Focus…

Today, I focused my friend, fellow builder, and client. One of his signature strengths is ideation – the guy has more ideas than ten men. This strength has served him well in the world of work. As a start up venture, however, too many ideas is, well, too much. Focus. Focus on your OPUS. Focus on building the basics. Keep it simple. Finish. Stick to your disciplines.

Whenever you decide to start something new, remember this fact. Start ups get stuck, oftentimes, by spreading themselves too thin. Instead of sticking to their disciplines, they see a quick revenue fix and decide “one, one off won’t kill us,” so they take their eye off their objective, their OPUS, and do one thing that doesn’t align. One turns to two which quickly turns to ten. “Everybody go deep,” becomes the sandlot play call from this undisciplined entrepreneur – works alright on the playground – not so great in the world of professional work.

Focus. Remember, the best CEO’s find the melody line first. Don’t get distracted with some nice nuances when you’re getting started, friend. Focus on your OPUS. Focus on building the basics. Keep it simple. Finish. Stick to your disciplines. You started this venture on an idea, a darn good one too. Kinda like your strategy for taking the ACT test back in the day, your first idea is usually your best bet. Go on, grab your number two pencil and fill in the circle. Finish. Repeat the process and before long – score. Trust the process.

Good…