I ran across this post from Jason Clegg’s blog and I think it is worth sharing. It makes so much sense to me that applying this skill to your life, it will pay huge dividends. Check it out below. Great Share Jason Clegg. You can read Jason’s blog here.
If there’s anything that matters most for entrepreneurs, it’s getting things done and getting them done fast. This is a huge lesson I learned in the last few months as I’ve completed several projects faster and more efficiently than ever before. And all of what I’ve learned comes down to just one essential skill all business builders and passive income enthusiasts need to learn — mastering deadlines and the art of “Speed of Implementation.”
If there’s anything that matters most for entrepreneurs, it’s getting things done and getting them done fast. This is a huge lesson I learned in the last few months as I’ve completed several projects faster and more efficiently than ever before. And all of what I’ve learned comes down to just one essential skill all business builders and passive income enthusiasts need to learn — mastering deadlines and the art of “Speed of Implementation.”
I’m a perfectionist at heart. It’s true. And while it can sometimes be one of my greatest assets, it’s long been a major deterrent to progress in business growth. Someone once said, “If you want to speed up the rate of success, speed up your rate of failure.” Nothing could be more spot-on than that. The secret to success really is failure. And the reason is simple: unless you fail (and I mean REALLY fail) you never get out there and learn those critical lessons you can ONLY learn on the field of battle.
Why Deadlines Work
Deadlines force failure because they make it absolutely necessary for you to fail. If you have a deadline in place and you keep it, you’re much more likely to actually achieve a goal and to take your idea or project from idea to fruition. In the realm of ideas, things work much differently than in reality. This is the whole point of entrepreneurship — moving from ideas to reality.
But let’s be honest — reality is a scary place. There are risks, uncertainties, problems, unexpected crises. Anything can happen at anytime and bad things *will* happen.
For me, learning how important it is to speed up implementation has helped me get better at welcoming failure as a means to move faster towards success. This concept “Speed of Implementation” just means moving towards goals faster by getting things done sooner. At the end of the day if it’s not you, it’s going to be your competitor.
Let’s dig into a real example….
Accountability is an Asset
At the beginning of this month, I launched my very first membership website. This was a goal I’d had for several years now and a big milestone. Now I realize how huge of an accomplishment it was to go from zero to full-speed on a project that was once just an idea floating in my mind. A mere possiblity transformed into a fruitful reality. Awesome!
But I owe much of my success to one important thing — deadlines. But why are deadlines so damn important? What do deadlines do for you? And what is it that makes them work so well?
To be fair, the real credit here doesn’t go to deadlines but to acccountability. Deadlines just make accountability possible. The trick is to put the two together for the greatest results. Lack of accountability prevents most people from ever reaching their goals. Without accountability, deadlines are pointles. Without someone or something to hold you accountable for what you say you’re going to do, you probably won’t do it.
So how can you get accountability? There are two essential ingredients for making this happen…
1. You need to commit to yourself.
2. You need other people to enforce your commitment.
Most people make the grave mistake of just working with #1. Sure, making promises to yourself is an important part of the process but you just can’t do it alone. Even if you are literally doing all of the work yourself, it’s critical to enlist the help of others to take on the huge psychological task of staying focused and moving towards a goal.
Say Hello to My Little Friend
If you’re an entrepreneur, you know how important your mind is to your success. You need your mind for new ideas, innovating thinking, creative problem solving, and everything that goes into the process of building and running a successful business.
But you also need your mind to stay focused in setting and achieving big goals. You have to know “the magic of thinking big.” And you have to have the mental power to press on when things seem too big and some goals seem like just far too much work for the risk.
This is a job you should not do alone.
That’s why the single best thing you could ever do for yourself is find other people with similar goals and ambitions to start taking on that job together. And that, dear readers, is the role of the Mastermind Group.
You’re probably saying one of 3 things to yourself right now…
1. What the $@!@# is a Mastermind Group?
2. Yeah, yeah. I’ve heard this routine before.
3. It’s true. It works for me too.
If you answered like #1 above, then go out and read Napoleon Hill’s “Think and Grow Rich” and report back to me when finished.
–If you answered like #2 above, then go out and start a group already!
–If you answered like #3 above, cheers to you!
I’m fairly new to masterminds, but I’ve known about them for a looooong time. Frankly, if I’d started one earlier, I’d already be much farther along in my business.
Fail Faster to Succeed Sooner
The only way you’re going to make progress is by getting out of your comfort zone and welcoming mistakes. Two steps forward and one step back. If you spend too much your time thinking, analyzing, assessing and too little time taking action, you’re never going to move forward.
It can be difficult to figure this out on your own because all too often we fail to see our own shortcomings. Other people are much better at showing us the way and encouraging us to strike out in a positive direction. I know it sounds contradictory to open yourself up to failure when what you want is the exact opposite. But getting more comfortable with failure is the best way to make progress.
