Do you know Seth Godin? OK, I don’t know Seth Godin – but my friend Pam does, so that makes me one degree of separation from Seth. [Just for the record, I am also one step from Kevin Bacon two different ways – Anne will write me later today to say, “He’s my neighbor!”, and Kevin played my friend Mike’s dad in a film.
So, obviously, I win “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon“, thank you very much.]
But back to Seth.
Seth is a blogger. A writer. A thought leader. Every day, he writes a shortish blog post that usually prompts great thinking.
I say “usually” because, frankly, sometimes what he writes kinda misses. Sometimes it’s out there. Or just a bit off.
Which, naturally, reminds me of baseball.
Bear with me.
Do you know that the guy who has the all-time highest batting average in the history of baseball, Ty Cobb, failed two out of three times he was at the plate? Yep, Ty Cobb’s sterling average was .366, which means that he got one hit just about every three times he was at bat.
And he’s the all-time leader. All-time. Which, for those keeping score at home, means “amazing”.
So, it’s OK if Seth swings and misses once in a while. At least he’s in the batter’s box, taking a swipe at it.
Seth uses a word to describe being up at the plate – he calls it “shipping”. His point, and it’s a good one, is that shipping – being out there doing what you do – is more important than being perfect.
And here’s where so many people struggle. They anguish, and languish, and never, ever ship. Because what they’re doing has to be perfect. Because every time they stand at the plate, they have to hit a home run.
Which, is, of course, statistically impossible.
I shipped last week. I launched the 5 Questions That Can Change Your Life. I wrote it on Monday and tested it, talked about it, edited it, and put it up for sale by Sunday. This past Friday, I did a class about the 5 Questions, which you can download here.
Hundreds of people have been exposed to this idea in the last week, and tell me that they’re clearer and have a better direction as a result. For that, I am gratified.
But most of all, I’m really happy that I shipped.
I didn’t anguish, or languish. I got it out there.
Using this same strategy, my new book I Am Not Superwoman: Further Essays on Happier Living, should be available next month. (I receive the physical proof this week!) But here’s what you need to know – this collection of essays took a little over two months to go from manuscript to physical book. No anxiety, no hand-wringing, no second guessing. Why? Because my focus was on shipping, and shipping soon.
So let me ask you this simple question: where do you need to ship? Where do you need to get in that batter’s box and take a swing?
Kiddo, stop sitting in the bleachers, a spectator at the game of your own life. Get in there. Take a swing. Because, statistically speaking, one of these at-bats you’re going to get a hit. And it just might be a homer.
Michele, kudos for being action-oriented!
I’m a bit of a baseball history wonk, so I winced as soon as I saw your tweet which teased this post. Ty Cobb was among the most accomplished players of the game, but he is in the running as the nastiest, least-respected, most-detested player ever to play in the big leagues, too.
Breathing…breathing…okay. Back to the point you are making today!
There is no substitute for a tendency toward action over a tendency toward hesitation and doubt. Not an obsession, just a tendency.
I think of it this way: the first 80% of this kind of work–providing a product which people will benefit from right from the first reading–is Spirit-inspired and driven.
The remaining 20% (or the other 80% if you use Yogi Berra math) is mostly ego. Very seldom do the final edits add significantly to the value of an information-based product. The last work may polish, make more professional, even increase the conversion rate of lookers to purchasers, but it is not typical that those last efforts add any real value.
Please note that I am neither in favor of or against that last effort before shipping! It is important to be clear on the motivation and inspiration for it, that’s all. We each get to choose how much of our human-driven selves to include in order to spice up our spiritually inspired work. It’s what we do! This added flavor is what makes it ours. It’s what makes repeat buyers happy.
Loved this, Michele. As you can see, it brought forth a bunch of stuff which I needed to express!
Rick, I know Ty Cobb was an SOB and, certainly, Seth Godin is by all accounts a lovely gentleman… but Ty Cobb sure produced, didn’t he?
You are absolutely right – ego holds so many people back. Expecting a home-run at every at bat is ego-driven, don’t you think? But getting in there, swinging – bunting, even – is so much better than just sitting in the bleachers.
Thanks for commenting, Rick.
Hi Michele,
I’m a cadet in the March ’10 Martha Beck life coach training and a HUGE fan of Pam Slim and Seth Godin.
Anyway, the silly point of my comment is to share that I’ve had a conversation with Kevin Bacon. Does that make ME the winner? 🙂
PS I am “launching” my coaching business and in the process of shipping my first product. AHHHHHH . . . It’s really difficult and somewhat scary.
-Kathy
As I approach the end of my LCT training, I told my buddies in my mastermind pod today that my goal for the week is: I will ship. Forgetting about this post, I came across my notes from the 5 Questions class after today’s call. I pulled out my copy of the download and got to work. I’m not ready to ship – not quite yet -but I will be much sooner than I would have without this resource. And I will definitely ship before my group’s next call next Monday! Thanks for the download and the class!