Scott Perry's Blog, page 3

Happy Holidaze

If you partake in Christmas holiday shenanigans, I offer the silly seasonal tunes in the video above.

If not, I offer an agnostic appeal for imagining and co-creating a world less fraught with conflict and suffering in the video below.

 

If you could use a little more inspiration and fellowship as you navigate your way into a life of greater fulfillment, meaning, and impact, consider subscribing and joining our weekly calls.

Finally, if you have any friends or family who might appreciate what we’re up to, share this with them.

Happy Holidaze.

Be well. Do good. Have fun. And take care.

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.

The Art of Encore Living Origin Story

Are you navigating the second half of life with a nagging sense that you’ve not yet fully embraced or engaged with your unique gift or life’s true calling?

For many of us, the second half of life is a time for reflecting on the meaning of life.1

More to the point, it is a time to reflect on the meaning of your life.

If you’re lucky, the work of making a living and raising a family has been rewarding.

And if you’re REALLY fortunate, that work aligned with who you are, what you’re good at, and where you belong.

That kind of work feels meaningful and fulfilling—more of a vocation than merely an occupation.

I’m VERY fortunate. I made a living doing work I was called to several times—husband, father, musician, teacher, and now an encore life coach.

But if you haven’t found your soul’s true calling, you must know it’s not your fault.

Institutionalized education and occupation systematically indoctrinated you to ignore and deny your dreams.

Instead of nurturing your innate instincts for creativity, collaboration, and curiosity, society compelled you to comply, compete, and settle for the status quo.

And yet…

You can define your game (the work you GET to do)2 anytime you choose and decide to do the inside-out work of reconnecting with who you really are, what you’re really good at, and where you really belong.

This guide is designed to provide you with time-tested wisdom to help you begin to discover, develop, and deliver the difference only you can make so you can live your legacy.3

You’ll be seeking the edges of your understanding and ability. That is, after all, where growth occurs.

Why I Wrote This Guide

I wrote this book4 because, although I have heard and heeded my life’s next calling, I have at least as often ignored or misunderstood it.

If you doubt or even fear how to discern and embrace your “what’s next,” I want you to know I understand and empathize with you.

Why?

Because I am you.

My attempt to inspire you to pursue developing your potential and delivering on your promise is also a reminder to myself to do the same.

As I encourage you to embrace uncertainty and sit with the tension of navigating a path into possibility without a roadmap, I’m also encouraging myself to continue my journey.

Ventures (and adventures) into vocation require this kind of exhortation because the path is not singular or often well-marked.

Maps can only take you where others have been or want you to go.

The nine steps in this guide will serve as a compass for finding your way into your calling.

About the Links

The links throughout this text take you to resources and tools to go further and deeper with the principles and practices unpacked in this text.

Please click these links and read or watch these additional resources. They are intended to help you go deeper with the ideas and catalyze your progress.

Do the Work

Also, remember to do the work.

The nine steps include a call to action to “Do the Work.” 

These are not just questions you can meditate on, journal about, and discuss. They are appeals to put the principles and practices to work.

And pay attention to the information and exercises in the Appendixes. Leaning into that material will provide traction and momentum for your journey.

I also encourage you to seek fellow travelers.5 This work is more enjoyable (and effective) when done with and for others.

Finally, please share this guide with anyone who may benefit, especially if they are willing to explore encore living with you.

Join the Community

Join a free community of subscribers6 going further with the principles and practices with additional content and virtual gatherings.

When you’re ready to take a bolder step into possibility with the principles, practices, and processes shared in this guide, email me7 to set up a complimentary “catalyst call” to help you define where you want to be and develop a plan to get you there.

Mastering the art of encore living is a lifelong pursuit. Let’s begin.

This article is the republished introduction to my handbook, “The Art of Encore Living.” See the links in the footnotes to access additional chapters8  or to purchase the complete guide for $1 on Amazon.

 

1  The Meaning of Life


2  The Work You GET to Do


3  Live Your Legacy


4  The Art of Encore Living


5  The Power of Affiliation


6 Free Community of Subscribers


7 Email me


8 More Encore Articles

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.

