Penny Casselman:
Often, people will say, I need to change this. I need to change that. And I have said it before, but I will continue to harp on what I truly believe is that no one changes. We evolve. We get to take everything that we have learned, that we have experienced, and build upon it, make modifications so that we get closer and closer through progress, through experimenting. Because through all of those steps, we get clarity. And when we have clarity, it is that much easier to take action and realize the goals that we are going after. You are meant to evolve.
Penny Casselman:
Welcome to the Pivot with Passion podcast. Hi. I'm Penny Casselman. I believe everyone is deserving of a phenomenal life. Regardless of where you came from, life is what you make of it. And when you learn to pivot with passion, your world explodes with opportunities. Go grab your favorite beverage, and let's shake things up as we explore how to pivot with passion. Hello, director.
Penny Casselman:
How are you today? I hope that as you're listening to this episode, you are feeling empowered, you have energy, you are crushing your week, you are excited for new opportunities, new things on the horizon. You are tuned in to where you are taking yourself. And if that is not the case, all the more reason that you hit play today so that we can have a conversation and maybe inspire you to get unstuck and keep moving forward. So I'm curious. Did you notice anything different today when you hit play? I changed my podcast logo, and I am thrilled with the results. You see, it wasn't feeling aligned anymore with the direction I was taking the podcast, my speaking, and my coaching. Because what I realized is, as you know, I am obsessed with a red marker moment. And there was no red anywhere to be found, not only on my website, but certainly not on my podcast tile.
Penny Casselman:
And after a year and a half now of doing the podcast, it wasn't sitting right with me. And I share this with you because it now feels so much more aligned with how and where I'm moving forward. And it it lights me up. It gets me excited that everything that I've been working on is now kind of coming together. It's gelling. It's all looking cohesive. And I suppose that's kind of like what the Cleveland Cavaliers are doing right now. They are crushing the season.
Penny Casselman:
And in honor of their amazing achievements this year that are still going on. I'm wearing my Cavs hat today while I'm recording this podcast. Because magic happens when you do something long enough, are able to refine it, get things to gel, feel aligned, it's pretty amazing the energy you can bring to any effort to go faster towards what you want. Yes. That happens with sports teams. Yes. It even happens with my logo and how I present myself online. And an important lesson in all of this is I remember when I was thinking about starting this podcast a year and a half ago.
Penny Casselman:
And one of the big things I started to obsess over was what did I want my logo to look like. I spent probably a week trying to come up with what it was up until this episode. But the beauty in that was I did not allow myself to get stuck. I had made the choice to start a podcast. And, yes, there are so many things that you have to have ready to go, just one of which is what the tile is that you want to represent you on any streaming service. And I knew when I hit publish on that very first episode, that logo would not be the logo that I keep forever. And at the time, I said, this logo is good enough for me to take that first step and move forward. I knew at the time that it wasn't, quote, perfect, even though, spoiler, there is no such thing as perfect.
Penny Casselman:
You might be thinking, well, Penny, great. I'm glad for your podcast revelation and good for the Cavs that they're doing so well, but what does this mean to me? Well, what I have found is that so often individuals, people, friends, colleagues will delay action. And maybe you found yourself doing that because you think you need everything figured out first before you take a step. But what I know to be true is that growth comes through movement, through action. In fact, action is one of the core three tenants a red marker moment is based on. And so you can never wait for perfection, one, because it doesn't exist, and two, it's a delay tactic. It's something that you tell yourself that isn't true to keep you safe. Because when you're going after something new, it's often unfamiliar.
Penny Casselman:
Hence, the first time I hit publish for the podcast was scary. Not only was it a new venture for me, but I also knew that the logo I put out wasn't a % where I wanted it. But guess what? It was good enough for the last year and a half. And so that is where my challenge in this episode comes to play. Just like my podcast logo has evolved, so too can your life, your goals, and whatever you currently identify with, those evolve too. And this applies to not only personal goals, but your career and even in relationships. You don't ever need the perfect circumstances to start. You just have to begin.
Penny Casselman:
We will explore in the balance of this episode why we need to stop believing that you have to get it right the first time, and instead allow ourselves to experiment, to adjust, and find growth and fun and expression along the way as we move forward towards our evolved vision. It's time for a clarity cocktail. Today's clarity cocktail comes from Zig Ziglar. You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great. Excellent for this episode. Because in those 16 words, simple clarification as to what we need to embrace to move forward and grow. And I will parallel that quote to me starting this podcast. Right? I was not great, and no eye rolling.
Penny Casselman:
I saw somebody out there doing it because I knew I can still get better at this craft, at this thing called podcasting. I'm not the most dynamic. I'm not the most listened to podcaster out there. And I know that in order to become great, I had to start. And so a year and a half ago, I set excuses aside. I quit trying to find ways to sabotage myself for moving forward and going after that vision of having a podcast and just took the first step. So I wanna read this again. You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.
