7 Big Cures For Shiny Object Syndrome

Do you feel distracted? Do you feel paralyzed?

Does your day look like this?

?You know what you need to do, but you really don’t want to do that.

?You go to Social media and start scrolling

?You are looking for something that creates a rush of adrenaline and it takes you out of your current reality, which probably isn’t very good. This high helps you escape for a bit.

?Then you click on the thing that is giving you this great euphoric feeling and you listen to a new webinar, sign up for a new course, buy a new book or register for a workshop.

Basically, anything that makes you forget the stuff you should be doing that you don’t want to do.

This is called (SOS) or “Shiny Object Syndrome”.

Ted Bauer sums up this disease well, "You probably have a vague idea what “Shiny Object Syndrome” is, but we can clarify. It’s a work culture where it’s always about the next thing, and priority walks out the door 744 times a day."

Entrepreneurs are haunted, the most, by SOS because of their rare qualities.

Most entrepreneurial types get bored with routine.

Boredom is an occupational hazard and shows up when we have acquired the mastery necessary to take the business to the next level.

Influencers tend to get restless and need constant stimulation.

This is when they start looking for the “new thing” that will spark feelings of momentary satisfaction.

The steps below will kill the bacteria that is feeding the disease of distraction and fear, once and for all.

How?

1. Your Philosophy. (Doing vs. Don’t Do)

Most people live with a philosophy that new is good and old is bad. For example, if it is popular it is good and if it’s unpopular its bad.

If you flip that thinking you will begin to kill the bacteria that is breeding SOS.

For Instance, most people define what they “DO” as their success. However, being defined by what you “ DON’T DO” is more important.

Subway is a shining example of this. They are the most profitable fast food chain, in the world right now. They only do foot-long sandwiches, the customer has control of the toppings.

They do not offer anything else. They are still the most profitable even though they are closing stores and re-establishing the brand loyalty.

2. Impulse – (Think Twice)

Stop and assess the situation you are in.

Impulse says, “who cares I am doing this now.”

Stop and ask yourself

Does it require all the emotions you are currently feeling?

If not, breathe and slow down.

Then look at it from the outside in not from the inside (from your emotions).

What do you observe?

What are you thinking?

What are you feeling?

The more you do this the more you can stop, re-trace and find the root of this response and intense emotion.

When you can catch this pattern, you can stop reacting to SOS

3. Slow and Steady Wins the Race

Business is not a sprint

It’s not about being the most re-active

Those that “make it big” and really get what they want

They are slow and steady NOT fast and impulsive

It takes time to see how these fast and impulsive decisions were really bad and to see the consequences show up.

These are the bi product of reacting, moving very fast and not taking time to think.

You can get what you want from your business faster by slowing down not speeding up.

4. Pay Attention to The Message That Is Being Repeated in Your “Knower”

Most people hear something once and do it and they say, “I knew it that’s what I need to do…” Like…

Facebook ads

Live Video

YouTube

Write a Book

Podcast

Technology hype

If it’s something that you need to do it will keep coming up in the quiet of your “knower”. You know that still small voice that keeps guiding you. Listen to that.

5. Get Out of The Sea of Khaki Pants – Be the Red Pants

Khaki Pants are dangerous. It is a group of people that keep repeating the same things to each other and use each other as proof that they were right.

“Membership groups” are literally following me around. I have heard it inside social media groups, on podcasts, at conferences, on phone calls, etc.

It takes tremendous discipline for me not to feed into the hype.

I moved away from NYC to get perspective and get

Away from the noise that was distracting me.

I then took all apps off my phone.

I then stopped watching TV every day.

I can focus down on the direction my “knower” is taking me, and I am not distracted by the noise.

6. Mingle Your Authority

Most people belong to one community or join a “movement” and then they allow themselves to be completely influenced by that group only.

If they aren’t fully agreeable to that community then they are isolated from the “popular group” inside the community.

They wonder why they aren’t getting what they want from their own efforts.

They are too busy chasing popularity.

They are constantly distracted and can’t focus.

I see this a lot in the “marketing” communities.

It’s important to not put all of your “outcomes” on one part of the business.

You can have good marketing and low conversions.

You can have good marketing; high conversions but your clients aren’t getting what they want, so now loyalty is low.

It’s important to diversify the authority you listen to get information and start drawing conclusions from patterns of success.

Not only those that “talk” of success.

7. FOCUS on Value

Benjamin Graham talks about, “how in the short term the market will swing with popularity and opinion and hype builds.

In the long term everything will always get weighed.”

How do I become someone who can be weighed and proven?

If we are chasing shiny objects, we will not pass the test.

Building, for value, requires us to make decisions based on long term and how will these decisions be weighed.

This post was not written as an argument, nor as a subject of a debate. It is your right to accept it, altogether or in parts, or you can reject it. Whatever you want.

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