Breaking the Cycle: From Planning to Execution
At a certain point, reading another business book or watching another programming tutorial won’t help. You need to go and do it.
There isn’t a perfect idea or moment.
You just need to execute.
But I get it. It’s hard to start and the fear of failure or not putting out a perfect product or service weighs on us. We all have felt it, will feel it and continue to feel it daily.
In this article, we’ll talk about what holds people back from starting and how to get past the various mindsets and blockers that can keep you from succeeding.
What Holds People Back
Before talking about solutions, let’s talk about causes. Why do people struggle to go from planning and preparation to actually doing?
There are plenty of causes, but probably some of the most common issues, and the ones I have and continue to struggle with, include:
Analysis Paralysis - What niche should we focus on? What website tool should we use? What logo? What font? etc etc. You could spend all day trying to figure all of these questions out. Don’t get me wrong, you should do some research, but if you’re constantly unsure and spending days upon days upon days making a decision, you should likely stop and just make a decision.
Fear of Failure - Let’s make this clear–you will fail. Done. There is no need to fear failure; instead, you just need to accept it. Again, you should always try to avoid it and do your best. But when it happens, improve and adjust.
Unclear Priorities - I, probably like most people suffer from this, which is unclear priorities. There are so many things to get done, even in a single goal that if you don’t set a clear set of tasks and priorities that you need to complete first, nothing gets done. Except maybe you are clicking through ten tabs over and over again hoping something will happen.
Lack of Confidence/Imposter Syndrome - Finally, if you haven’t done something before, it’s hard to be confident in yourself. Even once you have completed your first few projects or smaller goals, you still might lack confidence. But every time you complete it, you’ll become that much more confident.
Now truthfully, many of these crossover. For example, I didn’t include perfectionism but that can be caused by a fear of failure or perhaps analysis paralysis. The desire to do the perfect thing keeps you cycling and feeling busy but never actually delivers.
In the end, the goal is to break away from these issues and start doing.
Write Out Goals
In order to get started, you should write down what your goals actually are. Are you trying to get a new job or start a company? What type of company, and what problems would you solve?
Also, how long do you have to succeed?
Most people will lean on the SMART framework to help set their goals: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Of course, even that can become a distraction to getting things done.
But it’s a great way to challenge yourself and clearly outline what you want to achieve.
Here are some other points:
Don’t Forget Your Goal - It’s easy to see other people on social media who are making more money than you, perhaps landing better jobs or even bigger clients. If you genuinely believe in what you’re doing, focus on that. That’s not to say you can’t adjust if there are real market forces that would make you want to. But don’t let a moment of jealousy or some other feeling distract you from your main goal.
Break down your overall goal into smaller attainable goals - Many goals worth aiming for don’t take 2-3 months to get to. They take years. So break down your goals into smaller approachable challenges. You won’t feel like you’ve got as long of a journey.
But goals themselves don’t keep you focused. That’s where it can help to have an accountability partner or group.
Accountability Groups
When it comes down to it, many of us are just bad at following through with our goals.
We lose the fire we had in the first few months because things weren’t working.
We look for other options or the shiny new idea we think will be easier.
That’s where external motivation can come into play.
I have seen many individuals thwart this problem by creating accountability groups. For example, I put together the TFA Community where other freelancers come together to help and provide advice to each other.
That way, even if you’re having a bad week or month, you can go somewhere and get excited by what other people are doing or have someone help you out!
Systems and gamification work.
And accountability can be one of those great systems.
However you force your accountability, it's a great hack to actually get things done.
In the end, that’s why building projects in public or at work can be another great place to help get you out of tutorial hell.
Celebrating Successes
At the end of the day, we are all human. We need to have little moments where we can say “We did it!” So take some time here and there to celebrate a win.
The first time you land a $5,000 contract, celebrate, same with $10,000, $25,000, etc(figure out which ones you think should be celebrated).
If all you do is work, you’ll eventually hit a wall because you’ll look at your life and realize…well it’s all work.
So when you have completed a milestone or a goal, take some time to celebrate (however you celebrate).
Relax for a night, watch your favorite movie, break out the champagne, or order your favorite takeout. Then just pause and reflect.
Learn in Public
Have you seen people post those #100DaysOfCode hashtags? It’s an excellent way to build in public. Maybe you couldn’t find a small group to be accountable to, or perhaps you want to share your journey. But making your goals and progress public can help keep you on track and encourage others to do so.
Honestly, someone should do a #100DaysOfStartingABusiness.
Again, this can be through your writing or Github profile, or maybe just a general project. However, sharing your progress publicly can help act as an accountability measure.
Even if all you’re doing is posting a small tweet or creating a PR, it can help act as a forcing function that gets you to actually complete your task for the day.
Overall, it’s also necessary to occasionally give yourself grace.
Give Yourself Some Grace
Taking on new problems and challenges is hard. The first time you get on a sales call with a client, it won’t be perfect. But that’s ok!
Learning new skills takes time.
If you let the frustration of being unable to immediately pick up a new topic take over, you’ll likely stop trying even if you have an accountability group.
Instead, learn to enjoy being new to a skill (I include myself with this). A topic is only new once. Really.
So enjoy exploring it.
Break The Cycle
It’s easy to get stuck in the planning phase. You can endlessly sit there wondering what the perfect niche is or which tool you should use for invoicing.
But you need to break the cycle.
So if you’re stuck, take a moment and figure out what your tactical next steps are. Then go and execute!
Find what works, and good luck as you break out of tutorial hell.
Thanks as always for reading!
Past Newsletters You Might Want To Read!
A Step-by-Step Guide to Starting Your Own Consulting Firm
5 Books Every Consultant Should Read
Why Everyone Loses When You Charge By The Hour - Becoming A Better Consultant
Starting Your Own Consulting Company Today
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