Why Try To Get Out Of Your Box, When You Can Use What's In It?
You could analyze your time to discover what you’re doing that’s wasting the most time.
Or you can use that time to work on a project that matters.
Very rarely is what you’re facing a time management problem. More often it’s fear.
Stay Positive & Don’t You Think It’s Time You Face It?
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Your boss has double the fear that you do about stepping up to the next level.
You fear it, but you’re ready to take the next step, to learn.
You’re willing to risk (maybe fail), and that’s a good thing.
On the other hand, your boss fears you failing from both a selfish and a selfless standpoint.
Selfishly, she doesn’t want to redo the books or the work. If you screw up, it’s on her dime. She’s saving her gluteus by not giving you the chance to fail.
Then, because she cares about you, she also doesn’t want you to fail, to fall discouraged, to regret stepping in shoes she knew you wouldn’t fit in. Better to play it safe, she thinks.
The problem is that double fear isn’t going anywhere, and therein lies the issue of having a boss.
Consider what you have control over now? What permission can you accept now? What responsibility can you take in your own hands?
After all, it’s your turn in line, even if your boss can’t see it.
Stay Positive & Support May Not Be There, But Permission Always Is
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From a consumer’s standpoint, there’s not much more frustrating than not believing the problem that you bought a solution for was solved.
Take a carpet cleaner, for example. The professional comes in, cleans the carpet, grabs his check and leaves. Moments later, you step on a cheerio.
Had you learned that the carpet wash gets underneath the carpet with a liquid solution, and that it’s not a vacuum. Frustration could have been averted.
Another example: I recently brought my motorcycle in to the shop, thinking there was an issue with the chain because it was louder than my last bike’s chain (this is only my second bike). After telling me nothing was problematic, me still hearing the chain rattle, me bringing the bike back and finally talking with one of the tech’s, I learned that my bike didn’t have a chain guard to muffle the sound. Had they put the teacher cap on first, they wouldn’t have had to invest any more time in a non-issue.
Even if you think your client or customers know (or worse, don’t care), teach them anyway. It’ll save your ass for when they start to care or it will prevent frustration all-together.
Stay Positive & Nothing To Lose, Everything To Gain, Start Teaching
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Brand awareness, brand viability, brand loyalty… all comes down to who sees who.
Are you counting the times the target sees you?
Or are you counting the times you see your target; truly, sincerely, connectively see them?
Customers become loyalists when you do. They see you when you show that you’ve seen them, their desires, their dreams, their emotions. As a brand, you become viable when you don’t just scream “Look!” you whisper, “Here. I made this for you.”
Stay Positive & You’re Eyeballs Are The Ones That Matter Most, How Are You Measuring Them?
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Each day I read my blog post over one more time to see if I can find any typos or inconsistencies. After doing so, I glance at the “Most Viewed Posts” collection on the right side of the home page.
Nearly every day a post I wrote two years ago ranks the highest. Would you believe it if I said it was a post about a pair of shoes I bought and my review of them?
The ECCO Biom Sport Ultra Quest Plus shoes, to be exact.
I wrote that post because there was a gap on the internet that needed to be filled.
Unconventionally, I purchased the shoes and then attempted to find reviews online about them, but no prevail. As naturally as possible (albiet with a marketing twist), I filled the gap.
It was an easy gap to recognize, but I wonder what gaps you have in your work, in your industry, in your relationships that Google can’t tell you – rather, not tell you because it’s not there.
If you want to create something remarkable, you have to fill gaps.
That starts with us having open enough minds to find them; not just to be aware of them, but to seek them out.
Stay Positive & No, That Doesn’t Mean Make Gaps First
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The only guarantee about a plan is that it won’t work perfectly as planned.
No matter how much time you put into adding all the steps and organizing them in the right order, things will certainly go awry. However, that is no excuse for not planning.
Rather, the smart move is to plan for a plan.
It’s to do all the right research before crafting a plan.
It’s to create your minimum viable product before you work on waterfall engineering your business.
It’s knowing that the industry you’re hoping to get in will shift and you’ll have to pivot to meet the demand.
It’s about bringing your passion into exploring why you want to create, why the market wants it, why they will care to buy from you.
When you plan to plan, you consider in what ways the industry can shift, you’re prepared, you’re smart, but most importantly, you’re flexible.
Stay Positive & There Is No Map, But Following Your Heart Is A Great Place To Start
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Some of the most productive days are filled with quick work.
It’s the thrashing before a deadline.
Other times, it’s pure motivation that drives us to get a lot of shit done.
While the result may be good enough, deadline met, to-do list complete (list-check-off-ers, you know who you are), quality and delight become oversights.
You don’t sign off an email wishing the recipient of your message a fantastic day. Your blog uses fewer words that resonate and show your astuteness. You washed the dishes, but some of the bowls still have grease on them.
Consider tomorrow’s schedule. Will it be filled with remarkability, creation and progress or will you be left washing the same dishes a second time?
Stay Positive & Quality Is Expected, Telling Yourself Otherwise Is Putting You Behind
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