Stop Action-Faking Already!!!

[Nicoknowsbest]

A while ago, I quit my job and went down the freelance route to become self-sufficient and learn business from first hand experience. While looking for ideal clients and trying to narrow down my service offer,
I came up with a list of skills I wanted to refine and learn.

Just two more weeks of learning, and I could become a front end developer.

One more course online, and I could have a broader range of offerings.

One more book...

One more article...

One more thread...

One more detail, and the clients will come.

Well...

Last week, I took that list and threw it into the bin.

I needed to stop already.

I needed to stop running away from the only thing that matters.

Sales.

Do what you do best and get a basic understanding of the rest.

Because you already know enough.

Focus on your commercial skills.

Sell so much that you need to hire skilled people to help you with what you cannot do.

Always ask yourself: "Will it help me sell more?"

If not, then stop already.

And just start.

 

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[DVU]

Paralysis by analysis. Been there.

I think it's just important to understand the basics and then fail your way forward because the best way to learn is from experience.

Great post!

 

[MidwestLandlord]

One more thread...

Well, that hit home haha!

Someone start A 'Fastlane forum anonymous' group to help kick my fastlane forum addiction. We could meet once a week...on the forum.

In all seriousness though, the forum can be a huge time-sink and crutch against taking action, because it feels more productive than "normal" time wasting.

Good post.

 

[lowtek]

What worked for me was going to my first local networking event.

The first one wasn't fruitful from a business perspective, but committing to going forced me to just jump in and pitch myself to total strangers.

That little bit of momentum kept me going and has snowballed into something that is self sustaining.

 

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[Utopia]

Learning from business people here in a co-working space. The difference between them, online marketers, and bullshit out there is the focus on making money. Making sales. Glad you made this post.

 

[GMSI7D]

A while ago, I quit my job and went down the freelance route to become self-sufficient and learn business from first hand experience. While looking for ideal clients and trying to narrow down my service offer,
I came up with a list of skills I wanted to refine and learn.

Just two more weeks of learning, and I could become a front end developer.

One more course online, and I could have a broader range of offerings.

One more book...

One more article...

One more thread...

One more detail, and the clients will come.

Well...

Last week, I took that list and threw it into the bin.

I needed to stop already.

I needed to stop running away from the only thing that matters.

Sales.

Do what you do best and get a basic understanding of the rest.

Because you already know enough.

Focus on your commercial skills.

Sell so much that you need to hire skilled people to help you with what you cannot do.

Always ask yourself: "Will it help me sell more?"

If not, then stop already.

And just start.

ok


and what interests me is your internal engine

because adversity and life won't let you win easily.

so what interests me is your internal engine which provides you energy to push forward like a bull


i am asking for the best tools that you and others here are using to be the boss of success

mabe it is obvious to you to be a " presence machine bossing things arround "

but not for me like i want yet

i am asking you to tell me how you acquired or are acquiring your presence, your king attitude that makes you stand before life

which makes you say " hey life, i am here to win, you won't stop me , i am the king, get out of my way "

this is what i am asking you

because i don't have yet this presence to boss things ,people and circumstances to win like i really want

and i want to improve that

 

[GMSI7D]

i just found the answer i was asking you. the secret about determination and bending life to your will

i found it in think and grow rich. i found the famous secret that napoleon hill talks about.

the secret slapped me minutes ago while i was thinking hard and shaking my head to understand the whole thing

as napoleon hill says, it is a slap in your face.

this is so obvious now , i just fell off my chair .

unbelievable. this is like someone just turned the light on to destroy darkness


i will post the whole thing later once i recover from the whipping i just received

 

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[smarty]

Well...
Last week, I took that list and threw it into the bin.

Well then, it seems I need to buy a bin first.

But all jokes aside... this might help [emoji6]

 

[Mattie]

Well then, it seems I need to buy a bin first.

But all jokes aside... this might help [emoji6]

And then your procrastination transforms into escapism and you're lost forever in wasting time, money, and intelligence.

 

[smarty]

And then your procrastination transforms into escapism and you're lost forever in wasting time, money, and intelligence.

is that something you're struggling with?
because you seem kinda pissed off [emoji6]

my post had a different context.



Sent from my SM-E500H using Tapatalk

 

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[Mattie]

is that something you're struggling with?
because you seem kinda pissed off

my post had a different context.

