david hieatt

A Manifesto of a Doer

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1, If you find something that you want to change, you have two options. One, is to talk about the change you are going to make. Or, two, stop talking. And begin.

2, Avoid easy deadlines. Deadlines serve you best when they are short, hard and, at first glance, impossible. Urgency gets things done.

3, All teams want to be part of history. Have something big that you want to change. Your strength of purpose multiplies the teams stubbornness to get this thing done.

4, Focus on the task. If you are doing something that isn’t pushing the task forward, that is called a distraction. Distractions are plentiful. But distractions stop you from doing.

5, Obstacles will come your way. Guaranteed. Think of them as a gift. They will make you stronger. They will make you more creative. Rather than break you, they will define you.

6, Ideas change things. But ideas by themselves change nothing. An idea needs effort to make it happen. Do the work.

7, Leverage your energy. You can’t increase the number of hours in a day, but you can multiply their impact. Understand the power of the influencers: The few influence the many. Find your multiplier. The person, the organisation, the companies who can accelerate the change you want to make.

8, What you are doing is hard, but not impossible. Practice optimism.

9, What is your priority today? Ask yourself that each day. It’s your job to keep the main thing the main thing.

10, The energy available to get this done is directly proportional to how much it matters to you. Only commit to things that matter.

11, Perfection comes over time. Not at the beginning. Start where you are. But start.

12, Sprint. Rest. Sprint. Rest. Human’s get more done in bursts followed by rest. Getting things done isn’t about who does the longest hours, but who does the smartest hours.

13, 80% of your time is spent on things that you are not good at. 20% of your time is spent on the things you are very good at. In order to get more done, flip that.

14, Teams multiply change. Teams with a clear purpose, and a clear sense of the change they can make, get the most done.

15, Keep your energy for pushing forward. The past is done. Things out of your control cannot be changed. Energy spent being angry, jealous, or cynical is negative energy. Stay positive.

16, Make a plan. Then accept it can and will change. Making something happen is about being nimble and adaptable.

17, Say no. And say it often. You can do anything, but, alas, not everything. Focus.

18, Making things happen is fun. Making things happen that matter with a team as crazy as you is the best fun of all.

19, Little actions repeated relentlessly result in big change. Don’t underestimate the importance of ‘small’ multiplied by ‘often’.

20, Make a pact with failure early on. Respect it. But don’t fear it. If it occupies your mind whilst doing, it can stop you from winning. Trust yourself.

21, Even though you’re busy, make time to help others who are at the start of their journey. Give back. It will help you too.

22, Follow through. On the big things. On the small things. Create a habit of always following through. As habits go, it’s a good one.

23, If you are going to make change happen, make it a good one. This planet needs as many friends as it can get.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Reminded me of an old interview I did with David Horvath, co-founder of Uglydoll. He said - "Tell us what you did, not what you're going to do."

And another of my favourite quotes from Charlie Munger. "Step by step you get ahead, but not necessarily in fast spurts."

And of course our motto, "Stay the course, see it through, make your mark!"

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