This week I don’t want to talk about computers. I want to talk about the mental game that is so important to being successful in business. I should confess, I am a total book nerd. I read or listen to authors who write about history, current business challenges, and what it takes to stay motivated in Life without becoming obsessed. For me, THIS is more important than efficient technology and it is the first step to overall good business.
Don’t You Hate It When You Realize You Are Busy But Are Not Productive?
Early in the development of my Managed Services Provider career as owner of Aptica, I was younger and still had so much to figure out. I learned quite a bit the hard way (I don’t recommend that but for most of us, it is inevitable.) For me, a lot of that learning was in deciding who to learn from. It is sort of chicken-and-egg—you also learn a lot just by doing (and doing and doing.) The years rolled by. Aptica got better. We are competitive here, and so we worked harder to become the best at what we do. The work of mastering your craft or improving your product and/or services can be all-consuming at first. As we get better at stuff, however, all the other facets of our lives begin to also come into focus. Our kids get older and busier, and we need to spend more time with them. Perhaps we have issues with aging parents. We become established in the community and are called to serve there sometimes. We reach “that age” where every day is scheduled from breakfast to bedtime. In one of those days, we discover that we are really, really, busy but we are not being that productive. THIS is more important than efficient technology. This can be a turning point for you.
Start Looking For Answers, Coaches, Mentors—Learn From Others Who Have Been There, Done That
Why are we so bad at asking for help? At admitting we could use some suggestions? At saying out loud that we might need some guidance? The more widely I read, the more thought leaders and coaches I listen to, the more uplifted I feel. Not one single person has all the answers for me. I have found that I work from a composite of tenets, from a range of sources, and that I enjoy the control to pick and choose those ideas that might work for me and my business, in my niche, and in my region. If one experiment in thought or process doesn’t work, I also choose to reject that and to find another. I am certain that the time I spend trying to learn has paid off in momentum at my company. Start with one resource; expand to other ideas and philosophies as you need to.
I Recommend Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit Of Less, by Greg McKeown
This guy can show you how to find your starting point, especially if the pace of your life and business has grown larger than the number of hours in a day. There are also short YouTube videos of McKeown talking about his method of slowing down to then regain a steady momentum. There is another good book out there that I will tell you about next. But if you still aren’t sure which came first, the chicken or the egg, give me a call. I’ll tell you what I have learned about that.
Jason Newburg, 260.243.5100, ext 2101, is the founder and owner of Aptica LLC. This IT management and support company has been serving small to medium-sized businesses for 19 years in the region that includes Angola, South Bend, and Fort Wayne, IN, Battle Creek, MI, and Toledo OH.