Do you have shiny object syndrome? Are you an opportunity junkie? In other words, do you find it hard to focus on the core mission of your business because you find other opportunities constantly distract you?
SOS, or shiny object syndrome, is common among entrepreneurs. We are always looking for possibilities, options, and choices, aren’t we? Yet spending too much time chasing all of these objects can doom our entrepreneurial journey. It’s hard to smoothly sail if you’re constantly looking to chart new courses. Here are three steps to beating SOS:
Find a parkway and do your business upon it. My husband and I are the human guardians to two rescued greyhounds. Carl, our male hound, is very persnickety about where he breaks the seal every morning. He prefers a particular spot between the sidewalk and the street in our yard. Much like my canine friend, I needed to learn that there comes a time when you must pick where and how you do business. Even if the decision is not a perfect one, spending your time in a whirlwind of possibilities gets you nowhere. Sometimes it’s best to take action, and then tweak what you’ve done as you go along.
Once you decide upon a path, restrict other choices. A key factor in the level of commitment you will make towards a course of action is how attractive you believe other choices to be. If you are showered with what you think are good opportunities, you may find it more difficult to stick to one approach. Consider cutting the flow of other choices, whether it’s un-subscribing to e-mail newsletters presenting novel business ideas, reducing time spent surfing the web searching these things out, or cutting back browsing in brick-and-mortar bookstores or libraries for entrepreneurial entreaties.
When you decide upon your path, plow your time, treasures, and talents into it. The more you invest from each of these three resources into your business, the more committed you will be.
Simply stated, to reduce the siren song of shiny object syndrome, decide on a path, reduce your awareness of other alternatives to that strategy, and put forth your best efforts to move forward. This will increase your level of commitment, and lessen the likelihood that SOS will scuttle your entrepreneurial ship.