Fix v2

--> this strategy might help you get things done too

I don’t know about you, but I’m a much better thinker and planner than a doer.

Actually, I do know about you - at least a little bit.

Most people who get these emails are in “expert” professions where they use their brains and experience to solve client problems. Either directly as a consultant, more indirectly as a coach, or through products they create.

And my experience is that people who are drawn to these type of expert roles (like me) tend to enjoy and be good at the thinking aspects of the work. And we like to do the best job possible.

There’s a lot of upside to that.

But the downside is that we can take an age to get things done. We spend so much time researching the best way to do something that by the time we’ve done it, it’s too late.

Recently I set myself the task of updating my welcome sequence when people first join my email list.

I know a lot about email welcome sequences. I’ve created a ton of training on it.

But still…rather than just writing the sequence my first reaction was to research.

“Let me check out what others advise about welcome sequences too…and then I should sign up for a bunch and see what they do and learn from that”.

All good stuff. All will help me create the best welcome sequence ever.

Eventually.

And there’s a big risk that by the time I’ve done that research I’ll have lost momentum. I’ll get fixated on something else that seems more important.

I’ll shelve the welcome sequence update.

And then when I come back to it I’ll start the research all over again to make sure I have the latest and best information.

This is not a good idea to say the least. It’s a recipe for filling my head with a lot of brilliant things that never get used.

I’ve known my brain works like this for a long time but it’s a difficult cycle to get out of. I feel so uncomfortable if I think there’s a better way to do something than the one I’m using.

So recently I’ve started using what I call a “fix v2” strategy.

It’s nothing earth-shattering, but psychologically it works for me.

Instead of not researching (which would be impossible) - I delay it.

I tell myself I’ll produce v1 now using what I know now. And remind myself that what I know now is more than 90% of people anyway.

Then after I’ve implemented v1 I’ll do the research. And it’ll be better because I’ll usually have real-world feedback to go on too.

So I’ll fix v2.

in truth, sometimes I haven’t fixed v2.

v1 has been good enough and I’ve just left it at that.

But if I thought in advance that I’d be leaving it at v1 without all the best practice research and deep thinking I’d never do it. I have to promise myself I’ll fix v2 to be comfortable enough to release a non-optimised v1 quickly.

It sounds weird when I write it. Like I’m some terribly dysfunctional weirdo.

But we’re all dysfunctional weirdos in one way or another.

“Fix v2” is my trick for overcoming my particular dysfunction about the need to do the very best possible version of something.

It might help you too.

- Ian