No I'm not struggling with escapism. I find it hard to get into escapism at this point in my life. I think the last time I was in escapism was in 2010 with virtual worlds. I get bored with most things today, other than doing research and writing, that's all I do. I suppose it depends on whether you believe grinding is escapism, or meditation.

Really I have nothing to be pissed off about. I was just stating the fact I see many people drift off in the Entertainment world to escape reality. They start procrastinating because they're overwhelmed, over think, deep think, get stuck in fear, or get bored because of A.D.D., and rather not deal with emotions and feelings. Sounds more fun to blow off responsibility, and enjoy something more entertaining, gaming, gambling, internet, social media, get high, get drunk, or party, than be serious about life.

Depends on the person I suppose. Just stating if you're procrastinating, usually it's because you're drifting your focus off into something more fun and entertaining, than keeping yourself disciplined.

 

[smarty]

No I'm not struggling with escapism. I find it hard to get into escapism at this point in my life. I think the last time I was in escapism was in 2010 with virtual worlds. I get bored with most things today, other than doing research and writing, that's all I do. I suppose it depends on whether you believe grinding is escapism, or meditation.

Really I have nothing to be pissed off about. I was just stating the fact I see many people drift off in the Entertainment world to escape reality. They start procrastinating because they're overwhelmed, over think, deep think, get stuck in fear, or get bored because of A.D.D., and rather not deal with emotions and feelings. Sounds more fun to blow off responsibility, and enjoy something more entertaining, gaming, gambling, internet, social media, get high, get drunk, or party, than be serious about life.

Depends on the person I suppose. Just stating if you're procrastinating, usually it's because you're drifting your focus off into something more fun and entertaining, than keeping yourself disciplined.

I agree with all of what you say, but I want to add that I think workalholism is just another form of escapism. Just as everything else in life one needs to find a balance that works for them and makes them more productive.
Unfortunately for us, brain doesn't come with a manual so we need to learn to recognize our own patterns and regulate our work/relax hours accordingly.
What I'm saying is of course one needs to work but work with a clear plan & purpose and of course take time off for relax and reflect. Jokes here and there are one of my relaxing forms

 

[MidwestLandlord]

but I want to add that I think workalholism is just another form of escapism.

But unlike other forms of escapism, I can work harder (and smarter) and eventually escape my escapism by not working...unless I want to.

That DOES NOT work for other escapes like alcohol for instance. (for the record it doesn't work for video games, porn, nicotine, victim mentality, weight lifting, alcohol, TV, internet, movies...or any other escape I've tried haha)

Edit:

I forgot food. You can't find your meaning in life in the back of the refrigerator.

 

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[Nicoknowsbest]

Great post!

Good post.

Glad you made this post.

Thank you guys, glad I could help one way or another

I think it's just important to understand the basics and then fail your way forward because the best way to learn is from experience.

Agreed, 100%.

Someone start A 'Fastlane forum anonymous' group to help kick my fastlane forum addiction. We could meet once a week...on the forum.

In all seriousness though, the forum can be a huge time-sink and crutch against taking action, because it feels more productive than "normal" time wasting.

I briefly looked at my list of "to-read" threads only to discover my "already-read-now-summarize" list of threads.

I was developing a system to file notes/threads/posts on the forum because I couldn't keep track of all the information.

And I thought I was productive...

What ultimately helped me was to shift from a consumer's mindset to a producer's mindset, @GMSI7D.

That little bit of momentum kept me going and has snowballed into something that is self sustaining.

This!

Do things that don't scale - Paul Graham.

Start. Keep going. And suddenly things start falling into place.

I agree with all of what you say, but I want to add that I think workalholism is just another form of escapism. Just as everything else in life one needs to find a balance that works for them and makes them more productive.

Agreed. The trick is to find what creates that balance for you and in which ratio it is needed.

But unlike other forms of escapism, I can work harder (and smarter) and eventually escape my escapism by not working...unless I want to.

Deliberate choice makes all the difference.

 

[Nicoknowsbest]

Something for the ones starting out:

If you start out, don't wait for inspiration.

The process doesn't work like this:

Inspiration --> Motivation --> Action

But rather like this:

Action --> Inspiration --> Motivation

P.S.: Stop learning and do it already.

(Source: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F@ck by Mark Manson.)

 

[Nicoknowsbest]

I met with two friends the other day for a catch up.

They both want to found startups and are working away at their ideas.