Encore Living

Are you winning the game of life based on the rules you learned in school and on the job but not feeling the thrill of victory?

You’re not alone.

Many people feel cheated in midlife despite following society's rules (although you can recognize the false promises of the “pursuit of happiness” at any age).

What’s going on?

You can’t win when you're playing someone else’s.

And you definitely can’t win a game you don’t want to play.

What to do?

It’s time to play your game.

You can find fulfillment, forge meaning, and make a difference in your life’s next chapter by mastering the art of encore living.

What’s “your life’s next chapter?”

It’s the life you live from the inside out when you’re ready to stop searching for external instruction and validation for how to play the game of life.

What is encore living?

It’s a journey of defining, developing, and delivering the difference only you can make. 

It’s a life that leverages who you really are, what you’re really good at, and where you really belong.

Instead of a legacy of money and monuments left behind after you die, it’s a life where you live your legacy through endeavors that matter.

In short, mastering the art of encore living is about playing your game all in and full out.1 Encore living2 cultivates fulfillment by living your life’s next chapter fully. 

If you still need to figure out your game, The Art of Encore Living helps dial it in. 

If you’ve got some idea of your game but seek greater clarity and confidence in navigating your way forward, The Art of Encore Living provides a compass to expedite your wayfinding.

And if you’re lucky enough to have already discerned and embraced your encore life, this guide will provide you with a vocabulary to help you articulate the principles and practices with others to help them do the same. 

The Art of Encore Living continues exploring the three questions I asked readers in the opening of an earlier book, Endeavor: Cultivate Excellence While Making a Difference.3

Those questions are, “What does it mean to be human?” “What does it mean to be happy?” And “How can I be more of both?”

This guide provides insight and inspiration for cultivating purposeful and passionate living by exploring those questions, but the real magic is executing its ideas. 

What got you where you are won’t get you where you want to be.

To make things different, you have to see and do things differently.

And while change may happen over long periods of chronological time,4 it happens through purposely living moment to moment.5

Resources and exercises are included to inspire you to take intentional action with the principles and practices in this guide.

This guide6 helps you hear and heed the call of vocation—the work you’re meant to do now.

Your life is speaking to you because it wants to speak through you.

Let your life speak.

This article is the republished “A Note From the Author” from my handbook, “The Art of Encore Living.” See the links in the footnotes to access additional chapters or to purchase the complete guide for $1 on Amazon. 

1 Play Your Game All In & Full Out

2 More Encore Articles

3 Endeavor: Cultivate Excellence While Making a Difference

4 What time is it?

5 Do you have a moment?

6  The Art of Encore Living

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.

After the Exit

Life is full of exits. You enter life exiting the womb and exit it entering the tomb. 

And that journey from womb to tomb is riddled with additional exits like graduating from school, retiring from personal and professional roles, and ending relationships.

Exits Are Also Entryways

Even when you have an exit strategy for these moment, does it set you up for success in what’s next for you?

The entrepreneurs I work with have a plan to dispose of their investment in a business venture or financial asset. Their exit strategy helps them minimize losses and maximize profits on investments.

But these same talented and thoughtful clients rarely have any plan for what’s next. Why? Because they don’t have clarity about what they actually really want in life.

Even when they do, they often do not fully comprehend where they’re starting from and how to most efficiently and effectively close the gap.

What about you? What’s your next exit? What’s your exit strategy? And how can that exit become the doorway to a bigger and brighter next chapter in your life?

Here are some things to consider.

Know Thyself

“You can’t step into the same river twice.”—Heraclitus

You’re not the same person when you exit that you were when you entered, and context and circumstances change. Take the time for some self-reflection and self-awareness. 

Who are you, what are you good at, and where do you belong now?

What are your current values, beliefs, and guiding principles? 

What talents and skills do you possess that bring you the greatest joy and fulfillment when you’re employing them?

Where do you find the greatest sense of belonging, security, and joy?

I use a specific process and set of tools to help clients answer these questions, but self-assessment tools like personality tests and reflective journaling are a place to begin.

Decide Where You’re Going

“If you do not know to what port you are is steering, no wind is favorable.”—Seneca

Early in life, destinations are set for us by parents, teachers, and societal pressures, but what do you want next? Why?

