“Everybody hurts. You are not alone.”
-Michael Stipe
I wrote this post on Facebook yesterday and it caught fire, so I thought I’d share it with you here:
[CONFESSION] Sometimes I screw up and don’t want anyone to know
People regularly tell me that it seems like everything I do turns out well.
I assure them that isn’t the case; that lots of the things I do don’t work out the way I want them to.
I explain that it’s a case of ‘survivorship bias’ – that they’re only noticing the things that work out, and not all the things that don’t.
But they typically don’t believe me. And I could never quite understand why not.
Then suddenly today I realised why not.
When the things I do don’t work out the way I want them to, I feel bad.
What kind of bad?
Ashamed, embarrassed, stupid.
Like a fraud, a fuckup, a failure.
And I don’t want anyone to know. I’d love to tell you that I’ve got a positive attitude about this kind of thing, but I don’t.
When I get things wrong, I don’t want you to know about it. I don’t want ANYONE to know about it.
Why not?
Insecurity, plain and simple. So I don’t post about it, I don’t share about it. I don’t tell YOU about it.
So why am I telling you about this today?
18 months ago, my book RESULTS became a Sunday Times Bestseller.
Not long after that, I got a book deal to write The Little Book of Results.
The book launched at the end of last month, and for the past 10 days we’ve been doing a big Amazon push on it.
And it hasn’t worked very well.
I’m super-proud of this book, but it hasn’t scraped a number 1 in a single Amazon category.
And my first instinct was to brush over it; just not to mention it and keep my powder dry until next time I’ve got something to celebrate.
But if I brushed over it, I’d also be brushing over an opportunity to tell you the truth.
To show you that we’re all in the same boat.
To tell you that I sometimes hurt too.
So I’m telling you.
And if you’re hurting today – if you’re feeling like a fraud, a fuckup or a failure – I understand.
I get that it sucks.
Let’s have a bit of a moan, then brush ourselves off, get back up and keep going.
If you want to get a copy of The Little Book of Results, you can get it here: www.JamieSmart.com/getresults (I may feel like shit, but I haven’t given up yet ;-))
And if, going forward, you’d like me to share the lows as well as the highs, tell me.
Big love
Jamie
PS I’m jumping on a flight to New York in the morning. Why? Because Michael Neill, Garret Kramer and I are doing two events:
a) On Friday night, we’re doing a 3-hour session at Subculture called ‘The Performance Principle’. The first 91 places are booked but we’ve got a few seats left, and tickets are only $25 each, so if you’d like to come and meet us in person, you can get the details and book your place at https://www.michaelneill.org/nyc/
b) Then, over the weekend, we’re spending 2 days with a small group of people who are ready to get in the game and take things to the next level. Again, we’ve got a few places left, so if you’d like to join us, you can find out more here: https://www.michaelneill.org/game/
Big love
Jamie
Jamie Smart
Sunday Times Bestselling Author, Speaker and Executive Coach
PLUS: Whenever you’re ready… here are 5 ways I can help you get the clarity and results that matter to you:
1. Hire me to speak at your event
If you want an entertaining and impactful keynote speech or breakout session for your conference, offsite or town hall meeting, click here https://www.jamiesmart.com/book-jamie-to-speak-about/
If you’re a coach…
2. Join The Thriving Coaches facebook group
Connect with the growing community of like-minded transformation professionals who are passionate about exponentially increasing their grounding, impact and their livelihood. You can join for free here.
3. Take part in the Thriving Coaches Blueprint
We’re putting together a new practice-building group at The Thriving Coaches Blueprint in August. We’ll be won’t be opening the doors for a couple of months, but if you’d like to find out more now and put your name on the wait list, go to https://www.jamiesmart.com/thriving/
If you’re looking to change job, career or move from FTE to something more fulfilling…
4. Join the Transition Launchpad facebook group
This community is for you if you’re thinking about changing your career or moving from full-time employment to something more fulfilling and “on-purpose” for you. You can join for free here.
5. Take part in Escape Velocity: The Transition Blueprint.
If you’re ready to start taking action and transition to doing fulfilling work, the doors on this programme open in June. Click here to let us know you’re interested and we’ll get back to you with details and to find out whether you’re a good fit for the programme (and vice versa). I’m Interested
PLUS: check these out :
Listen to the ‘Get Clarity’ Podcast www.jamiesmart.com/claritynow/
Listen to The Thriving Coaches Podcast www.jamiesmart.com/tcp