Foundation Brick 1: Know Your Alternative
- Valerie Timms

- Feb 18
- 2 min read
If this doesn’t work, what’s your Plan B, and does it scare you enough to get you on the phone today?
Have you ever stayed too long in a job or business you absolutely despised? I have. One of my earlier jobs was at the local meat-works. It was cold, messy, physically demanding and—to be blunt—soul-destroying. When they moved me to the slaughter floor, my job was to pull kidneys out of freshly killed, skinned sheep hanging on hooks. It’s not surprising I spent many years as a vegetarian.

When I moved into real estate sales and things got tough, I found myself mentally back on that slaughter floor. Every time I didn’t feel like making a difficult phone call, door-knocking for new business, or pushing through a tough negotiation, I’d ask: “Would I rather be pulling kidneys out of sheep?” The answer was always a very clear “no”. That simple question became one of my biggest drivers. Failure, for me, was not an option. There was no going backwards—only onwards and upwards.
Your alternative might not be a meat-works, but you have one. Maybe
it’s going back to a job where you had no control. Maybe it’s giving up on a business you’ve poured years into. Maybe it’s staying stuck exactly where you are for the next decade. Whatever it is, get crystal clear on it. Write it down. Feel it. Then compare it with the possibilities on the other side of your success—the freedom, impact, income, and options that come when you make this work.
Try this:
Ask yourself: “If I don’t succeed here, what happens next?”
On paper, describe your worst realistic alternative and your best realistic outcome.
Put that page where you can see it when you don’t feel like doing the work.
When you truly know your alternative, your excuses start to sound very small—and your motivation becomes very real.

Contact Valerie
Phone: 0447 312 218
Email: connect
Website: www.valerietimms.com.au
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