After me asking for how long they have been working on it and when they'd be ready, the identical answer:

"Well... It's been some months, but we are not ready yet."

Me: "Have you made contact with potential clients?"

Them: "Well... No, not really. How does this look without a proper company, no website and no team. Oh, and no product."

Me: "Okay, but how do you make sure you are building something people actually want?"

Them: "Our ideas are great. We are writing business plans to contact investors with."

Me: "Until when?"

Them: "Hmm... Probably the end of the year."

A couple of days later, I met a former colleague.

Same. Freaking. Story.

He needs to build X, Y and Z before talking to somebody, because, he might look like a scam without.

...

Stop.

Just stop hiding.

And start.

Go out there.

Talk to people.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Them: "Our ideas are great. We are writing business plans to contact investors with."

Instead of building a business plan investors want, they should be building a product that customers want.

Then the investors will come.

Cart before horse.

Of course that's not the case for a large scale startup looking to disrupt something, but it is the case for mostly the small/mid-sized startups.

BTW, I've changed the title to the thread from STOP, to STOP Action Faking!

 

[Andy Black]

I met with two friends the other day for a catch up.

They both want to found startups and are working away at their ideas.

After me asking for how long they have been working on it and when they'd be ready, the identical answer:

"Well... It's been some months, but we are not ready yet."

Me: "Have you made contact with potential clients?"

Them: "Well... No, not really. How does this look without a proper company, no website and no team. Oh, and no product."

Me: "Okay, but how do you make sure you are building something people actually want?"

Them: "Our ideas are great. We are writing business plans to contact investors with."

Me: "Until when?"

Them: "Hmm... Probably the end of the year."

A couple of days later, I met a former colleague.

Same. Freaking. Story.

He needs to build X, Y and Z before talking to somebody, because, he might look like a scam without.

...

Stop.

Just stop hiding.

And start.

Go out there.

Talk to people.

So so common.

I connected with someone on LinkedIn today. A full-stack developer in a startup who PMd me to say they'll likely be looking for marketing help in a couple of months.

Me: "Cool. How many signups or sales have you made so far? What marketing channels seem to be working for you to date?"

Him: "Oh, we've tried XYZ but it didn't work. We hope ABC will work in a couple of months when we launch."

Me: "You really should start now. Find a channel that consistently gets you signups, and sales. Otherwise you might be guilty of "building stuff". Here's a link to something I wrote (links to article "Stop Building Stuff)."

Then: (I'll update this when I've checked LinkedIn again. I expect the tanker will not be turning any time soon.)


...

Another was when I saw an article in an Irish Enterprise publication. A Startup founder and two government officials cutting the tape to announce the grand launch of a new Startup... in the freelance marketplace.

Erm... what does that mean? The floodgates are opened? Customers who've been camping out can finally come rushing in to check out the new app/website/whatever the feck it is?

 

[RogueInnovation]

The process doesn't work like this:

Inspiration --> Motivation --> Action

But rather like this:

Action --> Inspiration --> Motivation

Well, you can do both, nothing wrong with a bit of soul searching
But you need to be able to start with action on command if you see opportunity too
And a lot of that should come from how you see things, not from telling yourself to see things

Most people have really narrow perspectives, but if you broaden them up, it can make action an extension of your natural instincts and desires.
But those desires can't just be money, it has to involve the right process, like "I love making money the right way, with killer process that understands what is going on"

Always be MINDFUL of being a hermit,
Step up and get out there at times, make sales face to face etc
Don't only be the architect be the foreman too

Helps you from getting too stuck in your head
Do out reach, interviews, listening to peoples problems, and you'll be positioned to engage with the real market

 

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[Imgal]

I am a HUGE fan of learning. Downtime for me isn't about watching the latest season of X,Y or Z. It's usually about gaining more knowledge in an areas I'm in.

For a long time though, it was just about learning.. and learning... and learning.

Made me feel good I was a big bundle of knowledge, but could I show anything for it?

No.

It just sat in my head with a "Got to try this out in real life when the time is right" Post-It on it.

The Gospel of the Action Faker.

"When the time is right"

"When I'm at the right point..."

That's all bullshit. It's a fear of implementing something and finding it doesn't work.

You feel smart when it's in your head.

Not so much fun when you fall flat on your face.

But falling flat on your face is when you learn.

