I almost didn’t start this… big mistake
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I had already written the email, ‘Ai told me not to worry about Ai,‘ but I decided not to send it, because I don’t want all the AI enthusiasts/evangelists to come after me. O_O I am definitely not anti-AI, in fact, I recently discovered an AI automation to say that’s going to save me 1 hour per day, so I love AI. Can’t wait to learn more about how it can save me more time! BUT I have some thoughts on HOW some people are talking about it… Anyway, over the weekend, I ran a 10km race with my 10km Queens running group. I almost didn’t start my running group, not that I didn’t want to, but because I was scared. I’ve always been a bit of a commitment phobe. O_O (Took my husband 2 years to convince me we were in a relationship and even longer for me to admit I was ready to be married-__-) The thought of having to show up regularly for a group and have someone/something dictate how I should spend my time… makes me feel suffocated! I also told myself: “I’m not an expert.” –— I am no pro athlete. The fastest I’ve run a half-marathon is 2 hours, laughable in running circles I created all these barriers before I had even begun! But I feel so passionately about how exercise has saved me in life, again and again Both mentally and physically It’s also helped me become a healthier, happier person 🙂 And I want more people in my community to be happy and healthy! So I started it anyway. And over the weekend… after running 11 solid weeks, twice a week, we ran a 10km race together. To see women who never ran a single KM in their entire lives and ladies who branded themselves as anti-runners…. sprinting up hills…. was SO INSPIRING It made me realize:
1. The biggest barriers are the ones we createNothing was actually stopping me. There was no rule saying I needed to be the best runner. No requirement to be an expert. Just a story in my head. And I see this all the time in business, and many of you in my community ‘I suck at x.’ ‘Oh, I can’t do y’ You tell yourselves all the reasons why something can’t work, so it doesn’t Instead, I try to say ‘ I don’t know how to do x, but maybe I can learn ?’
2. You don’t need to be ahead to leadThis surprised me the most. I thought I needed to be better than everyone else to start a group. But that’s not how it works. You just need to be:
That’s enough. Do you know how to make delicious Italian recipes? Great – people like me don’t, and would love to learn Do you know how to keep your toddler entertained without screens? — WOW, thousands of women like me want to learn from you! What is something you are good at that feels effortless, that you could teach easily ? I guarantee there is someone in the world who wants to learn that skill!
3. Action creates confidence (not the other way around)To be honest, I didn’t feel confident when I started. I felt unsure. Would these women take me seriously In fact, 23 women signed up, and by the end of 11 weeks, only 16 were left But confidence came from:
My confidence to run an accountability group, when I’ve never run one in my life ….was built along the way.
4. People don’t need perfection; they need directionNo one expected me to be the perfect leader. They just needed someone to :
That’s it. Sometimes we overcomplicate things and convince ourselves that perfection is necessary And if it isn’t perfect, we give up We talk ourselves out of beautiful, amazing opportunities where perfection is definitely not needed!
5. Accountability changes everything (SERIOUSLY)I didn’t realize how powerful accountability could be. I dismissed it as something for someone who wasn’t disciplined, something I didn’t have time for! But I saw this play out right in front of my eyes recently! I had a previous running group called 7km Queens. After our 10km race, we took a one-month break. And during that month… I am embarrassed to admit … I didn’t run at all! O_O ZERO I was horizontal doom scrolling on my phone wayyyy more than I was when I had the running group! Having a group… having people around you… It changed things for me There were so many days I didn’t feel like going. But people were showing up, so I showed up too. And we kept each other going. Side note– I genuinely did some weeks I would have to kick myself out of my own group, but I couldn’t figure out how to do that in the group settings as I was the admin … so I just went for a run instead -_- Anyway, that showed me something simple. Apart from the fact that I am crap at tech … O_O… accountability is what keeps things moving. It makes consistency easier. And it helps you follow through.
6. Most people are waiting… just like youThis was the biggest surprise! So many people wanted to join. You see- I wanted my group to be an easy breezy judgment-free running group where we didn’t care about pace, but we cared about staying consistent Because that’s my approach to fitness. I really don’t care about speed and benchmarks; my goal is to be able to stay fit enough to carry and chase after my daughter And to look after my heart so I live long enough to watch her hike many mountain peaks But all the running groups I saw were super into timing, speed, and performance! Who would want to join my super random niche running group? Turns out over 50, I had to turn lots of people away and whittled it down to 25, which was more manageable People were just waiting for someone to start it. That applies to so many things:
People are waiting for someone to go first. A lot of people don’t start because they’ve convinced themselves they’re not ready. They say everything needs to be perfect They declare no one will ever want to buy their product or be interested in their skills or pay for their knowledge……before a single person has had the chance to even hear about it! I almost did the same. O_O If you feel stuck right nowYou don’t need more time or confidence. You don’t need everything figured out. You just need to START That’s exactly what I help with in my Get Unstuck Session(These spots seem really popular with all of you. I am delighted, and I get it. Quick relief with a plan in 90 mins, and much cheaper than full coaching! I am booked out till mid-May, but I am opening spots for after that :)) In this session, we focus on:
With the goal of helping you increase your income within the next 60 days. If you want that clarity: And if you’re not ready for that yet… I also have a Saving & Investing Workshop to help you build a strong financial foundation first. I’m curious: What’s something you’ve been holding back from starting? Reply and tell me. Thanks for reading Aisha Preece from Outandbeyond.com PS: I share my bare minimum low effort strategy to grow my blogs on my Instagram stories — if you want more behind-the-scenes like this, come hang out: @aishapreece My Courses:
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