[Clarity] The Anatomy of Opportunity #1 – How to Create Your Big Break

You probably heard the Thomas A. Edison quote:

Opportunity is most often missed because it shows up in overalls and looks like work.

This month, in The Anatomy of Opportunity, I’m going to uncover 4 different ways for you to receive opportunity into your life.  Life can have a lot less struggle in it for you.

Let’s dive in and find some better opportunities!

People come to me and say “if only I just had better opportunities!”

You may believe that if you have better opportunities you would then have better results. This is unfortunately not true. I’ve watched. When most people finally get a really good opportunity – they can’t see it, don’t act on it or fall short in effort.

By teaching you HOW an opportunity arrives and how it behaves, you have better chance at grabbing and holding onto yours. 

This week we’re talking about what most people view as the hardest way to receive opportunity – but is also one of the surest ways to get it -you grow it your freakin’ self!

If you plant the seed of your future opportunity, you have one huge advantage, you can nurture it!

Think of it. You know where IT is. You know what IT needs. The energy you’re willing to give IT should determine how quickly and easily it grows.

Plant A Seed, Now!

OK, let’s assume that you agree to “start from scratch”, I know your next question. Tanya, how do I plant my seed of opportunity?

There are two general things to consider when you are setting out to grow your own opportunity: protecting it and feeding it, just like planting a seed.

Imagine someone gave you a single seed to one of the world’s rarest flowers. The blooms on the flower sell for $10-$25,000 each. NOW you’re pretty focused, right? What would you do?

(Not totally making this stuff up! #3 on this list of world’s most expensive flowers is a $200,000 orchid)

1. You would research to determine what the optimum growing conditions are for your treasured seed.
2. You would begin to collect resources needed to safeguard and provide those optimum growing conditions.
3. You would consult with available experts to ensure all your bases are covered.
4. Only then would you step into motion to execute and plant that seed.

So you Research, Resource, Consult and only then Execute. 

Research

When you’re doing your research, you are not only looking for what you should do. You are looking for concrete examples of what you should not do. Often these cautionary tales are even more valuable than the “how to do it” information.

Mistake to Avoid?

Launching your idea (planting your seed) immediately out of excitement.

Collect Your Resources:

Your research should’ve told you what you need to get your idea going. During your research, you’ll also find information about what the seed will need once it’s blooming. You do not need to acquire blooming resources just to plant the seed.

Mistake to Avoid?

Don’t run out and try to acquire all of the resources needed for the project’s entire life-cycle. That will either stretch your budget or delay you while you spend time performing steps unnecessary for the near future. 

Consult:

Make sure you’re talking to people who have already done something! The knowledge of that person combined with the mistakes they’ve made, can keep you from repeating those same errors. Coaches are short cuts.

Mistake to Avoid?

Be willing to buy good advice. Talking to the right people can save you years of time, thousands of dollars and prevent the potential loss of your opportunity. 

Execution:

If you do well on the first three steps, actually planting your seed (launching your idea) is no longer the hardest step of the four. You plant knowing what to do.

Mistakes to Avoid?

To launch immediately. To execute soon as you get the idea. To mistake being busy for being productive or effective. Plant your seed well.

The surest way to get your big opportunity is to create it and nurture it. We’ll talk all this month about different ways to receive your opportunity.  Do not be afraid to do this one. It will feel slow until it reaches the tipping point where it will all happen very quickly.

Even if you have other, faster opportunities ALWAYS be planting & growing a seed. In the future, it’s birth will bless you with fruit and you’ll be glad you did the work.

What are YOU growing for your future right now?

(My Hand Made Tire Planters, everything pictured outside the periwinkle tire started from SEEDS)

In Joy,