Not being taken seriously
Time to get over it Ben
I don’t talk about what I’m doing in retirement because I fear not being taken seriously.
I want to help people have more energy and end the human energy crisis, and I’ve been working on it for 7 years through my work with my start-up Alfred and
.While I can write about it, when I’m asked to talk about what I’m doing, I avoid sharing what I’m really doing and steer the conversation towards the pub and my KPMG work.
And I do that because I fear people will think I’m full of myself and lost my marbles.
Plus I stress I won’t say things perfectly because working on this problem means so much and filled the void that came in retirement.
But I need to get over it, because I’ll never be able to help people manage their energy better unless I can speak proudly about what I’m doing and why.
Perhaps I’m struggling to talk about it because I’ve been going for so long and embarrassed by my mistakes and lack of progress.
And as I write this, I’m realising I have no worries writing about it because I can edit what I’m saying until it’s word perfect, and perhaps my perfectionist streak is still holding me back.
Either way, time to get over it and share what I’ve learned and how I can help.
I’m doing my first Energy Management presentation next week to force myself to talk about it, but keen to hear your thoughts.
Any tips?
Didn’t feel like writing this morning because I’ve been slammed at work. But glad I did and that my weekly writing habit kicked in, because I feel better for getting this off my chest.
Don’t be afraid to “be an idiot” (or look like one). That doesn’t mean be wreckless, it just means that you’re going to put your best foot forward but you know that it won’t be ‘perfect’.
Do it the way that feels right at the time, but be ruthless in your assessment of what you could have done differently or what you could do different next time.
I think you’re already pretty good at this, but it’s great that you’re continuing to seek improvement.
There is no such thing as no progress. Every step, no matter the direction, is progress as long as you take something from it and use it to sharpen, iterate, correct and adapt. You know the golden rules or have you forgotten?: go forward - no matter what. Continuity - do everything to maintain momentum when you have it. Adaptability- play what’s in front of you and solve problems. Communication- be as willing to listen as you are to speak. Team work- nothing gets done alone. Have fun. Easy. They’re yet to fail me ;)