As you develop knowledge and skill, you find and are presented with more and more opportunities. As I’m sure you know, there is no shortage of ways to spend your time!
It can be overwhelming or paralyzing trying to determine where to invest your most precious of resources: time.
At this point, I really only ask myself two questions:
- Am I excited about this?
- Will I do this well?
Mark Manson has a classic article called “Fuck Yes or No” that is more or less my first filter. Is this something I’m excited about? If I’m not excited about it, I’m not going to be committed and I won’t do it well.
“Doing it well” comes down to excitement and willingness to put in the work. I’ll often start down a path knowing that I have a knowledge or skills gap to do it well now, but if I’m excited about it, I know that I’ll do the work necessary to fill that gap.
Doing it well also comes down to whether or not I’ll truly dedicate the time necessary. If I know I can’t carve out the time necessary to do it justice, why dedicate any time at all and take on the opportunity cost from my other projects?
I want my brand to stand for quality. And if I can’t do the work well, it will reflect poorly on my brand and diminish its value. I want to create high expectations and trust in my work.
What is your filter?