Somewhere there are shoes into which we can step

Holy scriptures say that our faith can move mountains.

Even if it’s the size of a mustard seed, we can say to the mountain, be thrown into the sea, and it will move.

This is a powerful vision, but unfortunately, it’s not especially practical. Because when we’re in the weeds of project, for example, it’s less about having faith and more about working incrementally. Doing small things in strategic places.

That’s the only way we make real progress without going mad.

Goldberg’s book on cracking open the writer’s craft offers a different visual:

One way to move the mountain is to eat it, to take bites out of it. Then at least the power of its structure gets inside us and we become more of a match for it.

Doesn’t that sound like a more accessible and less stressful approach than trying to move the whole goddamned thing solely by belief?

My first day working as brand manager at a tech startup felt like trying to move a mountain. The marketing team was only ten people, but it felt like we carried the workload of one hundred.

Thankfully, our founder reminded me on day one, look, everything here is just another process. And know that whatever presents itself to you as barrier is really just a necessary next step.

That became my operating principle. Whether it was a product launch, marketing campaign, summer press push or video production, there was always a process in place to handle any situation.

Somewhere there were shoes into which we could step. We could eat the mountain one bite at a time and come out profitable on the other side.

Are you doing small things in strategic place?