Yesterday, we looked at the 5 parts of every successful business and how to use critical assumptions to determine if you should pivot.

(If you missed that email, it's here.)

On the Stick With It or Pivot worksheet, we worked backwards with #5..."How much money will your business need to create to make it all worthwhile?"

I mentioned yesterday that there was a more important aspect to think about, when trying to determine what would make it all worthwhile.

Some people find this aspect "unrealistic" to consider.

They're life motto could be:
"Life's hard, then you die."

But here's the deal...

Remember the Flickr pivot story?

One of Flickr's founders said this:

"So often people are working hard at the wrong thing. Working on the right thing is probably more important than working hard."

- Caterina Fake
Flickr Co-Founder

That's true on many levels...

Not just "Should I keep developing Flickr as an online game?"...but also "Do I enjoy what I do everyday?".

Steve Jobs believed this too...

"Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do."

- Steve Jobs

Money is only a small portion of the "worthwhile" element of a business.

"If the only thing that interests you about an opportunity is the money, you'll probably quit well before you find the pot of gold at the bottom of the landfill."

- Josh Kaufman

The next step is to figure out and then write down what you actually enjoy doing right now.

The best part: You get to use all of your colorful experiences to paint a clear picture of what you love.

Along the way, you may confirm that you're still in love with what you do.

That's great news.

Or, you may discover during this process that your business isn't as worthwhile as you once thought.

Maybe you're business has slowly turned into a Frankenstein monster.

And "the money" is all that's left.

That's great news too.

Because that realization could trigger "the mother of all pivots"...

A life pivot.

"You cannot change dramatically until you have fully faced the facts of who you are and where you are going."

- Doug Hall

Making it more worthwhile by making it more enjoyable is
a great reason to pivot.

"Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand-new ending."

- Carl Bard

And it's not hard...

The following short exercises will take you into the Past, Present, and Future.

Along the way, a clear picture of who you are will develop.

This is going to help you see what would make this all worthwhile, beyond the money.

Grab some paper...

Let's start in the Past.

This exercise is called
Peak Moments.

It's was developed by Michael Stanier, founder of Box of Crayons and was featured in the book,
Do More Great Work.

Step 1: On a piece of paper, write down 3 or 4 peak moments from your working life. Think back and write down work that brought out your "best self".

John's Example:

John Smith, founder of Throw-N-Glow Inc. chose these 3 peak moments:

1. The afternoon I discovered Zinc Sulfide can make glow in the dark plastic.

2. When I fixed Becky's car using only superglue.

3. When I helped Tim win the U.S. Disc Golf Championship.

Step 2: For each item, answer these questions: Where did it occur? What skills did you use? Why was this such a key moment? What about this moment makes you really proud?

John's Example:

3. When I helped Tim win the U.S. Disc Golf Championship:

It was in 2011, on a Saturday in South Carolina. I was able to make a custom disc golf frisbee with special aerodynamic properties just for Tim's throwing style. I'll never forget the hours we spent working in the garage and experimenting. And I'll never forget the moment Tim won. Priceless. I'm really proud we stuck with it and made something nobody had ever made before.

Step 3: Look through each description for similarities and patterns. Look for patterns in Who, What, When, Where, How, and Why. Write those down.

John's Example:

Patterns and Similarities:

working with college friends, coming up with unqiue solutions, experimenting, Mad Scientist, garage chemistry, customizing things, weird uses for normal items, adult friends

This exercise reminds you what it felt like when you were at your best, and when that happened.

You'll use these insights you've discovered in just a few minutes...

Let's try another exercise.

This is called The Time Machine.

Step 1: Travel back to when you first started your current business.

Step 2: Write down the answers to these simple questions:

Why did you start this business?
What was your vision back then?
In what ways is it the same now?
In what ways is it different now?

John's Example:

I started this business so that I could make enough money to pursue full time inventing. It looked like a huge opportunity to make a lot of money. I could "retire" to my garage and be really creative. I still believe I can become a full time inventor, but I also know that "quick riches" are a mirage. It's not easy selling frisbees in toy stores.

Step 3: Look through your "reason why" and ask "Who am I?".

John's Example:

I'm an inventor. I get bored easily. I have a lot of curiosity. I have big ideas, but I don't stick with them for long. I don't like reports and paperwork. I love getting my hands dirty. I like being my own boss. I want to work with interesting people. I like the garage because it's quiet. I never take my phone in there. I don't work that well around kids. I like hanging out with friends, but also like it to be quiet so I can think.

Between Peak Moments and The Time Machine, you're getting a much better picture of who you are and what you like to do.

Now let's move to the Present.

This first exercise appeared in the book, Values Clarification by Sidney Simon.

Step 1: Write twenty things you love to do. They can be big or little things and they can happen during any season of the year.

Step 2: After making your list, code each item using the following values:

A. Place a dollar sign ($) next to things that cost money to do.

B. Place an "A" next to things you like to do alone. Place a "P" next to things you like to do with other people. And place "A-P" if you enjoy it just as much alone as with other people.

C. Place "PL" if the thing requires planning ahead.

D. Place an "O" next to things that you like doing outside and an "I" next to things you like doing inside.

E. Place a "W" next to things that are related to your work.

F. Place an "R" next to things that are risky or cause an adrenaline rush.

G. Place an "F" next to things that you like doing fast and an "S" next to things you like doing slow.

H. Place a 1-5 next to the five most important items. The thing you like doing the most would be #1 and second best would be #2, etc.

