Part 2 of 2
Following up on some seeds planted in the last blog post, I want to continue to explore the idea of requirement versus opportunity mindset that Scott Geller proposed in his TED Talk “The psychology of self-motivation.”
The question that I want to reflect on is what strategies and habits can I put in place to keep myself in an opportunity mindset? After all, I now know that I am more energized and more driven when that is how I look at the work I do.
So knowing this, how do I use this awareness to ensure I remain energized, stay motivated, and keep things moving forward?
For me, it’s about evaluating what it is that I need to do and what I can delegate. The ever useful Urgent – Important Matrix is great for helping to define what’s most urgent and what’s most important and what can be dropped like a hot potato that is never seen nor spoken of again.
In other cases, the “requirements” really are exactly that, requirements: GST, taxes, government paperwork, and filing. For these I either have to find a way to delegate them OR simply block off some time to just get it done without getting distracted. I've found a reward for the completed job helps me move through it with a better energy... I'm easily motivated by coffee or a lunch out.
In other cases, if I shift how I look at the outcome of the work it becomes easier to see the “opportunity.” For example, bookkeeping is not a huge priority for me and I view it as a “requirement.” Recognizing this early on in my entrepreneurial journey, I hired an accountant to keep me on track* as I knew I wouldn’t do the books, but I wanted the outcome of up to date books (financial statements). After all, having all my financial data at my fingertips is an “opportunity” to evaluate what’s working and what’s not. And that is a good thing.
So what are you seeing as an opportunity? What do you see as a requirement? And how can you shift how you approach / achieve those items that you see as “requirements” rather than “opportunities”? Please share your thoughts and stories in the comments below.
* In the interests of transparency, my Mom is my accountant. As a CGA / CFP she see’s tracking paperwork and doing books as an “opportunity” and gets excited about it. And she works for Sushi! Needless to say though, I recognized my “requirement” mindset on this bit of being an entrepreneur early on and knew that putting the right supports in place was essential to my success.