TurnBoringBizProcessIntoAdventure_smallPaperwork, process, systems, checklists,… and in 3,2,1 your brain has shut down. Your body is still located at your desk, but your mind has wandered. Far, far away.

What’s the solution?

Some experts claim you just need to be more committed to using a system and following a process. Because having a mortgage payment in 5 days means I’m not serious about this.

Other gurus say outsource it all. Heck outsource putting on your socks in the morning. You could probably even find someone on Fiverr to do it.

A third option that’s been floated (possibly by large quantities of helium), is to think positively and it will all work out. The best response to that has already been written by The Bloggess on Storify (warning adult language, so you 12 year olds reading a business blog about profit can just skip right over this).

Then there’s me. I’m not claiming to be a guru, a paragon of process perfection, or even someone who puts on their own socks each morning will transform your chaos into Stepford Wives order.

I’m laying claim to imperfect action served up with a big side dish of laughter leading to a profitable, sustainable business. All you need is an open mind, a thirst for an adventure, and an appreciation for fun.

Time for a Small Biz Sci-Fi Adventure

BountyHunterFacingForwardSmirk_400TallMeet Brenna Rain, bounty hunter and captain of the starship Tesseray. Brenna is my sci-fi alter ego. I’ve wanted this persona since this first time I read “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” on a movie screen. I wanted to be in space battles, hang out with aliens, and have a swashbuckling good time.

As a kid I imagined all those things. I collected all the cool ships. I knew the name of every character, monster, and piece of equipment. I had space adventures in my back yard. For the record the Upper Peninsula of Michigan makes a great Hoth environment in the winter.

Then something happened. I grew up. I got a job in the financial services sector. I was a serious professional. And I was miserable.

The fun was boxed up and only let out to play on weekends. With other like minded friends who watched X-Files and enjoyed a bit of RPG. Sure the occasional Trekkie comments were ok, I was a numbers person after all. They’re supposed to be a little bit geeky.

To be taken seriously, to be a successful professional, I needed to fit in. To be conventional. To act as others expected. To leave those sci-fi adventures locked up in a box. Set aside as something “childish”.

Even when I finally heard the siren call of being an entrepreneur I wore my serious professional suit. It took years to peel the onion layers off. To rediscover that joy in adventure. The ability to turn the mundane into magical. That ability which lives in all of us.

Choose Your Own Adventure

When I was a kid “Choose Your Own Adventure” books were a big thing. Mainly because back in the stone age people didn’t have computers at home, and Atari games were super simplistic with things like Defender and Asteroids. The books allowed the reader some choices, as well as consequences – good and bad.

ShipSmallToday we’ll start with Brenna. Over time her universe will grow and the options will grow with it. Rather be a sentient plant that communicates via scent? That’s coming! Prefer to be a twenty something human male? We’ve got that too. And much more. I’ll be slowly introducing them on #WarpSpeedWednesday as a lead up to my second book launch.

Today you’re a bounty hunter. You have the chance to score a big job, you just need to beat 3 other competitors to the planet. Ready? Go!

Don’t Blow Up Your Starship

Even futuristic starships can’t just take off. You have to power engines. Plot courses. Secure the ship. There’s a checklist, a process to follow so you don’t blow up your ship (or as Han Solo bluntly put it, it ain’t like dusting crops, you could fly right through a star).

Instead of a boring morning list of tasks to do, create a control panel for your business starship. Imagine sitting down in your captain’s chair, ready to get the jump on your competitors. Time to check all systems so you can get underway.

Let’s take a look over Brenna’s shoulder.
BrennasControlPanel

Stay tuned for more on Brenna Rain and her small biz sci-fi adventures.


This post is part of a regular blogging event hosted by small business experts. Being wicked productive doesn’t have to come at the cost of fun. Joy can be had when you’re at your most efficient. This month’s topic They CAN Co-Exist: Fun and Productivity.