John's Example:

1. Fishing - $, A-P, O, S
2. Inventing - A, PL, I, W, S, #1
3. Reading novels - A, I, S
4. Disc Golf - P, PL, O, S, #2
5. Hiking - A, O, S
6. Gardening - A, O, S, #3

etc...

Step 3: Write down the patterns you see and what it tells you about who you are...

John's Example:

Looking down the list of 20 things, I can see that a large percentage of what I enjoy doing is essentially free. I don't really need millions of dollars. My favorite thing is inventing in my garage. I don't like being rushed all the time. I'm not sure why I've spent all this time running around doing radio interviews, conducting meetings, and filing business paperwork. If I'm honest, I would hate being famous. I can see now why I don't have much energy. I don't do the things I love doing anymore.

Now let's go to the Future.

This next exercise is adapted from the bestselling book by Barbara Sher, WishCraft.

It's called Ideal Life

Step 1: On a piece of paper, describe what your ideal day would look like. Write as if it was actually happening. You see, feel, and experience everything going on around you.

John's Example:

I wake up at 6 and quietly slip out of bed. I head to the kitchen to start a big pot of coffee. I spend a few minutes watching the birds play in the yard.

After a nice breakfast and a few minutes to watch the Weather Channel, I head into the garage. I've got a big day of inventing ahead of me. I'm creating a revolutionary gas additive for race cars. I'll spend a few hours on that, and then eat lunch with Becky at noon.

In the afternoon, we drive through town in my restored Model T and visit the library to pick up some new novels.

After dinner, I'll spend the evening down at the pond fishing and thinking about my next invention. I won't stay out late though, because tomorrow morning, Tim and I are going to hit the disc golf park for the day.

Step 2: Describe an imaginary environment where you would thrive. Expand on your Ideal Life paragraph by zooming in and answering this question, In what imaginary environment would your best work emerge?

John's Example:

My best work would emerge in a huge garage with lots of space and storage. It would be filled with tools, materials, odds and ends, and inspirational pieces, all perfectly organized.

There would also be a big library inside, with lots of magazines and books to get ideas and draw inspiration from. I'd have a computer with a fast internet connection for doing research, and a TV mounted in the corner, in case I needed to watch a nature documentary to get ideas and inspiration.

I'd have a team of inventors on the other side of the world who could test ideas while I slept.

And I'd have a weather changing device so that if I needed to test something in the rain, I could make it rain, and if I needed sun, I could make it sunny. The weather would never slow down my inventing again.

Step 3: Look over both paragraphs. How are things totally different than today? How are things nearly the same as right now?

John's Example:

In my Ideal Life, I start the day slowly. But lately, I've been rushing out the door to get to meetings on time.

In my Ideal Life, I spend a third of my day inventing in the garage, a third of the day in town, and a third of the day quietly fishing and thinking.

That's totally different than spending the whole day filling out forms, making phone calls, planning marketing campaigns.

As far as the work environment, I do have a garage I love.

I could always move the home office into the garage and mount a TV in the corner.

Maybe better planning at the beginning of the week could help avoid weather issues.

I'd much rather be working in my small garage everyday than spending my time in a boardroom across town.

The last exercise is called
The Fresh-Eyes Challenge.

This is an exercise that Doug Hall uses at Eureka! Ranch and explains in the book, Jump Start Your Business Brain.

Step 1: Imagine for a moment that you're a takeover specialist. You've just bought your business.

Step 2: Write down the answers to these questions:

Whom would you fire? (employees, suppliers, customers)

Whom would you hire?

What areas of the business would you invest in?

What areas of the business would you shut down?

John's Example:

I'd immediately fire myself. I'm an inventor, not a marketer. I'd hire a toy industry expert to consult on next steps. I'd also get rid of the Acme Toys contract and find a more aggressive distributer.

I'd invest in other glow in the dark toys. I'd invest in novelty glow in the dark items.

I'd shut down smaller contracts that take so much time to service. I'd also discontinue all TV ad production and focus on areas with a better ROI.

Step 3: Looking over your answers, how does this help you understand yourself better? Write down your thoughts...

John's Example:

I'm not very good at delegating tasks. I tend to think I can figure it all out on my own. I don't like all the work required to launch new toys. I need outside help for marketing tasks. In general, I don't like to ask for help.

Ok, at this point, you've got a lot of insights to work with.

Between Peak Moments, The Time Machine, Twenty Things, Ideal Life, and The Fresh-Eyes Challenge you've got a much better understanding of who you are and what you like.

Thinking about it all, if your business was a perfect fit for you, how would you finish the following statement:

"My business allows me to ___________________________.
And this makes it all worthwhile.

John's Example:

My business allows me to invent new things in my garage, enjoy afternoon drives in my Model T, fish in the local pond, and take entire days off to play disc golf with friends. And this makes it all worthwhile.

Make sure it feels just right...

It's a good sign if you get excited
just thinking about it.

"If you want to get customers excited, you yourself must be genuinely excited!"

- Doug Hall

Ok, now for the last step...

Take this new statement and add it to the statement you wrote down yesterday on the Stick With It or Pivot worksheet...

John's Example:

My business creates $85,000 of profit each year.

My business allows me to invent new things in my garage, enjoy afternoon drives in my Model T, fish in the local pond, and take entire days off to play disc golf with friends.

And this makes it all worthwhile.

That's much better.

Now it feels just right.

And it's written in a way that you can tell immediately if it's True or False.

Which means that you can use it to pivot in the right direction...

And each pivot will get you closer to a worthwhile business.

A business you love waking up to...

And in the next email, you'll see how this simple statement also helps you find the perfect audience to serve...

Until then,
Jack Duncan
MarketBold.com