In healing, like in marketing, growth must take time into account

one step at a time sketchnote KLR

At my last visit to the fracture clinic, the doctor was telling me the things I could be doing to help stretch my ankle as it healed. I could move it forward and back. I could start walking without the big boot. There were exercises, and physio, and slow steps.

“But no matter how much you do any of these things, the greatest help to you right now is time,” he said.

I could do the stretches and go for short walks and begin walking without the boot. But doing these things more often in one day is not what brings healing. It’s doing them every day, for many days, while time moves on. Slowly. Oh so slowly.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the Atomic Habits principles as my ankle heals. The small 1% changes, cumulative over time, are far greater than a massive attempt at one time.

Time isn’t the sole healer. If I never stretched my ankle and never moved it at all, it time doesn’t make up for that. But conversely, no matter how much I do, time has to be considered.

The same applies in marketing. When we take on a new client at PF, one of the things we talk honestly with them about is the length of time it may take for their content marketing efforts to bring the drip feed of results – that beautiful place where leads come in and you (and they) aren’t even quite sure where they came from. The average length of time for this to happen is 30 months.

It doesn’t mean you get no results during that time: but what it means is, no matter how much you create, you need that amount of time before all these blog posts and videos and social posts and emails and website pages you’re creating come together, stitch together, result in the growth you want and need.

You don’t simply sit there and wait for 30 months. And if you wrote 30 blogs and posted them tomorrow, that wouldn’t have the same impact. It’s consistency in small ways, and time, which need to work together.

I’m in that place with my ankle right now. It’s stitching itself together, like magic, day after day. I’m doing the work and seeing small victories every day. Now I can walk on it. Now I can put on a shoe. Now I can go down stairs without having to hold the handrail. Now I can carry the laundry hamper. Now I can lift the Christmas tree from its stand and take it outside to be recycled. Small things. Resulting in big change. Over time.

It needs to be good content, too. Created by you and your team to answer the questions your clients have and the needs they express. To answer the questions and doubts and fears your prospects have.

As a side note (and I’ll be writing about this from PF soon), you can use something like chatGPT to help you get started, or tweak, or adapt, or get ideas, or move faster. But ultimately the best content and style and tone of voice comes from you and your team, because you are not merely the accumulation of lots of other people’s content. You are yourself. And what you do every day, 1% by 1%, matters.

Over time.

Just keep going.

Follow me

ON THE GRAM

Popped into a fave local coffee shop in York this week and this was the mug they gave me. ❤️✨

Wasn’t feeling so superwomanny when I got it - this week was very full, plus period cramps and multiple migraines and my ankle being wonky and more travel than I’ve done in a while. I had intended to get coffee but the cramps were so bad I had to go for mint tea and just sit until they faded enough for me to walk again. 

At the same time, I also had an amazing time during this week with the @weare_pf Board meeting in person for the first time. Getting to know each other better as humans and sharing ideas and making plans and most of all appreciating that the weight of all the business decisions doesn’t rest solely on my shoulders. 

This is just one of your reminders that being a superwoman looks different at different times, and whether you’re striding along strongly or sitting weakly with mint tea, your superwoman status still applies. 

#justkeepgoing #superwoman #muglife #wegotthis #onedayatatime
Every single time I go sailing past this lighthouse on the mull-to-Oban ferry I think “this time I’ll just watch it and not take any pictures” 

And then something wild happens like A SAILBOAT GOES BY and of course I have to capture that, surely I haven’t taken that photo before (spoiler: I have), and then I have about seventeen lighthouse photos to add to my collection of seven thousand lighthouse photos from the last twenty years. 

But, I figure, what’s the harm anyway. It’s my photos and my memories and it brings me joy. I love the lighthouse as a visual of my journey from the mainland to the island (or a reminder I’ll be back soon). 

So, see you soon lighthouse. Thanks for standing there. 

#lismorelighthouse #eileanmusdile #lighthouse #lighthousesofinstagram #oban #ferry #calmac #isleofmull #sailaway #sailboat #scotland #travelscotland
I read. A lot. My list of “books to read” has over 100 titles listed, and every time I mention a book I’ve appreciated, I get another recommendation of a new one and the list gets longer. 

One of the books recommended to me years ago was “The Buddha in Me the Buddha in You”. She mentioned it had some helpful principles about how we navigate life - and whether you’re a buddhist or not, there are principles you can learn from and apply in life.

I wrote it down, forgot about it, and moved on with life. Read lots of other books.

And then when I broke my ankle, and was sitting and resting a LOT, with loads of time for reading, I went back to my list and started reconsidering some of the titles on it.

When I looked up “The Buddha in Me the Buddha in You”, the subtitle was “A Handbook for Happiness”, and that struck me.

Dealing with an injury is difficult. Sad. Wearying. It can be hard to find happiness and every day feels about the same. (Very Groundhog Day.)

So I bought the book, and put it by my bed. I started getting into a pattern of reading a chapter every morning with my coffee.

I thought I’d share some of the principles I appreciated and which are already helping me as I continue to navigate my life right now: 

[the full post on these is too long for an Insta post so click the link in bio or story if u want to read more!]

Thank the spoon - a spoon stirs up the mud in what had appeared to be clear water. Same with life: hard things stir up what you haven’t dealt with yet. So you thank them. “Thank you, spoon”

The Fundamental darkness (FD) - the “Survival Obsessed Self” who responds in a way based on survival but not growth

There’s a gift in the struggle - He describes it visually as “the lotus flower in the muddy pond”. You can focus on the mud, or on the flower, but they’re both there.

Nam - myo - ho - renge - kyo : The happiness soundtrack - I pulled out the core concepts of each of these words as they applied to me, and they are: 

Purpose
Mystery
Potential 
Bloom in the struggle
Flow of life

#karensnotes #buddhainmebuddhainyou #books #reading #happysaturday 

[full note link in bio!]
The snow is swirling the wind is howling IT’S FROZEN OUT THERE 
#snowing #happyspringeveryone #inlikealion