The Shipment-Driven Life

ByMatthew

Seth Godin is a huge mentor and teacher for me. I subscribe to his blog updates and have read several of his books. Lately he has been talking a lot about the importance of shipping. Shipping is actually getting things done. It’s finishing stuff and getting it out the door. Shipping is not about perfection, it’s about being willing to finish something and letting the market, or your team, or friends, tell you where it needs work.

It’s not about sending something out that isn’t ready, or incomplete. Shipping is overcoming the paralysis of ‘making-it-perfect’ before anyone can see it or adding feature upon feature (which often just leads to it becoming something else, which requires more testing and time — a never-ending cycle). Take a gander at the post that inspired this thought and join me below:

“Looking For The Right Excuse” at Seth Godin’s Blog

The Shipment-Driven Life is one focused on finishing things. On not waiting until something is perfect to show it to anyone or get it out-the-door. It is, of course, a reference to Rick Warren’s book/movement, The Purpose Driven Life, and it’s about, in a way, faith and devotion, but it’s obviously much different. It’s about doing what needs to be done and getting things out-the-door.

Now my coach hat goes on and I ask where are you not shipping? What are you not working on? What are you continually revising, and not shipping? Stop that and start doing. Call it a ‘draft’ or a ‘prototype,’ or whatever, but finish it and get some feedback. Find out what you’ve got and go from there.

Start shipping.

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