It’s that time of year again to turn the calendar on another year.
Whether time felt fast or slow, if you desire to live a WITH-God Life + Build a WITH-God Biz, now is a good time to evaluate your results.
What GROWTH did you truly experience in the past year?
And more importantly, how do you MEASURE such a thing?
You can…
- Turn to your KPIs to look at the metrics in a spreadsheet
- Flip through your PLANNER to see where your time was spent
- Check your ACCOUNTS for records of what came and what went
(all of which I highly recommend inside the REDEEMED Midlife CEO)
So is measuring + predicting your growth just about the NUMBERS?
NO,but that’s what all the gurus say to do…focus on the numbers.
When you do, it can be tempting to define yourself by the numbers in front of you and measure your success by how far ahead or behind you are where you had planned or think you should be by this time.
We often measure our growth by how far we have to go.
Or you take those numbers for your personal business and compare them to those of other business owners and wonder how someone who started after you, seemed to easily fly right past you.
We often measure our growth by how far we are from others.
Whether comparing yourself to yourself or to others, a year in review can, in the words of Jen Jones in her new book Divinely Different , lead you “to doubt, diminish or deny the goodness of God in us.”
And that’s NOT a good thing.
The truth is, comparison will take your eyes off Him, your mind off believing what He says is true and your hands off building His Kingdom… and put them on yourself, on what you think is true and on building your kingdom.
We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise. 2 Cor 10:12
Paul was not talking about comparing business growth….but the same principle applies.
The Corinthians were encountering false teachers (aka supposed gurus) preaching a different Gospel (Jesus + other strategies) misleading the people’s growth. But Paul warns them to NOT follow those who do NOT follow God.
It’s NOT wise to follow the unwise when we have God’s wisdom right in front of us.
They measure themselves (their worth and success) by themselves and their own standards…so whether it’s in how you grow your faith or live your life or build your business, don’t compare yourself to the standards of others or yourself either.
Instead look to the source of all wisdom- to God the Father.
Instead of putting your eyes on yourself and your numbers, whether lacking or abounding, as you look back on the year, focus on believing what He says is true and let His truth steer your results moving forward.
Q: What’s the #1 tool to measure and predict business growth?
A: Your current BELIEFS.
Numbers are easy to check, but how do you look at your beliefs when you can’t see them?
Capture them on paper so you can rethink them…But how?
I got ya girl- this tool that has shifted everything about my results in all 8 areas of my life and in exponentially increasing my income in this past year…
It’s called the STEER Belief Map.
If you were part of the CEOS DON’T WAIT TILL JAN 1st Workshop Series (Ep 193-197 on the REDEEM Her Time Podcast) you got to practice it. But if not, no worries. Let’s walk through one right now.
Cuz this is the most important thing you can do to review the year + prepare for a new one…
Grab a piece of paper and write the letters S-T-E-E-R vertically
S is for the SITUATION you’re facing (which by the way is always neutral)
T is for the THOUGHT you’re believing about that situation (on repeat)
E is for the EMOTION you’re feeling when you’re thinking + believing this
E is for the EXECUTION you’re doing or not doing based on what you’re believing
R is for the RESULTS you’re experiencing because of your thoughts + feelings + actions
Here’s an example:
S- Year End business growth
T- I didn’t grow enough this year
E-Disappointment, discouragement, defeat
E-Either doing more on the busyness hamster wheel chasing your growth or binging on the couch avoiding your growth (be specific)
R-I do not see much business growth
NOTICE: You can draw an arrow from the R to the T because your RESULTS always reflect the THOUGHTS you’re believing.
Does that leave you feeling like there’s no use jumping into a new year just to repeat the same cycle again? Don’t worry, I won’t leave you there…and neither will He.
Take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Cor 10:5
Underneath the STEER, write the words HIS TRUTH horizontally.
What does God say about Himself, about you or about you + Him in regards to this situation? Grab a specific scripture or biblical truth.
For example,
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Cor 4:18
That tells me that my best results are the unseen ones, the ones that will last into eternity.
I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 1 Cor 3:6-7
That tells me that when I do my part of planting and watering the seeds, God brings the growth in His time.
Choose a verse or biblical principle that He is speaking to your situation.
Let’s STEER our belief again, but now based on believing HIS TRUTH
Write the letters STEER underneath, vertically again…
S- My year end business growth (notice it’s the same situation)
T- What’s your new thought? Perhaps, God is at work even when I can’t see it.
E- What’s the new emotion I’m feeling now? Encouraged, equipped, expectant
E- What’s the execution I’m doing or not doing? Perhaps praying, listening, then doing what He says and trusting the results in His hands
R- What results will you experience a year from now? Perhaps I will see the growth in things that matter and are eternal…for His glory.
Sure you can look at metrics to review the year’s growth and set new goals how you fared, but I tried that for a lot of years and found I continued to come up lacking. And if you know me and how committed I am to what I say I’ll do, you know it wasn’t for lack of trying.
What I finally discovered was that no matter how great the goal, when I pursued them with the wrong beliefs I didn’t create much success or leave room for God to work.
And when I took the time to take those thoughts captive and built them on HIS TRUTH, I saw MIRACULOUS RESULTS! The same is true for you too when you start with what you’re believing before you try the strategies and systems.
GOOD NEWS: You don’t have to wait till year end to do this exercise…in fact I highly recommend you make doing a STEER Belief Map as part of your daily time with the Lord…
Even better, when you come inside the REDEEMED Midlife CEO, you can get my feedback on your STEER Belief Maps as often as once a day…cuz that’s how much I believe in this for your personal + business growth!
Talk about support you won’t get from the world’s gurus!
So yes, look at your KPIs (aka the numbers)…but then take the time to review what you’re BELIEVING and let His truth STEER your results…
In fact, as a special year end gift, I’m dropping the link to the digital version of the STEER Belief Map inside the REDEEM Her Time Community and when you click submit, I’ll respond back with free coaching feedback!
Or better yet, come apply to the REDEEMED Midlife CEO Coaching Experience where you can get my individualized coaching feedback daily
Before you leave another year, leave any regret for what you should have done or any selfish pride about what you did do at His feet… and ask for His leading to grow in the new year and build His kingdom with your life + biz.
