The 3 Reasons Why Founders Struggle with Keeping Focus
Goals help define success and keep track of progress.
They represent the bright future.
How come that many founders struggle to keep the focus clear and cannot think a few steps
ahead before making decisions?
Clarity can be a big pain point when running a start-up.
Keeping score and attention on the right things can be challenging.
Many founders say:
“I got my tasks in my calendar (or another app). That’s enough for me.”
Goals often get dropped off in a document or a piece of paper that will not be looked at ever
again.
Do not get me wrong. Having your tasks clear in your calendar is super essential, but this
can cause you to get lost in the little tasks, like adjusting the website for hours or making the
wrong questions in user interviews repeatedly of reviewing answers.
That shows us the first reason why we forget our goals.
REASON 1: You confuse tasks with goals.
Goals guide you to focus on the bigger picture and the things that work instead of getting
yourself lost in the small things that don’t impact the actual progress.
I also hear founders say:
“I don’t need to look at my goals. I have them all in my mind.”
Considering that we have around 6000 thoughts EVERY day, I don’t quite believe that
statement.
This leads us to the second reason why goals fall out of memory quicker than we think.
REASON 2: Out of sight is out of mind.
If you have a photographic memory, you can skip this part.
But for most of us, this statement is compelling to implement.
If you do not look at your goals, at least DAILY, are you focused on them?
Reaching big goals requires a lot of commitment, which start with keeping the goal as
straightforward as possible in your head.
If you want more proof, here is the science behind it.
The Forgetting Curve is a real thing and does not avoid start-up founders.
Scientists found out that after 24h of reading something, you forget 50% of it.
Ouch. That hears every visionary founder’s feelings.
I know it sounds unbelievable, and we cannot possibly be so bad a remembering stuff.
Let’s look at the upside.
Most founders don’t yet know about this.
Therefore, you can get yourself a massive advantage by simple looking at your goals after
you wake up or when you go to bed.
It is so simple.
Last but not least…
REASON 3: You fear failing to achieve a goal.
This phenomenon is kind of hushed up in the start-up community.
And not because nobody does it. It is because nobody wants to admit it.
When you set a goal, you define success.
By that, you automatically define failure, too.
There is no way around it.
I know it sounds like very fluffy advice, but you have to start getting into the mindset of:
There is no failure, only feedback. – Robert Allen
At Y-Combinator, they say that you need to find out WHY, asap, every time you find out that
you missed a goal.
This is the ultimate advantage.
While you are looking for solutions to improve your business, founders without clear goals
DO NOT EVEN KNOW that their business is dying.
In conclusion, you should fear unclarity more than feedback.
Case Study From Airbnb
When the founders of Airbnb, Brian and Joe, started, they took a paper and wrote down their
goal as a key metric.
Then they put up copies of it on the wall, all over the office.
They wanted to make sure their goals were the only thing they were thinking, talking about
and the only thing they are working on.
They understood that there is very little time to waste as founders.
In EverGoal, you can set your goals super easily and read/listen to them every morning.
It is a fun and super effective way to start your day as a start-up founder.
If that sounds like something, you would like. Get early access here.
As always.
Thank you for focusing. 😊
