This article is a friendly reminder…
If you want the results, you have to do the work.
Inversely, if you don’t do the work, you won’t get the results.
I write this as a reminder to myself, as much as it is to you.
We usually know what we need to do. Or at least we have a very good idea. We have ideas for what actions we could take today that will move us closer to our goal.
And yet, for whatever reason, we hesitate. We procrastinate. Or we just generally f- off.
We are our own worst enemy.
Most often when we are not getting the results we want, it is not for a lack of opportunity. The world is full of opportunities we can pursue. Not all of them will work, and not all of them will take us to where we want to go.
But relentlessly pursuing every reasonable opportunity in front of us is an almost guaranteed path forward.
You must ship…
Last night, I was up until after midnight finishing up a project.
It shouldn’t have taken as long as it did. But it did, and it needed to be taken over the finish line. It needed to be shipped.
And so after being frustrated with myself for not making as much progress as I wanted, as fast as I wanted, I made myself do it.
I set the deadline, and didn’t let myself go to bed until it was done.
Today, I feel good about that.
Because I made myself do the work. Because I made myself bring the project to a point where it could be sent out.
That’s what it takes.
The more often you do this, the more you put into the marketplace. And the more you put in the marketplace, the more winners you will have.
It’s not a guarantee that any particular project will be a winner. But if you do a lot, pay attention to the results you get, and try to get better every time, you will get more winners.
This applies everywhere…
So many new freelancers wonder where to get clients.
I can’t tell you where to get your next client. But I can tell you you will get them if you do the work.
Come up with a list of who your ideal clients are. Figure out who at those companies you could speak with. Figure out what you can offer them to make their life easier, that would be of value to them. And approach them and make the offers.
I can’t tell you that you’re going to close any one of those particular clients. I can’t even tell you how many of those clients you will close. There are too many factors at play to predict the success or failure of any particular sales effort.
But the process works. Doing the work works.
If you don’t work, you won’t get the results. If you don’t knock on doors, you won’t get the clients. If you don’t make offers, you won’t close sales.
But if you do the work… If you knock on doors… And if you make offers to prospects who pay attention… You will get clients and close sales.
Here’s the ultimate life hack…
Let’s start with one fundamental assumption. You have at least a decent idea of some things you could do that will take you closer to your goals.
Some of those things may be bad ideas. Some of those things may be good ideas. Some of those things might be massively successful.
But you don’t know yet. Because you haven’t tried them.
You can make all kinds of assumptions ahead of time about what might work. Your assumptions will be wrong. At least some of them.
The only way you can truly figure out what will work, and which ideas will be massively successful, is to try them.
So carve out the time.
I don’t do great with blocking time on my calendar, unless it’s for an appointment with someone else.
But when I am consistent with my to-do list, I can do one task after another, and knock them off the list.
Find what works for you. If you need to schedule it, schedule it. If it works better for you to make the list and do the list, make the list and do the list.
Whatever you choose, commit yourself to action.
Do the f-ing work…
I know, I typically keep these articles PG. And I suppose by bleeping myself out, I’ve at least maintained PG-13.
My dad once told me that he never cussed because he wanted me to understand that he meant it when he did.
I mean this. I mean it for you, and I mean it for me.
We have incredible potential. Potential we are likely only using a fraction of, because we do not do what we know we need to do when it needs to be done.
You know what you need to do. You know when you need to do it.
Now do it.
I don’t even care what it is.
It could be something personal, like a conversation you need to have.
It could be something professional, like a project you need to bring over the finish line.
It could be something for your business, like an ad you need to write or a proposal you need to submit.
It probably makes you uncomfortable to think about doing it. Which is just a sign that it is truly important. Your procrastination lets you avoid the possibility of failure. But if you’re going to fail, it’s better to fail soon and move on after learning whatever failure can teach you. Rather than forever fearing failure and relegating yourself to inaction.
Just do it.
If you get the result you wanted, great. If you don’t get the result you wanted, learn from it and do something differently.
Just do it.
Do the f-ing work…
Yours for bigger breakthroughs,
Roy Furr
