Do what now?

entreprenewb — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 02:23:27 +0000

According to Wikipedia, entrepreneurship is French for “one who undertakes innovations, finance and business acumen in an effort to transform innovations into economic goods.” My goals are not quite so lofty or pronounced. In fact, I’m not even sure what they are. Like most aspirations, they’re nothing until they’ve been codified in an “economic good”. Below, I’ve defined my wants—the most basic definitions of what I want. In order to get what I want there are needs that must be fulfilled to achieve the things I want. Last, there are commitments. En lieu of another word for this section, I felt that commitment was a meaningful and binding term. By describing these things as commitments, I hope to feel an obligation to try them. While these are not yet “economic goods”, they are lists and definitions, and that’s a start.

Wants

I want to do meaningful work. More specifically, I want to create something meaningful to me. Like most people, I want to feel valued, I want my work to be something positive and constructive, and I want to have purpose. When I’m following my own compass, when I’ve got an idea that preoccupies me so much that I can’t think of anything else, I feel energized and alive. At one point, I used to go to bed with a problem on my mind and wake up in the morning with a solution that I was excited about. I don’t just want that feeling back, I demand it.
I want to pursue my interests. I want more time in generally, but I want to spend my limited time on things that interest me. Not just work, but hobbies, travel, and adventure. Life is too short, why should it be spent doing things that I don’t feel passionate about?
I want to feel confident in my direction. I don’t want to feel like I am frittering my life away in a cubicle doing something when my heart’s not in it. This is a similar theme as the previous two. I don’t want to waste my life away doing something I resent. I want to conquer life’s challenges instead of feeling like I’ve been defeated before the challenge arises.

Needs

I need time to accomplish my goals.
I need money to replace my salary and fund my entrepreneurship.
I need to be persistent in pursuing my goals. Procrastination and neglect are the enemy.

Commitments

Have more time

Outsource menial and time consuming tasks
Telecommute
Automate manual tasks

Make more money

Ask for a raise
Freelance using my core skills
Do odd jobs
Sell something physical or service
Advertise
Use my capital / invest
Get a job

Maintain Persistence

actively keeping a TODO list
reevaluating my priorities, goals, and tasks as they fit together
setting small attainable tasks with short deadlines
taking breaks to recharge and reflect

Now that I’ve defined wants, needs, and commitments, the easiest part is over. It’s 10pm, I’m tired and need to go to bed, and I have a dozen different excuses to keep me from the next step. So what the hell am I waiting for before I get started? Absolutely nothing.