In order to hit a goal that has an uncertain path, you need to triple commit to it – put in three times as much as you think.
“What are you talking about?”
If you want to drive from Sydney to Newcastle then you can work out the KM’s, fill the tank and go. You’re most likely going to make it OK.
But startups aren’t this simple. You don’t know you need to end up in Newcastle. You might head off, and start off going south, the wrong direction. By the time you realise, you have to double back and get going in the right direction. Then you have to take the slower road because something is blocked, this uses up more fuel. Then you have to pick up more people on the way and that slows you down more.
If you’d only put in the amount you needed to get there via a straight line, you wouldn’t make it. You need 3 times the amount of fuel for the journey.
This rule applies to any goal where you are going to face challenges, corrections and delays. Like going to the gym in winter, when you’re busy or on holidays. If you don’t over commit to it, you’ll never get there.
Think about it when your thinking about the fuel of a startup – your enthusiasm, time, money and relationships.