AMY PORTERFIELD: “So if right now you're listening to this episode and you've been struggling to reach a goal, like, it's been on your mind for months, years, who knows? and you just haven't reached it, I want you to do steps one, two, and three especially, put all those reasons somewhere where you can flood your mind with them every single day. You know that if you don't keep things top of mind, you won't be able to pull from them when you need them most. So on your hard days, it's easiest to think about all the reasons why it won't work. Without your long list of reasons why that you can just rattle off boom, boom, boom, boom, you're going to get stuck in that downward spiral.”
INTRO: I’m Amy Porterfield, ex-corporate girl turned CEO of a multi-seven-figure business. But it wasn't all that long ago that I lacked the confidence, the budget, and the time to focus on growing my small-but-mighty business. Fast forward past many failed attempts and lessons learned, and you'll see the business I have today, one that changes lives and gives me more freedom than I ever thought possible, one that used to only exist as a daydream. I created the Online Marketing Made Easy podcast to give you simple, actionable, step-by-step strategies to help you do the same. If you're an ambitious entrepreneur, or one in the making, who's looking to create a business that makes an impact and a life you love, you're in the right place, friend. Let's get started.
AMY: If you know me, then you know that the Goal Digger Podcast, hosted by my friend Jenna Kutcher, who is also part of the HubSpot Network, is one of my favorite podcasts. What I love about Jenna's podcast is that she shares life and business tips, from productivity hacks and business strategies and mindset shifts to daily inspiration, and so much more. Episode 528. It's called “Surprise! I Wrote a Book!” It gave me all the feels because she shared the real raw story of what inspired her to write her very first book, and she shared her process. So good. Listen to the Goal Digger Podcast wherever you get your podcasts. And now, back to the show.
Well, hey, there. Welcome back to Online Marketing Made Easy. I hope you’re having a wonderful day, wherever you are in the world. And today we are talking about why the idea of having just one reason for why you want to accomplish a goal is old news. It's outdated. Yep, I said it. Having just one why, like, what's your why, or one reason for why you want to work so dang hard at accomplishing your goals, does not work. Now maybe you're saying, “Amy, what are you talking about? What are we supposed to do instead?” And my answer is this: I believe it's most important to have many reasons why you are willing to pour your blood, sweat, and tears into your goals.
Now hear me out. I have a dear friend. Her name is Elizabeth Benton. She's the author of the book Tools for the Trenches, and she's the host of the Primal Potential podcast, two resources I highly recommend. Now that I'm talking about this, I think I need to get Elizabeth on the show to talk about some of the strategies in her book Tools for the Trenches. It's excellent. And she introduced me to something she actually created after she read a specific book. So I got to give the book credit. Give me a second. But she introduced me to this concept of a three-step process that can be used any time you begin to think, “Is this really worth it? Is this really going to work? Should I be working so hard for this? I don't know anymore. Am I really capable?” in relation to any of your goals.
Now, I like to give credit where credit is due, and so Elizabeth and I were texting back and forth, and I was struggling with something, and I was sharing it with her. And she's like, “Go listen to one of my podcast episodes.” So she did an episode on this as well. So if you love this and you're like, “I want double what Amy just taught me here,” go listen to the Primal Potential podcast episode 903. We'll also link that in the show notes. But I was talking to Elizabeth, and she said, “I recently read this book. It's called A Happy Pocket Full of Money.” A Happy Pocket Full of Money. I have not read the book, so just for the record, but it sounds like a good one. And in the book, David Gikandi talks about having many reasons in terms of building abundance and wealth. So he was relating it to abundance and wealth, but Elizabeth said you could relate this to anything, and then she kind of built on top of it. And what she taught me was so valuable I thought, “I got to share it with all of you as well.” And I've been using it a lot, and so I thought, “Let me just break it down for you.”
So, Elizabeth says that when you have a big goal or a dream in front of you, one of the surefire ways to actually reach that goal is to make a list of all the reasons why you want it and to actually have them written down. So here's the reason why. Flooding your mind with many, many reasons will be the mental trigger you need to keep going, especially when—not if—things get hard. So take a moment to do these three simple steps, and make sure you do not skip step number three, because Elizabeth says that's the one that's most important in the process.
So, step number one—this is what she got from the book—list all of the reasons. So list all the reasons you want to move away from your current situation and move into something new and reach that new goal. Maybe it's becoming your own boss and creating your own business. List all the reasons why you want it, not just one. So, a lot of people will say, “I want financial freedom.” That's why a lot of people want to create digital courses and launch them over and over again, to get that consistent financial freedom. Well, that's one really good, powerful reason, that, for the most part, will pull you forward for a long time. But then things will get tough, and then that financial freedom sounds good but feels out of reach, and then you have no other reasons to pull from. So we've got to go deeper, and this is where you have to push yourself. So when Elizabeth had me do this, it was a little bit difficult for me. I really had to push for the reasons why I wanted to go after a specific goal I wanted.
