It’s a new year. Time to stop making this fatal mistake in your entrepreneurial efforts.

Posted
January 2, 2009

Did you make money online this year? Did you make head way? Or did you get closer to burning out?

Time to Evaluate

Another new year is here again. Is it a fresh start? or a new reason to panic? Another year has gone by and we evaluate whether we have gotten closer to our destination or, as all too often happens, gotten off course while meandering through detours of new ideas and problems.

As I look back on the last year and several before that, I always seem to find that I strayed a bit, got delayed looking for greener grass, or that I just didn’t finish everything I needed to get done.

As an employed entrepreneur, I find that I have less time than ever to get done all that is on my lists. A real JOB, things around the house, 2 kids, a wife, the common cold, weather hiccups, family gatherings, holidays, unexpected events, time to myself… and many more things I have forgotten.

So how do you fit in trying to make money or starting a business on the side? So how do we get it all done, stay sane, and get to the goal line we set for ourselves?

There are plenty of ways to keep track of all that needs to be done (my favorite being the sticky note). But after all the many things I have done in the last dozen years, I have gained a slightly different perspective.

No matter what tools you use, electronic or old-fashioned, I wonder if we are simply trying to do too much in too short of time. Remember the saying, ‘take time to stop and smell the roses’ ? For some of us, we never take time to relax because we simply must get everything done. For others, there are just too many ’smell the roses’ distractions and consequently the list piles up.

What’s the Goal

In a previous post, I discussed a bit about the whole point of being an entrepreneur - Lifestyle vs lifestyle entrepreneur. I think sometimes, being an entrepreneur impedes on my lifestyle goal.

What is your goal? Mine is to enjoy life more. Being too busy is just not enjoyable for me any more. Having 8-12 hours each day be about work is draining and doesn’t make for the best lifestyle. And it makes 12 months go by faster than I can remember.

I admit, that I used to enjoy being busy. But I have decided that it is over rated. I haven’t read ‘the 4 Hour work week’ or whatever the actual title is, but I understand the appeal. It would be nice to work significantly less and live a refreshing lifestyle, spending more time with the family or recreating. But the reality for most of us is that we only have so much freedom and so much money.

I have been known to product hop or idea hop (take detours) all too often myself. But when I take a look at the people who are generally successful and well known for their field (athletes, authors, marketers, business people), I find that they generally spent their time and efforts doing that one thing and mastering it and making their mark on it. I also generally find they had or found a passion for it and THAT is what allowed them to spend the time to master it.

The Real Problem

My point in all of this, is to say that I think way too many of us spread ourselves too thin. We do way too much in the limited time we have each day. And we expect success to come purely because we keep hitting it hard. Whether it is having too many great ideas and less self-control, being perfectionists, or maybe trying to be too many things to too many others, having a lack of focus (or passion) can lead you down a long winding road that never ends.

Having started many businesses, I can tell you my primary goal was to make more money to enjoy life. I thought the business would be enjoyable and give me that freedom. But all too often, I found the passion really didn’t exist. I found that I sacrificed my real passion in order to come back to it later when I had more freedom, and along the way, I lost both.

The Challenge

So I challenge you this year to (re)discover your passion - online or off, and to spend quality time and energy focusing on that one thing, to pace yourself and to also forgo all the other opportunities that distract you from finishing, making money, or being content.

The old adage ‘hard work pays off’ has been taken out of context for too long. Working hard to accomplish too many things at once is not going to pay off the way you want it to.

Focus on what you want to accomplish, one thing at a time. By the time you get there, whatever opportunities you thought you lost will have been replaced by newer opportunities to take what you’ve learned and grow. You won’t miss a thing… except for the distractions and frustrations.

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