“The Gulp Factor” Revisited

You may have heard some marketers and mentors talk about what I like to call “the gulp factor” – if something is making you gulp in a big way – in that a-little-thrilling, “OMG I can’t believe I’m actually going to DO this” kind of way – you know you’re on to something good. But what if your “gulp factor” is something completely different?

I recently had my first hand analysis session, compliments of the extraordinary radiant entrepreneur, Zara Shea (who I highly recommend). If you’re not familiar with hand analysis, it’s a non-predictive reading that reveals your core gifts and life purpose, which have been with you since birth. Hand analysis also reveals your life lesson, otherwise known as how you get in your own way (which has also been with you since birth, by the by).

I will never forget Zara revealing my life lesson to me, because it just cracked me up. She said, “Some people – in fact, most people – have several life lessons. You have only one.”

Me, trying to play it all cool and casual: “Well?”

Zara: “Guilt!”

Me: “Whee…”

So what does this have to do with the gulp factor? Truth is, I don’t get the gulp factor. Thanks to my wonderful life lesson, my “gulp” comes in the form of thoughts like these..

“I cannot believe that you actually think you can do this…”

“Who the hell are YOU to do this?”

“You are going to look ridiculous if you do that.”

“Everyone is going to think you’re a total fraud, so, like, don’t.”

Nice, right? Whenever I’m about to step up and show myself in a BIG way, you can be sure that this ridiculous negative self-talk shows up. What’s even sneakier is that it also shows up in the form of a very particular, very weird (and trust me, very unpleasant) bad mood.

It took a while, but over I’ve learned to recognize these responses for what they really are: my personal version of the gulp factor. When that weird mood shows up now, I know that it’s just that part of me trying to keep me safe, stuck and in the status quo. I can thank it and quickly move on.

When you get uncomfortable, what do you really feel? Do you feel the gulp factor? (Exciting and a little thrilling?) Or does the discomfort that signals something great show up in an entirely different way for you?

It’s an important question, because unless you can recognize that discomfort for what it is, it WILL keep you stuck, every time. The weird bad mood used to keep me stuck in the thickets for days. All because I didn’t know it when I saw it. Now, I can blow past it in a few minutes.

This week, my coach’s request to you is to pay close attention to YOUR particular gulp factor and what it looks like for you. Bright blessings and massive success to you…