Hold It or Fold It

I’m a project and idea queen. I have so many great ideas and usually I just jump right in. The problem is, I have so many projects, that I can’t seem to manage it all. And because I jumped in, many are live and active but aren’t being cultivated. It comes to a point when I have to determine if I stick with it or let it go.

Obviously, I need to do more work before launch to figure out if a project should be pursued. But sometimes I get really excited about it and the potential of it, that I just run with it (I can’t be the only one). So I’m left with doing all the evaluating after the fact. I thought it might be helpful to share how I’ve been trying to determine whether to hold on to a project or fold it up.

1) Do I still have enthusiasm for it. You’ll notice I didn’t ask if it was making money, which is an important factor (see #2). But if I’m really excited about it, I’m willing to work with it for a time until it does make money or re-evaluate it later if it doesn’t.

2) Is it making money? New projects can take time to make money, so at least I need to see traffic or something that tells me its reaching its audience and the audience is starting to respond. After all, I do need to pay the mortgage so I don’t want to waste time on projects that won’t earn its keep.

3) Does it fit my goals? Its so easy to turn a hobby or passion into an online income stream these days. But not all my ideas work off one another and that can be harder. I have priorities and goals that include getting my book sold (which involves PR, marketing, and public speaking), I have a website that needs traffic (SEO and articles), and an information product that needs to be sold (articles, affiliates). All of these are related to working at home so much of my effort overlaps. When I get traffic to my site, they see my book and information products. But then I have some projects that are completely different. And while they can make money, they aren’t helping my goal of getting my book sold.

Even with these criteria, I’m still struggling to let some projects go. They’re like little children that I birthed and nurtured. But when too many projects makes it impossible to be efficient and effective, then something has to give.