I have a confession to make (and a share about an upcoming event)
There have been times in my career when I’ve overpromised and underdelivered. Thankfully, this wasn’t a consistent habit, and I became known for getting things done. But there were certainly moments, especially when it came to clients. I didn’t spend much time in sales roles, but when I did, I often found myself telling clients what they wanted to hear instead of what they needed to hear.
For anyone in sales, this is a recipe for disaster.
In operations, however, I took a different approach. I was more conservative with my promises and always aimed to overdeliver because I understood the repercussions of not following through, particularly with my teams.
This community is another example.
There is so much involved in building, managing, and running a community like this. The content side is actually the easiest part, in my opinion. But the engine that powers the machine—the systems and processes—is much more challenging to build properly.
About a month ago, I realized this and decided to tackle it on my own. The result? Incremental improvements to the engine running this community, but mediocre content, as I haven’t had the time to focus on that side as much.
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Public Service Announcement: I'm hosting a workshop next week Thursday with a special guest Chris March, leadership coach called "Coaching Essentials: Learn the Art of Guiding Others to Success"
Register now.
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I took a step back to reflect on why I built this community and my mission became clear again. It’s the how that is more complicated.
In the coming weeks, I will be doubling down on delivering high-quality content. My goal is to make it so valuable that there will one day be specific paid-only content for those seeking more. This free community will still exist and I aim to provide significant value, but the appetite for more is so high that a paid offer is necessary. This will allow me to invest in others to help build this and future communities.
I’m proud to say I didn’t overthink creating this community. I just started and figured things out along the way. The learning has been immense.
I’ve finally realized the truth behind the saying, “you don’t know what you don’t know.” This is a classic example of the Dunning-Kruger effect (check out the video to learn more).
The lesson here?
- Don’t be afraid to start something.
- Learn along the way.
- Recognize your limitations and seek help when needed.
- The mission has to be clear; otherwise, what’s the point?
Thank you all for sticking around. I have big plans and will be doubling down on my efforts in the coming months to build a community that you value and are proud to refer to others.
What is the Dunning Kruger effect?
Here's the definition
The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias where people with low ability or knowledge in a particular area overestimate their competence, while those with high expertise may underestimate their skills. This results in a gap between perceived and actual ability, with the least knowledgeable often being the most confident.