Giving Yourself a Chance to Succeed at Being 1 of 10 Business Archetypes

But First a June 2015 Update…

Hope you’re all having a awesome mid June. Mine is progressing interestingly. Things are going smoothly with the development of the podcast. I believe I have the intro to the point where I’m going to be happy with it. Can’t wait to get started “interviewing” which will commence very soon, I’m sure!

I use quotes with interviewing because I’m still thinking about what kind of format the podcast is going to be in. I listened to Pat’s recent session with Michael O’Neal from the Solopreneur Hour and one of the things that stuck with me was his format. I enjoyed it quite a bit… and frankly I think it fits the style of what I’m trying to do here. So, as of now, I’m leaning more towards just chatting with guests similar to what he does there. So check out his podcast if you’re curious in how that might work.

So somewhere I had that…

Oh yeah. Speaking of podcasts, one I heard probably a month or two ago now is the Fizzle Show session 91 via our friends over at Fizzle.co. In that particular episode, they spoke about 10 Business Archetypes that use an online presence to build their business. Here’s the quick run down of the list:

• The Teacher
• The Thought Leader
• The Mediapreneur
• The Freelancer
• The Coach
• The Artist
• The Maker
• The Curator
• The Engineer and…
• The Retailer

Now, if you’re looking to start a business, you should probably consider which of these you’re more than likely going to be. Each one will use internet marketing differently to get customers. The teacher is going to make and sell their own digital products online, while the Artist might have online products but more than likely will lean heavier on marketing. Also, believe it or not, there’s different strategies that the teacher and thought leader uses than the mediapreneur will use. (Which… without listening, they probably all sound the same! They’re not. :))

First Thing’s First: Give Yourself a Chance by Focusing

To be successful as any of the names on the list, you’ll need to give yourself a chance to be successful. Just like anything you start, you’ll want to make sure that you FOCUS on being just one. This is really important. Focus on One subject. One project. One product. One Thing. Just because you could cram for tests in school doesn’t mean that that “skill” correlates to the real world.

In the past, I have tried to focus on several things at one time. Nothing ever got done well that way. A good example was in 2012 when I was trying to teach part time, be a coach, learn from the Foundation, have a hand in LTD/Amway (which I still believe is a great opportunity) and build New Inceptions. Yeah… don’t do that.

Here I am, three years later… and ::cough:: yeah. Say this with me: Focus. Is. Key.

Now that I’m sitting comfortably using Fizzle as my community and working specifically on building New Inceptions, my work ethic has been the best it’s been in a long while… maybe since grad school (which is saying something!).

Tired of Goals? Try Having None

Another thing I’m trying (at least partially) in building New Inceptions is something suggested on Zen Habits: having no goals. Or as Leo says it The Best Goal is No Goals. The idea is simple: Just Do. Don’t worry about some made up list. Just pursue your passion and the result will be great.

I believe that’s kinda what I’m doing. I’m currently going through a Building A Blog that Matters Course via Fizzle. Each week I get an email of new things I should do that week. But you know what? Each time a new email comes to me, I look at it as a suggestion of things I could be doing that week. A reminder if you will. What’s funny, is that many times I find myself seeing things I’ve already done.

I’m feel that as long as I have a framework to work in, it’s all good. Keeping metrics and recordings actually hinders my creativity.

What Leo says is true in the same post: “In the end, I usually end up achieving more than if I had goals, because I’m always doing something I’m excited about. But whether I achieve or not isn’t the point at all: all that matters is that I’m doing what I love, always.”

So my question to you this week is simply this:

What are you doing to make sure your project, business, and/or other work is getting worked on? Have you had problems with focusing in the past? Chime in the comments below. Also, if you think what I’ve said is bogus, let me know that too!