What’s your current vision for your life?

What do you want to work toward?

What matters to you now?

With enough clarity about who you are and where you’re heading, you can begin to compass your way forward more confidently. 

And unanticipated obstacles and opportunities may necessitate changes in destination or course correction.

You can find most of the principles and practices I share with clients to mitigate risk, cultivate resilience, and define and take the next best step into possibility in this publication. Search the archive1 or contact me2 if you need help finding the right resource for you right now.

Learn How to Get There

“First say to yourself what you would be, and then do what you have to do.”—Epictetus

If you’ve addressed knowing who you are and what you want, you’ve established a destination and starting point. But how do you close that gap? 

More importantly, how do you get from where you are to where you want to be with the least time, effort, and risk (and enjoy the journey)?

When I help clients define their goal achievement strategy, I rely on reasoning from first principles, systems thinking, and micro steps. 

In other words, we are answering these questions. 

“What’s required to get the desired result?” 

“What’s the most efficient way to accomplish those tasks?”

“What’s the next best smallest step I can take now?”

Answering and acting on these questions provides a daily discipline that helps you close the gap between where (and who) you are and where (and who) you want to be with less risk and effort and in far less time.

Final Considerations

This guide intends to provide high-level insights for navigating into your “what’s next” after the exit. There is no prescriptive roadmap or one-size-fits-all blueprint for this journey. Your exit will also be your entry into a highly individualized next chapter because each of us possesses unique talents, temperaments, or tolerances.

Here are three final considerations.

Relationships are your most potent force multiplier. Find the mentors and fellow travelers you need to support and encourage your adventures in stepping into possibility.

Reserve the right to change your mind. There are unforeseen obstacles and opportunities ahead that may require course correction or shifting destination, and that’s okay.

The process is the shortcut and the reward. The intention and integrity of your journey ensure that you learn, have fun, and grow as you go. Purpose, prosperity, and peace of mind come when you trust the process (and yourself).

Good luck and onward!

See the archive1 and email link2 in the footnotes to receive answers to your questions or resources or help with immediate challenges.

Be Well. Do good. Have fun!

1 Archive
2 Contact me

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.

Getting the Word Out

In a noisy world full of distractions and offers of dubious quality, it’s difficult for those seeking guidance to find trustworthy and truly valuable resources.

For those offering products or services, spreading ideas, or promoting causes, getting the word out and enrolling the right people is equally challenging.

What to do?

It turns out a book first published in 1962, Everett Roger’s Diffusion of Innovations, delivers a wealth of insight on spreading the difference only you can make.

The basic premise is this: innovation gets attention, but information gets adopted.*

What does that mean?

Human beings have varying temperaments and tolerances toward embracing new concepts. Moreover, whether something is perceived as innovation or information is relative. It depends on the person and the thing under consideration.

In general, innovative things are seen as uncertain or risky. Information, on the other hand, appears more certain and safe.

Innovation can earn interest, but information encourages enrollment.

In general, a tiny percentage of people eagerly embrace a new-to-them thing. They are called “innovators.” A slightly larger percentage are “early adopters.” These are followed by the largest groups, the early and late majority, followed by the very last to adopt, the “laggards,” whose portion is about the same as that of the innovators and early adopters combined.

So, how does all of this apply to purpose-driven people trying to promote the difference they make?

Well, if you’re trying to earn the awareness and attention of people who would benefit from your product, service, or idea, they first have to be exposed to it. You’ll need to get their permission to speak with them directly to encourage their trust. Finally, they’ll need access to you to earn their interest, enrollment, and investment in your solution to their problem or your help achieving their aspiration.

Your offer can sit anywhere in the diffusion of innovations curve or move through it. The better you define your audience or market, the more you’ll be able to see where they sit, wholly, in groups, or individually, within the curve. Then, you can leverage exposure, proximity, and access to move them through the marketing and sales cycle.

The marketing cycle has two parts. First are the social media and broadcast channels you use to get awareness and attention. Second, are the message and email apps you use to have conversations that earn permission and trust.

The sales cycle involves earning enrollment in the process of learning more and then interest in your product or service and, ultimately, investment.

