Grab BS object syndrome by the throat

Admit it.

You’ve wrestled with bright shiny object syndrome aka BS object syndrome.

I sure have.

More times than I care to count.

What is it, you ask?

Bright shiny object syndrome (BSOS) is jumping from project to project or in your mind, opportunity to opportunity.

The underlying psychological phenomenon at play is “grass is greener on the other side.”

As online entrepreneurs we’re particularly vulnerable to it because it’s so easy to start a new project or business model.

Our work has many ups, downs and plateaus. When were growing, we’re motivated to stay the course. When we suffer downturns or long plateaus, doubt creeps in. We think we’re doomed and are better off doing something else.

It’s not like you’ve invested a quarter mil in a coffee shop and so you have no choice but to see that through.

Instead, we can literally start something new in minutes without spending much money. With shared hosting we can launch a new site for free in minutes.

However, that new site is not free.

It can cost you a fortune in opportunity cost.

It may be the distraction that delays or stalls your current site or project that with some TLC and time is a million dollar enterprise.

I know what you’re thinking.

But Jon, maybe the new thing is the enterprise with multi-million dollar potential.

You’re right.

My biggest site is not my first online effort.

I quit something to start that site.

Clearly that was a good decision.

BUT, my biggest niche site was not a daliance into a new business model. I’ve always been an online publisher.

Sure, I’ve dabbled in some other things but it never lasted long.

While there is no magic solution to dealing with BSOS, here’s my two cents’ on dealing with.

Actually, it’s how I deal with it these days.

Every single project I set out to work on is intended to eventually run on its own (i.e. handled by other people). If this cannot be achieved, I don’t pursue that project.

This approach does two things.

First, it motivates me to focus to get the project to the point to where I can hand it off.

Second, it filters out a lot of projects aka distractions. If I can’t see something ultimately being profitable without me being involved, I’m not interested.

I have a few exceptions such as Fat Stacks videos and emails but I will only do that stuff for as long as it’s fun. I could easily turn FS into a passive income machine by focusing on SEO content and automated email sequences. I have hired a writer to write a ton more SEO content, but for now I enjoy writing emails and doing the other media here and there.

This is why I like publishing niche sites. They are so easily outsourced. While I keep daily tabs on them, the amount of time they require is not much with a trained team.

So, pick the one thing you’re working on right now that you believe can bootstrap into a passive business. Focus on only that until it is running without you. Then jump into the next thing.

Cross all projects off your list that you don’t think you can turn into a passive income machine. I suspect you have a few such things on your list.

I’m not saying you can’t jump into new projects. I’m just saying put them on the backburner when you’ve cleared your plate by handing off current projects to a team… but don’t do this until it’s profitable.

Not everything is BSOS

It’s important to distinguish what is and what isn’t BSOS.

For example, for the past two days I’ve been spending time improving affiliate link promotion on a couple niche sites. It’s Black Friday week after all. While I doubt I’ll get rich from these efforts, it’s fun to see if tweaks here and there can put a few extra bucks in my pocket. It’s like a game.

While affiliate click rate optimization (CRO) is not focusing on publishing content, it’s not BSOS either. It’s a worthy thing to do with niche sites. I’m not going to spend the next month on it, but a couple days was worth it. Those efforts will deliver affiiliate commissions for years.

BSOS is when you launch a new site or pursue something that has nothing to do with what you’ve been working on. It derails everything you’ve done.

If you’re in the midst of BSOS right now, ask yourself if you can see your current project through to it being profitable without you being involved. If so, stick with it telling yourself you can jump to something new once you’ve bootstrapped it to nearly passive.

You are better off doing one thing well than many things poorly.

If you like the idea of multiple revenue streams, you must be patient. Bang them out one AFTER the other instead of simultaneously.