Break Week 3
For the past week or so I've been having a lot of deservedness self-talk, as if I was debating an unknown opponent about whether I deserve UMS, or any of the benefits from any of the other titles I plan to run - HOWL and AM7.
I asked myself a simple question late last week. "What do I want?" What does UMS look like for me, in more detail. What do I want from HOWL? What do I want from AM7? My answers fed back into the deservedness self-talk, but they also gave me a lot more clarity on who I want to be. I'm not going to detail those answers here, for reasons frequently discussed - to avoid triggering any specific opposition to those goals.
Last night, something broke through. I figured out how to re-present myself professionally for the kind of role that I've been struggling to move into. I realized how much of my previous recent positions included the kind of work I'd rather be doing, and a general idea of how to reframe those roles to focus on those activities. That's been enough to fire up some motivation to get those things done.
And I will repeat something I posted a few weeks ago:
George Eliot Wrote:It is never too late to be what you might have been.
One more week, then Run 3 starts. I feel more ready than ever.
Break Week 4
Break Ends
Tonight starts Run 3, Stage 1
Still struggling with motivation. Less "trapped in amber" though; more like "swimming in syrup". I hope that this time through Stage 1 will open things up and push my motivation forward.
Run 3
Stage 1
Cycle 1 of 4
Motivation is still not where it needs to be.
Funny thing happened. I was self-talking around the topic of deservedness and then - it stopped. Very suddenly. I couldn't even think of an opposing view - "you don't deserve UMS for reasons" - to counter. Still can't. Not proclaiming permanent victory around deservedness, but it's currently not a concern.
Still don't see an available path from here to UMS. That might be in a chicken-or-egg situation with the motivation. Not motivated because I don't see a path to UMS. And I may not see a path because I'm not motivated. Definitely need some of the other goals in UMS v3.1 to be achieved!
When you set a goal, you rarely "see a path" to it when you begin. That shouldn't stop you. It shouldn't even slow you down. You can see the next step, and then you can figure out the step after that once you get there.
It will help to come up with short, medium and long term goals to guide you, but even then, you're going to have things happen that you didn't expect, and have to adapt and roll with the punches.
If I only ever moved when I could see a path to the goal, I'd still be working in 3td Generation tech!
Stop worrying about seeing the path. Create your short, medium and long term goals, and break those down into whatever granularity of steps you can now. Then focus on the next step. You can only see as far as the horizon from where you are. Where you want to be is likely over a mountain that blocks your view. That doesn't mean there's not a way forward, or that you can't get there. And you may not even be able to see the path to the mountain, or up and over it from where you are currently! But it's there, and when you have taken enough steps forward, you'll be able to see it clearly.
One step at a time. Not seven leagues in a step.
(03-18-2026, 12:06 PM)Shannon Wrote: [ -> ]When you set a goal, you rarely "see a path" to it when you begin. That shouldn't stop you. It shouldn't even slow you down. You can see the next step, and then you can figure out the step after that once you get there.
It will help to come up with short, medium and long term goals to guide you, but even then, you're going to have things happen that you didn't expect, and have to adapt and roll with the punches.
If I only ever moved when I could see a path to the goal, I'd still be working in 3td Generation tech!
Stop worrying about seeing the path. Create your short, medium and long term goals, and break those down into whatever granularity of steps you can now. Then focus on the next step. You can only see as far as the horizon from where you are. Where you want to be is likely over a mountain that blocks your view. That doesn't mean there's not a way forward, or that you can't get there. And you may not even be able to see the path to the mountain, or up and over it from where you are currently! But it's there, and when you have taken enough steps forward, you'll be able to see it clearly.
One step at a time. Not seven leagues in a step.
Right now, I don't even have a first step, outside of trying to move my current career forward. My long term goals are very large - where I want to be is definitely over a mountain, and the only ways I can imagine to get there are very low probability of immediate occurrence. And I don't see any medium term goals that would connect short term to long term.
I definitely need to take some action, though. And if the only short term step I see is in my current career, then that's the one step I need to take.
Thanks!
If you’re already walking the path, just stay on it, and let UMS play in the background. Similar to you, I don’t see a path laid out by UMS, but I’m going to keep going because I’m already walking the path, and UMS can only help.
(03-22-2026, 12:34 PM)ffaux Wrote: [ -> ]If you’re already walking the path, just stay on it, and let UMS play in the background. Similar to you, I don’t see a path laid out by UMS, but I’m going to keep going because I’m already walking the path, and UMS can only help.
My challenge has been that, apart from continuing with UMS, I'm not on any path; I've been stuck. But as Shannon advised, taking the next available step is the best thing to do.
Run 3
Stage 1
Cycle 2 of 4
Had some self talk about manifesting some of the goals in UMS. Not deservedness, directly. Other goals. Went from "highly unlikely because reasons" to "sure, no reason why it won't happen" over the course of maybe a couple of days. I'd call that a good sign.
And I finally started taking the step I mentioned above. It's a work in progress, but the ball is rolling.