Innovation gets attention. Information gets adopted. Implementation achieves results.

Amplify innovation to get awareness and attention that exposes your offer to your audience. Next, turn innovation into information to earn their permission and trust. Then, you can leverage that information to help encourage interest, enrollment, and investment in access and implement that information to get what they want.

Let’s put all this together with an example that reveals the real magic of leveraging the diffusion of innovation curve. But first we have to understand the three critical stages involved in a client or customers journey from interest to investment in your product or service.

(If you’re considering or already building on Substack, you’ll want to read this.)

 
Exposure, Proximity, & Access

Before you can start to spread your idea, cause, product, or service, the right people must become aware that it exists and be willing to pay attention to it (exposure).

To help turn that new-to-them concept (innovation) into something they can understand and explore (information), you need to earn enough permission and trust to have a more direct conversation (proximity).

To effectively implement the ideas or approach you offer, people need your help (access).

Notice how exposure, proximity, and access map onto the marketing and sales cycles discussed above.

Now, let’s look at how the practical application of all this theory can be leveraged to get real results.

Example: The Creative on Purpose Substack

The Idea/Cause/Offer

Creative on Purpose’s core offer is a coaching product called Catalyst.1 The Catalyst program helps coaches, creatives, freelancers, and solopreneurs achieve their life and business priorities faster and easier by building better systems and habits.

It’s a tough sell because most people resist changing how they see and do things. And yet, since what got you where you are won’t get you where you want to be, seeing and doing things differently is the only way forward.

Here’s the system Creative on Purpose has built to help the right people engage, embrace, and employ Catalyst’s principles and practices.

Exposure: Earning Awareness & Attention

Creative on Purpose leverages various social media platforms, YouTube, and a podcast to expose its audience to its ideas and approach. The goal of this content is to open a loop2 by introducing a new idea or a fresh perspective on an old one (aka “innovation”).

Proximity: Earning Permission & Trust (And Building the Bridge to Interest)

The Creative on Purpose Substack publication invites those who collide with the content above to subscribe and gain greater proximity through community calls.

The weekly paid subscriber calls unpack the ideas introduced in that week’s content and help turn it into actionable information. Free subscribers get a taste of this if they attend the live monthly calls, while paid subscribers do a deeper dive during the Q&A.

Access: Earning Enrollment & Investment

Subscribers who explore the Substack content and engage on the community calls receive updates on Catalyst programs and can reach out by direct message on social media, replying to emails that include enrollment announcements, or completing the Catalyst questionnaire.

These 1:1 conversations lead to decision moments3 helping those not ready to stick with their DIY (do it yourself) approach and those who are prepared to invest in their success and cultivate clarity and certainty while collapsing time with Catalyst.

The Results

In the last 90 days, mapping our sales and marketing strategy to the diffusion of innovation curve and leveraging Substack to create opportunities for exposure, proximity, and access has directly resulted in the following: 

Over $1K in Substack subscriptions

Doubling the number of completed questionnaires/month

An 80% close rate on Decision Calls

It’s Your Turn

How are you building awareness, earning attention, and cultivating permission and trust that leads to interest, enrollment, and investment in your idea, product, service, or cause?

How might mapping your strategy to the diffusion of innovation curve, turning innovation into information, and leveraging exposure, proximity, and access help you make the difference only you can make with those you seek to serve?

*h/t Nic Peterson & The Guardian Academy

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.

How to Avoid the Accountability Trap

In the coaching space, the idea of accountability is ubiquitous. Clients often list “being held accountable” as a priority, and you can’t swing a stick on social media without hitting an accountability coach.

But what is accountability really? 

The etymology of accountability is pretty straightforward, it simply means “answerable,” literally “liable to be held to account.

But things get more nuanced when we add the suffix -ity. Accountability is “the condition of being answerable.”

Is it even possible to hold someone else accountable?

I can hold my grandson, and I can hold a door open for someone, but can I hold your accountability?

Maybe, but even if I can, should I?

If you break the speed limit and get caught, you pay a fine. That might sound like you’re being held accountable, but it’s actually a consequence. Only you can decide if you own your poor choice or lack of restraint.

