Writing my own PD book

[Lioness]

Originally Posted by Mounds

To be totally straight with myself, it's a waste to use up my time on all sorts of side projects that will never culminate into something large.

I think I see what you are saying: Even though the side projects are not nearly as profitable as the main agri business, you enjoy doing them, so you do them even though the gain is negligible in comparison. One of my pearls of PD wisdom is do what you love (and become excellent at it) and the money will follow. If you're not in love with the agri business, don't put all your eggs in that basket. As lucrative as it may be now, a) it's not your passion and b) the fickle economy could change the bottom line in the future anyway.

I have a different take on the Sweden story. There was some video someone linked to a while back that illustatred how people are only motivated to a certain extent by money. Once they are financially comfortable, throwing more money at people to get them to do more work, or harder work is ineffective. Yet they will work much harder for autonomy and a sense of ownership, control and enjoyment of their job. I think the Swedish story may be a totally different animal. When large sums of money was offered to the hold-outs, they were probably even more convinced that the chem waste warehouse was truly dangerous and they were essentially being paid off to risk their health. I'm not so sure I would take that money. I do agree, though, that doing a charitable deed that really helps someone can feel 10X better than being paid to do it.

How many articles could I have churned out with all that typing? The difference is I don't do this for cash. I do it because I enjoy the socializing, I enjoy making people laugh and I enjoy providing some insights. If I did it soley for monetary gain, I'd be long gone

If you were paid to write exactly the same kind of material you post here, you would not turn down the cash. Writing what other people will pay you to write is not as enjoyabie. So the idea is to become good enough at providing free value, that you eventually get paid for doing exactly what you want to do. If you can turn your hobby into a business, you'll never "work" another day in your life.

[Mounds]

I actually love my ag business. I like it more than any of my side gigs, with the possible exception of framing insects. The big thing for me is getting paid. I love it. I'm like a guy who is addicted to the lottery, spending all his money on the possibility of making more money. Difference is that I'm spending a lot of my spare time on the possibility of making more money. The smart thing to do would be to drop all the side gigs and focuc 100% on my ag business. I'm not even near critical mass in that department yet. No website, no sales calls, nadda. I happen to be a lucky bastard because people are tracking me down in order to buy my product. Just writing this, I know exactly what I have to do:

1. Eliminate the addiction to quick rewards. The reason I do all these things on the side (scheme, ect.) is because I want immediate gratification. Time to find it elsewhere.

2. Hit critical mass with my ag business. More marketing, more sales calls, more website.

This is the interesting thing about working on this PD book. You hit on a lot of things that are currently not working so well. Since the book is about what to do about it, your more inclined to solve it on the spot. This is a very handy exercise!

-Tim

[Lioness]

Well, it sounds llike your sittin pretty with your ag biz then. The only thing I'd say is to program a time limit into your google thingy for your scheming projects. Creating the website should be fun!

[Mounds]

I'm actually thinking of outsourcing the website, at least the initial design. I have zero patience for web design If anyone works with Website Tonight, drop me a PM.

As for the scheming, I'll probably give it the heave-ho altogether. What I will do is replace that scheming time with positive activites. Ever heard the expression, "Idle hands"? I've got an idle mind that has to stay occupied. I'm capable of great things and if I don't direct myself at something worth doing, then I focus on things that aren't worth doing. I've actually struggled with this since I can remember. I have a hard time distinguishing what is relevant and what is not.
Writing a PD book for myself is giving me a great deal of insight into what is relevant. As it stands now, side occupations are irrelevant. Here's what so far appears relevant:

-exercise
-good food
-offline social interactions
-building my ag business
-enjoying my hobby and no longer seeing it as a business oppurtunity
-maintaining a great marriage
-keeping up on current events
-travelling the US on collecting trips
-adventure (ties into the one above)

I gotta say guys, this is a super exercise.

-Tim

[James81]

Oh, you're not gonna do a wordpress site?

[Mounds]

Not for my ag business, no. I'd registered the domain and picked up a couple years of Website Tonight over six months ago, with the idea of having it up and running now. Unfortunately, I can't stand designing the webpage.

I was thinking a Wordpress site for an eventual financial coaching webstie. I might still do that eventually, we'll see where the PD book leads me