One thing I've realised is how doing nothing can be the best way to move forward.

This might sound counterintuitive...

So let me explain.

I spent months thinking about what sort of business to start.

It was all new to me.  So I read loads of books and brainstormed for ages.

And I started to get some ideas. 

I dug out my old notes recently and counted them up.

143 different ideas.  Mostly based on my interests.

One idea was opening a “Speed Escape Room” in transport hubs for people waiting for trains or planes.

Another was starting food-based walking tours for tourists in London.

I thought about opening a magic themed café.

And also considered creating a nootropics product for poker and chess players.

I started work on the nootropics product.  It was called Raise The Stakes Nutrition.

I talked to protein powder manufacturers…

Did market research…

And mocked up the labelling and containers.

All before I left my job.

But when I did leave my job, I decided to take a step back.  The nootropics product didn’t feel right.

And that’s when my girlfriend got Covid. 

We were stuck in the flat for 10 days. And there's only so many episodes of TOWIE one person can watch in a day.

So I had some time on my hands.  And without thinking about it that much, I started to write my book.

And the more I wrote, the more I kept writing.

The book brought together all the ideas that helped me quit my job.

The ideas were fresh and I was itching to write them down. 

I knew the ideas could help people who felt trapped in jobs they didn’t enjoy.  So I put the book online.

And once it was online, people started to buy it.  

It dawned on me that I could use the ideas in the book to work with people 1 on 1.

Which led to coaching.

So as you can tell, I never made a firm decision to start a coaching business.

Instead it’s only when I stopped focussing on coming up with the right idea that the answer started to form.

Because now I can't think of doing anything else.

Goes to show - you can do all the research, brainstorming and list-making you want…

But sometimes the answer is just letting things happen.

What you do when you take a break from deciding what to do might be the very thing you should just get on and do.

In fact, I’d say you should do everything you can to create the space to allow these things to bubble up.

Tick off everything on your to do list…

Clear your calendar and keep it clear…

And see what comes up for you.  And when it does, don’t ignore it. 

It might help you answer the question “What should I do next?”.

That’s my two pennies’ worth.

Hope you got something out of this.  

That’s all for today.

- Tom 

p.s. Whenever you're ready, here are the ways you can connect with me