What is This All For?
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Have you ever asked yourself that question?
I am serious about this and I think it is a vital question to ask.
I often talk about planning and setting goals but really none of that makes any sense unless you can truly answer the question of “what is this all for?”
Looking back at when I first started my business online back in 1997, I remember that the initial reason was because I hated my current job and I felt like I was trapped. I saw an infomercial on TV about starting a business and actually bought it.
The course was a joke and the person that sold it has since gone belly up and actually has had some legal issues as well. The course was not in anyway expensive and in all honesty I did not feel that I got ripped off or anything. In fact I have to give a lot of credit to that initial course because that is what gave me the kick in the pants to get started.
What was wrong however was that back then I started to put hours upon hours of work into something that I had an unclear understanding of. I knew I wanted a better life and that I wanted to make more money but that was it. I really had no clue as to really what I was doing it for.
The challenge this put upon me was that I had mixed up priorities and things that should have been focused on were not and things that should not have been focused on were. I was guided by emotion rather then by logic… I was destined to fail.
Over the past 5 years, as my business has exploded I have found that it was my understanding of why I was doing this that helped me to put things in focus. The problem with this however was that I was not honest about this with others and this caused conflicts. You see I was truly doing this for a selfish reason but when others asked I would say that it was to build a better life for my family and I.
BULLCRAP
I was doing this because I wanted to and it was not about doing anything other then having more money then I did before.
The positive thing was that I had a focus and was able to set my goals on it but the negative was I was never able to be completely open and honest about this with others.
Over the past 3 months I have been going through a major turn around in my focus. I have changed staff, changed focus and I am now finally being open and honest with myself as to why I am doing this. I have loads of things planned and loads of things coming down the pipe (I already talked to my biz partners about this).
In my next post I am going to talk about how I came upon this realization and how it helped me to be able to understand exactly why I am doing this and…
What this is all for?
Trust me when I say this is not something to take lightly.
Posts in this series…
- 1. What is This All For?
- 2. Do You Need a Slap in the Face?
- 3. Do You Already Assume How the Conversation Went?
- 4. Four Weeks to Answering What is This All For!
- 5. Step 1 of 4 Week Plan to Answering What is This All For
Great post here Johnny C. Definitely put things in perspective. It really is SO useful to ask yourself simple questions like these… and it looks like you have done quite well since exploring your own motive a little bit. I am one to think about my goals in life and try to structure things that I do that way, but this is very similar and I definitely encourage everyone to heed your advice.
Thanks Jim, it was one of those posts that was on my heart as soon as I woke up this morning.
Great post. Exactly like John Cow said.
Simple questions like these can really mean something big. Don’t do what you don’t like to do.
You’ve had a few posts lately that make it obvious that you’ve been going through some “life changes” Cow…or at least been doing a lot of thinking and/or soul searching.
Love posts like these. It’s extremely important to know why you’re doing something, especially like blogging/internet marketing. It’s easier to keep going through hard times when you know the reason (and it’s a good one).
Cheers!
Jay
Sounds to me like a mid-life hormonal change. Did you go out and buy that red corvette too? Either way, it is never a bad idea to re-tool and re-focus in any business venture, on or offline.
Just like Jay said, I can feel the changes you went through because it did affect what you blogged about recently I think.
Posts that comes from the heart are the best ones and this one was a great one!
I agree it is important to put everything in perspective and have a vision of where you are going and most importantly, WHY.
Good job!
Ben Tremblay – The Frog.
This is all for the money? I’m shocked
hi Mr Cow,
If the infomercial got you to leave your day job working for the man and strike out on your own working for yourself, I would say it was worth its weigh in gold (but then how much does an informercial weigh?).
As to this post, I’m new here but it sounds serious. I look forward to finding out what you are working for now. The key as you point out is to be honest with yourself, and know where you’re going and why your going there.
Can’t wait for the next post…
~ Steve (aka the trade show guru)
Thank you for your honesty. I think it’s very admirable that you can expose your prior motivations for keeping your business going. You ask a valid question. What are our efforts for? Whatever the reason may be, we need to focus on in what that reason is, and tailor our efforts around that reason. If it’s to provide a better life for yourself or for your family, make business choices that will support your cause. Great post, Jason!
Great post John C. We often wander around aimlessly without asking that one burning question Why? Your ideas can be applied to anything we do. We should all be thinking about why we are pursuing any goal or any dream.
I think it is always going to be an ongoing question. I mean do we ever truly know Why?
This is a big question to ask that needs to be asked by eeryone. I am doing this so I don’t have to work in sales in a crappy job that I hate. I want to be able to do exactly what I want not what someone else tells me I have to do. That is why I work online.
Think we all need to ask this question when frustration sets in and when we are starry eyed over our increase in sales. Asking the right questions is more important than anyone giving you their answer for your life.
Great post and it’s refreshing that someone else realizes it isn’t always about the money
Your talking about the first of the three main principles that Steve Pavlina discusses in his new book “personal Development for Smart People”: Truth.
Without telling yourself and others the truth, you can’t walk far on the path of personal development and abbundance.
For instance the other two principle are: Power and Love.
ciao
alexander
We don’t like to examine ourselves and our motives sometimes out of fear. We’re afraid of uncovering aspects of ourselves that may not be as noble as we would like or that we’ve been brought up to think of as ‘bad’. At least admit these things to yourself even if you don’t want to share them with others. Anything that is built on a foundation of lies, even the ones we tell ourselves (especially the ones we tell ourselves!) usually doesn’t stand the test of time.
Haven’t read johncow for a while and I’m (pleasantly) surprised to see this kind of post. I’m sure it will resonate with a lot of your readers.
[...] 1. What is This All For? [...]
You hit it man! This is THE question. I know…there are major parts that make up the question but in it’s simplest form, that’s what you MUST answer.
Knowing why you do it, will determine EVERYTHING else. If you have no direction, you have nothing to work towards, you goals will constantly change because you don’t know the result ( reason) you are working towards.
Thanks for sharing man, you already know what it is over here dude