It’s not about goal-setting or productivity
There's a bigger game to play.
Hi Friends,
So last Thursday, I announced the 90-Days to Live Your Opus Challenge for the rest of 2024, and you know what happened…crickets! I guess I scared everyone! 😱 (Or maybe, like me, we’re all just a bit surprised that the yearend is so near!) Everyone, that is, except a new member of this community who DM’d me a question, which led to a beautiful conversation with her, which led to today’s letter.
“I love the idea of the 90-Days to Live Your Opus challenge, but is this all about goal-setting and productivity?”
NO! ENDING THE YEAR ON A HIGH NOTE, AND BEING WELL ENOUGH TO CELEBRATE IT, IS NOT ABOUT GOAL SETTING AND PRODUCTIVITY.
If you’re reading this, you’re a high achiever–and I know this because I connect with every new member on LinkedIn. (If we’re not yet connected, send me a request!). If productivity or goal setting is a problem, I’m sure you’ve already downloaded an app, made a spreadsheet, or asked someone for help.
Because you’re supercharged, you already know what to do between now and the end of the year. And you’ll work long, hard hours to do so.
But, if you do that, you won’t really end the year on a high note because you’ll be too exhausted to enjoy the fruits of your labor over whichever December holiday you celebrate.
The real challenge for you is whether you can end the year feeling a sense of meaning, fulfillment, and personal health and wellbeing, alongside a sense of accomplishment.
Can you be the sole composer of your life for the next 90 days?
What am I talking about? Step back for a moment:
Think about the people who inspire you most. The people who created the music, books, podcasts, Ted Talks, brands, or shows that have changed your life. Or the people who have created elegant solutions to hairy global challenges.
These are people who, no matter what they release into the world, you read it, listen to it, buy it, or borrow it. These people raise you up in some way because of who they are and what they create. They make you feel like something bigger than yourself is possible.
Now, imagine if–for the next 90 days (or, hopefully, more)–that person was you.
Imagine creating your life and work over the next 90 days in a way that motivates and inspires you every day.
Living the next few months feeling well and aligned on all dimensions–physical, mental, emotional, spiritual. Imagine inspiring others, motivating them to grow, change, care for themselves, find joy, and take action.
Imagine ending the year having mastered yourself just a little bit more and enjoying your life and job in ways you never thought possible.
This is the life I wish for you–and all high achievers–over the next 90 days–and beyond…which is why I am writing my book just for you.
So, this 90-day challenge will not include any goal-setting or productivity content. And, I won't sell you anything either.
What I will do is give you a permission slip (and some tools) to dream and think bigger and step into your life in a very new way.
Raise the Bar
Right now, a part of you might think I’m a bit crazy–or a lot. Like I’ve taken some kind of Provence happy pill that has left me sunstruck and delusional. But, the other part of you–the part that wants more and knows you deserve more–wonders if I might be on to something. Hint: That part of you is correct.
So, whether you are already exhausted and crawling to the end of 2024, are feeling stuck and off-track, or have a goal or bold move underway…this challenge is for you.
All of those moments you’ve been experiencing, those niggling thoughts about how you wish your life or career were different or better—I call those moments of nagging internal disconnect, ‘raise the bar moments.’ I’ve written about those moments in this popular article.
Listen: Do you hear those thoughts in your head right now? You want to live an inspiring life, one that is filled with meaning and fulfillment. As I like to say, You want a life you don’t want to walk away from. A life that’s got the right mix of ingredients–whatever they are–that you need to thrive. That’s a life that will get you out of bed every morning; no Sunday Scaries or hating Monday mornings.
To get that life, you’ve got to raise the bar–on yourself.
How do you do that?
Here’s a quick shortcut to knowing how to do it and when it’s time, which I hope you’ll write on a Post-it and stick somewhere you can look at every day.
Ask yourself: Is this (whatever is happening) really ‘good enough’?
Then, raise the bar: Stop tolerating and make a different choice.
You’ve probably heard that you deserve to design and live a life you love. If people do this at all, that’s usually where they stop. This is why so many people do not live the lives they designed or love. They haven’t yet transformed into the person they need or want to be to live that life.
I count myself among them, too. Until a few years ago, I had never considered designing my life. I was living a life that included many elements that I loved—a loving partner, children, meaningful family life, friends, a great job and career—but I was regularly frustrated because the pieces were often hard to fit together. I knew I wanted more and could do more, but I had no idea where to begin. So, I continued juggling the different pieces, looking for ‘more’ where I could.
I’ve always been adventurous and have a track record of making big changes in my life, but it never occurred to me back then that I had so much control over getting ‘more.’
Now, I understand that I am the sole composer of my life. Sure, I have others to consider and responsibilities to take care of, but I am solely responsible for crafting a life and career that uniquely fits me.
So, if the life you’re living is bothering you–or you’re not sure how you will end the year on a high note the way I define it–raise the bar. Something about it all isn’t good enough.
This doesn’t make you ungrateful, or a diva, or even a perfectionist. But this does mean that your needs, preferences, and desires matter. They matter in the rest of your life–like what you eat and the clothes you wear–so why shouldn’t they matter as the main governing principles of your life?
Is it ‘good enough’ for you to spend 60, 70, or 80 hours a week working for a boss you hate or in a toxic culture that’s draining you just so that you can have that job?
What about spending 60-80 hours in a job you love? Is that ‘good enough’ work-life balance?
Is it ‘good enough’ to routinely miss your child’s soccer games or parent-teacher conferences? Is that the parent you set out to be?
Is it ‘good enough’ to have friends or a partner who doesn't regularly treat you how you want to be treated just so you are not alone?
Is it ‘good enough’ to have clients you don’t like working with just so that you have clients?
Is it ‘good enough’ to work a job that doesn’t recognize your potential or capabilities? Or where you regularly feel exhausted and burnt out?
Is it ‘good enough’ to be going through your life feeling like you’re not good enough, or you could do more if only…?
In each of these instances, you have a choice.
Ask yourself: Is this (whatever is happening) really ‘good enough’?
Then, be the sole composer of your life and raise the bar: Stop tolerating and make a different choice.
So, how do you get that life and career you really want? How do you do this when you aren’t yet clear about what that life looks like? Or, if you do, is it even possible to attain it? When you aren’t sure what other people—especially those closest to you–might think about you? When you’re concerned that you don’t have the time or, maybe, what it takes to deal with the self-doubt, fear, judgment, or whatever it is that’s holding you back and see it through?
To get the life you want—a life that is more than ‘good enough’, customized to who you are deep inside, and success that feels as good as it looks—start by raising the bar on yourself and those around you and sticking with it.
I know you can do this, and I’ll be here to support you as you do it, especially over the next 90 days.
You are your most significant work. Stop tolerating ‘good enough.’ It’s time to Live Your Opus!
I’m Janine Mathó, and I’m writing Live Your Opus, a book for ambitious people who want ‘more’ from their lives, careers, or businesses but sometimes struggle to get there. As always, thanks for being here. If these words or the 90 Days to Live Your Opus challenge resonate with you, feel free to share them on social media or with someone else who might need this nudge or support today.
Until next time, be well!
