What Do I Do Next? Focusing on Your Next Right Step

Do you ever struggle to figure out what to do next? Is your head flooded with so many ideas that you get sidetracked and stalled?

Most entrepreneurs, or “want-repreneurs”, have no shortage of great ideas for projects. They wake up every morning feeling like they could take on the world, and go to bed every night with their mind racing.

But, if we ever want to get ahead, if we ever want to make progress and find success, we have to focus.

We have to focus on the next right step.

Sometimes being an entrepreneur is like walking into a Best Buy for the first time. At least for me. For you, it could be like walking into a shoe store, a candy shop, or a hardware store.

When you're first exposed to the possibilities before you, the feeling can be a bit overwhelming. With no clear path, it's easy to lose focus and forget why you're here in the first place.

Recently, I've gotten several comments and questions about how to focus. People want to know how to focus on what they want, and then focus on how to get there.

Focusing on a single task and moving forward is something all entrepreneurs struggle with. We don't lack for ideas but we have a problem with execution.

My Struggle to Focus

In my own business, I floundered around for quite a while. I spent a year blogging only casually. I had a schedule, but I didn't follow it. I wrote on a variety of topics that ranged from personal branding, to leadership and personal development.

I spent my second year with only slightly more focus. I kept to a regular schedule, but I was still writing on too many topics. It wasn't until a tough call with my mastermind group that I realized I need to find clarity in what I was doing and focus on that.

I had a “come to Jesus” meeting of sorts last April. I changed my domain, my brand, and even the goal of my blog.

I began to focus.

The Power of Focus

I could sit here and tell you that focus allows light to become a laser. I could tell you that focus turns a hand into a fist. And, I could tell you that focus turns the alphabet into words, paragraphs and life-changing stories.

And it would all be true.

But the true power of focusing comes from both what it allows and what it prevents. The true power of focus is in results.

Focus on the Next Right Step

In one of the Experts calls I did for my Membership Site, one of my guests shared some incredible advice.

When I asked him what advice he'd give to a new entrepreneur he said,

Focus on your next right step, and take it.

You see, we get so focused on the big picture that we forget about the individual brushstrokes that make it a reality.

We get intimidated by the entirety of the project and the sheer massiveness of what we want to accomplish that we get tripped up by the details.

If you're a list-maker like me, and I hope you are, you've got a list a mile long of things that need to be done. You look at the list, doubt your ability to get all the way through it, and go back to bed, start blaming your job, or complain about not having enough time.

But, the genius in focusing on the next right step is the clarity that comes with it. When you focus on the next task you need to do, you can ignore the other things on your list. When you can block out the distractions and focus on a single thing you need to get done, you can concentrate.

You Have to Start Somewhere

Many of the people who join my mastermind are searching for a starting point. All their great ideas are fogging up their thinking and they can't see a clear path before them. By focusing on your next right step, you give yourself a place to start.

Yes, it's elementary. Yes, it's basic. However…

There is power in focusing on step one and ignoring what comes next.

There is power in fire and adjust.

There is power in ready, fire, aim.

When you take the first step, or the next right step, you start moving. As with most physical objects, your actions are easier to change when you're moving.

Objects at rest tend to stay at rest. Objects that are moving tend to keep moving.

Whether it's getting up early and hustling, or sitting on the couch eating Cheetos, we usually keep doing what we're doing.

By focusing on the next right step, and taking action toward it, you're putting one foot in front of the other. You're building momentum and achieving small wins.

Small wins lead to big wins and momentum makes you unstoppable (Tweet that!)

You Know What to Do

After coaching hundreds of entrepreneurs, what I've found is that they usually know what to do. They know what the next right step is. They just need to do it.

You probably know what your next right step should be too. You likely know what will get you one step closer to living with purpose and achieving success.

Don't worry about steps 7, 8 or 9. Focus on step 1.

Question: What is the next right step you know you need to take?