Creativity is both a blessing and a curse. Without it, you would not be a creator, a creator of new value, but because of your creativity, you often become distracted (or even paralyzed) by the tremendous flow of new ideas.
I write more often about my own popcorn brain. Hugely valuable and comes up with the most brilliant ideas at the most extraordinary moments. But it has also cost me a lot before. As in losing the power of my ideas because they came at the wrong time. Often too early for another person who was not yet ready to grasp my ideas and see them as value.
Also not properly communicated and expressed the value to the other person because it was SO clear to me and at the time did not realize that the other person was not ready. As a result, I lost my time, energy but also the spin-of my idea in the form of appreciation, money and my expertise.
Creativity and innovation together reinforce each other and deliver more, mist you don't get distracted e.g. by the "Shiny Object Syndrom.
The 'Shiny Object Syndrome': lack of focus
With all your experience, expertise and your quick-thinking brain, basically any new idea can quickly become a reality. And that is exactly where the problem lies. An exciting new idea in the middle of a project and work can be a distraction that causes your previous project to remain unfinished. After a few cycles of start → distraction → start → distraction, you may begin to doubt your ability to complete a project at all.
Do you recognize this? You're not alone. Many creative and innovative entrepreneurs struggle with "Shiny Object Syndrome. But is it a distraction or an opportunity?
A systematic approach: from idea to action
To address this strategically and according to your plan, and to protect yourself from this pitfall so that you do consistently complete your projects, I have developed a simple process. This cyclical process consists of four steps: Commit, Plan, Prioritize and Action.
Step 1: Capture
When an idea comes up, capture your idea immediately. Do this quickly and tactically by capturing the minimum amount of information needed to recall that idea in the near future. To avoid the possibility of not remembering afterwards what you meant by it (very irritating, I speak from experience).
Tips for effective capture:
- Use the Notion app on your phone (one of my favorite tools!)
- Send yourself a quick text message or voice message
- I now use Notion, before that I had created a whatsapp group (my Braindump) with myself
- Keep a small notebook handy
Step 2: Planning
If you have more time and space, you can fully develop these ideas. This may mean creating a new document for tasks, projects or content ideas.
My approach: I plan, think and work in quarters. Each quarter I reflect and analyze and tackle something new: see below my Framework: More, Better, New.
Benefits of developing ideas:
- It feels almost as good as performing (with less effort!)
- It helps you filter 'great ideas' - some turn out to be less great upon closer inspection
- It gives structure to your potential projects
Practical Tip: Create a system, a method for developing ideas. This could include sections such as "Purpose," "Target Audience," "Key Steps," and "Expected Results. In my Academy, I share my own systems and templates. For inspiration and reuse in your own way and for your own business. So always make sure you have your own method and systems, because that also ensures that you know how to use them to your advantage.
Step 3: Prioritize
Once an idea is developed, place it in a general database alongside all your other existing ideas. This serves as a reminder of all the other priorities you have and as an incentive to keep your focus. Keep your focus on that which serves you and yields the most, either in impact, in revenue or in your time/energy/freedom.
Framework: More, Better, New (Alex Hormozi)
So the challenge remains not to be distracted by everything else, but to keep your focus and to maintain your effective method of prioritizing project ideas and working them into successes.
To prioritize, the "More, Better, New" Framework can help you:
- More:
- Look at what is already working and do more of that.
- This does not require new solutions, just discipline to scale up.
- Example: If you host successful webinars, increase frequency.
- Better:
- If "more" is not an obvious answer, look at how to improve existing systems.
- Example: Optimize your existing online program based on participant feedback.
- New:
- Only when you have worked out "more" and "better" are you looking at "new.
- This means creating new value, such as new products , processes or systems.
- Example: Launch a completely new service that meets the needs of your target audience.
Tip: Add a property (tag) to your projects to categorize them as "More," "Better" or "New. This helps maintain focus and make strategic decisions about where to focus your energy.
Step 4: Action
After completing a current project and determining that this new idea is the next priority, you can now take action. The best ideas are often the ones you haven't acted on for a long time, but can't stop thinking about.
Start by defining the first three concrete steps you can take to get the project going. This sets you in motion.
The power of routines, systems and frameworks
We are experts at self-deception. When we experience resistance in our current work, we unconsciously create new ideas - the proverbial shiny objects - to allow ourselves to wander. These ideas seem brilliant in the moment, but are often just distractions. In reality, we evade the real challenges we must face to achieve our goals. Paradoxically, the key to success often lies not in doing more, but in focusing on what really matters.
To break this pattern of procrastination and "Shiny Object Syndrome," effective routines, processes and frameworks are essential. The process of Commit, Plan and Prioritize offers a triple benefit: It preserves your ideas, gives you space to experiment briefly with new concepts, and ultimately helps you focus on your current priorities.
What idea have you had for a long time that you can't let go of? This might be your most valuable project.
From creative chaos to structured impact
Creativity is a valuable quality, but without focus and discipline, it can lead to a multitude of blanks, unfinished projects and missed sales. By implementing a systematic approach to capturing, planning and prioritizing your ideas, you can maintain focus and achieve more in less time.
Effectively integrating your own routines, systems and frameworks into your daily life is crucial. By consistently following your own processes, you will find yourself completing more projects and consistently achieving your goals.
Your creativity is a strength, if you know how to use it strategically. It is not about suppressing your creative inspirations, but about using them strategically and with focus. With a clear goal and result in mind.
Give yourself space to dream and generate new ideas, but then use a structured process to determine which ideas and dreams are truly worth pursuing.
Discover the power of structure and creativity!
As you know, as a strategic thinker, I'm a big proponent of streamlined processes and frameworks. I've put together an eBook full of frameworks that will help you structure your ideas and complete your projects successfully. This eBook offers practical tools and insights that you can apply to your daily life, so that you not only achieve more, but you can get started with more joy and focus.
Download my eBook here and discover how structure and strategy can help you maintain focus and achieve more in less time.
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Have a great week,
Gerdi
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Book tips:
Books that have helped me:
Strategy
John Lewis Gaddis - On strategic thinking
Patrick-Bet David & Greg Dinkin - Your Next Five Moves: Master the Art of Business Strategy
Alex Hormozi – $100M Leads
Alex Hormozi – $100M Offers
Leadership & Entrepreneurship
The Diary of a CEO - Steven Bartlett
Tribes - Seth Godin
Principles - Ray Dalio
The Lean Startup - Eric Ries
Leaders Eat Last - Simon Sinek
Leading From The Emerging Future - C Otto Scharmer
Transformational Presence - Alan Seale
The Big Leap - Gay Hendricks
PS. I have a whole book list. If you are interested and would like to receive my favorite books list? Send me a message and I'll send you my favorites list.
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