Reinventing: A Definition
Reinvention has a few definitions but one that sticks with me is “the act of producing something new based on something that already exists“
Directly from one of my friend’s upcoming product.
And that’s is a great one. Think about it. I bet you’re already busy enough, so learning something completely new by adding yet another time block to your day sounds like a pretty horrendous idea.
Repulsive.
Yikes.
But how about just sitting back with a pen and paper for half a day and reorganizing all that you already have to build something completely new?
Woah!
Doable!
A Neverending Process
Reflecting back, the chance of reinventing myself is why I love academia so much. Not only do you get to, you have to, reinvent yourself like clockwork all the time as your career progresses. And even if your position stays the same, nobody will stop you from reinventing yourself. You get to be the captain of the ship that is you.
And if you’re building anything online, you get to do the same.
Don’t like what you’re doing?
Repurpose.
Sit back and write down:
- Your skills
- Your values
- Your core beliefs
- Your dreams and hopes
And figure out what you can build from the pieces you have on the table.
And yes, I’m writing this to myself, being in the process of repurposing my old focus and productivity courses for academia.
And reinventing, repurposing, whatever you want to call it, gives you that young energy again. You’re a beginner. Fast process. Fast wins. Fast everything.
The Danger Zone
Now… if you get stuck reinventing yourself all the time, all you’ll get are those early wins. Nothing wrong with that, if you’re in the business of just enjoying the process.
But let’s be honest.
Only those who make it far enough to get the big wins.
- Build a course but never launch it?
- It’s fun but you won’t make a dime.
- Buy running shoes but never run?
- You get the dopamine hit but not the gains.
…and this is why it’s all more important to reinvent with care.
Reinvent so that what you do aligns well with who you are.
Do NOT reinvent yourself to follow the herd or serve others.
Serve yourself.
Recap of The Box this Week:
- You’re busy but there’s a way to kickstart something new
- Knowing what you already have is key to getting started
- Do it properly once and then stick to it long enough to see results