#16: Be on the lookout for an update next week!
Throughout the course of my life I have had no shortage of things to keep me busy. When I was younger I balanced tennis lessons every day after school, with learning to play guitar and skiing on the weekends. Not to mention wanting to go rock climbing with friends, and take as many trips as possible. There was always something going on. One of the biggest problems I face in life is my general interest in doing new things. It doesn’t take much for me to get excited about something, and for a period of time I will focus all my energy on this new activity. The problem lies in the fact that after awhile my ADD kicks in and I rarely finish what I initially set out to do.
Right now I have about half a dozen different things I want to learn how to do. Without going into much detail here are a few of the things I am currently interested in:
-Learn the entire Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, In Design)
-Cross off things on My List
-Write an ebook
-Learn more about SEO/PPC affiliate marketing
-Become a better golfer
-Continually update this blog and create a new theme
-Create a new fall line for Absinthe Notion
As you can see, I have a ton of stuff I want to do, but very little free time. When you have this many things going on, the only way you will be successful is if you organize your life in a way that makes this possible. Right now I am bouncing from task to task with no regard for what is most important to me long term, and I am currently making very little progress. This has been a common problem for me in my life. I am great at starting things, but terrible with finishing them up. So I wanted to explore some ways that would not only allow me to actually accomplish these tasks, but not overwhelm myself in the process.
-Focus on ONE project at a time. Ok, well maybe not just one project, but at least break them up in to something more manageable. Rather than learn the entire Adobe Suite, I could pick the one program that will be most beneficial and stick with that for awhile. Do all the tutorials and practice just that one program and once I feel as though I am proficient, move on to the next one. I think I will go with Photoshop.
-Have a plan. I can say that I want to learn Photoshop, but that doesn’t mean anything if I am just going to constantly open it up, tinker with photos for half an hour and then repeat it all tomorrow. By planning out my list of tutorials I want to accomplish, as well as my overall goals, I will be able to actually stay focused on the task at hand, and see myself progress at the same time. New plan: I want to become better at doing web site mockups in PS, as well as learn how to correct lighting in photographs. I will now find the tutorials related to that, and go from there.
-Schedule. If I really need to get a blog post done, I should schedule that and not focus on any of the other projects until I have completed it. This is one of the things I am the worst at. If only I could get myself to use my blackberry for something other than brick breaker…
-Remove things that don’t add value. As much as I would love to design my own WordPress theme for Location180, do you have any idea how long it would take me to design and implement it? Way too long. So that is one thing that for the time being, I should table and leave to the pros.
If I can choose things that will add value to my life, and pursue them one at a time, hopefully I will actually complete more of the things that I start and be much less stressed out about it in the process. I have recently become more than a little overwhelmed with the amount of stuff that has been going on. There are times in life when everything just seems to coast by, you are able to do the things you want to do, and not have to put much thought into it. But as you get closer and closer to making life changing decisions, I have found the amount you need to do to prepare is much greater than anticipated (ok this isn’t the case for every one, but for me, I need a lot of planning).
How do you manage all of your goals and tasks? Tell us about it in the comments!
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Great post, Sean.
I’m in the same boat, with a million things on my plate at any given time. Focusing on one thing at a time is good advice, but your last idea, removing things that don’t add value to your live, has helped me a whole lot more than the rest (and is also the most difficult to do!).
When you’re a motivated person, it’s hard to admit that you can’t do EVERYTHING and this still find time sleep, eat, not go crazy, etc. Filtering, though, allows you to figure out what’s actually helping you move forward and what’s weighing you down. Jettison the anchors and the good stuff becomes much easier to focus on.
Man I love the discussions that have been going on in the last few posts here! You guys all have some really good thoughts, and just keep building on what I initially have put out. It truly is a more valuable post with all of the added commentary, so thanks to all of you for making it happen!
@Chris, Dan: I fully agree with everyone that it is good to have multiple things going on, so as not to get bored. I think that is completely true. But while I will always have multiple projects going on, if I don’t set aside specific time to work on each one, I won’t make nearly as much progress. I think having smaller goals for each project is a valuable idea. To tell yourself, I won’t work on anything else until I have reached this goal for the current project. Once you have reached that goal you can re-evaluate and decide if you need to continue with that project, or move on to something else.
@John: You have pointed out the very question I have been struggling with. Do I want to get involved in graphic/web design full time? Part of me feels like I do. I enjoy it, and I know that I could make a location independent income, so why not go for it? The amount of work involved to get myself up to speed is pretty high, so thats what is stopping me. I am having a hard time dropping everything else I am passionate about to solely focus on that. Although, if thats the direction I decide to take in my life, then that may be exactly what needs to happen.
Bottom line is, no matter what you are going to have many things going on. How you prioritize, goal set, and schedule, it what will ultimately define how successful you will be with it. To this point, I haven’t been as successful as I could be due to my own scattered way of working. With some minor changes, many improvements will be made, and many more projects brought to completion.
Also, GOOD LUCK to Colin in his adventure to Buenos Aires. He is doing some AWESOME things (even without his car or iphone), and it will be really exciting to see how life unfolds for him on his adventures…
I’m glad to know I’m not alone in this even though it often feels like I am. I’ve always been a “general interest”, “renaissance man” type. All my interests have always cycled. I’d spend a week or two on one thing then move to another for two weeks then another for two weeks then I’d come back to the first thing. On and on.
