Make It Fly!
Make It Fly is a practical guide to make any idea, personal project or dream a reality. For many people having ideas isn’t the issue, what they need help with typically is getting clear about what they want, knowing where to begin, and realising that they need to work on their hang ups.
My book offers a tried and tested method broken down into steps that help the reader deal with all these things: it helps them clarify their idea, pull a plan together but also identify and deal with their own issues, the stuff that will make them give up or will distract them from getting ahead.
What is the first step one can take to appraise an idea to see if it’s ready to fly?
First and foremost, your idea has to inspire you. It’s as simple as that. When you visualize yourself doing, being or having what you want, you should feel really excited. If fear comes up that’s OK, but if you can’t get motivated by your vision, then there is something wrong and you have some work to do.
I can’t see how you can keep going if you don’t love your idea.
Why is it important to plan for your idea?
Lots of reasons, here are two big ones:
A plan forces you to break your big idea into smaller chunks (tasks or actions) making the whole thing feel more achievable. Think of climbing a mountain as moving from one level to the next, with an opportunity to rectify your course and rest. Now think of it as running from the ground to the top in one go. With steps, you can focus on the next thing you need to do with one large jump, you may be overwhelmed by the size of what you are trying to achieve.
A plan also forces you to think through how you’re going to get there in advance of setting off. This will help you test whether the approach you want to take makes sense, whether you have all that you need, whether your time frame is realistic. If you find after giving it some thought that your approach could do with some work or you need more money or time, you’ll get a chance to rectify your plan before you get going. Too many people jump right in without having given their idea enough thought. It’s hard to change your approach once you’ve invested a lot of time and money. The temptation is to keep going even when you feel you’re headed in the wrong direction.
What kind of obstacles can put your off course when reaching a goal?
Primarily the stuff inside your mind: limiting beliefs, fears and lack of confidence in your ability to get what you want. Things like not believing that you deserve what you want, that you are good enough, fear of losing something by getting what you want, for example, the love of your family.
Other people can also put obstacles in your way. Particularly, if they see your goal as a threat. Let’s take a simple example where you decide to go back to College. Your partner could try to put you off because they think you’ll have less time to spend with them. There is a step in the book to help you identify who around you will be supportive, who won’t and what you can do about it.
What are the easiest ways to stay motivated when reaching a goal?
Sitting down every day and visualizing yourself achieving the goal and getting excited.
Being convinced that you will get what you want even if it doesn’t look that way all the time. I was convinced that my book would be published, I never questioned that. People around me weren’t so sure but for some reason, I had absolute faith. I guess I really loved my idea!
Working at your dream one step at a time and regularly looking back at how much you’ve achieved. Regularly reviewing your progress against your plan.
Building a support system, people close to you who will encourage you when the going gets tough and who will keep you accountable and on track.
Accepting that what you may not get what you want at the first trial, you may have to change your approach and try another way.
Why do people often only talk about doing things and not act on them?
Because deep down, they don’t really want their lives to change. They like the idea of something but they are not really prepared to do what it takes – by the way this may mean changing how they see themselves not necessarily physical effort.
Other people just don’t know where to start. They can picture themselves being self-employed but they are unsure what steps to take to get there.
Others have strong limiting beliefs and fears, maybe they have been told in childhood that things like the ones they want only happen to others. These people need to work on this as they set off to get to their goals. Going for their goals could be a true life changing experience as it would demonstrate that what they have been told is really untrue.
What is your professional background?
I work with directors in large organisations to make significant changes to the way things or people work. So, it’s the same as what we are discussing here but on a much larger scale as I have to deal with many personalities, conflicting goals and limiting believes. When setting out on the path to your dream, you may have to deal with the people close to you but it will be mostly about a single person, you.
Who is the book aimed at?
Anyone who has a dream, an idea, aspirations and is unclear how to make it happen. The method works for professional and personal projects whether you want to change your lifestyle, start your own business or write a book.
I suspect it will appeal to people who like a practical approach rather than theory. The book aims very much to encourage action so it will appeal mostly to those who are ready to make the change.
Why is it important to set your goals high if that is what you want?
In business, we say that the vision has to be achievable but stretching in order to be motivating. It’s the same in everyday life, the goal has to be in the realm of the possible but to motivate you to go get it, there has to be an element of challenge. So it’s a balancing act, your ultimate goal or vision has to be stretching to motivate you to get going on whilst ideally the steps you take to get you there must be much easier to achieve to help you keep the momentum.
What is next for you?
Working hard to get the book in as many hands as possible. My goal is to reach all the people who have had an idea or a dream for years and are now ready to make the change.
I’m 45 so it’s the typical ‘I would like to give something back’ time of my life. If the book works well, I would hope to teach or coach people in the method either in groups or one to one. But one step at a time…