2022: The Mess You Didn’t See (Or Smell)
I’ve had quite an exciting year. I often post about my success stories on social media, and one of my high school friends commented something along the lines of “Wow, you’re crushing it!”
In many ways, I did “crush it” this year. Highlights include that I got to coach top leaders in some of the world’s most iconic companies and I spent two weeks in France reuniting with old friends, a trip I’ve wanted to take for years since I studied abroad in Paris during college.
One of the most memorable parts of my recent Paris trip was visiting the Paris Sewers Museum or Le Musée des Égouts de Paris.
What most people see when they visit Paris are the beautiful bridges over the Seine, picture perfect views of the Eiffel Tower, and stunning shots of Notre Dame and Sacre Coeur where no filter is needed.
What most people don’t see is the vast sewer system made of more than 1600 miles of tunnels, waterways, alleys, and gutters that run beneath their feet as they admire the sights of the most romantic city in the world. The “city beneath the city” is truly an engineering marvel that began in 1800 and literally laid the foundation and kept the city above running smoothly.
In the museum, I got to walk through tunnel after tunnel of varying widths that ranged from my arm span to the size of a bus. The museum documented how the sewer system had to grow with the city and manage the increasing amount of sewage that came with it.
And yes, there is a smell in the sewer museum, because well, you’re in a sewer! (It wasn’t overwhelmingly bad and definitely tolerable, so don’t be afraid to check out the museum when you’re in Paris!)
My high school friend’s comment on Facebook inspired me to share with you what you didn’t see this year in my business. It is what you didn’t see that really helped make my year a success. Just like how most people see Paris from above the street level, it is what they don’t see below that really helps the city be successful.
A decade ago when I started my coaching business, there were many instances that I didn’t crush it:
- Friends laughed at me for wanting to be a “life coach” saying “Who really wants to listen to you?.”
- I had potential clients hang up on me when I followed up with them.
- I had a parent of a client (I used to work with teens) tell me that she was not going to pay my rates and said, “You don’t even have a PhD!”
- I ran a workshop at the local library and zero people showed up!
While I’ve come a long way since then, I still had plenty of moments this year that were filled with rejection and disappointment.
Here are some ways I DIDN’T crush it this year:
- After checking out a retreat venue in France and working with the retreat hostess and French chef to plan a retreat there in April of 2023, zero people signed up! (The retreat has been postponed to October 2023 and you can find out more information HERE.)
- I had no less than 5 potential 1:1 Executive Life Coaching clients reach out to me, have a Connection Call, learn about my coaching programs and rates, have a free 60-90 minute Discovery Coaching Session with me, and then stopped returning any phone calls, emails, or texts after that.
- I’ve had no less than 10 potential Health Coaching clients reach out to me, hop on a call for me to learn about their goals and for me to share the details of my habits of health program with them, and then they say “no” or also stop responding.
- I’ve made many proposals to corporations who reached out wanting help with Team Development who also said “no” or also (yup you guessed it), just didn’t respond.
- I didn’t achieve my revenue goal for 2022.
The more I list the ways I didn’t crush it, I realize that being willing to get rejected and being disappointed is one of the foundational components of success.
You cannot have the shining city on top without the mess below.
The more you grow, the bigger the mess…yet you will learn how to better organize, manage, and be comfortable with messiness.
Paris is one of the most well-known and beautiful cities in the world. I had the best year yet in my business.
By most accounts, Paris and I crushed it this year.
And that’s what most people see.
What most people don’t see is…pardon my French..is the sh*t that you must be willing to go through to be crushing it.
As we roll into 2023, in what ways are you willing to NOT crush it in order to crush it?
What mess are you willing to make in order to create the life, career, or business you truly desire?
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