I still falter, I still fail, but these days I do things different. I don't try and learn everything I can in a hour. I learn what I can in 20 minutes and spend the next 40 implementing it.

Learn. Test. Tick it off the list.

Move on.

 

[Harbourmaster]

A colleague of mine (well, actually my current sales manager) is a classic example of overthinking and paralysis by analysis.

One of his favourite topics of conversation is “entrepreneurship”. He’s got pages and pages of notes on his phone of business ideas he has had in the last number of years. However, he has not taken a single solitary real actionable step towards building any of these businesses. He loves to point out when one of these ideas has been brought to market by someone else that he “thought of it first”.

I recently showed him a video I produced for a new product I launched in my niche (videographer, models, demonstration, etc.) and his jaw hit the floor that I was able to bring an idea to life. After this conversation, I realized that living the way my manager lives, with all talk and no action has to be my worst nightmare.

If I ever feel the fear of talking to potential clients weighing me down and holding me back, I will look back on these conversations with my boss and will shutter to think that the alternative to taking real action is working for 40 years reminiscing about all the great ideas I had that I never had the balls to pursue.

 

[TheRegalMachine]

I constantly suffer from "Paralysis by analysis" or fear of action.
I feel this need to stick the landing the first time or I'll feel like a F*cking idiot and risk quitting due to a pursuit for perfection.
I also suffer from not knowing the difference between action faking and actual prep for the task ahead.
If I know zero of a programming language should I not try to get the basic first and just start a project winging it as I go?
Is reading a beginner's guide action faking?
Is reading a beginner's guide while creating on the fly action taking?

 

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[Nicoknowsbest]

Cart before horse.

Great point MJ - I fully agree.

I believe it was James Altucher who said something along the lines of "You can get money from customers or from investors, but not both."

BTW, I've changed the title to the thread from STOP, to STOP Action Faking!

Awesome, thanks - makes more sense now!

So so common.

Yes, indeed. From my experience, it is the techies who know how to build stuff that are afraid to approach potential clients with something less than a perfectly working product.

Well, you can do both, nothing wrong with a bit of soul searching
But you need to be able to start with action on command if you see opportunity too
And a lot of that should come from how you see things, not from telling yourself to see things

Most people have really narrow perspectives, but if you broaden them up, it can make action an extension of your natural instincts and desires.
But those desires can't just be money, it has to involve the right process, like "I love making money the right way, with killer process that understands what is going on"

Always be MINDFUL of being a hermit,
Step up and get out there at times, make sales face to face etc
Don't only be the architect be the foreman too

Helps you from getting too stuck in your head
Do out reach, interviews, listening to peoples problems, and you'll be positioned to engage with the real market

I fully agree with you @RogueInnovation - the key for me was to avoid being stuck in my own head.

I still falter, I still fail, but these days I do things different. I don't try and learn everything I can in a hour. I learn what I can in 20 minutes and spend the next 40 implementing it.

Learn. Test. Tick it off the list.

Move on.

I am still learning, every day.

But the difference is - I apply it right away.

I am learning by doing, as you said.

Somebody asked me the other day how I keep notes of all the things I read.

I said: "I don't. I read and apply. If it is useful and produces a result, I'll add it to my daily practice."

It either sticks or it doesn't.

It's about relevancy and context.

And about moving on.

I recently showed him a video I produced for a new product I launched in my niche (videographer, models, demonstration, etc.) and his jaw hit the floor that I was able to bring an idea to life. After this conversation, I realized that living the way my manager lives, with all talk and no action has to be my worst nightmare.

We tend to get precious about everything we release in public.

Sometimes, especially in the beginning, it's totally okay to suck.

Sometimes, we just need to get over ourselves and do it.

We can always improve taking the second step.

I constantly suffer from "Paralysis by analysis" or fear of action.
I feel this need to stick the landing the first time or I'll feel like a F*cking idiot and risk quitting due to a pursuit for perfection.
I also suffer from not knowing the difference between action faking and actual prep for the task ahead.
If I know zero of a programming language should I not try to get the basic first and just start a project winging it as I go?
Is reading a beginner's guide action faking?
Is reading a beginner's guide while creating on the fly action taking?

What's the worst that can happen, if it's not perfect?

I've gotten a bit wary about beginner's guides, because they push me into a direction right away.

As stated above, it's about relevancy and context.

Do you need to know how to setup a WordPress blog unless you have your first article finished and ready to publish?