The most unsettling thing about always working on projects the mountain of great ideas and unfinished work. The infinite pile of potential work creates stress. Or at least it does for me.
Sometimes I wonder, “Am I working on the right thing?”
I realize that is only nerves and resistance trying to talk me out of what I’m working on. But it’s still a real pain in the backside ya know?
Here is how I handle it… I work on one project at a time.
That feels too simple right? Work on one project at a time. So what?
The more complex explanation of my system is I tell myself “I’m working on this project right now. When I’m done with this project I can figure out the next project.” It’s a small reframe, but a very useful one.
This way of working allows me to focus my energy on a single thing and know that there is a completion point for it. Knowing that there is a finish line is useful. A forever march is daunting. An end point feels attainable, even if it is far away.
Also, I can put more of my best energy into a project if it is the only project I’m working on. That point is underrated. Often times I get a lot more finished because I am single minded in my pursuit of finishing.
Some of you reading this might do the opposite. You like to run multiple projects at the same time. I’m not going to convince you to focus on a single project until it’s done. In my experience this kind of focus is almost a personality trait. So, for me it’s not worth trying to convince you to follow my system of running one project at a time to completion. That would only upset you.
So the purpose of this article is not to persuade or convince that this is the best method for anyone other than myself. I’m just here to explain what I do and how I do it.
What experience taught me is everyone has their own approach and this is mine.
Two big benefits of doing ONE THING
For me the power in this approach is it gives me two huge benefits - empty space and completed work. Most of my systems and processes for making things tend to revolve around those benefits.
I need empty space to create. A clean sheet of paper is more useful than a todo list full of distractions. Fewer distractions are better for me.
The completed work aspect of this derives from my need to achieve. You can’t win or achieve without finishing a project (most of the time). Also my brain has a bit of the Final Fantasy battle victory music vibe when I get a project done. So there is a reward in that for me.
What is remarkable is how far you can get in life by removing distractions and completing your work. A person who does that as a system is unstoppable. I am not as systematic about this as I could be, but I still see the benefit.
On this journey of hyper-creativity and productivity, keeping my daily creative activities in the right place requires me to constantly remove distractions and complete projects. Over time that creates a powerful feedback loop of momentum. Which leads me to seek more empty space and complete more projects. Round and round it goes.
Size Doesn’t Matter.
One bit that is worth noting is a project can be anything. Not all projects are the same size. In some cases a project is just an article for the newsletter or a podcast episode. In other cases it’s building a large software program or writing a book.
Size doesn’t matter when picking projects. I don’t believe big projects are better than small projects. There are times where I need a very large project to suck me in and other times I need some small stuff to keep me going. It makes no difference so long as I’m only working on one project.
What I’ve found is there is a rhythm to this that develops over time. The entire process has a musical quality about it. And like music, there is only one song playing at a time.
If you find yourself working on a project, but have FOMO for something else… consider treating yourself to the glorious luxury of working on one project at a time. It might help.
-Brian
One Project At A Time
This is a good reminder for those of us with so many ideas juggling for projects, I feel like it’s a discipline thing for me and I agree this is really helpful!