Ahh 2012 is *finally* upon us. I don’t know what it is about this year that makes it sound really important..maybe it’s all the ‘world-is coming to an end’ hype but I have a feeling this year is going to be huge. And the feeling that I’m getting from around the web is the same. Everyone is ready to make 2012 their year.

I decided to get in on the three words, inspired by reading Chris Brogan’s post. Normally, I think about these and kind of do it in my head but never really fully commit to it and put it out there but in the spirit of this year being epic/different/huge I’m getting in on it.

Create

let go and let creativity flow

I want to focus this year on creating more and consuming less. Reading blogs, tweets is great but I find it also stops me from creating. I’m too busy watching what others are doing and start second guessing what I’m going to do and then never actually end up doing. Sound familiar?

I spent a large part of the holidays with my sister and her family this year and my 5 year old niece is big on arts and crafts. So every day we had ‘Arts and Crafts’ time where we glitter-glued and made snowflakes, snowmen and just immersed ourselves in creating. I loved it.

baking time with my niece

It reconnected me with that part of me that could just look at a blank piece of paper and do something with it-perfect or not. It reminded me of my childhood where my sister, my cousins and I would play in my parents basement for hours on end and make up games like restaurant,  library (with library cards!), store (it even had a name ‘Unique Boutique’), shark (I’m sworn to secrecy on that one) with nothing but our imagination and a few random household items to use. We created.

This year I want to create more: whether it is more videos or products or even chocolatey-goodness.

Do

the way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.
-Walt Disney

I always have a lot of ideas in my head and things that I want to try. This goes back to the point above about watching and over-consuming. This year I want to actually do and follow-through on these ideas. And worry less about how perfect they turn out. I probably could add: Do, Follow-Through and Ship. This year will be about taking action and doing.

Focus

ask yourself, is this getting you closer to your goals? If yes, do it. If not, it’s a distraction.

I get distracted easily and sometimes I have a hard time saying “No” to things. I like helping people, participating and getting involved in various projects. This year I have to be more strict with myself and get better at saying “No” so that I can get further along in reaching my goals. No doesn’t mean no forever, it can just mean not right now.

Create, Focus, Do

This tweet by David Garland, sums up real well what I hope to achieve this year:

Your turn, what will you do differently this year? What are your guiding words?

Remember the movie ‘Failure to Launch‘ with Matthew McConaughey where he plays a 30-something slacker who has a job, a car and still lives with his parents? His parents, tired of his mooching, hire an interventionist to help him ‘launch’ his life.

Well, today I’m here to intervene and help you launch. Or at the very least, get started.

Let me guess.

• You have lots of ideas and have started a few but haven’t really gotten anywhere.
• You want to start but you’re not sure where to start.
• You’re not sure about your ideas.
• You’ve analyzed your idea from every which way but haven’t executed on it. In fact, you’re paralyzed.

I can get all preachy on you and pull out a few classic lines like-

“The first step is the hardest”

“Business is 10 percent coming up with the idea and 90 percent execution,.”

…but you’ve already heard all those, right?

You see there is a reason why those phrases are popular. They are coined by people who actually started..who have been there/done that.

Today I want to give you three ways on how to actually overcome that analysis/paralysis and actually get started on your BIG idea!

1. Do Your Own Thing

Stop looking at what everyone else is doing and start doing your own thing.

This is huge. We have a tendency to measure ourselves against our peers and consequently start second guessing what we are doing or wanted to do. Social media does not help this as we are constantly inundated by everyone else’s achievements. Lesson here: Pick your project and start focussing. Create your own goals and carve away at them.

2. Pick ONE

Pick one idea and start.

Oooh this is a tough because all of your ideas are awesome, right? Start that blog that you’ve been meaning to start for the last 6 months but you have been waiting for the perfect time to start. There is no more perfect time than right now (but finish reading first, k!)

3. SHIP

Build.Measure.Adjust (otherwise known as Experiment!).

Say, what? Okay, I had to throw some engineering-speak in there but this applies to any idea. Try something, see what works and then adjust. Often times we feel like we have to wait until something is perfect before we release it to the world, but there is opportunity to learn if we put things out iteratively. And it’s worth mentioning that just because you start a blog does not mean the whole world will be visiting it that very same day.  It will take time to hone your craft so put it out there and learn and adjust as you go. The key thing is to start so that you can actually benefit from the process of learning.

BONUS: FAILING IS OK

It is okay to fail. Not every idea is successful but you won’t actually  know until you try. And you will learn from failure.

Or.. you can just sit on that potential million dollar idea and wait for someone else to execute 😉

So what do you think, worth giving a shot?

Photo Credit: Jake and Lindsay

Picture this..

A person interested in your services contacts you and in your effort to help them, you go all out with everything you can offer them. Newbies or veterans, it happens to the best of us and it’s a common mistake that we all make at some point.
We forget to grow big ears and talk to our prospects in their language.

• They call and ask for fitness training and you try to sell them a nutrition plan.
• They are asking about getting started with social media and you start throwing ROI, metrics, and management at them.
• They need a basic website, yet you try to sell them the version with all the bells and whistles.

Sound familiar?

What happens?

Overwhelm. They run for the hills!

Remember: they are contacting you because they see you as an expert in your industry. They need guidance and help and probably have some idea about what they need but at the same time are faced with a lot of choice.

Exercise Restraint

Giving them with too much information will overwhelm them and make it harder for them to make a decision and ultimately, choose you.
I experienced this recently. After a back and forth exchange with a prospect who wanted help building his online presence, I sent a proposal. I told him everything he needed, despite him asking for the basics. What did I do wrong?

I forgot to listen completely and was already thinking of the next steps. The result? Instead of winning him over immediately, he now needed more time to process it all!

Lesson Learned

Don’t scare away your customers with Too Much Information (TMI)!!

Sometimes less is more, and remember, there’s always the opportunity to upsell later 😉

Has this ever happened to you?

Photo Credit: VincePaul