If you do anything after reading this, do this: Find 3 or 4 like-minded people and form a group. Get together at least 1x per week and take turns sharing your current business goals and your most pressing problems. I guarantee you that this one change can help you speed up your rate of implementation and increase your rate of success!
What’s Your Greatest Obstacle to Getting Things Done?
And one more thing…
I’m a perfectionist at heart. It’s true. And while it can sometimes be one of my greatest assets, it’s long been a major deterrent to progress in business growth. Someone once said, “If you want to speed up the rate of success, speed up your rate of failure.” Nothing could be more spot-on than that. The secret to success really is failure. And the reason is simple: unless you fail (and I mean REALLY fail) you never get out there and learn those critical lessons you can ONLY learn on the field of battle.
Why Deadlines Work
Deadlines force failure because they make it absolutely necessary for you to fail. If you have a deadline in place and you keep it, you’re much more likely to actually achieve a goal and to take your idea or project from idea to fruition. In the realm of ideas, things work much differently than in reality. This is the whole point of entrepreneurship — moving from ideas to reality.
But let’s be honest — reality is a scary place. There are risks, uncertainties, problems, unexpected crises. Anything can happen at anytime and bad things *will* happen.
For me, learning how important it is to speed up implementation has helped me get better at welcoming failure as a means to move faster towards success. This concept “Speed of Implementation” just means moving towards goals faster by getting things done sooner. At the end of the day if it’s not you, it’s going to be your competitor.
Let’s dig into a real example….
Accountability is an Asset
At the beginning of this month, I launched my very first membership website. This was a goal I’d had for several years now and a big milestone. Now I realize how huge of an accomplishment it was to go from zero to full-speed on a project that was once just an idea floating in my mind. A mere possiblity transformed into a fruitful reality. Awesome!
But I owe much of my success to one important thing — deadlines. But why are deadlines so damn important? What do deadlines do for you? And what is it that makes them work so well?
To be fair, the real credit here doesn’t go to deadlines but to acccountability. Deadlines just make accountability possible. The trick is to put the two together for the greatest results. Lack of accountability prevents most people from ever reaching their goals. Without accountability, deadlines are pointles. Without someone or something to hold you accountable for what you say you’re going to do, you probably won’t do it.
So how can you get accountability? There are two essential ingredients for making this happen…
1. You need to commit to yourself.
2. You need other people to enforce your commitment.
Most people make the grave mistake of just working with #1. Sure, making promises to yourself is an important part of the process but you just can’t do it alone. Even if you are literally doing all of the work yourself, it’s critical to enlist the help of others to take on the huge psychological task of staying focused and moving towards a goal.
Say Hello to My Little Friend
If you’re an entrepreneur, you know how important your mind is to your success. You need your mind for new ideas, innovating thinking, creative problem solving, and everything that goes into the process of building and running a successful business.
But you also need your mind to stay focused in setting and achieving big goals. You have to know “the magic of thinking big.” And you have to have the mental power to press on when things seem too big and some goals seem like just far too much work for the risk.
This is a job you should not do alone.
That’s why the single best thing you could ever do for yourself is find other people with similar goals and ambitions to start taking on that job together. And that, dear readers, is the role of the Mastermind Group.
You’re probably saying one of 3 things to yourself right now…
1. What the $@!@# is a Mastermind Group?
2. Yeah, yeah. I’ve heard this routine before.
3. It’s true. It works for me too.
If you answered like #1 above, then go out and read Napoleon Hill’s “Think and Grow Rich” and report back to me when finished.
–If you answered like #2 above, then go out and start a group already!
–If you answered like #3 above, cheers to you!
I’m fairly new to masterminds, but I’ve known about them for a looooong time. Frankly, if I’d started one earlier, I’d already be much farther along in my business.
Fail Faster to Succeed Sooner
The only way you’re going to make progress is by getting out of your comfort zone and welcoming mistakes. Two steps forward and one step back. If you spend too much your time thinking, analyzing, assessing and too little time taking action, you’re never going to move forward.
It can be difficult to figure this out on your own because all too often we fail to see our own shortcomings. Other people are much better at showing us the way and encouraging us to strike out in a positive direction. I know it sounds contradictory to open yourself up to failure when what you want is the exact opposite. But getting more comfortable with failure is the best way to make progress.
If you do anything after reading this, do this: Find 3 or 4 like-minded people and form a group. Get together at least 1x per week and take turns sharing your current business goals and your most pressing problems. I guarantee you that this one change can help you speed up your rate of implementation and increase your rate of success!
What’s Your Greatest Obstacle to Getting Things Done?
Best,
Andy Rodie