Thinking is not the same as Thinging

Here’s how you use your signature system to work out your products, services and programs.

You don’t use the entire cupboard of ingredients—you play like “Ready Steady Cook” and use the 5 (or 3 or 7) key favourite ingredients your clients need that you have in your signature system.

I have learnt (like every good lesson—the hard way!) to not try and ‘convince’ anyone.

In fact, these days I’ll often make it very clear that if someone is absolutely convinced that what I am saying makes no sense and will never ever ever work I’m cool about it. Of course, I let them know I think that’s not correct and suggest (politely, of course!) that they can tell that to all my clients and a whole bunch of other people who it is working for and see if they remain convinced. But I don’t mind.

My exercise ‘Thing’ is swimming. I love to swim in an outdoor pool (not in the sea!) but there is something that I see when I am there which I don’t get.

Now, I appreciate that not everyone comes swimming to plough up and down doing laps like me but surely if you’re going to get wet—might as well swim.

Don’t DIY if it’s not your Thing. Not only will you be too busy doing ‘stuff’ that you won’t have time to do your Thing as much, but you’ll be using up valuable headspace even thinking about it (while not even doing it!).

Get in an expert, someone who’s Thing it is, and stop doing stuff just because you can.

Your mission is to do your Thing, not get busy with DIY that’s not making a difference.

Now, your Thing might well lend itself perfectly to you being the boss of a business. Or, it might not. It might be that the best use of your Thing is as part of someone else’s business–or in partnership with someone else (and their Thing) that adds up to a better result that you on your own. Or you can just hire a ‘boss’ to take care of business while you do your Thing.

I am a legend at starting up conversations. It’s another part of my Thing. I’d forgotten how good I am at this until I helped a client out recently on their exhibition stand.

My advice is to have conversations even when you don’t know where they’ll end up. Worse case: you’ll have a pleasant chat, best case: you might have a new customer.