You need a fishbowl!
For quite some time now I’m working on establishing a small new enterprise. This time I’m on my own, no co-founders. And I have struggled a lot (still struggling) with keeping myself motivated, getting things done, and a lot of times I feel paralyzed or inefficient. I was wondering why it is happening so much to me lately. I already have experience, since I have led for 3 years the start-up that I have co-founded. Furthermore, it is a tech consultancy which is an area that I have a lot of know-how. I feel so many times paralyzed and unable to progress. Let’s also add the fact that I’m lucky enough to work for myself without having the need to provide for myself financially in the short term i.e. a normal life, let’s not get wild. Many positive sides but still proceeding with difficulty and most of the time feeling like I will not make it.
One morning I was watching the stories of ”Banana Ditar” from Megi Kociaj and she recommended listening to Ted Talk from Barry Shwartz “The paradox of choice”. It sounded very intriguing, so I jumped immediately into watching it. First, I will make a recap for everyone who hasn’t seen the video. Just wait a little…the dots will connect.
He starts with Individual Freedom and explains that the way to maximize freedom is to maximize choice. If we compare the possibilities we had years before with now, from choosing a biscuit, a dress, a postcard or anything with the recent technology developments the possibilities of choice are endless. That has some very good things related to it, but I’m not talking about the good things here. In Albania, we have a say “the pear has its tail back” i.e that even a good thing can have its bad side. To be more concrete on the tail Barry is talking about let’s look a bit on the study conducted in America regarding voluntary retirement plans. Almost 1 million employees and about 2000 workplaces and by providing 50 retirements funds options to choose from resulted in 10% fewer people participating compared to if you were offered 5 election funds. These people could not make up their mind and make such an important decision on their pension fund, in which the employer gives money. What we do notice is the paralysis effect on people, who do not make any choice with the increasing number of choices.
A light bulb went on in my head. The fact that I’m feeling more scared, insecure, paralyzed than before is that this time I am 100% free to choose everything/everyone on my own, from countless possibilities of choice starting from the logo, colors, services, website, posts, etc. and I’m 100% the only responsible for this enterprise. Put it in short, everything is my choice, the effect of which is paralyzing me often. No other who will tell you that this is off the table. You have to do all the discussions with yourself alone because at the end they are your decisions… which leads to being even more doubtful with myself, raising expectations really high and as a result, easily disappointed with myself.
At the end of his speech Barry proposes a fishbowl, so to say a limitation concept in our life, where the choices are unlimited by making us feel even more lost and miserable. Less is more and more is less makes more and more sense. I smiled to myself and understood that in setting up my new enterprise I haven’t yet created my fishbowl. I’m still wondering in the ocean of unlimited choices, without creating a fishbowl which will keep me sane and going.
OMG, the solo founders are a whole new level for me know. They create something from scratch, get through the paralysis again and again and continue doing it Alone. You keep killing it, I feel you!
A reminder to myself to always create a fishbowl and keep it. You may change it with time, but don’t lose in the endless opportunities offered in the world.
