Hope is MY Strategy

I spent more than twenty years in sales, where one phrase was repeated over and over again.

                                                                      "Hope is not a strategy."

If you wanted to hit your number, you couldn't simply hope your biggest deal would close. You had to prospect, prepare, follow up, and do the work.

And in sales, that's true.

But lately, I've been wondering if we've misunderstood hope.

Last week, I stood in front of more than 400 women at the WILMA Leadership Accelerator and gave one of the most meaningful presentations of my life. Months of writing, rewriting, practicing, and refining led to that stage.

Afterward, I expected to ask the question I always ask. What's next?

Instead, I found myself asking something different.

                                                  How do I keep achieving without burning out?

How do I continue to dream bigger, serve more people, and pursue meaningful work without believing my worth depends on what's next?

For years, I chased goals believing the next accomplishment would finally bring fulfillment.

I've learned they're not the same thing.

I left a successful corporate career because I hoped there was a more meaningful life waiting for me. I hoped I could inspire people instead of simply selling to them. I hoped my story might help someone believe they weren't stuck.

Hope didn't make those things happen.

The work did.

But hope made me begin.

Hope got me onto a treadmill to see if I could run for 30 seconds.

Hope gave me the courage to leave corporate America.

Hope led me to write a book, deliver a TEDx talk, and step onto the WILMA stage.

I've realized that hope isn't a substitute for action.

It's the reason we take action.

Action creates momentum.

I still hope to write another book.

I still hope to stand on bigger stages.

I still hope to reach more people with a message that reminds them it's never too late to begin.

But I also hope I don't lose sight of the life I'm working so hard to build.

I hope I keep taking walks with Scott and our dogs.

I hope I keep reading books that challenge my thinking.

I hope I continue making space to breathe, reflect, and appreciate the life that's unfolding instead of always chasing the next milestone.

Maybe the goal isn't to stop striving. Maybe the goal is to strive from a place of purpose instead of approval.

To keep dreaming without constantly chasing. To remember that success isn't just about what we accomplish. It's also about becoming someone who enjoys the journey.

So yes, in sales, hope is not a strategy. But in life?

I think hope is exactly the strategy.

Because every meaningful thing I've ever done began with hope. The work made it real.

                                                            Hope made me begin.

I'd love to hear your thoughts. Do you think hope is a strategy?