Others can’t truly impose accountability. Regardless of the circumstances, you decide if you own your actions and results. Only you can put yourself on the hook and take responsibility for your life.

Asking someone to hold you accountable is an abdication of personal empowerment. Offering to hold someone accountable invites them to give up ownership of their deeds and outcomes.

That’s why relying on external accountability never really works. When we fail to meet an accountability standard, we get defensive and make excuses, rationalize, and justify our failure instead of owning it. This feeds a victim narrative that leads to waiting for circumstances to change or for a savior to swoop in and save us.

You and I have freedom of choice in everything we do. Even in situations with imposed requirements, what you decide to do is up to you and no one else. 

Sure, ultimately, results and circumstances are beyond your control. But you do control how you see things and what you decide and do next, which can be enough. 

Choosing how you frame and respond to circumstances is its own reward. It’s empowering to assume accountability for confronting reality, choosing your next step, and owning the consequences.

Accountability leads you from victim-mindset to victor-mind, from limits to possibility, from a life of quiet desperation to a life of fulfillment and meaning.

When you own your experience and your choices, you own your future. That’s accountability. It’s not easy, but it’s worth it.

Are you ready to hold yourself to account today?

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.

The Meaning of Life

In the seventh grade, I was introduced to Stoicism when a teacher loaned me his copy of Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations. This beautiful philosophy of life has informed and inspired everything I’ve done since.

The following is lesson one of my online course, Stoicism 101. I recently made this a complimentary course inside the free Creative on Purpose community1 on the Success Finder learning platform. Click the link in the footnotes to join the community and access the entire course.

“Love the humble art you have learned and take rest in it.” ― Marcus Aurelius

Have you ever asked yourself, “What do I want out of life?”

Or maybe a variation like “What is the meaning of life?”

If so, did you come up with an answer? What was it?

Often, we answer with things we want, like lots of money, a big home, a loving spouse, or a good job. But what I’m asking is, what is the one thing that would make for a good life, a life worth living and well spent?

Without an answer to this question, you are missing a grand goal in living. You lack a philosophy of life.

Today, floating through life without meaning or purpose is pretty easy. Modern life is full of distractions and promises that can entice us and even encourage us to ask big questions like “Who am I?” “Why am I here?” “What’s it all for?”

However, in ancient times, investigating and developing a philosophy of life was a daily pursuit by everyday people like you and me. As a result, many competing philosophical approaches were born.

Yet, they agreed that the answer to “What do I want out of life?” was “To flourish and be happy!” The ancient Greeks even had a word for it, εὐδαιμονία or eudaimonia.

Also, each school of thought developed ideas and strategies for achieving the goals of thriving and tranquility.

Some examples of ancient Greek and Roman philosophies of life that enjoyed some popularity were Cynicism, Skepticism, Epicureanism, and Stoicism.

(Ironically, none of these ancient philosophical disciplines had much to do with anything we currently associate with these terms!)

Of these, the one that has endured is Stoicism.

Why?

We’ll investigate that a bit more in the next lesson.

Before then, answer this question. What underlying assumptions or ideas should any philosophy of life be founded on?

“What then can guide a man? One thing and only one, philosophy. But this consists in keeping the daemon [spirit] within a man free from violence and unharmed, superior to pains and pleasures, doing nothing without a purpose, nor yet falsely and with hypocrisy.” ― Marcus Aurelius

1 Creative on Purpose community on Success Finder

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.

Progress Multiplier

Making progress in endeavors that make a difference is fraught. You must navigate your fears, biases, and self-sabotaging tendencies. You’re fighting against the compliance and competition you were groomed for by systematized schooling and institutionalized occupation. Then there’s social media's distraction and comparison culture and the divisive doom loops distributed by traditional media.

Oh, and don’t even get me started on the importance of recognizing the difference between progress and productivity.1

Moving things from your to-do list to your got-done list can be challenging, even when you move unnecessary items to your stop-doing list.2

To help maintain my focus, boldness, and discipline and make progress in the difference I want to make, I walk through this checklist3 at the end of every day.

I needed to get done, and I got it done.

I need to get it done, but I’m not sure how.

I’m not sure if I should do it (or do it now).

Let’s unpack each item on this list.

