Creating my Future

July 29, 2020

i discovered indiehackers and it’s inspired me to be a bit more intentional about my goal-setting. here goes.

(this document is a work-in-progress.)

getting to know myself

what have i enjoyed working on in the past?

• designing for interesting/intriguing/compelling businesses, founders, people.
• working quickly and intuitively.
• quick feedback loops

what drives me insane?

• bullshit hullabaloo marketing garbage.
• indecisiveness
• arguments over subjective taste
• too much planning
• working in inefficient or disjointed teams

what do i never get bored of doing?

• jumping into new rabbit holes. i love learning about a new type of business or a new technology or philosophy or anything. i want to be around all of it. no holds barred.

what parts of running a business scare me or worry me? what parts excite me?

• having control over the way i project manage is exciting.
• inability to get clients scares the shit out of me. where do i find them? how do i do amazing work for them?

what’s my biggest weakness?

• as a designer, i’m not great at iterating until heaven freezes over. i like to get the idea, land it, and ship it. many designers never want to ship because it’s never perfect.
• inability to get clients / work in public. nobody has seen my portfolio. nobody knows about what i do. i get asked all the time what i do for a living by people who have known me for years. how?

how much money do i want to make?

• my goal is to make my first $1,000, and do that monthly multiple times in a row. this would be insanely impactful on my life.

what impact do i like to make?

• working with bryce on his short radio show was awesome because, in such little time, it enabled him to feel legitimate and proud of the work he was doing. the music and the radio show alone weren’t enough—having the designed legitimacy meant the world to him. i love making that impact.
  • if i could make that impact for startups or people with side businesses, i would feel amazing.

goal-setting

what does success look like to me? in very specific terms, what do i want to achieve?

Imagine a small row boat. Your goals are like the rudder on the boat. They set the direction and determine where you go. If you commit to one goal, then the rudder stays put and you continue moving forward. If you flip-flop between goals, then the rudder moves all around and it is easy to find yourself rowing in circles.

However, there is another part of the boat that is even more important than the rudder: The oars. If the rudder is your goal, then the oars are your process for achieving it. While the rudder determines your direction, it is the oars that determine your progress.

(from this by this guy)

ideas

• sell all explores, not just the final logo
• package up already complete brand identities by snagging domain names from one word domains and then building a logo and some colors with it