Being poised on the Edge of Greatness…and taking that critical leap

Morning!

And how is life treating you today?  Yesterday I underwent a flurry of activity – Camp Ling began (wheee!  more on that later), I added a direct link to my free forums, (that allows blog posts to become automatically broadcasted out), updated the theme to my site, took the kids on the circle walk and wow, it’s now 3:56am and time to start the day again!

Today I’d like to talk about being poised on the edge of greatness.  Now, that’s been a catch-phrase for me oh, gosh, hmmmm, since I graduated college! 

I always use it to describe the feeling one gets when one casts common-sense and caution to the winds, and gives themselves permission for FULL SPEED AHEAD! to achieve personal or professional miracles all by their lonesome.

That’s what happened to me yesterday!  A few days ago, I came across the rather wonderful site Martial Arts Friends, a very friendly martial arts network that takes the art of welcoming to a brand new level.  I was entranced by how seamlessly everything fit together and how perfectly the site was themed to one of my favorite activities!

And I realize – golly gee Barbara, I can do the same thing in my own niche!  But before I could even begin to attempt such an undertaking, I realized I had to…well….

Completely re-invent my personal BarbaraLing blog theme! <insert ominous music tone here!>

Now, reinventing one’s blog theme is a delightful cheery way of experiencing soul-searing agony far stronger than any mere hell-fire jaunt through a sulfurous daycare center!  The actual technical thingees aren’t really the problem (I was born hacking WordPress sites, which really gave the doctors and nurses something about which to chat at the hospital), it’s the casting your mind to the far corners of the universe, ignoring "what everyone else does," and giving your spirit free rein to "make it so."

See?

Being poised on the edge of greatness means you’re aware of the hidden skills and abilities that are causing your fingertips to tremble in anticipation..while having the internal steadfast courage to take a chance and paint your idea via brilliantly bold, bodacious strokes that people either love or despise (generally there’s no middle ground!).  The really scary part of this is you can either succeed wildly past any lavishly envisioned dreams…or you could crash and burn more dramatically than 3 Hindenburgs, 7 icy hot avalanches and 56 toddler-induced, ahem, "adventures" in the kitchen.

But hey, it’s character-building! 

Which brings me now to the most important aspect of this post – you!

Whenever you’re seized by a cheeky idea at which the rest of the world might sniff….do you:

a.)  Swig down your current cup of coffee and shriek to the heavens, ready or not world, HERE I COME!

or do you

b.)  Sit very still until the desire goes away (or perhaps say to yourself, gosh, my 1930s bathtub is really lonely, how ’bout I shine it up for the next 8 hours)?

Hmmm?

I’d be stretching the truth thinner than an amoeba’s credit card if I declared, building up your self confidence to this level is an easy thing to achieve!  However, I would like to present to you some ideas that will truly help give wings to your greatness.  And they are:

You simply CANNOT fail. 

Oh sure, you might not achieve the results for which you were searching!  You might end up toasting your site more flamboyant than a 4th of July extravaganza!  But every "whoopsie!" you encounter ends up teaching you far more than mere success ever could.  And this is knowledge that will aid you in the future when you make your next attempt at bringing your vision to life (and yes, I really do believe this – I’ve failed my way to success more times than I care to remember.    )

Visualize yourself adrift on a raft 1 mile off the ocean shore…and the sharks are circling. 

Got that mental image?  Okay now, assuming there’s nobody within a 391 mile radius, tell me now…would you say to yourself, jeepers!  I think I’ll just stay put and hope for a miracle!   What cute fangs those sharkies have!

Or….would you say to yourself:

"Okay self, there’s only Me between my current happy living body and a rather unhappy shark-consumed non-living body…better get moving!"

You see, when it comes right down to plain simple survival online, the only person upon whom you can depend…is you!  Not your mentors, not your network, not your colleagues….YOU. 

YOU!

And without YOU, NOTHING can improve on your site.

See?  If you hem and haw and wait for snowflakes to fall inside your oven, nothing will change on your site.  It’s up to you….and ONLY you.

Realize that hey!  I can backup things! 

It’s one of those exciting wonders of modern life.  You can always back up your wordpress themes and templates and forum code and secret coffee recipe and ….you  get my point, right?  If you make backups, you give yourself freedom to reach for the stars and beyond….because you know that if you hose up your site more dramatically than Jackie Chan single-handedly defending a rock concert from a tornado of angsting teens, you can simply copy the original files over your current mess.  Here are some goodies about that:

• Admin Theme Previewer
• 2 Quick Ways to Backup Your WordPress Blog

I always use these three techniques above whenever I decide to run with the wolves and break new ground with my unique ideas.  Sure, I might not generate the desired outcome the first time or the second time or the twenty-third time….but guaranteed, I WILL end up in a far better place than I was the first time I approached this adventure!

Other great resources for giving yourself permission to be innovative and succeed include:

• Your Personal Brand is a Celebration of Who You Are
• Going Solo? Give Yourself the Freedom to Fail
• Do You Give Yourself Permission To Succeed?
• Give Yourself Permission to Claim Your Life
• Give yourself permission to stretch
• Ten ways to create innovative blog content ideas

So!  What wild and crazy ideas have been sneaking around in the back of YOUR mind, waiting for you to give them the light of day?  And even more important..once you determine what they are….

What are YOU going to do about it?

The world is waiting, you know. 

Enjoy!

Barbara Ling

#BEGIN highlights of this blog writing post:

Beginners blogging tips: Give wings to your creativity and sing your own song.

Intermediate and/or Advanced blogging tips: Look at how different niches approach blogging…and don’t be afraid to try them out yourself.

#END highlights of this blog writing post

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ps – speaking about Greatness:

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The Talent Code: Greatness Isn’t Born. It’s Grown. …

Called to Greatness Ron Hutchcraft Christian Life living BRAND NEW never read

EVGENI MALKIN 2008-09 MCDONALD’S CLEAR PATH TO GREATNESS PENGUINS # CP14

RULE THE WORLD – OFFICIAL GUIDE TO GREATNESS KLUTZ BOOK

BABE RUTH PORTRAIT OF GREATNESS 8×10 YANKEES

The Greatness Guide: Powerful Secrets for Getting to Wo

Dale Earnhardt, Jr: Out of the Shadow of Greatness by Mike Hembree (2004, Har…

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-- Barbara Ling