Pivot for Success

5Getting Prepared

Like the company DreamWorks®, you have to work to live your dreams.

IN THE PREVIOUS chapters, the Pivot Points ask you to do a lot of inner work—in service of Honing Your Vision—and you are asked to be intentional and specific. Now it's time to Shift Your Energy and get even more specific and detailed in your plans. Whatever stage you are in—whether you've just recognized what you want to do, or you're ready to write a full business plan for your new endeavors—it is time to put pen to paper and Get Prepared.

The best way to think of this Pivot Point is to tap into your passion and direct it into goals and steps that will take you toward your desired outcome. This dovetails perfectly with why I placed the Getting Prepared Pivot Point ahead of Honoring Your Passion (#8). Far too often, people come up to me with passionate ideas and a request: Tell me what to do to accomplish my dream. Passion is critical to have, and inspiring to hear, but doing the work is nonnegotiable. In any field of endeavor, professionals who are masters of their crafts prepare—and prepare hard. And they prepare in an aligned sequence so that the tasks are done at the appropriate time and not in a haphazard way.

Getting Prepared Gives You a Framework

I recently watched Dance Dreams on Netflix, a documentary about dancer, choreographer, actor, director, producer, and writer Debbie Allen. It tells not only of her life story, but of how each year she brings to life her unique take on ...