5 step guide to starting a passion project
Casey Chung, CPA, PCC
Helping accountants progress in their careers and lives | Professional Certified Coach | Life & Career Coach for CPAs
Have you been itching to start a new project? Hobby? Class? Course?
What is really holding you back?
I've been writing in this newsletter for over 5 months now.
Since starting Casey's Corner, many people have told me that they wanted to start a newsletter/blog/passion project as well.
They ask: "How did you get started?"
I answer: "Just do it."
Life is too short to put your interests and ambitions on hold.
Don't let fears of failure, looking silly, or judgement get in the way.
Don't do what I did. I procrastinated in starting my newsletter for over 2 years. I talked about it often, but I was often too scared or nervous to put something out there.
These are all limiting beliefs that held me back from starting. To bust these limiting beliefs, we have to just take action.
You have to start somewhere.
Here are 5 steps I took to started:
1.Set a goal
My goal was simple.
2. Make a list of tasks
Start to get clear on what your task actually entails.
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Here were mine:
3. Complete the first MILESTONE task (get the momentum going)
The first real milestone for me was writing the article. That is what gave me my first boost of momentum. Writing the piece was a great exercise for me to learn to articulate my story in words. It checked off my box of "improving my writing".
BUT, Milestone 1 did not check of the box of "sharing ideas with others". I needed to continue to progress.
4. Do it for at LEAST 30 days straight and define a weekly goal
Do you ever start a project and then quickly lose interest?
I'll be honest, I wrote my first article 2 months before sharing it. I procrastinated. I feared judgement. I was scared.
Milestone 2 was to share it online (I wish I did this right away, I lost momentum).
After the first one, I committed to I write in my newsletter each week for a month. This started to develop a habit. I got faster at coming up with ideas. I became more bold in my language.
I am still learning. My writing is not perfect. I'll still make typos. You don't have to be perfect.
Consistency and repetition wins in the long run. It gives us opportunities to course correct and improve on our skills.
5. Get someone to hold you accountable
You don't need to do this alone! Build a team / network of support. I made my commitment simple. I publicly shared that I would be doing 1 article a week. This helped me stay on track. Once a week. It can't be that hard right?
Ask a friend/family member to give you feedback and have them be a part of the journey!
Do you have a project on the go and want an accountability buddy? Send me a message and I can link you up with another creator!
Thanks for reading this week's article!
I am also offering free clarity calls to any of my subscribers who are interested in getting some help / advice on their projects or careers. DM me if you are interested or email me at [email protected].