Lately I’ve been getting better about it. At the beginning of July I doubted my ability to successfully run a blog, but I’ve been consistently posting for two months and doing quite well.
Removing things that aren’t important is really tough because I have such a genuine interest in them, but I’m getting better at that too.
If you have a Mac, I highly recommend using Things by CulturedCode to keep everything organized. Things is actually one of the reasons I bought an iPhone, so I could keep my todos in my pocket and sync them with my Macbook.
Also, I learned Photoshop completely by myself. I started with a pirated copy and got good enough that my skills actually paid for a legitimate copy. Something important to keep in mind is that while tutorials are really good for learning to use Photoshop and expanding your knowledge, you should probably read a few tutorials or a book on design. Learning Photoshop to design website mockups is like learning to use a paintbrush to make the Mona Lisa. Knowing how to hold the brush and dip it in color doesn’t mean you’re an awesome painter. Same thing with Photoshop. Get a good understanding of the basics and you’ll be able to apply your own ideas faster rather than being stuck to the rigid instructions of a tutorial.
I disagree… I think working on 3 projects at a time (specially web/it based) works best… you don’t get bored and new challenges awaits every time you switch projects. This not only helps with motivation and interest, it also gives you more time to think about each project which for me, is really important. I always come up with improvement ideas after I start a project… and working on 3 different projects allows time to implement the new ideas.
I guess different folks work best with different work schedules. I don’t think there is a right and wrong way – do what ever works for you best.
I’m a three project guy as well… I guess that’s probably because a lot of my web work feels pretty tedious, so it helps to mix it up. I love getting 100% focus for big product launches though. I love that golf goal! I have a goal to start playing golf 5 days a week as a sort of physical meditation….
I definitely can relate to the feeling of wanting to do everything but having only so much time. Having varied interests causes a problem as well. I love being outside hiking, running, mountain biking and wakeboarding but doing all those all the time makes it hard to run a blog, research new technologies and code new websites.
I do like the multiple project idea as well. I get bored doing one thing for too long and having multiple things to do keeps it interesting. You have to have a limit though. Nothing is going to get done if you’re working on 10 projects at a time.
For goal setting I find making things as specific as possible a good way to go. Break things down into larger chunks and then break them down again. Keep going until you have manageable pieces and then get started. Check things off along the way and you get a feeling of accomplishment that will keep you motivated.
First of all, to Sean, Colin, J.D. Chris and I am sure Nate is not too far behind, it is great to continue the discussion on each other’s sites. Thanks for the dialogue!
It would be great to work together on these topics, it seems like there is a lot of overlap here. Please email if any of you are interested!
Based on the comments, it seems that we are all working on a million things and we all know we need to focus. The problem is that there really are unlimited cool opportunities in the world. Radical exclusion is the key, however, it is easier said than done.
I personally have shelved several very interesting projects, but I still have way too much on my plate. I also preach, “Focus on the ONE,” but still haven’t committed to what that ONE should be. As Chris stated, it really will be three or four projects, but I still am around the ten level, so I have some more elimination ahead of me.
There are many other cool things I would love to do, but I always ask myself “WHY?” I love graphic design and know my way around Flash and Illustrator, however I don’t want to be a full-time designer so I outsource that work, no matter how enjoyable it may be.
I love playing guitar, but I realize how much practice is required to become a great musician and I am not willing to pay that price. I play for enjoyment, not because I think it will provide me an income in the future.
So Sean, why do you want to learn the Adobe Suite? If you really want to be a graphic designer, focus 100 % of your energy on that. Become really good at it and you will have great freelancing opportunities that you can do from anywhere. (I am sure Colin has some great advice there.)
If you don’t really want to make a career of it, then perhaps your interest is not that strong and you should just outsource your design work.
I hope that helps.
John you were right, I wasn’t too far behind!
I really like the ideas in this post. As you probably know, I use these principles on a daily basis, both in my ‘real job’ and my online ventures.
I’m also a huge focus on one thing type of guy! Multitasking just kills me.
And removing things that don’t add value… that’s the way to go. I cut down my tv time by probably 80%. It wasn’t giving me any value really, so I cut it. I’ve also been pretty successful at eliminating my need to attend work meetings, that has been quite tricky though!
Great post, Sean. Hope everything is going well.
Sometimes I come across a post that seems so appropriate and timely that it’s like something is conspiring to help me out…
I was just thinking about this yesterday! I have so much that I want to do, and such a long list of dreams and goals and interests and projects that I have an issue with focus.
Yesterday, I sat down and wrote out my top three priorities, with one of two basic goals under each one. And then I brainstormed as to why this area was most important. It really helped me narrow down what needs to be focused on… although I do agree with the guys above that I need more than one project so that I don’t get bored. But, I have the same problem as you and start so much I don’t finish.
At least we aren’t those people that are bored, and complaining about what to do today…!!
Hey all!
Interesting discussion. I love learning new things but I have currently limited myself to: life coaching, blogging (IT and writing side of it), running and yoga. I find this helps me not to spread myself too thinly as I get inspired by new things all the time and sometimes go off in all different directions! Jonathan Mead wrote a great post recently about limiting ourselves to achieve more which I found helpful.
Look forward to hearing how your plans go Sean.
Jen
Great points sean. Enjoyed a lot. Sometimes I try to multitask too much. It all has its place and time.
Dave
LifeExcursion
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