If I have a trigger in my personality, it’s around integrity. I mean, most human beings have a thing about integrity and being honest, which is why I don’t worry about having generous refund policies and such, but I really get triggered.
Triggered as in watching and squirming when in one of those silly comedies where the romantic interest makes some little lie that turns into a big series of misunderstandings. I can’t sit still. I hide under the pillow. Sometimes I leave the room.
It could be that I’m a chronic liar and can’t stand watching it. Or maybe I just need a healing session or three about it.
Any way you slice it, integrity is a big thing for me. So when we decide to not do something that we said we were going to do, it’s really painful for me.
We Canceled This Year’s Path to Profitability Retreat
Now this is an article, so I’m not going to spend a lot of time talking about the retreat or other offers. To give you the short of it, The Business Oasis (note: The Business Oasis ended in November 2010) launch took six weeks longer than we expected, and the current course on Momentum has similarly taken up a huge amount of attention. And we have a year-long program we’re offering in January.
With all of that happening, something had to give. And the Retreat was it. We just didn’t feel we could pull off a quality event. I mean, we could take people’s money, show up, and go through the motions. But we didn’t feel we could deliver quality.
So after wrestling with it for DAYS, we decided to cancel, and Kate and I started making the personal phone calls to the folks whose money we were going to give back.
Too Much, Too Big, Too Fast
There are so many good ideas out there. Between the ideas I come up with out of thin air, and the cool things I see other people doing, there are, seriously, about 40 projects I’d love to start here at Heart of Business. Five of them I’d really love to get to, including the retreat.
But I can’t. Even with Kate on the payroll, two interns, and lots of eager Heart of Business-loving folks who might be willing to pitch in and help, we can’t pull it all off.
I’m sure this isn’t news to you, this issue of capacity. But are you facing it? Are you realizing the truth of it?
It’s a hard one to really swallow, because it has to do with mortality.
The Problem Is We’re Slowly Dying
I’m sorry. I know death isn’t a chirpy, positive-thinking topic to confront. It’s just one of those true things. We all know this, but we don’t really get it in most moments.
I’m grateful for my time as a paramedic, because death became something very real, and very normal for me. After I reached one hundred, I lost track of the number of dead people I’d seen. It’s just part of life. It’s tragic, sometimes, and sometimes it’s just what is.
Many people who have had near-death experiences will tell you that it has given them an appetite for life, an appreciation for what is truly important.
And for some odd reason, none of those people seem to think that jam-packing your schedule with everything under the sun is truly important. Instead, simplicity becomes the order of the day.
Sufis understand this truth as it is embodied in the well-worn phrase, “Die before you die.” Embracing this idea means facing this profound realization of mortality, our precious time here, and letting everything go that can be let go.
When the burdens of all that extra stuff is allowed to fall away, something miraculous occurs. It’s called “presence,” and suddenly you have access to it. It’s true that presence is available no matter how busy or jam-packed your schedule is, but when you consciously make space for living, for simplicity, then there’s room, not for the miraculous to show up, but for you to notice the miraculous that’s already there.
Whoa, It’s Getting a Little Heavy
Yup.
Time To Choose Three
Your business is about helping people, making some kind of difference. If you try to do everything, you’ll make little bits of progress on half of it, and none of it will be satisfying, you won’t be paying your bills, and you won’t be reaching the people you want to reach.
Here’s this week’s heart challenge: List all of your business projects and ideas, everything that is commanding your attention in your business.
And then pick three of them. Three only. No, not four. No, you can’t have one half-way done with another one on the side and pretend you’re really not doing it.
Just three. Focus on them. Do them well. Once you get one to a stage of stability, set it aside, and then pick up another third project.
Why three? Because three gives you enough variety to bounce between if you need to do that. Because it would be insane to say you could seriously just focus on one thing. Ideal, perhaps, but insane.
Of course, the next question becomes which three projects?
Keys to Choosing Your Projects
- List ’em out.
You’ve already done it, but just make sure you have. Take a look at them. I’m going to guess that unless you’re already a super-organized Getting Things Done, Omnifocus kinda person, your whole list of projects has some repetition in it. Meaning there aren’t as many as you think.
Or some of your little projects are actually all related and are part of one big project. Go ahead, it’s okay to group them. Let’s keep it simple.
- Put Pies On The Shelf
Any pie-in-the-sky ideas? Put ’em on the shelf. I don’t mean discard your dreams, but if you are struggling at all just to get your business stabilized, focus there. In time, you’ll return to the shelf and pick up those pies. Yum!
