I work with online virtual business owners every day, and one of the more common ways I support them around reaching their business goals is by curtailing their shiny object syndrome (or squirrel-itis as I like to call it).
Not sure what shiny object syndrome looks like or if you’ve got it?
Here are a few example scenarios from my home girl Jen the VA who is working on scaling her biz to 5K months:
Instead of staying the course and seeing a marketing plan through for at least 90 days to see max results, Jen keeps squirreling by:
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joining a MLM
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launching a new offer when her last offer isn’t fully booked
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re-doing her website (again)
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updating all of her website copy (again)
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signing up for 12 courses
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downloading all the opt-ins
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listening to all the podcasts
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changing her title
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changing her niche
You get the picture, yes?
Now, this isn’t to say that updating a website is always a bad idea or that taking an online course is always a bad idea or that listening to podcasts is always a bad idea.
They’re not.
It’s only a bad idea when it’s keeping you safe and small, and from executing on the thing you KNOW will bring you results in your business.
Because here’s the thing: split focus yields split results.
Imagine what would happen if you put all your resources into 1 goal before moving on to another. Time, energy, money, bandwidth…all of it. Because I can tell you what would happen.
You’d achieve the goal.
So let’s talk today about 4 ways to keep your inner squirrel in check so that you can reach those goals, set some new ones and create the business you desire.
1. Decide on your big goal.
When I’m supporting my clients around reaching a goal the first thing we do is decide on what it is. Often, it’s around one of the following:
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💸 Finances
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👩👩🏽👩🏿 Clients
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💖 Balance
Getting clarity around the goal is the first step in the process because once we’re super clear on what we want, we can set up a step-by-step plan to achieve it. But if we’re not totally sure, if we’re waffling or if we’re too afraid to even set the goal then guess what? WE NEVER ACTUALLY GET THERE.
So step 1, decide!
2. Take action.
Can I be honest? Getting what you want in business or life is really just a 2 step process. Decide what you want, and take aligned action from there. And while the decision is a breeze for most people, the action is what trips them up like whoah.
Why? Because this is where that pesky squirrel starts to show up. Because she’s scared and afraid and is doing her best to keep you safe.
But you don’t want safe…because safe is…well…safe. You want the goal, the dream, the business and the desire.
And to get there? You need action.
But the action has to align with the goal. So if you’re wanting to create consistent $5K months in your business, then the action we wouldn’t take is to sign up for a Mailchimp course. The action we’d take is to set up a marketing plan that gets you visible (or take The Start to teach you how to do just that), clearly communicates your value to your audience and converts that audience into paying clients.
See the big picture? Sure, you could FOOL yourself into thinking that Mailchimp course is going to get you to the $5K mark, but you’d be playing it safe, right?
Aligned action, baby! All 🙌 Day 🙌 Long!
3. Quiet the noise.
So, it’s way easier for a squirrel to lose focus on the goal of getting the best.nut.ever if there are 12 other nuts around. Right?
Same goes for you, sweet friend.
If you see your big, amazing goal in front of you and then 11 more potential goals drop all around you, it’s gonna be hard AF for you to keep focus. This is exactly what happens when we’re listening to and taking in way too much content in the online space.
That’s why I LOVE prescribing my clients with a content detox if they struggle with shiny object syndrome AND they’re working on a big business goal.
What’s a content detox? It’s where we quiet the outside noise by removing it from our periphery. We remove IG and FB from our phone, we stop listening to #allthepodcasts and stop downloading #alltheoptins. We stop reading 12 newsletters a week and START spending that time we’re getting back on our business.
And the best part? Not only do we get time back, but we also get mental space back. And those two things combined are the perfect cocktail to help us stay the course and reach our goal.
4. Keep going, even when you want to quit.
So here’s a truth about creating success in your business: you’re going to come up against resistance. That’s normal.
I always say starting a business was the best unintentional practice in personal development I never asked for 🤣, but y’all it’s TRUE.
Starting a business and then scaling that business is going to bring out all of your little mindset gremlins. It’s normal, it happens to most of us, and the best part is that we’re proof that it’s possible to both have the gremlins AND create success.
My biggest piece of advice around this is DON’T QUIT ON YOUR WORST DAY. You will have challenging days, you will have challenging clients, you will have challenging thoughts. Remember your goals, remember WHY you wanted them and keep going.
So, the moral of my story today is this: squirrel-itis is normal and most people experience it, but to get to your big goals you’re going to need discipline and to figure out a way to keep your shiny object syndrome in check. Refer to the 4 tips above the next time you’re feeling a little off course. Have a question around this topic? Shoot me a DM!
And, if you prefer to watch or listen on how to reach your big business goal, check out this Facebook LIVE I did on this exact subject right here!