Slowing Down By Accident
This past Thursday, I decided to break my ankle in a rather spectacular fashion, and the healing will require me to be non-weight bearing for 6-8 weeks. That pretty much means any plans I might have made for marketing, events, or travel for the rest of the year are cancelled.
I am fine, and I wrote a post for next week that explains what happened and how God was with me through the entire harrowing event, but I think the lesson of slowing down is the one He wants me to get sooner rather than later.
When this year started, I knew I was coming home from working full time to make writing my career. With that goal in mind, I hired a branding and identity coach*, and gave myself all of 2025 to figure out what my personal goals, offerings, and strategies needed to be.
I didn’t plan to publish anything except my own blog and newsletter, and I determined I would allow my Word of the Year, ‘Cultivate,’ guide me into the relationships, connections, and resources I needed before launching my business in 2026.
The branding and identity process was one of the most enlightening experiences I have been through in a very long time. I had to face many of the fears that had held me back, and I learned to develop skills I naturally had, but never believed I could be successful with.
I challenged my fear of success, my insecurities and inexperience, and narrowed down the things I am good at, making them the focus of my time and energy.
In this process, I pulled out the novels I published 10 years ago. I had unpublished them because the series was incomplete, and the writing was not as good as I wanted it to be. But as Shonda and I reviewed my backlist, I realized that with a good refresh, they could easily be republished. So, we began the process of creating new covers, titles, and interior designs for them. I added a fourth story, and the books are more than ready to be re-published.
But, everything in me kept telling me to hold off. Not on the process of getting them ready, but to wait to publish them until 2026.
2026 is not a magical year, but I promised myself in February of this year that I would not rush to get something in print. I promised myself that when I launched my business, I would wait until I had everything I needed to make a good impression.
However, having the fresh covers in hand and knowing that the books would be ready for printing in just a few more weeks tempted me believe I could get a head start and do some sales for the holiday season.
And then I broke my ankle, effectively ending any possibility of doing events or traveling until at least the first of the year.
It has pulled me back, reminding me of my original timeline and refocusing my attention. Earlier this year, I committed to focusing on these articles, getting my website set up the way I want it, and most importantly, spending time cultivating my relationship with God and those around me.
The mission for my life is to demonstrate the hope and love found through faith in Jesus Christ. I do that through living a life of peace, trust, and hope that isn’t rushed, isn’t hustling, and isn’t driven by the world’s definition of success. All of that can be done without selling a single thing.
Getting to author books and write articles that share my journey toward building a successful business is a fun way to meet people and share my testimony with people I wouldn’t normally come in contact with. I don’t want to succumb to the world’s standards of success by measuring my worth in sales, influence, and numbers. If I spend my energy putting out books and products as fast as I can, I will quickly lose the peace and trust I’ve worked so hard to gain over the last year.
If the world’s standards become mine, delays in publication will cause me anxiety. Low sales will tank my self-esteem. Poor readership will make me question my mission.
In order to remove the power that kind of pressure could have on me, my promise to myself, and my followers is this…
If I announce it, I already have it completed. I may share that I am working on something, and I will be excited to give hints and peeks of the progress, but nothing will be officially announced until I have sellable copies in my hand.
The temptation was creeping up on me to apply for craft shows and events before the end of this year. I wanted to have something for sale as soon as possible, and I don’t even have the final covers or formatted files back yet.
Social media has cultivated this sense of immediacy for EVERYTHING. It feels like what we see and read is happening right this second 24/7 365 days a year, and if we aren’t posting something, we aren’t doing anything. I refuse to let my business operate that way. I enjoy sharing pictures and short snippets of my life as they happen, but not for my business.
What you will see on my website and on my business pages will be the result of weeks and months of work, and I won’t pretend otherwise. You, my readers, are worth me taking my time to offer you the very best I can, and so does God. Honoring Him means giving Him my best, and the best of most things do not come by hustle or hurry.
That is the kind of pressure I don’t function under, and God knew it, so He knocked my feet out from under me. Literally.
I am truly excited to be back doing what I love, and I will have books for sale as soon as I can, but I refuse to let that ‘soon’ be rushed.
I plan to enjoy every step of this journey, and I encourage you to slow down and enjoy the journey you are on!
*Her name is Shonda Ramsey, and if you are struggling to identify your target audience, your mission, or what offerings you should focus on most, this woman will help you figure it out. Her services are worth every single penny! You can find out more about her and what she offers on her website shondaramsey.com.
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