Let me ask you, how did I create this site? Not sure? Well let me tell you. I moved this site over from another url where it was a fail blog. I had to research online how to properly do that without screwing things up, losing my content, and losing my rankings. Then I bought the Edge Of David domain name, paid my hosting company, bought Headway, then spent two weeks or so designing.
Was I told by my boss (if I had one) to do all this as part of a job? Nope. Was it created by me sitting around talking about how cool it would be if I could start over? Nope. Was it created by me complaining about how my old site was not as successful as I had hoped? Nope. Edge of David exists because I took ACTION and created it out of my own shear will and creative energy. I asked myself, “am I getting ridiculous results from this?” Decided I was, then went and acquired the necessary knowledge to take the necessary actions to get the results I want.
The lesson: The answer to the question of how to get things done is to do work that matters.
How do you do work that matters? The answer is brilliantly simple, but quite difficult at the same time. It might be best to just break it down into a couple or rules. The rules of action:
Rule 1: Embrace Silence and Solitude
This world is moving so fast, with everyone doing nothing even faster. Break out of the cycle of busy work and focus your thoughts in a quite peaceful setting. Think about whatever problem you are having like: Your overweight, your bad with women, your not making enough money. Then ask for a solution. Repeat in the quiet depths of your mind “help, I need help with this”. Doing this will eventually have solutions find there way in.
This is exactly what I did. While laying on a picnik table staring at the white clouds pass by in a beautiful evening, tuned out from the world around me I thought about 1) What I was trying to accomplish with my old blog 2) If I was acting in accordance with my own values and interests. I discovered that I started my old blog for all the wrong reasons. That is why it was going no where fast. I was getting ridiculous results and decided I needed to take action and reverse course.
Rule 2: Plan your moves, but with time limits
“Assumption is the mother of all fuck ups” was a sign above the door of my Drill Sergeants office. It was obviously crude, but very effective because it is true. Never assume. Think things out first and plan. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. But set time limits because while planning is one of my rules of action, it is not action in and of itself and you will never get things done by endlessly planning.
Rule 3: Start
One you have sat quietly and thought about solutions to your problem. Then took the time to plan out your execution, now it is time to launch. Ready fire aim is the idea. Eventually you do need to aim, but it is more important to fire or in this context START. To get things done you need to start.
Rule 4: Ditch perfection
Typical Internet newbie: “I want to create a site that is the next Facebook and will allow you to share pictures and updates like Twitter, but it will have a membership feature and allow tracking like Squarespace”. This is an example of version infinity. The final version. The perfect version that incorporates everything you want. Ditch perfection, and focus on one small bit of action at a time. You don’t set out to build the most amazing and perfect wall. You set out to lay one brick at a time as perfectly as possible THEN you have a wall.
Rule 5: Multi-tasking is not Action. It is a waste of time
So many employers value “multi-tasking”. It has also become a catch phrase of many employees: “I am a great multi-tasker! I can do five things at once, no problem!” Muli tasking is a waste of time. When you find yourself moving too fast, doing too many things at once, slow down and simplify. Remember your trying to get things done by doing work that matters. Focus.
Rule 6: Do the most important tasks first. Then rinse and repeat
Clear distractions and focus on the most important task at hand. Focus on that one task exclusively till you can go no farther with it. Then do it all over again with the next task, then the next.
Rule 6: Overcome negative thinking
We each must find our own way to do this. My way is my way, it will not work for you, but rest assured it can be done. Also, your thoughts of failure are common. We all have them. Though it may seem like others are lucky and things just worked out for them, what you will usually fail to see is the persistence, knowledge, and failures that have driven that person to victory.
Rule 7: Ask yourself: “Am I getting ridiculous results?”
Things fail. You may fail. Your idea, plan, execution may not be as brilliant as you once thought. Give it time, but eventually to get things done by doing work that matter, you have to ask yourself the question if you are getting ridiculous results. Denial is easy. We hate facing the truth sometimes because no one likes having to start over. But sometimes in life that is exactly what you have to do. Start over.