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Why Do We Have to Do This Today?

I’m going to make a big assumption that you’re just like me, in which case you:

  • Have more ongoing projects than you can keep track of
  • Constantly come up with new ideas
  • Jump from one thing to the next, sometimes shelfing some of your most promising ones for months and years

If you fit that description, both me and you have problems. As per the issue I had with notebooks, we’re going to solve this one today. We’re going to become better people from this point onwards, and everyone’s going to ask us how they can do the same. So let’s become the example of what a calculated and efficient idea executioner looks like.

Please note that I’m talking specifically about projects for yourself. Some of this may apply if you’re figuring out how to manage your day job workload, but this is for those that create the workload for themselves,because they’re duty-bound to build an empire of their own.

Identify Your Goals

Take a step back here. I’m not talking about the goal for any specific project. Ask yourself: why are you creating all of this work for yourself in the first place? If it’s just for your own amusement, fair enough, but if it’s to create a(nother) income stream to suit your home entrepreneur lifestyle, make sure you order things based on what’s going to help you most.

In my case, I want to be able to make investments that build me a decent passive income, so I don’t need to work as much as I currently do.In order to do so, I needed to make sure I was a don at cashflow-generating businesses, like my ecommerce ones (particularly online arbitrage with Amazon FBA). As a project, that jumps ahead of a slow burner like an SEO-traffic-focused affiliate website.

Think long-term here. Freelance contractor work may not be your calling, but if it provides the lump sum of cash to make it easier to then invest into a new idea of your own, figure how to going to tick off the first project, so you can advance to the next.

Let’s Talk Urgency

If you got into cryptocurrency after December 2017, I can see why you may be a bit disappointed. In this game, you really need to know what the window of opportunity looks like. Consider how long the potential is there, and whether that period is decreasing as time goes on. If there’s a really lucrative opportunity that may only be viable for a few months or years, figure if you have the time to commit to it and whether it will contribute towards your goal path.

There’s a whole host of ever-green business models out there, and you may want to push them back to focus on the fresh ones. You may go the complete opposite way. It’s on you to figure out how easily you can jump in, claim the riches on offer, and jet on out of there.

The time consideration may be a more personal one. For example, you may be living with other family and have more disposable income now than you’re likely to in the future. In which case, you may be able tocommit more budget now than you would later. You may know that you’re going to have kids in a couple of years, and that the project may not be as easy to execute once you become a parent. Whatever time-based factors are at play, make sure you consider them in your prioritisation.

Now Weigh Up the Difficulty

This is a really tricky one when we’re talking about your own projects. Difficulty can be the difference between making profit or not at all. Typical advice is to frontload the most difficult tasks in a list, so you can pick off the easier ones at the end. In this case, when a lot of it comes down to your motivation levels, you may want to handle the simpler ones, giving you the momentum to tackle the more complex ones afterwards.

More often than not, the thing that brings the greatest reward is the one that requires the most time spent learning, making mistakes, refining and ultimately making a success of. The quick-win options tend to be things that keep things moving (possibly helping to bring a quick cash boost), but don’t challenge you as much. If a few small wins inspire you to tackle bigger ones, do it that way around.

things that keep things moving (possibly helping to bring a quickcash boost), but don’t challenge you as much. If a few small wins inspire youto tackle bigger ones, do it that way around.

Cut Out the Excess

You know what the excess is. You’ve got a mountain of ideas, all of which you think are great, but there’s a fair few that you’ve been putting off, because you really know better than to do it. It may be something that sounds fun but won’t make as much money as you think, or sounds lucrative, but would require a lot more resources than you have access to.

A symptom of project excess is when you reason with yourself why you’re not going to do it right now, when you deep down know that it’s never going to happen. This reminds me of all the things that stopped me starting some of the plans I had. I was just making excuses and needed to be more honest with myself. Now it’s your turn to do the same. 

And Always Remember

You have to be flexible. Things are going to change. You’re going to have more tasks thrown into the projects. You may even get drawn to new projects along the way. Just remember what your ultimate goal is, and make sure that you’re taking a path that gets you to where you want to be.

Don’t beat yourself up about not quite being on-track at all times. We’ve all got busy lives, goals change and the route to get there may too. Just try to stay focused and trust in the process you’ve created to get you there.

Chiino
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