A Long Monday (plus a Reading List!) -- Jun. 21, 2010
Today's homework:
- Look into Canadian Media Fund.
- Apply to the two things I needed to apply for.
- Write the marketing plan (finally!).
- Deal with invite codes.
- Chat with BNOTIONS about the remainder of this project.
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Done and done'd!
Not much to say about the tasks. I spent 3.5 hours developing and researching 3.5 pages of plans. I'm more or less ready to go on autopilot for the next couple of days, knocking these out of the park!
What I do have to talk about, though, are two awesome pieces of writing I found that I figured I'd muse on.
First up, Hugh MacLeod's "four big moments of writing a book." Have any of you read this yet? 'Cuz it's not just about writing a book. It's about shipping anything you'll ever do.
Hugh writes about the four major milestones he sees in the process, none of which involve actually completing the product.
First, the idea. I assume that if you're starting a fricking company, you'd better have already experienced this.
Next up is "landing the publishing deal." Many people assume this to be finding external funding. It doesn't have to be. Fund it yourself, find a partner, get your letter of intent... just get that one barrier out of the way that will enable you to start work.
The next two are where things get interesting. "Releasing the book" is step 3, which is shipping itself. We started going through that last Wednesday, with our live demo on a panel and subsequent launch party. We're continuing to go through that this week, as we prep materials and send out emails to everyone who's ever even halfway-hinted that they wanted to hear about YouPhonics. Ship, and don't ship quietly (unless that's your strategy).
Finally, the last big moment is "the moment you realize that your book isn't going to be shit, after all." This is the part that spoke to me. What matters isn't software completion. What matters, on a visceral level, isn't some buzzword (useful as it may be) like product/market fit. What really matters is: are you getting feedback that shows that you accomplished your goal?
Go read Hugh's post. Now. It'll make you a better person.
Second, and with a much shorter commentary (I hope), is Aaron Stannard's "The Myth of the Single-Person Startup." In it, he writes about how, as he holed himself off, his startup wasn't able to convert the potential energy around him (relationships, friends' expertise) into kinetic energy (forward motion), and instead ended up failing to reach his goals.
The two things I can say here:
- Go listen to The Beatles' "With A Little Help From My Friends."
- Go read Law 18 in Robert Greene's 48 Laws of Power.
Seriously. Whenever I get into protectionist mode, those two usually help bust me out.
Anyway, that's it for now. Tune in tomorrow, when emails make me either so numb I'm unable to write or so talkative I write even more stream-of-consciousness than I already do!
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Lessons learned:
- Marketing plans can take a while. But they're so necessary before you take action.
- Reading is nice.
- I love my team!
Tomorrow's homework:
- Deal with what remains of today's email.
- Do all ASAP actions from the Marketing Plan (includes 39 emails, plus-plus!).
- Start working on Canadian Media Fund funding application.
- Make changes to Pitch Deck so's I'm ready for Wednesday's meeting!
NOTHING ELSE MATTERS!
