Fire the Haters Part 3

Everyday Courage with Jillian Johnsrud

Concluding their series on Jillian’s book, Fire the Haters, August and Jillian talk about overcoming struggles, trusting the process, and finding your identity in actions rather than outcomes.

With her book out in the world, Jillian moved from creating to managing her expectations for how it is received. We can’t control the outcomes of our work, but we can optimize for not being discouraged.

Trust the Process

Rather than being pulled into the hurricane of how people feel about your work, learn to pause and take a breath, regain your composure, and move forward. Trust in the process.

If your identity is attached to outcomes, it can be devastating when things don’t go as planned. However, when you have a broad definition of success rooted in the process, you find yourself winning more often without tanking your self-confidence.

Test and Scale

“Maybe you want those audacious goals – break that down into, “What is the process I need to get there?” …That allows us to detach from the outcomes.”

You don’t have to go big or go home. You can test and scale in a way that makes your work sustainable for the long run. There will never be enough time to create the perfect plan and have every detail is in place before starting something.

“You can’t know everything you need to know before you start.”

Don’t get stuck at the starting line. Instead, consider what you can do in 1-4 hours to move your project forward without sacrificing yourself. Rather than striving for perfection, take action towards progress.

Allow Yourself to be Fully Human

“I could funnel my energy into perfectionism, or I could funnel my energy into progress. But those two things could not happen simultaneously”.

Outcomes aren’t guaranteed, making them a dangerous place to anchor your identity. However, actions in the process can be helpful in reminding yourself who you are. If you are writing, you are a writer. If you are making art, you are an artist. Permit yourself to elevate progress over perfection on your journey.

If you have read Jillian’s book, help her reach her audacious goal by leaving an Amazon review. Still, need a copy? Find it here.