I work with many super talented entrepreneurs:
- Some like to move forward quickly to the next new thing.
- Many are so ambitious and creative that they outstrip their organization;
Sometimes the new thing is a shiny squirrel, and sometimes it is the next logical building block. It is not a question of whether it is a good idea, but is it the right time?
Building a business is like building a multi-story building: you build a solid foundation, and upon that the first floor, and upon that the second floor. Each new big idea or new division is like a new story of the building, built upon the strength of proceeding story. But you can’t build the 3rd story, without making sure the 2nd story is built.
If implementation of your ideas is moving too slowly, first check to see if you have handed off your project to the right lieutenant or second in command, and that you have outlined the new idea sufficiently so someone else can run with it or support you in it.
If you lack the right support people, then you have an even bigger opportunity. You need advanced support people to help you implement your ideas more quickly.
Once implementation is running smooth, don’t forget to carry the idea across the finish line. You don’t have to personally carry it across, but you still have to care about the end results.
Once you start to get momentum with your people and ideas, make sure that you don’t over do it. Focus on just one or two big ideas at a time. The reason corporations work in quarters is so that they can sprint through the quarter (you can’t sprint through the whole year.) In any given quarter, focus on the big idea and bring it home.
Jeffrey’s Breakthrough Idea: Your year is a series of sprints. Bring quarterly focus to a big idea, and you will crush it!
Take Action: Organize your big ideas by the quarter, and maintain a higher focus over a short time frame, to ensure you bring your big idea to full implementation.
