It’s never been easier to start a business or launch a new project.
Access to almost everything has become widely available. Gates are being torn down and the gatekeeper bypassed and things are getting cheaper, too.
Want to get into real estate? You can start by renting out an extra room on Airbnb or VRBO. Need a lawyer? Now you have services like LegalZoom. Want to write a book? Amazon makes it super simple to publish. Need to market your product or service? We all have social media. The list goes on of things we used to have a lot of hoops to jump through to accomplish.
Heck, even my industry. Anybody can be a video creator now.
But there’s a new problem. Well, three problems to be exact. Anyone struggling to start a new project or make headway on an old one may run into Imposter syndrome, Shiny Object syndrome, or Ship Jumping syndrome. Let’s talk about each.
IMPOSTER SYNDROME
This one isn’t really “new,” technically. Not believing in oneself has been around since the beginning of time. Or, as Adam Grant defined it: “when competence exceeds confidence.”
(You can imagine the opposite version creates plenty of problems, too.)
Imposter syndrome is that feeling in the back of your head that you’re not good enough to do something. Or that you don’t belong somewhere because you innately aren’t on the same level as the other people in the room. It’s a lie — just a story that we tell ourselves.
One reason why it’s reared its ugly head so much lately, is because all the gates are torn down now. In your head, everyone seems to be taking advantage of the increased access, except you. You might be overworked and perhaps underpaid, but really you’re struggling to keep up with all the new tools (social media, apps, etc.) that are now at your disposal.
This causes huge issues in the long run because most likely you’re so overwhelmed by all the options and not knowing which ones are best suited for you that it creates “analysis paralysis” and you do nothing. You keep putting it off and the marketing world keeps passing you by.
SHINY OBJECT SYNDROME
There’s another syndrome that comes from the increase of tools you have available now.
When it seems like every day there’s a new app you need, or platform you and your business must be on, or tool that you must use in order to increase your sales, it can cause you to experience what’s called “shiny object syndrome.”
You get the picture. Bouncing around from new gidget to new gadget like a dog chasing a ball (then a squirrel…. then a car!) because you keep hearing about it and you have “FOMO,” or the fear of missing out. But all this does is cause you to be constantly spinning in circles chasing your tail and you will quickly burn out.
And you haven’t even asked yourself if that new tool makes sense for you and your mission!
Stop looking for (or waiting for) some magical tool that is going to come along and quickly make you do your job better, but is somehow super easy to learn how to use.
The tools do not complete the job. You do.
SHIP JUMPING SYNDROME
The final syndrome that causes suffering in your journey is “ship jumping syndrome.”
I’m pretty sure I coined that phrase, but let me know if you’ve seen it elsewhere before.
Ship jumping syndrome is the potentially tragic result that can be caused by both imposter syndrome and/or shiny object syndrome. When you’ve finally plotted a course of action, or selected a tool to use, and it doesn’t work immediately, you hear that pesky voice in the back of your head again, telling you it won’t work.
Regardless of having more access now, things still take proper time to build.
But in your attempt to keep up with the Joneses, you keep abandoning what you’ve started. You don’t really give your current strategy a chance to work and never allow yourself to plant your feet and do the deep, focused work you need to.
The worst part about this is, your strategy could’ve just been on the brink of breaking through and now you’ve forced yourself to start back at Square One. And we all know how hard it can be to get started when you have imposter syndrome.
I’m not saying hang onto a “sinking ship” if your strategy clearly isn’t working or that the new tool everyone is talking about won’t help you. I’m just saying that you and your team must think long and hard about what makes sense for your mission and carefully select a path (or a tool) to use that makes sense for you.
Sometimes you need to abandon and sometimes you need to just stay the course.
But every time, you still have to do the work.
It’s not the hammer that builds the house.
(featured photo by Linda Nguyen)
Rain Bennett is a two-time Emmy-nominated filmmaker, writer, and competitive storyteller with over a decade of experience producing documentary films that focus on health and wellness. His mission is simple: to make the world happier and healthier by sharing stories of change.
You can read the rest of “Right as Rain” here, and check back every Wednesday on Chapelboro for a new column!
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