How I plan the ‘next big thing’
Prior to leaving for my current job, I developed this little sheet where I asked myself five questions about anything I wanted to do when it came to project/business stuff. If I don’t complete this sheet, it is not a project that I pursue any further.
The five questions are:
What I want to do
Why I want to do it
How I’ll do it
How I’ll eat doing it
My pipe dream after I’ve done it
Admittedly, it’s still a new thing and it’s very possible that I’ll jettison the whole idea after a while. But so far, I like it because it forces me to be less excited about an idea. Not in practice, but in terms of the sheer possibilities that abound and worrying more about ‘how cool it would be if I pull it off’ and instead, focusing my energy onto how I’ll get from point A to point B and so forth. The last question My pipe dream after I’ve done it is reserved for “what will you do if you actually pull it off? What is your goal beyond just setting it up and actually getting it going? What will you do after that?”
I wonder if other people have their own ways of “checking themselves at the door” when they’re in the midst of plotting a side project or something, especially those among us who are full-time idea spinners who run their own startups.
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03/09/2008
3 responses to How I plan the ‘next big thing’
This is pretty cool. I’m going to print it on Monday and hang it by my ‘Big Ideas’ list on my corkboard. I just launched Blue2TV, a live feed of our mascot, and I’ve been thinking about long-term sustainability on the project.
Thanks!
Brad
I’m glad it’s proved helpful. It’s a really good routine for me to start when I get into a project, but I like how it’ll work for you after you’ve already begun something. Excellent stuff.
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