When a conquering emperor returned to Rome he was often granted a triumph.  Crowds.  Loot.  Bread and circuses. The conquered enemy displayed and humiliated.

Legend has it that the emperor had in his chariot a slave who, as well as holding a golden wreath over his head, whispered words to remind him of his human-ness … perhaps  “Respica te, hominem te memento” (”Look behind you, remember you are only a man”) or “Memento mori” (”Remember (that you are) mortal”).

I’m not suggesting you need to parade your enemies in the street in pursuit of your Great Work or even that you need a slave to hold your golden wreath.

=> But who’s your truth teller?

Not your cynic.

Not your critic.

But your truth teller, that someone who can create a small still space for you where you can hear what’s really going on, where you can confront your own frailties and blind-spots and short-comings.

I’ve got three, because I need all the help I can get.

I have a Brain Trust, a mastermind group made up of Eric, Jen, Mark and Molly.

I’ve got my coach Ernest.

And I’ve got my business partner Marcella.

They’re all willing and able to call me on what’s going on in a way that’s straight and compassionate, and in a way that calls me forward to my Great Work.

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The other day I was speaking with my friend, Jen Louden.

Jen’s been a big success is the world of self help, in particular for her work as The Comfort Queen and providing insight for women to build greater comfort into their lives.

For the last little while, she’s been looking at evolving, asking “what’s next?”

And she’s been stuck in every increasing, then decreasing, then increasing, then decreasing, circles in her head.

The problem  is trying to figure out the future is nearly impossible.  We try and extrapolate from the past and that leads either to improbable fantasy or reality +/- 5% which isn’t that exciting.

Jen’s solution?

Pick something and start it.

The way you figure this stuff out is you start doing it, and then see what happens.

Seeing what happens – really seeing what happens – is a key part of the process.  You have to stop on a regular basis and ask:

=> How’s this going?

=> Is this taking me closer to, or further away from, where I want to go

=> What should I stop doing at this point?  Start doing?  Continue doing?

So if you’re feeling stuck because you’re trying to come up with the perfect answer before you start doing anything, forget it.

General Eisenhower said it best:

“In preparing for battle I have always found that plansare useless, but planning is indispensable.”

PS – watch for Jen’s next best guess at what her Great Work is soon.  It should be a cracker.

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