A while ago, I wrote a post about how life is basically a game of blackjack.

Here’s another bizarre analogy:

Being an entrepreneur is basically about throwing a bunch of seeds out there in soil and seeing which seed grows and becomes a gigantic and beautiful tree.

Basically:

• Soil = The venture / opportunity
• Seeds = Your time, efforts, and money
• Tree = …money

In the ideal combination of the right seed planted in the right soil, your tree (i.e. your mental and financial well-being) will become super large and beautiful.

As you analyze your tree, there are two basic variables to consider:

1. Your Happiness
2. Profitability

Given these parameters, there’s basically only three possible situations:

A. Large and Beautiful Tree = You are happy and the venture is profitable

B. Large and Ugly Tree = You are unhappy but the venture is profitable

C. No (or Very Small) Tree = Depending on the amount of time passed, You are either:

1. Just starting, or

2. If it’s been a while, you are unhappy AND the venture is unprofitable

Actually this concept pretty much applies to life, business, and relationships.  For example, in a relationship, the tree represents the state of your relationship and you and your companion are the seed and soil.

Spending some time first to really gauge out the right seed and right type of soil is much more efficient than just throwing a bunch of seeds all over the place a.k.a. pick the right opportunity and cultivate a focused effort rather than spreading yourself too thin.

I think this is a good visual way to gauge the status of things in your life.  So…

Is Your Tree Large and Beautiful?

I have a problem.

Yes I will admit it.  Perhaps you share the same problem…

What is my problem?

Committing to the end.

Now I am referring specifically to ambitions and ventures in life.  In the past few years, I have created or delved in several projects, including the following:

• Talkmatic.com – I started a podcast website with episodes featuring the likes of Robert Scoble, John Chow, and Meebo co-founder Seth Sternberg.
• Styic Entertainment – A company I co-founded and built up here in Taipei, Taiwan.
• My own music album – I released an album in Asia a few years back, now on iTunes.
• LawYours – I created an event in Palo Alto that brought together web startups and law firms including Heller Ehrman and Gunderson Dettmer.
• Geekwhat.com – I built this website from the ground up, attracted a worldwide audience, and monetized the blog.
• and more…

The point of this article is not to flaunt my achievements, but in fact to point out my weakness i.e. commitment.  Although I achieved the above milestones, I believe that if I had continued to commit my passion and skills toward any of these projects consistently and with perseverance, I would have built something even greater and more successful. But I did not.  Many people have great ideas, but don’t execute on them.  I have some decent ideas and make it to the step of executing, but unfortunately I don’t persist as far down the line as I should.

So my vow is to fight it out.  To stop giving things up halfway through.  To take a passion project to the end. I think it is a blessing to truly know what you want and have access to the tools to make it happen.  I need to be more aware of this blessing and really milk it for all its worth.

I will succeed and achieve my passion project.