So to make this easy, start by getting clear on your why. So you know how I always talk about what’s your why, your number one thing, why you want it. Get clear on that. And well, first, get clear on the goal, and then get clear on why you want it. Go for that one thing. And then say, “What else? What else? If I added seven to ten more reasons why I want it, what else?” And even if it's really hard, ask yourself, “Well, what might it be, then?” Just go for some educated guesses. So start with your goal, get clear on your main why—why do you want it?—and then make a list of seven to ten more reasons.
Now, to help you get those creative juices flowing, here are a few examples you can pull from. So if I'm talking about you leaving your nine-to-five job, building your own online business, possibly building digital courses, let me just flood you with some. I want to be financially independent. I already said that one. I'll be able to wipe out money worries. When I reach my goals, I'll be able to buy my dream house. I'll get to go on vacation without ever asking permission of anyone to do so. I'll get the opportunity to pick up my kids after school. I only want to work four days a week. My business can change the generational wealth in my family. This will allow me to help more people in a bigger way. I want to show my kids what's possible.
That was a big why for me, when Cade was really young. I remember when I was just getting started and doing launches, I had him manage an Excel spreadsheet. He’s always been really good with math and numbers, and so on one of my launches, he might have been seven years old, he managed the Excel spreadsheet of sales. Every night, I'd tell him, “Okay. We're at this number right now.” He’d punch it in. He'd tell me where we're at. It was very easy, but I got him really involved. I wanted him to see what was possible. I wanted him to see me in action to inspire him. So, we'll see if he one day ends up being an entrepreneur, but who knows?
Also, here's a few more. I want to work from home. I want to prove to myself that I'm capable of big things. My business will allow me to create change. I'll be able to get more creative.
So, these are just some things I thought about in terms of why do you want it? Put your own reasons down on paper.
Now, step two is make sure your reasons mean something to you and feel strong and compelling. So look over your list from step one. Do your reasons light you up and motivate you to keep going? If not, you got to go back to that list and make sure that every single one of those reasons speaks to your soul.
And then, step three is write your reasons down and post them somewhere that you see them daily. This is what Elizabeth says is so important, and most people will skip this step, but she's like, “This is the most important thing.” You've got to have these reasons somewhere that it matters most. So if right now you're listening to this episode and you've been struggling to reach a goal, like, it's been on your mind for months, years, who knows? and you just haven't reached it, I want you to do steps one, two, and three especially, put all those reasons somewhere where you can flood your mind with them every single day. You know that if you don't keep things top of mind, you won't be able to pull from them when you need them most. So on your hard days, it's easiest to think about all the reasons why it won't work. Without your long list of reasons why that you can just rattle off boom, boom, boom, boom, you're going to get stuck in that downward spiral.
So, let’s recap. Step one, write down your main reason why, and then follow up with at least seven to ten more reasons. Step two, go back over your list. If they don't speak to your soul, if they don't ignite something in you, they're out. And step number three, post your reasons somewhere that you'll see them every day.
This won't take you long, so do this challenge in the next forty-eight hours. Just go do this, at least around one of your big goals. Trust me, having a multitude of reasons over just one reason, this will support you in taking really big steps forward, no matter how hard it gets.
So, a big shout out to Elizabeth, my sweet friend. Thank you for teaching me this and for guiding me on this. It's been a really big game changer. And I'm going to see if we can get Elizabeth on the show. The girl will blow your mind. She's a force. Yeah, I have to give her a call.
Okay. Final thing. If you're listening to this in real time, when it just came out, the doors to B-School are officially open. So B-School is one of the best programs out there for stepping into being an online entrepreneur. So if you're ready to take the leap to become your own boss, maybe that was one of your goals you listed or one of your reasons for your goals, this is exactly the program you need to bring into your life. So to learn more about B-School and to get started, head to amyporterfield.com/bschool. The B stands for business. So amyporterfield.com/bschool. And just so you know, I have some amazing bonuses for you this year when you enroll in B-School, so bonuses like a ticket to a live virtual event, where I have some incredible guest speakers, including Marie Forleo herself; I’m doing weekly live Q&As in a private Facebook group with my bonus members; and it includes, one of my bonuses is how to create and promote a workshop course in ten days or less to give you a quick cash injection. I mean, these bonuses are good. All right. So, amyporterfield.com/bschool.
And I hope you loved this episode. Share it with someone that you think would find it valuable. And I cannot wait to see you next Thursday for more entrepreneurial goodness, same time, same place. See you soon.
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