I needed to get it done, and I got it done.

What are the necessary things that must be completed for you to achieve your goal? Identify the essential tasks that propel you toward your goal. Progress is about accomplishing the right things at the right time and in the right order. What did you check off today? List them.

I need to get it done, but I’m not sure how.

Pinpoint the tasks that are necessary but beyond your current knowledge or skill set. Do you delegate these or invest time, attention, money, and effort in learning how to move them to your accomplished list?

I’m not sure if I should do it (or do it now).

Assess the tasks you're uncertain about. Are they truly necessary? Do they need immediate attention? Must you be the one to handle them right now? Answering these questions4 enables you to shift these items to the lists above or even to your stop-doing list.

Onward

Breaking down your progress into manageable steps is critical. Listing your achievements, acknowledging areas where you need assistance, and evaluating the urgency of tasks bring clarity to your journey. Remember, progress is often incremental, achieved through a well-defined strategy and a daily discipline of doing the work. Going through these three items daily will help you stay on track.

1 Productivity vs. Progress

2 What's on Your 'Stop-Doing' List?

3 h/t Nic Peterson & The Guardian Academy

4 How to Be Less Reactive and More Responsive

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.

Midlife Compass

There’s no roadmap for navigating midlife. Maps can only take you where others have been. If you’re going to find your way to the next best destination for you, you need a compass, and you need to learn how to use it.

In the first half of life, we play the game by society’s rules. Midlife can be a challenging time, but it can also be a transformative chapter of our lives. As transitions unfold in relationship, career, and life situations, we realize a profound truth. So far, the game of life has been playing us, not the other way around.

Here’s the thing. You can’t win a game you don’t truly want to play. The second half of life provides an opportunity to redefine your path and engage in the game of life on your own terms. It’s time to play your game.

The Midlife Compass is an orientation tool to help you clarify where you really want to head in your life’s next chapter. You can then define where you’re starting from and what you’re starting with. With clear ordinates established, you’re now ready to plot the most efficient path. Finally, You’ll learn the skills and habits to expedite the journey and make sure you experience plenty of joy and fun along the way.

Clarify Your Destination

In working with hundreds of clients, I find that most already have some clarity about what they want in their lives “what’s next.” Your life is speaking to you because it wants to speak through you. It’s time to hear and heed your life’s call. Tune in and clearly define your “what’s next.”

The Time and Money Trap: The initial answer to the question, “What do I want?” is usually something like “more time” or “more money.” These are not ends. They’re means.1 Go deeper. Ask yourself, “What would I do with more time?” and “What would I do with more money?” Then ask, “Why?” Ask “Why?” several times. You’ll notice that what you really want in life becomes clearer and is already closer than you initially thought.

Back to the Future: Your becoming lies in being more of what you’ve always been.2 Think back to your childhood. As far back as you can remember. What were you like? What did you love to do? Where did you feel the greatest connection and feeling of belonging? The second half of life is often a return to who we’ve always truly been and what we’ve always really wanted.

Clarify Your Starting Point

We don’t know ourselves as well as we think. This is understandable, given the conformity and comparison culture society instills in us through institutionalized education and occupation. Media platforms amplify this confusion. It’s time to stop being distracted and define who you really are and where you’re really at.

Escape the Identity Trap: You are so much more than the roles you play and the goals you’ve pursued so far.3 Take some time to rediscover your core values and guiding principles. Reconnect with your innate talents and interests. Be intentional about who you spend time with. This will all help you better define who you really are, what you’re really good at, and where you really belong.

Take an Inventory of Your Assets: Sure, take stock of your finances and holdings, but go deeper. How are you investing your precious time, attention, and energy in addition to your money? Is the return on those investments getting you closer to what really matters to you now? It’s probably time to recapture and reallocate4 those assets.

Clarify Your Plan

Too often, we confuse playing with a loose collection of unrelated tactics with a strategy. Now that you have a clearer sense of your goal and starting point, what’s your plan to get closer to what you want? What got you where you are won’t get you where you want to be. It’s time to get real.

Less Is More: Your plan is a system. An efficient system5` includes only the necessary elements it needs to function. What are the three things that you need to achieve your goal and reach your destination? When you can create a plan that includes only the essential steps, you clear all the cruft and make executing it more effortless.