Penny Casselman:
So I'll pose this question to you. What's one thing you have been delaying to take action? Noodle on that for a second. Where have you been delaying taking action because you're waiting for the quote perfect time? Director, write this quote down. Post it somewhere that you can reference quickly when you are facing a challenge. So that when you are up against wanting to procrastinate, when you are up against finding an excuse for not doing something, not taking action, you can read this little gem from Zig Ziglar. You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great. And now back to the episode. Cheers.
Penny Casselman:
Circling back to this idea of evolving and taking that first step. If I had listened to all the excuses that my brain came up with, and trust me, it could probably fill a composition notebook as to why I should not start a podcast or why it wasn't the right time or all the self doubt that came into consciousness as I was moving forward with the idea, I would not be here today. And certainly, I probably would have tweaked that logo for, I don't know, a good corporate month of work to get it where I felt it was perfect. I probably did spend far too many hours trying to get that first logo right until I finally released the expectation that it had to be perfect, that I was okay in moving forward with the design that I had because, thank goodness, I recognized that I needed to just take action. Where might you be overcomplicating things, and how can you take one step forward? Now, here are three ways that you can apply what I've been talking about to something that you've been putting off. First, give yourself permission to start messy. You know, there are so few things in life that are permanent. In high school, I wanted to change my hairstyle.
Penny Casselman:
I was terrified to get a cut because I had built in my mind this humiliation that would happen if it didn't turn out right, and what my peers would say. Fast forward to having cancer, going bald, holy crap. You know what? Hair grows back, right? You can change the paint color of a room. You can change your major in college. You can pick a new job. I mean, don't think everything has to be perfect. Let yourself be okay with being messy because progress far outweighs perfection. And I heard this not that long ago, and I thought it was really profound.
Penny Casselman:
I don't know where I heard it. But someone was saying, don't wait for something to be perfect because in all the time you put off taking action or putting effort into developing something that at the end you think is perfect, what happens at the very end of that if it turns out you hate it? Right? What happens if I had taken a year to design a podcast logo only to find after one month of episodes that I hated it? What a waste. Right? So give yourself permission to start messy because progress is better than perfection. The second thing is treat everything like an experiment because what happens, you will learn what works and what doesn't work, and you'll be able to make corrections along the way. And small tweaks lead to big transformation over time. And the third thing, look at an area in your life where you've been waiting too long. What is that one idea, that one thought that you have had in the back of your mind for a month, a year, five years? What is one thought that you have wanted to take action on but have found a reason not to? My challenge for that, take one step today. It doesn't mean accomplish it today.
Penny Casselman:
One step. What is one thing that you can do to move that thought into action? Maybe it's make a phone call. Maybe it's spend five minutes and write down a list of how you're really feeling or what needs to be done or who you need to contact or what it's gonna take. You can, if you give yourself permission to start messy and you treat everything as an experiment. Oh, hell yes. You can start on that dream you've been holding today to start bringing it into reality. Director, you are meant to evolve. Often people will say, I need to change this.
Penny Casselman:
I need to change that. And I have said it before, but I will continue to harp on what I truly believe is that no one changes. We evolve. We get to take everything that we have learned, that we have experienced, and build upon it. Make modifications so that we get closer and closer through progress, through experimenting. Because through all of those steps, we get clarity. And when we have clarity, it is that much easier to take action and realize the goals that we are going after. You are meant to evolve, director.
Penny Casselman:
I want you to embrace the idea that you already have everything you need to be successful in your life, that it's okay to start messy, but get excited about the experimental process that you're going to explore. And I want you to take that action today that is gonna help bring that spark back into your life, bring momentum, bring energy, bring excitement so that you are moving forward each day, each week, and standing in your full potential. I hope that you liked my logo. I would love to hear what you think about it. Shoot me an email. I read every single one. Also, if you are feeling stuck, if you have an inner resistance to doing things messy or to treat things as an experiment, hop over to my website. I will also link to it in the show notes.
Penny Casselman:
Get your copy, your free copy of the ultimate get unstuck guide. I can share with you in thirty minutes. You will do all three of the things that I just discussed here with you today. You're gonna start messy. You're gonna treat things as an experiment, and you will, by the end of thirty minutes, have an idea of how you can take action that day to move yourself forward. And I want nothing more, director, than for you to stand in your masterpiece this year. Until next week, I will be here cheering you on, raising a glass to your success. Friend, thanks for listening to this episode of Pivot with Passion.
Penny Casselman:
If you've been feeling stuck, exhausted, or frustrated, this is your permission slip to go grab a red marker and claim the life you desire and deserve. If you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend and then hop hop over to rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts. Because my goal is to put a red marker in everyone's hand, and I need your help to spread the word and make that happen. Until the next episode, go grab a red marker, get excited for your future, and make your first move to pivot with passion.
