Stop planning and start building
It’s all too easy to continuously procrastinate on projects or tasks and it is often the case that days or even weeks later we are still in the “planning phase”.
Stop planning and just start building! Do you have a project you have been thinking and planning for far too long?
Just get started
How do I get started you ask?
Easy. You’ve already done the planning- now all you need to do is execute. Build, create and have a positive impact on people. Isn’t it exciting?
Create a strict deadline and make it public
Publicly announce (on Twitter/ other social media platforms, to people you know…) when you will be launching. This adds a pressure to not disappoint your audience, friends or others.
Start building your MVP
What is a MVP you ask? A MVP is a minimum viable product, meaning it is the simplest version of your product that can be launched. As Eric Ries said, “As you consider building your own minimum viable product, let this simple rule suffice: remove any feature, process, or effort that does not contribute directly to the learning you seek.” Make your MVP completely minimal and bare-bones, treating it almost as a test to gauge interest.
A premature launch is a good launch
You should never wait until your product is perfect before you launch. As Reid Hoffman famously said, “If you are not embarrassed by the first version of your product, you’ve launched too late”. You must understand that the sooner you launch your product, the sooner you can start getting users. Instead of feeling ashamed for launching an imperfect product, look at yourself and think about how incredible it is that you were one of the few people who actually launched their product! If you launched your product you succeeded! But the MVP is only the first step…
Consider the goal and direction of your product
Once you have launched your product, take some time to plan! Ironic, right? Once you have shipped your product, spending some time to reorient yourself can be incredibly useful and insightful. Consider what the goal of your product is: is it to learn, to have a positive impact on people or to make money? Evaluate your product and ask yourself if you have already achieved what you wanted to achieve. Ask others for their opinions on your product. As long as your product provides some value to a select group of people, it is successful!
Never stop building
Continue to build, improve and grow your product. Grow your audience, maximise the value you provide and never feel ashamed for having an imperfect product!
Congratulations, you just created a successful product!
Stop reading articles on how to create a successful product, stop endlessly scrolling through Twitter searching for motivation and just start building! Get started: not in a few days or hours. I mean right now. Close all your tabs and windows that are not going to help you build your product. Close that Twitter window! Put on your headphones, drink some water, put away your phone and do whatever it takes to get into the zone to start building.
Stop planning and start building!
