Nearly everybody who started the summer Implementation Lab for Entrepreneurs yesterday had at least two significant projects they wanted to tackle over the next six weeks.
And these were no small projects--writing and recording videos for a new course AND establishing a robust affiliate program for a fall offer; building and launching a new business site AND redesigning a garage to serve as an art and meditation space; consistently implementing business and personal finance tracking AND raising both productivity and well-being by using a new system for prioritizing and scheduling each week.
No slackers, these business owners. Plus they all agreed that on top of their projects they absolutely needed to use the summer to rejuvenate, regenerate, play with family and friends...
Of course they do! AND it's a lot to take on.
So how do you do it successfully?
You learn to choose.
Pablo Garcia
After everybody checked in, which felt a little bit like being on the receiving end of a firehose, I had everyone pause. And breathe.
Then I asked one Lab member to close her eyes and think about all the things on her list, all the many, many ideas she has for her (already successful) business, and the projects she's excited to launch this summer, and think about which, out of all the possibilities, was the one that was clearly the most important to her.
She took the briefest moment and answered: "I choose swimming."
It wasn't the answer I'd expected. And I also wasn't surprised.
When you are grounded, you build a business that supports your life.
When you have spent enough time figuring out what you really want, and done enough inner work to know you are entitled to both want it and have it, your center shifts. You start to make choices that allow your needs to be met. That expect your needs to be met.
And then something amazing happens: Your needs get met!
When you choose to end your workday at 4 PM so you can swim in the pond near your house, do you know what happens?
You get to swim! Every day!
And when you know you want to end your workday at 4 so you can swim, you might realize you have fewer hours available for your projects. In which case you might decide to choose one project to focus on.
This way you can be realistic, stay focused, complete one thing that helps move your business forward, while leaving yourself space to live and enjoy your life.
If you don't take a minute to identify your priorities and choose, there's a good chance you'll try to do everything.
Which means you'll have less time and energy to do the job you know you're capable of. Which will likely yield results you're less than thrilled with.
So choose.
When this particular Labster chose to focus on one of her projects for the first two weeks of Lab, instead of jumping back and forth between two or three, she suddenly realized how much she could accomplish quickly if she didn't split her attention.
"A lot can happen in two hours," she told us, as she dove into her project with a completely different energy.
Yes, it can. And two hours later everyone else knew it too.
May you make choices that feel amazing and that support what you truly value.