Aaron McHugh
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Why I Don’t Convert Ideas into Action

Finished Ironman CDA 2005

Thinking but not committing

If you are anything like me, I bet you spend a lot of time thinking and dreaming about starting something new.

For me it can range from an Adventure trip that I want to go on to an ebook I’ve been writing.

Ideas into action are more difficult.

There is a pattern.

But I notice a pattern when the ideas in my head swirl around but no action is produced, I know its time to assess the source of my reluctance.

Today, I am hesitating calling a desired podcast guest that I’d like to interview.

The best I can tell I am simply nervous that she will say no.

And she might.

Converting ideas to action.

1) What is stopping me from starting?

I hear that little voice in my head always taunting me.  Telling me to be realistic, safe, and reliable.

What might I hear if turned down the volume on the voice of self-protection, self-preservation and safety?

What am I really afraid of?  

Rejection?  Being a bother?  No one liking what I create?

I actually feel much better when I can hear myself say or read the words that are holding me back.

The words or emotions behind the fear seem to have less power once I say them out loud.

2) Have I written down my plan or idea?

I find that when I write down in a journal or a notepad what it is I want to begin, it becomes more tangible and attainable.

The power of seeing my ideas and words on paper in front of me further commits me to launch. When it is electronic, it’s easy to skip past it in your list of Word docs or read emails.

3) What is the worst that could happen?

I recently resigned from a leadership position that I held for almost eight years at a software division that I helped start.

I labored over the decision for years.

One of the most helpful questions for me to answer was this one.

How bad could it get?  

This is a phenomenal exercise to spend some time on.

Ask yourself this question and then write down everything bad that you could envision happening.

“I could loose my job, not have health insurance, have to live with my in-laws, and live with the shame for failing”.

It is so liberating to actually see on paper what I was afraid of.

Some of it was down right laughable.

Some of it was actually uncomfortable but still not tragic.

4) Facing the Dragons

I think you will find that staring face-to-face with your perceived dragons will liberate you.

They are not as powerful or dangerous once you identify them.

I’m going to go make that call and invite the podcast guest.

Wish me luck.

5 Reasons Why You Should Start Creating in Your Garage

Walt Disney’s first advertisement

I started working on that (animated short) in the garage
while I was still working for the film studio.  

Great Beginnings Start in the Garage

Walt Disney started creating his animated shorts in his garage while he still had a day job.

The world was forever changed because of his unwavering commitment to bring his ideas to life.

You dream about changing the world for good.  And yet you aren’t making any headway on your master plan.

You have this secret hope that you might receive a FedEx package with an invitation inside that reads,

You are cordially invited to begin doing the work of your dreams;
Please report to duty on Monday morning.

Come on?

Instead of waiting for that mythical invitation to pursue your life’s passion,
you should start working in the garage today.

It is the best hope you have.

How am I so sure? 

This summer my family and I were in San Francisco and we visited the Walt Disney Family Museum (Read more on the museum).

Listen to the podcast interview.

On the wall there was one quote that lured me to quickly write it down.

I started working on that …..in the garage.

In the early 1920’s Walt Disney was working in Los Angeles, CA for a film studio.

  • His name was not yet in neon lights.
  • His dreams had not yet been realized.
  • While he still had a day job.
  • While he was putting food on the table.
  • While he was a freelancer trading hours for a day’s wage.
  • He was secretly working in the garage on his best stuff.

Walt Disney altered American family history because he started tinkering in the garage.

I think you should start altering the trajectory of your future by creating in your garage.

Why your best work is born in the garage?

1) No one is watching.

That’s right.  No one is over your shoulder watching you work asking if you are done yet.  You have the opportunity to work on your craft without anyone else witnessing your creation.

2) There is no pressure.

You don’t have a deadline.  You are free of obligation to deliver a finished work.  There are no customers tapping their toes waiting on your final product.

3) Your livelihood does not count on it.

When decoupling your livelihood from your craft there is an immense amount of pressure relieved.  So what if you mess it up?  So what if it sucks?
So what if you start over 52 times?

Paying your mortgage is not tied to the result.

4) You will never have more passion than you do right now.

Never again will you be so unadulterated in your view of this project.

The purity of your passion is like that of a Hawaiian black sand beach
just after a volcano erupted virgin lava onto her shore.

Yep that damn sexy.

Think of the welled up desire that you have to pour out onto the paper, the sculpture, the wood, or the guitar strings.

When else will you possess this poetic a prose?

5) The rent is cheap

The garage looks pretty affordable compared to a two-year lease for an office.  Pause and appreciate the luxury of being nimble, thrifty and dynamic.

Once you hire a bunch of people and start spending all of your time meeting with attorneys and accountants everything changes.

Bonus advice: You already have a Thing

A good friend advised me that the best time to start working on your next thing is right now while you have a thing.   

Isn’t that great advice?

The garage is perfect. 

The garage is the perfect figurative or physical place for you to start honing your craft.

Where would the world be if Walt Disney had not started tinkering with animation in his garage?

Where will we be if you don’t start in your garage?

Other compelling nudges for you to start:

Everyone is waiting on you.

