to call it ADHD at Home.
So – Are You A Dreamer Or A Doer?
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