The Way You Do Anything is the Way You Do Everything: The Why of Why Your Business Isn't Making More Money

Chapter 14

Plan

Dreams don't come true. Plans come true.

—Larry Winget

Every time I hold a retreat or event, people always enter with the same enthusiastic desire for an outcome: clarity. They want clarity, they need clarity, and they crave clarity. But clarity only comes from one place: planning.

I know that many people out there have a lot of responsibility assigned to them. You know you need to do, you can't do it all at once, and you can't do it alone. Everything must be in order and in time.

I think the biggest cause of “business paralysis” is that we have too much to do, so we do nothing. We actually plan to fail.

How do I overcome business paralysis? Well, here's my little trick, in five simple steps:

1. For a short period, I give each of my projects an even amount of time as if I were doing them all at warp speed. This typically lasts two to four weeks.

2. Then, I go to the calculator and figure out what project has the most impact on my bottom line. I put the projects in order of priority.

3. Next, I pull out my year-long strategy and determine my three end goals for the year in each of the below categories:

• Money
• Impact
• Lifestyle

4. I then ask myself whether the order in which I now have the projects aligns with the cash flow order and my three goals.

If the answer is yes, I set end dates and move forward.

If no, I take another look and see where the puzzle pieces need to shift.

5. Finally, I get going on the list order.

Do not miss your own deadlines. If that means getting ...