Start doing the job you wish you had.

Do you feel like you are playing for the farm team?

What do you think you have to loose?

5 Reasons Why You Should Start Creating in Your Garage (Like Walt Disney)?

“I started working on that (animated short) in the garage
while I was still working for the film studio.” Walt Disney  

Great Beginnings Start in the Garage

Walt Disney started creating his animated shorts in his garage while he still had a day job.

The world was forever changed because of his unwavering commitment to bring his ideas to life.

You dream about changing the world for good.  And yet you aren’t making any headway on your master plan.

You have this secret hope that you might receive a FedEx package with an invitation inside that reads,

You are cordially invited to begin doing the work of your dreams;
Please report to duty on Monday morning.

Come on?

Instead of waiting for that mythical invitation to pursue your life’s passion,
you should start working in the garage today.

It is the best hope you have.

How am I so sure? 

This summer my family and I were in San Francisco and we visited the Walt Disney Family Museum (Read more on the museum).

Listen to the podcast interview.

On the wall there was one quote that lured me to quickly write it down.

I started working on that …..in the garage.

In the early 1920’s Walt Disney was working in Los Angeles, CA for a film studio.

  • His name was not yet in neon lights.
  • His dreams had not yet been realized.
  • While he still had a day job.
  • While he was putting food on the table.
  • While he was a freelancer trading hours for a day’s wage.
  • He was secretly working in the garage on his best stuff.

Walt Disney altered American family history because he started tinkering in the garage.

I think you should start altering the trajectory of your future by creating in your garage.

Why your best work is born in the garage?

1) No one is watching.

That’s right.  No one is over your shoulder watching you work asking if you are done yet.  You have the opportunity to work on your craft without anyone else witnessing your creation.

2) There is no pressure.

You don’t have a deadline.  You are free of obligation to deliver a finished work.  There are no customers tapping their toes waiting on your final product.

3) Your livelihood does not count on it.

When decoupling your livelihood from your craft there is an immense amount of pressure relieved.  So what if you mess it up?  So what if it sucks?
So what if you start over 52 times?

Paying your mortgage is not tied to the result.

4) You will never have more passion than you do right now.

Never again will you be so unadulterated in your view of this project.

The purity of your passion is like that of a Hawaiian black sand beach
just after a volcano erupted virgin lava onto her shore.

Yep that damn sexy.

Think of the welled up desire that you have to pour out onto the paper, the sculpture, the wood, or the guitar strings.

When else will you possess this poetic a prose?

5) The rent is cheap

The garage looks pretty affordable compared to a two-year lease for an office.  Pause and appreciate the luxury of being nimble, thrifty and dynamic.

Once you hire a bunch of people and start spending all of your time meeting with attorneys and accountants everything changes.

Bonus advice: You already have a Thing

A good friend advised me that the best time to start working on your next thing is right now while you have a thing.   

Isn’t that great advice?

The garage is perfect. 

The garage is the perfect figurative or physical place for you to start honing your craft.

Where would the world be if Walt Disney had not started tinkering with animation in his garage?

Where will we be if you don’t start in your garage?

Other compelling nudges for you to start:

Everyone is waiting on you.

Start doing the job you wish you had.

Do you feel like you are playing for the farm team?

What do you think you have to loose?

The How of Your Life is the Essence of your Special Sauce.

What you accomplish is less important than how you accomplish it.

Our Reward System is a Mess.

In our world today, we are rewarded and revered for What we accomplish.  But I believe the world has it all wrong.

Follow me as we scrutinize our lonely metric of empire building, wealth generation and conquest oriented success system.

The What of your life is easy to size-up.

  • You built a consulting practice from scratch.
  • You stood up a software company.
  • You made partner in your firm.
  • Your book sold a gazillion copies.
  • You started a non-profit for orphans in Swaziland.
  • You run a Fortune 1000 company.

But How you went about your What is only evaluated after you are gone.

If you are one of the greats, the How of your life will be detailed in a PBS documentary or New York Times best seller.

Most of us will not be personified in film and print after we are gone.

What will the lasting effect of your How be?

North Korea and the United States both maintain peace in their countries.

How this is accomplished evokes condemnation and admiration.

Donald Trump and Walt Disney both generate(d) a lot of wealth and were/are considered massively successful, the What of their life.

Which will change history for good?

Who would you follow?

Will The Apprentice reruns be played throughout every home in America fifty years from now?

A forefront example is Steve Jobs.

His What was on the cover of magazines affirming our beliefs about greatness and genius.

And now that he is gone, the How of his life is being unpacked.

How he erected the tower of Apple was not always as worthy of admiration.

Let me suggest to you, What you accomplish fails in comparison to how you accomplish it.

How you navigate life, family, and work is more important than what you accomplish.

Your How is difficult to copy, reproduce or fabricate.

Your How is actually your competitive differentiation, your special sauce, your art.

When you fuse What and How together it’s like the joining of atomic particles.

You engage a mushroom cloud of power, influence and goodness.  

Disregarding one or the other will leave you in want eventually.

Focus on your How today.

Your What will be of greater value if you focus on How.

Navigate a life worth living

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