Hasty pushy little shoots, heading up through the soil and into the light even though more snow is forecast and it isn't even the end of January. Such impatience!
Part of me is really pleased to see them coming through promising spring and newness. They might be going to be snowdrops.
And another part of me is saying 'no no, more time to hibernate, more time to be hiding away thinking, dreaming and planning before things start to develop and come into being, more winter snow. More time watching logs crackle and stirring soup please.
Actually, that's the joy if this time of year because there is the luxury of both. There's the stirrings of new growth and inward time.
That's very much where I am in my business right now with several projects starting to take shape and some still at the thinking and dreaming stage. There's nothing to show with the latter, yet, but I'm confident that there will be. I'm resisting pressure to define some of what I want to develop because it just isn't time yet; time has to be allowed for thinking, dreaming and aligning what I want to do with what the world is likely to want of me.
There's a nice metaphor there. There's no point in preparing something and having it already to sprout without the environment being ready to receive it. Those are just tiny shoots (click photo to enlarge) that hopefully can withstand a bit more winter weather before they start to grow in earnest.
If this resonates with you with respect to any part of your business consider what you need to be doing at this stage. Are people asking you to define what you do? Is it time for that yet? If it doesn't honestly feel like quite the right time to narrow your options and create the exact words for what you are up to (as those shoots will be doing soon enough when it is clear if they are snowdrops) then what should you be doing to create the right conditions for growth?
For the plant it's water, warmth, good soil and light.
For you? What about extreme self care, looking after your health well so that your thinking is at its most creative and clear? What about networking and talking ideas over with people? As you do that you can listen out for where your own enthusiasm lies as well as for any feedback they give you, intentionally or unintentionally. Testing and measuring? Exploring the best environments for your products and services? writing detailed plans? Vision boards and lists? Are you getting enough rest ready for the next stage when everything takes off.
It's a precious time after Christmas and before the spring, with bulbs quietly growing. It's to be savoured as an important part of building a business too, not necessarily to be rushed.
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