We recently decided to give our business a reboot. As any Windows user knows, a reboot is sometimes necessary to clean out the memory and bring the system running back to peak performance.
Not that our business hasn't been successful and all that. It has.
But perhaps symptomatic of a deeper funk, we've been struggling for three years to revamp our old 2002 web site. (Embarrassing, but true!) Our perpetual "web refresh" has been one of those projects from hell that never reaches completion.
And then a couple weeks ago, I stumbled onto Robert Middleton's
More Clients Blog, where he had a
post on getting "unstuck". His definition of being "stuck:"
Stuck: Being constricted, limited, fearful, avoiding
The qualities he lists very much describe how I was feeling about having to write the copy for our new site. It wanted the site to be clever and engaging, yet honest and not the least bit hyperbolic (a quality I dislike in business web sites). Those expectations, that pressure to get it right, froze me in my tracks.
At a deeper level, "stuck" was also a fair description of where things were at with our business in general. We had been playing it safe, sticking with what had worked in the past, not venturing out and taking the chances that are necessary for growth.
By contrast, Robert's description of the qualities of being
unstuck were downright liberating.
Unstuck: Being expansive, unlimited, fearless, engaged
And sometimes that's all it takes to get things rolling. Within days, we had an inspired plan for rebooting the business, including that pesky web site.
Our plan -- not your typical task-oriented plan -- went something like this:
1.
Embrace action -- Taking action and moving things forward is more important than getting it 100% right. To wit, within three days of getting together, we had a
new web site up an running. Is it perfect? Is final? No. Another version is already under construction. The important thing was getting off the dime and being in motion -- and being okay with the associated risk.
2.
Embrace risk and mistakes -- Without taking risks, trying new things, having some failures, how can you learn? I don't mean bet the entire payroll on a startup kind of risk. But deliberate risks that stretch you personally and professionally. Thanks to Web 2.0, there's never been a better (or more accepting) time to be experimental. For us, this means making good on something we've always wanted to do -- to develop product offerings that bring in an income stream unrelated to billable time. The first product is slated for July.
3.
Be open and honest -- If you do take risks and learn from them, what good is the resulting knowledge if you don't share it? We've given ourselves permission to start blogging openly about our business -- what we're trying, what's working, what's failing fabulously -- as well as any non-business topics of interest. I find this to be especially liberating, as I've suffered from blog anxiety -- the irrational believe that you can only post when you have something important and deep to say. Being deliberately clever is exhausting work! So, forget about trying to look smart and just be yourself. What's more, risk is at the heart of blogging -- if you want to have an impact and build a community, there's no choice but to be authentic.
4.
Be connected -- This tenet requires a pinch of faith -- faith that if you "put it out there" and write honestly, like-minded and appreciative people will find their way to you. That people who don't like what you're writing will simply go elsewhere. Isn't that's the definition of networking? 1) Find people you like. 2) Work with them. 3) Repeat.
Our particular plan for rebooting might not look anything like yours would. But if you're fatigued, uninspired and wondering what's next for you in your life as an entrepreneur, rebooting might be just the thing!
I'd love to hear from other entrepreneurs who have been stuck. What's been keeping you from going forward? Have you tried rebooting? How's it going? If you have any thoughts, please leave a comment!
Photo credit:
Reset button inside, uploaded by
pwbaker
June 9th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
Congrats on your reset-reboot-rethink blogpost and moves. With any luck, the high and the mightiness will last. Perhaps that’s the good news of the years of slogging slowly; you were incubating the hatchling that is now about to devour worms, then leave the nest, then fly. I can relate to the ‘getting stuck’ disease. And yet (to be perfectly blunt), I find little new or wowwing in the lingo that inspired your burst. Maybe I’m just tired of those words (constrictive/expansive; avoiding/engaged; put youself out there…). But hey, if dude and his verbiage got y’all off your lily-white butts, more power to ya. One never knows when or where the muse or fuse will alight. Meantime, patience is okay too. And as I always say, “Everything is right on schedule…”
June 9th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
Thanks for your comment, Kirk. I know what you mean about lingo. As a writer, I am typically wary of any coined guru terminology. But, for some reason, this guy’s stuff hit me at the right time. In the end, perhaps it’s less important what the catalyst is, but the fact that one has been catalyzed. It may be a placebo effect for all I know, but I find that when I start acting like I have a say in my future, that my luck improves.
June 9th, 2008 at 4:03 pm
Good to see something happening! I empathize with the Web component most, speaking as a someone with a 1-page site featuring a very stale “Full website coming soon” message; I still need to finishing booting before rebooting.
I must say, the DOS themed site is kind of a comfortable temporory alternative, focusing attention on the content even more than formatted text on white and gray blog-page backgrounds. Also dealing with blog anxiety in trying to be too planful in the blog approach. So, keep moving those iterations and restarts.
Hope your magic widget for Nigerian bank transfer requests – or whatever that “product offering” is – works well for you. ; )