This might not work.

“This might not work.”

I heard Seth Godin say it on a podcast. He said this is his mantra. He talked about the freedom it provides when trying something new. He said he has way more failures than successes. And although he has many extraordinary successes, he said he’s most proud of his failures. I thought “I like that. I’ll have to write a post about it sometime.”

Then I got to LIVE it. Uuuggghhh.

It’s been happening over the past two days. I launched a new Facebook campaign. I wanted to test some new images and zero in on my target audience more in order to optimize my ads and reduce the cost of leads. Some early results were encouraging, but then… nothing. No clicks. No conversions. No nothing… except increased cost. In an attempt to get the ball rolling, I went back and turned on the ads that had previously worked well… but now they weren’t converting either. The audiences that worked in the past weren’t even clicking on my stuff and the tried and true image wasn’t getting any bites. My mind goes to “My webinar is Tuesday, and I have no leads. This is a disaster.”

Panic. Frustration. Overwhelm. Self doubt. Tears.

I’m thinking – “This might not work.” is a nice philosophical approach to things… but in real life, it stinks.”

It was time to step away from the computer. I took a walk. Listened to a fitness podcast. Went to the gym. Ate dinner. Watched some infuriating political commentary. Read Big Magic. And went to bed.

Then I reminded myself of the words on the 3×5 cards I keep on my desk. World Class. Audacious. Game Changer. Unstoppable. It’s that last one that I need most at times like these… Unstoppable.

Unstoppable.

What does it really mean to be Unstoppable? It doesn’t mean I never stop. It doesn’t mean I don’t walk away at times. It doesn’t mean I don’t throwout the game plan. But it DOES mean I’m committed to finding a way. It means I’ll try again. It means it’s time to remind myself of my BIG Why. It means I’m willing to seek out the help I need.

So today, I’m putting myself in school – I’m listening to a series of podcasts on Facebook ads. I signed up for Facebooks Ads University and I am diving in. And I’m going to finally listen to that other Facebook Ads online course I signed up for. I am bound and determined to crack this nut.

Seth Godin wrote…

“At some level, “this might not work” is at the heart of all important projects, of everything new and worth doing… it is either a curse, something that you labor under, or it’s a blessing, a chance to fly and do work you never thought possible.”

I’m betting on flying.

Your Turn

What have you found most helpful when “it’s not working”?

Here’s to doing work you never thought possible.

Pam