I’ve seen hundreds of my best-intentioned students fall prey to what I call the “all or nothing syndrome”.
They say to themselves:
“I’ll build my business when I have time…”
“I’ll focus on my business when I finish _________…”
“I’ll work on my business when I’m feeling 100%…”
I totally get it.
This really matters to you.
You want things to be perfect.
You want to get it just right.
You care so much that you want to pour your heart and soul into your business with your full undivided attention…
But, what if your full undivided attention is not available right now?
Do you wait?
The answer is no. Almost. Never. No.
The truth is that there are a million legitimate reasons why you can’t focus on your business right now.
Take my Mentorship student Dara Blaine who wrote me this morning:
I feel derailed by the fact that my husband and I have been looking for a new place to live now for 3 months (our landlord is selling) and we are reaching a breaking point. It’s been so challenging – and it’s been taking every moment of our free time, and begun interfering with the time commitments I’m trying to make towards launching my business.
I know I’m not a failure, but I’m kind of feeling like one right now.
Any advice for staying on track even when you are struggling to meet basic needs?
I’ve gotten dozens of variations of this note from students and readers whose logical mind was screaming, “Be reasonable. Slow down. You can’t do this now. Everything will be here when you’re ready. You can always work on your business later…”
But what if “later” never arrives?
What if “one day” never happens?
Regardless of what’s going on in your life, there is a cure for this all or nothing syndrome.
And it all comes down to an interaction I had with a visionary blogger who had become so successful blogging that he no longer had time to write.
We sat down together in a restaurant and I asked him one simple question.
Two weeks later, he answered:
Something I’ve been meaning to tell you… when we talked last time, you asked, “So, what would it take for you to start writing more?” I don’t remember what I said in response (probably something stupid), but the question stuck with me.
A few days later, it was about 10 PM, and I was exhausted from being in meetings all day, but I thought, “You know what? You’re never going to be less busy. If your writing was really all that important to you, you would find a way to do it, even if it was only 15 minutes.” And so that’s what I did. I wrote for 15 minutes and then went to bed. I’ve also written every day since.
The cure is simple.
Do what you can. Every. Single. Day.
Take 15 minutes a day to write or market or whatever that business-building activity is for you. Simply get into the practice of moving towards your vision. Every single day. No matter what.
That’s the “15 minute cure”. Slowly but surely, when you keep moving forward, you’ll start to create the business you desire.
This cure may sound like castor oil: You’re not going to want to take it. It’s hard to swallow and it tastes like hell. But it works.
You can change your life in 15-minutes a day.
Honestly?
I’m writing this post as much for me as I am for you…
There were a million reasons why I didn’t have time to write today. Sitting here at MIA airport, I have a big excuse to go MIA: We’re about to board a charter flight to Havana… I’m in a group of photographers I’ll be spending the next week with and I’m curious to get to know them.
But I made a commitment to myself to touch my tribe at least once a week. Preferably twice/week. And ideally three times a week.
I also made a commitment to myself (starting today) to write everyday…
So here I am writing in between the cracks of my life. And that’s one of the ways this business has emerged slowly but surely over the last 5 years…
Before I sign off and board my flight, tell me: What’s one thing you can do for 15-minutes a day starting today that will change your business forever? Or at the very least, keep you moving forward. Step. By. Step.
