I had a very interesting discussion with a great friend, Alex, where he pretty much called me a pain in the arse. Not in so many words mind you but that’s what he was saying. The reason, besides my obvious pain in the arse nature, was that I was asking too many questions and not doing enough. His exact quote at 11:34a was:
…instead of talk about things, i do them and lead by example instead. you just havent been paying attention
He’s right. I’ve been watching and loving what everyone does without actually paying attention. It’s easy to gloss over the smaller points of someone’s mindset, ideas and goals and it’s even easier to simple ignore what they have to say. They can paint the walls with their thoughts and ideas but at the end of the day, it may just be colors on a wall.
Why am I writing any of this? I wanted to share with you another small tidbit that Alex shared with me. Information is very important. Research, educating yourself and learning the ins and outs of your business or idea is of the utmost but there is a difference between being cautious (reading up on everything before you take the leap) and being diligent is that:
…The nice thing about diligence is you can do it along the way.
So I ask you this simple question. Why? Why haven’t you attempted your crazy idea? Why haven’t you taken a leap of faith and jumped into the entrepeneur world? Why haven’t you switched jobs? Or bought that new house? Why? I know I am. Next week, I plan on launching something new that might be strange, new, scary and awesome but it’ll be launched (with the help of many friends). I’m taking that leap.
Tags: alexknowshtml, diligence, ideas, pay attention, quotes, thoughts
February 9th, 2010 at 7:31 am
New blog post: The obvious need for information http://tinyurl.com/4rdxja
September 24th, 2008 at 5:12 am
Jesse
Thanks for the reminder to not get bogged down in the details. You and Alex are both right. Not only do we need to be educated and aware, but we need to not be afraid to take the leap. Thanks for the much needed attitude adjustment. It is friends, mentors and inspirations like you, Alex and the rest of the Philly community that give me that kick in the ass I needed to start my business and to not give up.
September 24th, 2008 at 5:14 am
Honestly, it's mostly Alex. He's been a big help to me and I know that he lives what he cares about. That's an important quality in a person.
September 24th, 2008 at 5:14 am
And the most important part – Congratulations on your new venture! I am so excited by it. You took a fantastic passing fancy and are turning it into a brilliant idea. Can't wait for the launch!
September 24th, 2008 at 5:55 am
You don't need to paint walls if you need something large to make a point http://www.LTLprints.com
= Jesse BTW: I loved your statement 'Two companies ago' you made yesterday. So i actually got the impression you were already moving and hustling from project to project- not just observing?!
September 24th, 2008 at 5:58 am
Haha, always selling.
Oh no, I am — This was in regards to a single project I'm working on. Should be very fun and I hope others are excited about it as well.
September 24th, 2008 at 7:05 am
Jesse,
I know that you're capable of quality work and I look forward to hearing more about this new project. Keep me in the loop and feel free to shoot me a message if you need anything.
September 24th, 2008 at 7:09 am
Cheers! Of course I will keep you in the loop and we should grab a drink at some point — I'd love to document your rise through college. It was a neat one, no?
September 24th, 2008 at 7:11 am
It sure was, college was a neat trip and even though its coming to an end, its still a big part of my life. I'll see you at the get together this weekend, congrats again!
September 24th, 2008 at 1:36 pm
[...] to Jesse i heard something very interesting: ‘2 companies ago’. Today he writes a post about not only gathering information and painting ideas to a wall but also taking the risk and [...]