Ep #122 Shortcuts Take Longer

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Let’s talk about business shortcuts. 

We all want to get where we want to go faster. Everywhere you look there are promises of quick results. 

“Lose 10kgs in 30 days.”

“Make 7 figures in 90 days.”

“Potty train your kid in a day”

These fast results or shortcuts to a goal sound really appealing. They are all speaking directly to that part of our brain that craves easy. Simple. Very or little effort.

And so we click that buy button. We order the fat burners.
It doesn’t mean that there aren’t ever faster ways, less effort ways, simpler ways to achieve our goals. There absolutely are. And it’s safe to say that  just because our brains love simple and easy, it doesn't mean that we don’t ever overcomplicate. It is important to question whether we are overcomplicating or whether there is a simpler way. 

However, we have become so fixated on quick fixes that we have lost the essence of what is required to achieve big goals. Goals that matter. Goals that excite us and light us up. 

We are so tuned in to the idea of things happening FAST that we are convinced something is wrong when it takes longer. 

7 Figures in 90 days sounds much more appealing than 7 figures in 3 years. Who has time for that anyway. We want it now.

This kind of quick fix thinking has us on high alert for shortcuts. We’re constantly scanning for the next new thing that promises us the fast path.

The problem with this is that we don’t stop for even a moment to think how many fast paths we’ve gone down. We don’t stop to question whether those shortcuts actually moved us any closer to the goal we set out to achieve in the first place.

When we do take a moment to reflect, we often realise we have abandoned our goal completely and we unintentionally find ourselves in a completely different direction.

Before you know it, you’ve spent months, even years, zigzagging your way to nowhere.

Shortcuts speak to that part of us that is convinced we must be missing some crucial piece of information. The thing is. There is no one way to do anything. Let’s use the example of losing weight and building muscle.

It is scientifically proven that if you want to lose weight and gain muscle you need to ear fewer calories than you burn and you need to do some form of resistance/strength training to build muscle.

That is the path. There are no shortcuts. Not if you want to do it in a healthy way that is sustainable. Jumping from one fad diet to another, taking some weird injection or herbal pill here and then doing something else again next week is not going to help you achieve your fitness goal. The yo-yo dieting doesn’t work! And you know it! 

At your core, in your heart, you already know that there isn’t a quick fix. 

There is a process to being healthy: 

• eat healthy, 

• sleep well, 

• move your body, 

• consume fewer calories than you burn, 

• lift some weights…

That IS the process and the process is the shortcut. 

The process is the fastest path.
Are there ways to make the process simpler? Of course, we can prepare meals in advance, we can carry a water bottle around so we drink more water, and we can do all sorts of things to make the process easier. 

But the process is still the process.

The same is true in business. There are many ways to achieve a goal. The hard part is to choose one way and stick with it. Do not get distracted with shiny objects and fast tracks. It’s when we get sidetracked by the so called shortcuts that things take way longer than they need to take.

Shortcuts aren’t just wasting your time and halting your progress, they are also making you miss out on five things that will make you a better CEO and leader.

1. Taking shortcuts will not help you to build resilience. If you’re always doing what’s easy, you won’t build any resilience for the hard things that will cross your path.

2. Always looking for shortcuts will keep you from becoming a master in your craft. To discover those little nuances and details that you only see once you can do things with your eyes closed.

3. Looking for quick fixes or shortcuts might solve a problem in the moment but long term it could also keep you from understanding and connecting to your ideal customer on a deeper level. The kind of level where you understand their problem so well that they think you love inside their heads.

4. Looking for shortcuts will keep you from learning and growing because you might be bypassing important steps or lessons that could propel your success in the future.

5. Looking for shortcuts will keep you in avoider mode which means that you won’t learn how to manage uncomfortable emotions or have the persistence to find solutions to problems, solve for those problems and adapt where necessary.

One of my favorite quotes by Martha Beck is: “Slow is fast, gentle is powerful, and silence can move mountains.”

So, if you want to go fast. Stop looking for shortcuts. 

Do the work. Do what’s necessary, not what’s easy. Regardless of the time it takes. 

If you are consistently taking action in the direction of your goal. You will get there.

If you enjoyed this episode, I want to invite you to join me at the Win Your Week On Monday virtual workshop that is happening on the 28th of February. Discover the three things most small business owners do that waste time and that keep them stuck in overworking and where you should be focusing your attention instead so you can work smarter, not harder. Grab your ticket for the 90 minute online workshop at ilonkaras.com/winyourweek

You can watch the video recording HERE

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