Getting Started Is The Hardest Part

Yo! CJ here from the CJ & The Duke podcast, back for issue #3 of ServiceNow Success w/CJ and today we’re talking about Getting Started. This is a particularly relevant topic for me as I’m behind on the newsletter, partially because of COVID and partially because of procrastination. I’m behind on client work - mostly because of COVID. And I still need to get Mother’s Day shopping done - don’t tell my wife. 😊

These tasks, plus others, left me literally paralyzed with inaction. Where do I start? Do I pick the most important tasks first or the easiest? The tasks that I can do at a computer or those that take me out of the house? Knowledge tasks or physical? GAAAAAH!

I felt stuck.

My task lists trying to get my brain to do something…anything.

So I created a list. I parsed and skewed this list a number of different ways. I then created FIVE different versions of the list, all organized slightly differently, to tell me where to start. And still nothing was getting done.

Finally, I sat down at the computer, set a time limit, and just started writing. This is the 3rd draft of this newsletter. The first two were horrible, incomplete, and not worth the virtual paper they were printed on. They were topics that I’d pre-planned but simply couldn’t make work.

They were so bad that I was tempted to print them out, just to ball them up and toss them in the bin.

But I kept at it. And eventually, something decent started to emerge - something I wouldn’t mind publishing. Something you’re reading right now.

And with the near completion of this task, something great started to happen. The other tasks that felt so overwhelming…they lost their whelm. I started crossing things off the list, one by one. Getting things done. There was never a question of whether I COULD do the tasks - these are things that I’ve done many times before. It was always a question of Getting Started. And every time you have to ‘Get Started’, it feels like the first time you’ve ever had to ‘Get Started’ - at least for me.

In Episode 60 of the podcast, The Duke and I talked about what we’d do differently if we could do our careers all over again. One of the things I mentioned was setting aside focus time daily and using it to execute a routine (Robert is already doing this). That routine helps you get things done. It removes the ‘Getting Started’ paralysis and trains your brain to Just Do It during the time that you set aside. Or so I’ve been told.

I say ‘told’ because I’ve been repeating this ‘Getting Started’ dance my entire life. My goal has never been the act, it’s always been the result. That’s worked great when I have externally accountability - but what if the only person holding you accountable is…you? How do you force You? The solution seems to be routine.

Pursuing the work without an expectation of quality - instead letting the execution itself be the goal. Trusting that the process will accumulate enough small improvements over time to result in something great in the future. If this sounds familiar, you’ve likely embraced this concept as Continuous Improvement. The very same Continuous Improvement that we preach to clients as a way to help them improve their processes. Could the answer to my problem be so simple? I wanted to find out.

So I set a timer. I turned on pop music. Pop is key for me when I write - whether it’s code or words. The beats and melodies set a great mood and the words are easily ignorable. And so I set that timer and I started writing. And writing. And writing. Day, after day, after day. And like I mentioned, the first couple of times the product was rubbish. But eventually, something good came out of it. And the satisfaction of creating that good thing rolled over to EVERYTHING else that was queued up.

Client work? Done. Chores? Done (well almost). Gift ideas? MANIFESTED!

As it turns out, my brain was psyching itself out. It was viewing the LIST of tasks as ONE big task and trying to DO ALL THE THINGS!

My brain…actual image

But lists are created to be the opposite. They exist to break down larger items into smaller manageable chunks, and they convert intimidating buckets of work into not so intimidating, easy to complete, micro-tasks. And, if you do it right, you create momentum that snowballs into something great.

But only if you can Get Started.

By dedicating time (a defined start and end point) and limiting what I could do during that time, I created an artificial constraint for my brain. And by repeating this process day, after day, after day. I created the space for momentum to accumulate and snowball into the other tasks in my life.

I no longer had to DO ALL THE THINGS, I just had to work on this ONE thing.

And so I did. And I did. And I did. And this is the result. And now, rather than fighting to Get Started, I often have to fight to put it down. 😏

I hope this helps you as much as it helped me.

Till next time - May all your meetings be productive and your code be bug-free.

There’s so much good ServiceNow content in the ecosystem, it’s really hard to shout it all out. But here are 3 things that caught my attention since the last issue.

🔥 ServiceNow Developer Hero Sarah Toulson - Fellow 2022 DevMVP Sarah Toulson talks about finding ServiceNow through her goal of political participation - something near and dear to my heart.
🔥Knowledge 2022 Sessions! - Fellow 2022 DevMVP Maria Gabriela Waechter curated a list of Women speakers in NY Knowledge and Hague Knowledge and there are some gems💎 on this list - including this one from @MGOPW herself: “(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ Hack Your Environment To Work For You ✶✩”. I’m a sucker for ascii art.
🔥 ServiceNow Developer Hero Paige Duffey - Fellow 2022 DevMVP Paige Duffey talks about pushing her boundaries and the absolutely amazing things that have happened as a result. From ServiceDesk to ServiceNow DevMVP and a number of amazing stops in between. Paige’s story is full of inspiration.

In Episode 59, The Duke and I talk about finding the inspiration around you to #BuildSomethingNOW. From your home to your job to your hobbies - the world is a fertile ground of processes that can be automated, data that can be aggregated, and tasks that can be tracked and presented.

If you’re looking to skill up in ServiceNow quickly, there is simply no substitute for the experience you’ll get if you just #BuildSomethingNOW. If you’re having a hard time, the episode is a great place to start.

Did you already #BuildSomethingNOW or did this inspire you to? Share it! Hashtag it! Tag me! It doesn’t have to be a big project, it doesn’t have to be pretty, hell, it doesn’t even have to work - just Get Started, #BuildSomethingNOW, and let’s grow together.

I guarantee you’ll be happy that you did.

If you have a problem, want to talk shop, or need a ServiceNow Consultant - hit me up.

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