People usually fall into one of two camps – love structure, hate structure! Today I am talking to the “hate structure” group. Often, not wanting structure is grounded in your desire for flexibility and freedom and your belief that structure/framework impedes that. What I have discovered is that a framework actually helps you gain more flexibility and freedom.
Notice how I shifted from using the word structure to the word framework? The reason for that is, if you hate structure you don’t even like hearing that word. You gain flexibility and freedom with a framework because you have a focus and a plan. For those of us who avoid plans or slip in and out of them, this is a shift in perspective. When you can see that a framework actually gives you what you crave, you no longer have to resist it.
The key is having a framework that actually supports you and isn’t simply a “cookie-cutter” process. It’s important that your framework reflects you and your work. You likely have tried many tools and strategies to get organized and they haven’t worked. The reason they haven’t worked is that they were developed by organized people for organized people. You aren’t one of them!
That’s why you will have more flexibility and freedom when you have a framework that specifically resonates with you. It will no longer feel like forcing yourself to slog through the stuff you hate.
Five Steps to Your Framework
- Clarity – what is it that you really want? (Not what you think you should want.)
- Plan – create a plan that supports achieving your vision. What are the small steps?
- Action – do the steps you created in your plan, one at a time!
- Evaluate – how did your action work out? This is time to re-evaluate and tweak, not judge yourself for failing because it wasn’t perfect.
- More clarity – learn from the action you took and refine your focus and/or your plan.
The key to creating your framework is getting clear about what you want. What you want may be very different than what you think you should want. When you make the distinction between the two, you create a solid foundation for your framework. Clarity leads to focus and helps dissolve your own internal resistance.
We often get enmeshed in judging ourselves as failing when we flounder around and feel like we haven’t succeeded. When you maintain curiosity as you build and enact your plan, you will find that the framework you create will give you the freedom and flexibility you crave. What do you really want to achieve? How is that different than what you have been saying? Let me know below. This is the first step in creating what you want.
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