I reached out to a few friends to discuss changes to this very website.  The format of this site has been the same for many years, and it’s overdue for some updates.  I solicited ideas and one of them wrote back a simple question.

What is the goal?

“I can come up with some ideas, but it all depends on what your goals for the site are?  What do you want to accomplish through KirbyHasseman.com?”

This is exactly the right question.  So why did I find myself frustrated with it?  I just wanted amazing ideas to upgrade my website!

I think there were two reasons for my internal frustration.

First, it put me on the spot.  I needed to really “say out loud” what I wanted to accomplish.  This puts me on the hook.  What if it doesn’t work?  Second, it meant that I had to type this out in an email.  I didn’t have all day!  This means the goal needed to be something I could state simply…and quickly.  If my goal was all over the place, this email would be long and confusing.  I needed to be able to explain it to a 12-year-old.

So…was my goal straightforward?  Was it something I could explain?

It’s strange how often entrepreneurs do this.  We are so hell-bent on making progress, we rush in and “do something” before we have decided exactly what we want to accomplish.

By simply asking “what is the goal?” my friend forced me to get real about what change I hoped to create.  It forced me to clarify my message a bit.  This will be incredibly helpful moving forward.

So before you run off into your next project, ask this simple question.  What is the goal?  And can you explain it to a 12-year-old?  If not, you might need to get back to work to refine it.

Kirby Hasseman is the CEO of Hasseman Marketing.  Make sure you never miss an update.  Get on this HMC VIP email list.    Sign up to be an HMC VIP here.