Micro-Stepping: Too often, we overthink our plan and overestimate what we need to do and what we can accomplish in the short term. Progress is not made through hustle and grind. Progress comes through a daily discipline of small steps. Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast. Take the right steps at the right time in the right sequence. You’ll have more fun and get there faster.

Clarify How to Close the Gap

Raise the Floor: As you micro-step toward your destination, you’ll notice some elements of your plan work better than others. You may be tempted to push the ceiling on what’s working well, but improving the elements that are not functioning optimally will boost your system’s efficiency and effectiveness much more. Resist the urge for higher highs and improve your rolling average by raising the floor6 instead.

No One Wins Alone: The archetype of the self-made individual7 is a dangerous myth. Relationships are the most significant and most accessible force multipliers you can leverage to expedite your journey. Employing trusted guides and finding fellow travelers sooner rather than later. They catalyze your progress and bring greater joy to your adventure.

Conclusions

The problem with maps8 is they can only take you where others have already been. They can't reveal the best course for you. Only a compass can do that.

Maps require obedience. Compasses cultivate empowerment.

Employing a compass over a map requires curiosity and courage. A willingness to learn as you go. It allows for course correction and tacking. The compass also invites adventure and fellow travelers.

Are you ready to play your game on your terms without compromise? The principles in this midlife compass will help you get going and play your game all in and full out.

I’ve seen clients and community members achieve extraordinary things by employing these principles. They’ve recovered from broken relationships and forged healthier ones. They’ve moved on from unhappy careers and found more meaningful opportunities. They’ve created businesses that fit around and fund a lifestyle built around what matters most to them.

It’s your turn. Use this compass to build identity, forge meaning, and step into possibility. I look forward to witnessing and celebrating your progress!

Go Further

Creative on Purpose’s Catalyst offerings9 provide content, coaching, and community to help you become the kind of person who gets clear and closer to what you want in life.

1 How to Get What You Really Want

2 Living From the Inside Out

3 The Identity Trap

4 Recapture & Reallocate

5 System Reliability

6 Raise the Floor

7 Amor Fati

8 Map vs. Compass

9 Catalyst

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.

How to Get What You Want Faster & Easier

Life and business are fraught. Even when clear about what you want, there's SO much beyond your control, not much within your influence, and little within your control.

It's no wonder many of us feel confused, anxious, lost, or scared when navigating life and business challenges.

What to do?

Reason from first principles.

What does that mean?

First principles thinking1 is establishing the essentials. What are the necessary steps? What conditions or elements must be in place for the thing you want?

For instance, in my book, "The Coaching Business Prescription,"2 I established that building a prosperous coaching business required only three things: craft an irresistible offer, find an eager audience, and create a 30-minute/day sales success strategy.

In my Catalyst program,3 I established that getting what you really want in life requires clarifying your goal, defining the three things that must happen to reach that goal, and optimizing your strategy over time.

Reasoning from first principles can help you solve any problem or resolve any situation in less time, with less risk, and more effortlessly.

It sounds simple because it IS simple. The problem is simple is never easy.

Executing a plan based on first principles thinking takes focus, boldness, and discipline. It's hard to stay on track and on task in a world full of distractions and false promises.

It helps if you have a trusted guide and surround yourself with fellow travelers heading in the same direction as you are.4

The fact that no one wins alone is one of the least recognized first principles in today's disconnected, lonely, and cynical landscape.

I get it. It's hard to let go of the thinking and tactics you already use. We're comforted by the familiar, even when it's not promoting our progress.

But what got you where you are WON'T get you where you want to be in business or life.

Ready to get real about achieving your goals?

Click here. I'll ask you a few quick questions and send you complimentary resources to help you close the gap between where you are and where you want to be in life or business (or both).

Life and business don't have to be so hard, and you don't have to address all the inevitable challenges alone. Let's get you guided and going today.

1 First Principles Thinking

2 The Coaching Business Prescription

3 Catalyst

4 It's All Relative

Scott Perry, Chief Difference-Maker at Creative on Purpose

If what you just read resonated, please share it with a friend.