Viewpoints
7 Things I Learned in My First Year of Business
A year ago today, I was pulling an all-nighter with the web development team of Chad Ostroff, Ian Rosen, along with fellow GlobalWriter, Adam Rosen in the mad rush to launch the redesigned GlobalWrites.com to coincide with the airing of my first FOX 26 Houston Blogger video.
Everything stopped as we watched the coverage of the earthquake and the tsunami hit Japan. We plugged on until after dawn, watching the news and working on the site. I was concerned for friends in Japan and family in Hawai’i as news showed live footage in Japan and projections of the waves hitting Hawai’i’s shores.
That is my memory of the launch of GlobalWrites.com and GlobalWrites as a business — an inception filled with excitement and purpose, tempered with a heavy dose of worry, and getting through it all with the incredible support of good friends who came together to help me succeed.
There were so many others, both locally and across the country, who helped make GlobalWrites a reality. And so many who continue to do so. I’m humbled by their generosity of time, expertise, and their genuine willingness to do so much to see GlobalWrites succeed and grow as a business.
I’ve learned:
- People want to help you succeed in whatever endeavor you decide you want to pursue. Your job is to figure out what you need and how they can help you, because you are the captain of your own ship.
- The sum of the parts is, indeed, greater than the whole.
- Be gracious. Be appreciative. Be nice. Be courteous and considerate. And don’t take anything or anyone for granted.
- Don’t leave your sense of humor and humility behind.
- It’s not enough to have a goal and a plan to achieve it. You need to systematically, incrementally work that plan. And be willing to change it, refine it, or scrap it, if need be.
- Invoice on time. Pay on time. Whatever it takes.
- That thing you don’t like to do, don’t want to do? Figure out a way to hire the right person to do it as quickly as possible. Otherwise it will sap your energy and enthusiasm.
Thank you to my family, friends, co-workers, vendor partners, clients, mentors, cheering squad, acupuncturists, legal and financial advisors, and therapists. You have given me so much.
We’re ready for Year Two!
Keeping the New Year Inspiration Flowing
As we approach the end of January, some of the New Year resolutions that were so inspiring at the beginning of the month may be getting brushed aside in the hustle and bustle of a typical work day. So, how do we return to those resolutions and keep the inspiration flowing through the year?
Here are some techniques I use to keep motivated and stay on track:
- Divide your business goals between short and long term
Nothing is more overwhelming than having a huge to-do list, so when the list gets too large, it’s time to divide and conquer. Place the smaller goals first in order to build the steps to attain the bigger goals.
- Stay realistic
After putting your list together, make sure it is something you have the ability to accomplish. Realistic goals may not seem so exciting, but the amount of success will be far greater in the end.
- Picture the end result in your mind
Gurus from all walks of life cite this as a secret to success. Being able to focus on your end result not only puts your energy in that place, but also reminds you of the what, why, and how of your business.
For further reading, Gleb Reys offers 5 great ideas in his article entitled How to Stay Motivated over at Lifehack.org.
With these ideas in mind, as well as tuning into your own personal motivators, you should see results start to take root and grow!
A New Series: What’s Not to Love About…
We’ll be launching a new, on-going series that we’re calling “What’s Not to Love About…” It will focus on the partners we work with, the clients we do work for, companies or people who inspire us, sites that inform us, books that educate us, and anything else we love that we think you should check out. If s/he-they-it has gotten us excited, perhaps s/he-they-it will do the same for you!