Doing Well in Business (and Life…)
After a bit of time off after my last venture, it looks like I am about to step back into the beast that is business…
I’m both excited about this new opportunity and feeling that edge that comes from wondering if I can meet my own expectations, and the expectations of those around me, and to deal with the many challenges that will be a part of the process.
Along the way from the last one to this one, I’ve spent a lot of time talking with friends and colleagues about how to find that “zone” where who we are, what we love to do and what we are good at comes together. Because that zone is the place where we will most likely succeed at all levels – professionally, financially and personally.
There are lots of ways to be happy personally – heading to the beach to read a book for example – but there’s not much money in that, and we all have bills to pay. There are lots of ways to be make money – but many of those can easily become soul killers. And there are lots of career paths and ways to get there. And finally, what happens if you are good at something, and love doing it, but you forget to get paid for it?
In short, heading towards something that you can do, love to do, will do well and can get paid to do? Finding something that will not only bring all elements into play, but bring long-term success? Quite difficult.
But sometimes a simple picture helps bring it all together and Bud Caddell, on his blog “What Consumes Me” has a very simple, but powerful graphic that I think is a great image to have in mind as to how to get there and it reflects a way that I’ve tried to do it and to communicate this approach to others.
But as much as I’m a “sketch it out on a whiteboard” guy, I never came up with something this simple:
From how I built my last company, to how my brother is growing his business, to how a friend in Switzerland is working on his new project, I think this map is a great visualization of where the “sweet spot” is for all of us.
So if you, like me and many of my friends and colleagues, are working on solving this puzzle for yourself I don’t think there is a simpler framework than this one to keep in mind.
I know that I will be thinking about this all along the way as I work on this exciting new project.
Via: [What Consumes Me]