- Your Business Has a Heart
You know, I’m the big “ask-your-heart” person. But, in this case, you should also ask the heart of your business. What is your business really needing to be healthy? If your business is a youngin’ and needing some parenting, then you may not get to just do the fun stuff. You may need to change some diapers and clean up some spit-up.
Go ahead. Ask the heart of your business which three it wants and needs right now. Let yourself be surprised.
It’s hard to face mortality just as it’s hard to limit your choices. However, by picking three projects from the heart, and moving through them, you’ll actually have a chance to stabilize, grow and get to the fun stuff.
21 Responses
Hi, Mark. My whole body relaxed when I read this article. Well, not at the beginning. But the Truth of it rang clear–once again. Now to actually do what you recommend…
Hi Mark
This really resonated with me especially as I have been trying to cut down on things myself. I found I was in the 3, really meaning abou 7 category, so that made me smile! I am just about to start some mindfulness work which I am hoping will help make all this a thing of ease rather than hard work.
Claire
Mark
Sometimes it’s freaky that you write what I’m thinking. But I’ll just put it off to Universal Consciousness or cookie-lover brain.
I’ve got that “integrity trigger” too. It’s in my fingerprints (check your left middle fingerprint, I’ll bet it’s there too).
Thank you for reminding us it’s okay to be lifestyle driven – “going small to play big”.
Hugs
Peggie
.-= Peggie´s last blog ..Survey Says
Thank you for this, the timing could not have been better. My focus has been scattered and ignoring the simplicity in life recently. You have reminded me about the importance of priorities and I feel much calmer – all after one article. Thank you!
.-= Andrea Travillian´s last blog ..Getting Started Investing =-.
Thank you for such clarity, you are right on with this message and I so needed to hear it today.
.-= Michele´s last blog ..Bombing the Moon for water =-.
You’re going through what I like to call “Extreme Success.” Many of us aren’t ready for extreme success, and one of the characteristics of it is that momentum snowballs on us faster than we can keep up with it, but we don’t realize it before it’s too late.
I appreciate the integrity and honesty of talking about what’s going on, and I can understand how hard this was for you.
I often tell my clients, friends, and anyone who’ll listen to me to focus on doing no more three projects per day or having no more than three objectives or priorities at a time. Inevitably, things will put up that need to be done, but three gives you enough margin to do those three well while picking up those ad hoc things.
So, yeah – figuring out what three things to do is the hardest challenge, but on the other side of that hill is sustainable momentum and less overwhelm.
.-= Charlie´s last blog ..Becoming Yourself and Growing Your Blog =-.
I loved this post, Mark, and appreciate your willingness to get “a little heavy.” In fact, I’d like to quote you at a retreat I’ll be leading on Saturday. Okay by you?
Sometimes, my family thinks I am morbid because I often talk about having a limited amount of time to live, or what would they think the most important things would be if they knew one of us would die, or how much we need to focus on appreciating every, single moment we have together. They hate talking about that stuff, but it is how my mind works.
So I love the idea of focusing on 3 priorities fully. But what do you say to the person who has a full time job (with all important health insurance) and is also starting a fledging business? How can you create time to just live when that is your situation? Maybe focus only on one fledgling business objective at a time?
Thank you for the insightful post, it was an affirming and joyful read!
Mark, your take on integrity absolutely resonates with me. If there’s anything that would keep me awake at night, it’s the thought that I took somebody’s money without delivering full value to them.
And you are so right about limiting your project list. Jonathan Mead made a great comment a while back. He said he doesn’t even want to work on good ideas. If it isn’t a GREAT idea, don’t bother.
A while back I pruned my project list, but it’s time to do it again. I had to send out a lack of progress apology to a consulting client today. That was a painful reminder that I let too many things find their way to the top of the list.
.-= Mike Stankavich´s last blog ..Want to Build a Freedom Business? Here
Doncha love how ‘heavy’ is the new light?
After last week’s sad Sedona retreat outcome, this post is a beautiful balm: thank you.
Hi again. Dava, I like your question. What if you have a full time job and are starting a fledgling business? And it doesn’t even have to be that. I actually balked at the idea of 3 projects at a time. One is enough for me. Maybe 2, so I can go back and forth if I hit a plateau on the one. But 3 feels overwhelming to me. So I don’t think it is a matter of having to do 3 projects, but rather finding the right amount for you in your life at this time. So maybe your business gets started more slowly. So what? (I am saying this to myself at the same time, as I have a big project I am working on that is going to take more time than I like). Who am I competing against, and why? Back to the Heart. What is right for me (and the Heart of my business) at this time? I think that is the guiding light, and it requires constant checking in. Thanks for the question.
