Steve McCready

I wanted to let you know that I'm taking a break from writing so this will probably be the last you see of me in your inbox for a while. Nothing major, I'm just putting some things on pause while I zoom out to 30,000 feet and start thinking about my business goals for the next year. I appreciate you giving me space in your inbox this year and hope you've gotten some value from my emails! As a farewell, I’ll leave you with one of my favorite pieces of music, from ambient musician Brian Eno:...

“Measure twice, cut once” is guidance you’ve probably heard if you’ve done any sort of woodworking or carpentry. While it’s not necessarily as fast to measure twice, it’s a worthwhile investment of time and energy: you can’t ‘un-cut’ wood. If you’re sketching with a pencil, on the other hand, you can erase ... so you can approach the sketching in a more free-form and spontaneous way. In other words, some decisions are more reversible than others. Allocate your energy accordingly. Keep moving...

Your product or service is for a certain group of people. But, who isn’t it for? It’s worth figuring out so you (and they) don’t waste time and energy on something that’s never going to be a good fit. As a bonus, it’ll also help you get clearer on who it is for. Keep moving forward, -Steve

We all have routines we follow. You might notice that some of yours are more resilient than others. Two questions for you: 1) What’s different about the resilient ones, when compared to the less resilient ones? 2) How can you use that information to strengthen the routines that are fragile, but important? Keep moving forward, -Steve

“It is the responsibility of leadership to work intelligently with what is given, and not waste time fantasizing about a world of flawless people and perfect choices.” - Marcus Aurelius A little blunt, yes … but accurate. (Also easier said than done, but worth working towards.) Keep moving forward, -Steve

What happens when you change the question of “what should I do?” to “what can I do?”Keep moving forward (because you can, not because you should), -Steve

The more you do a thing, the more automatic it becomes. Depending on what it is, of course, that could be good or bad. So, practice doesn’t necessarily make perfect.Keep moving forward, -Steve

Comparison is a tricky thing. All too often, it’s used in a negative way: as a weapon against others … or against ourselves. That said, it can inspire us to pursue something bigger. and it can help us in measuring progress. Another case where it’s less about the tool and more about how you use it. How do you use comparison in your life? In your business? Keep moving forward, -Steve

If you aren’t willing to look at your mistakes, you’re more likely to repeat them. Here’s another layer: If you’re unwilling to share your mistakes with others, you’re really limited in your ability to get help. We all make mistakes. We all struggle. We all fall down. We all fail. It doesn’t make you a failure. It makes you a human. Keep being human, -Steve