Stuck? It's probably because of this...

In a lot of way’s, I’ve been running around in circles for the past few years.

Searching for answers. Trying to get the right momentum. Waiting for that kick in the butt to finally get going as I pay for courses in various topics.

My Notion and Gumroad are chock full of some amazing work that others have put in when it comes to building an audience, writing tips and templates, eBooks on how to grow a business from scratch. When I look at them from a timeline perspective, I can pretty much trace my own journey all the way back to the very beginning.

It’s insightful, but it’s also a little depressing if I’m being honest.

Most of the people that I bought from have one element in common: they were around their particular social platform for a few months, reached a subscriber milestone, and put together their version of how they did it for purchase.

Then, they disappeared.

Of the 71 items there, only eight of the products I have sitting in Gumroad are from people who had been around longer than a year. Everyone else is long gone.

But that also is a lesson for me — one that I finally understand after all this time:

You have a choice in whether or not you wish to explore it further.

That decision usually happens within the first 5 seconds of the thought. One little push can become an avalanche of action that can lead to amazing discoveries and even life-changing outcomes. It’s almost as if everything conspires against you. You’re like the child who lingers in front of the candy store. But most of the time, life grabs you and drags you away.

That’s when you have the follow-up. Don’t let it.

It can be an idea, an emotion, or an action that triggers an epiphany. It happens when you least expect it at the most mundane moments. Most of the time, you aren’t even aware that it’s happening. It’s almost as if it weren’t meant to be there at all. For me, it’s those moments when you wake up for a split second or when you’re walking to your car as you herd your children to their next activity.

If you’re quick enough, you can capture the inspiration as a seed of thought because, let’s face it, it’s the most we can do at times. The people that manage to pull off doing this consistently for a period of time have something to show for their efforts. Like my example above, they came, they shared, then they left. Which is proof enough of something obvious:

You only need the awareness that it exists and your acknowledgment to start. To begin. To explore. Where you go from there is up to you. You DO, however, need to be persistent in building expertise or leveraging the momentum you build if you decide to pursue it. That’s where a lot of my writing comes from these days. It’s a conscious decision, once you’ve captured and reflected on the moment of clarity, whether or not you make the effort.

As a busy career parent who has been writing for a few years now, I make that little choice every night.

That’s how this article came together. I got a prompt from my writing community for a statement, an idea, an opinion. I decided to execute on it the next time something caught my attention (in this case, awareness and choice). I made a second round of expansion on the statement as a follow-through. Now, I’ve grown it into a fully-fleshed out message.

This didn’t all happen at once, though.

I had to make it happen over the course of two weeks juggling between everything else that life threw my way. Awareness, persistence, and execution all have their moments and time tables. But again, it’s all a matter of choice.

So I ask you:

When was the last time you decided to do take action?

What happened when you did? Where did it lead you? What did you discover?

Next time it happens, explore it further. Even if it’s just for a short time.

It could change the course of your life.