So here’s what happened. The article accidentally went out to our email list this morning, and so we decided to make the blog live. And today I’m teaching, when I didn’t really have the attention to be present to you all.
So here it is, 4pm, and I’m finally getting back and here, I’m touched that it landed for you all.
One big lesson for me is, as Charlie alluded to, that we’re upscaling our infrastructure. But, even with more infrastructure, we still need clarity and stripped-down-ness of what we’re working on.
@Dava- Yeah, some people don’t get it- but death can be comforting if faced fully. It’s just true, eh?
@Mike- Another reminder that it’s a process- can’t just do it once. It’s an over and over again kinda thing.
@Mimi- I’d be honored if you quoted me. Let me know if they throw rotten tomatoes at you afterwards.
@Trisha- Yup, die before you die. It is profound. And I’ve been working on it for ten years… “I’m not dead yet…”
Hullo, Mark,
I starred last week’s article on selling too much, intending to reply. Before I could do so, here came this week’s article on having too many balls in the air and having to cancel a course to be able to meet your standards for other projects.
I see a link between the two articles and just wanted to ask you gently, in the spirit of Jennifer Louden, whether that “errr errr” feeling you described in the post about selling too much could be a warning signal for you that you have too much going on?
We all have those reminders that tell us that we’re overcommitted and need to cut back. I start talking about how I desperately have to do something basic–eat, go to the bathroom, go to bed. Sinks mysteriously overflow, and I spill things. A friend says she starts walking into walls. These days I try to discern and listen to those warnings sooner, before the Divine has to crank up the volume . . .
@Anne- Nothing mysterious about it- absolutely a link. That’s exactly what I was saying.
And of course there’s way too much going on- big transitions in the business, twin babies approaching one year-old, there are a lot of balls in the air. Sometimes life is like that. Canceling the retreat was exactly what you said- we saw there was too much going on, and canceled some of it to bring it back into balance. And we’re actively planning 2010 to be set up differently.
It’s okay with me that sometimes life is very full- this year is one of those years. And, we’re stopping short of insanity.
Thanks for caring and echoing what we’re working with.
Wow, Mark. This was an amazingly helpful post for me, and timely, as I’ve been thinking over my business plan (in terms of offerings, anyway.) Three. Magic number, that. Just three. I think I can do this assignment!
As a mixed media artist, it is very easy for me to stop and suddenly realize I have 4 or 9 projects, all partially-done, sitting around, and as an seller who offers varied merchandise, I often have to stop and shift my focus from one line of product to a different one. And–synchronously, I think–I am about to get my online venues down to….THREE! (I’m closing one today, I hope.)
I think I will take this challenge and write my projects down and try really hard to focus on just three for a while.
Thank you. I am sorry you had to let something go, but as you said yourself, it is (maybe) temporary. Maybe one day you will be able to revisit it and offer The Retreat to End All Retreats. And maybe I will be able to be there.
Many blessings.
Jennifer Moore
JenniferLynn Productions, LLC
.-= Jennifer Moore´s last blog ..Writing: Book Recommendation. =-.
Hi Jennifer- Wow- glad it landed so strongly with you- very cool. And it looks like it’s really starting to work in your biz in great ways.
You’ll be happy to know that the Retreat is on the schedule for next year- we’re working out the exact dates with the retreat center, but it was definitely only a temporary change–it’s too amazing an experience to let it go completely.
Only 3 things. Man, I’m not sure I can do this. 🙂 I know that this topic has been at the forefront of my mind. I need to harness my focus and stop trying to do too many projects. I’m not getting enough done.
I’m making my list right now. Done.
This will be my focus. Thanks for the kick in my butt. My heart needed it.
.-= Karl Staib – Work Happy Now´s last blog ..Hard, Fun, and the Beautiful
Thanks, Mark. We’ll see how it all plays out. 🙂
Jennifer
@Karl- You’re welcome! It’s not easy. But it’s okay that some things are challenging, eh?
@Jennifer- cool! I look forward to hearing, if you’re willing to give us an update at some point.
Oh, this hits home. Such a great reminder to do less (I can never seem to have too many reminders to do that 🙂 Thank you Mark.