A client shared this about a recent learning binge:
“Did I NEED to [learn it] right at that moment? No. But it had been on my ‘todo list’ for a few weeks and I craved it last night like ice cream….”
I chuckled when I got their text. Totally captures how you can turn to learning to self-soothe sometimes…ok more than sometimes.
There are many skills you will need to learn.
It will feel like there is more you don’t know than you do know. Now, you’ll have moments when you don’t have a clue. Uneasiness will settle over you like a gray, rainy day…and trigger your anxiety.
You’ll try to learn everything you can.
Being a resourceful, nimble entrepreneur, you know exactly what to do. You’ll turn to your resources like Google, ChatGPT, Amazon, and every.online.course.
If you’re a recovering perfectionist like me, you’ll try to learn everything you possibly can so you don’t do the wrong thing.
2, 4, 6 or more hours later, you finally come up for air.
This is a problem.
You’ll trick yourself into believing you’re being productive.
It’s like when you turn on Netflix. You intend to relax by watching one episode of your go to show. It feels good for the first and maybe the second episode. But 4 episodes later…not so much.
You’re learning as a way to self-soothe…instead of building your business.
My clients have fallen into learning marathons believing it’ll help them figure out the next step. In reality, they already knew the answer. Instead, they were avoiding making a mistake.
The more time you give to learning is time you’re avoiding making a mistake. It’s less time you’re actually working on your business.
Working on your business means things like:
So what do you do instead?
Switch from learning marathons to time-limited learning sprints.
This reminds me of when I used to binge on sugar all the time. Anything chocolate was my go to. It got so bad I developed insulin resistance. Not good, to say the least.
I adopted intermittent fasting to help me restore my insulin sensitivity. In case you aren’t familiar with Intermittent fasting, it is a time-restricted approach to eating. You eat for 8 to 12 hours during the day and fast the remaining hours. You eat high quality nutritious foods during your eating periods.
I used this concept to turn my learning marathons into focused learning sprints, where I make sure it’s high-quality and super focused learning.
Tie your learning to specific business goals.
As my friend and fellow coach Stephanie said, she dives into a learning sprint when she has four types of questions:
That’s a good guide.
What if you don’t want to restrict your learning?
You might be thinking: “But I love learning, I don’t want to limit myself!” No, you shouldn’t stop learning. But, be real with yourself: can you tie the learning to a short or long term business goal?
If you can honestly say yes, then great! Keep going. If not, then that topic may be more for personal time than the time you spend on your business.
Use your learning sprints to drive your business forward.
Instead of falling into learning marathons to self-soothe, use a time-restricted approach to focus on the topics that will drive your business forward.
I’ve created this handy assessment to help you stay on track with your learning sprints.
Next Up Common Mistake #5
Click here to read how I unpack why using a tried and true corporate survival strategy won’t get you very far.
To your success,
Pierre
Certified Professional Coach
Entrepreneurship comes with bumps—some you can’t avoid, but a lot you can.
I put together a short guide: The 5 Common Mistakes Business Creators Make (and how to avoid them).
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