When you’re pursuing a bold idea–maybe a business idea or a special project–there’s always the chance that you will need to say goodbye to that venture in the future.
Maybe that future is now and you’re thinking that what you’re working on isn’t as exciting or as meaningful as you once thought it could be.
On the podcast, we talked about when to say goodbye to an idea, but one thing I’ve found to be really helpful in deciding whether or not to continue to pursue a bold idea or not is a mid-flight assessment.
The key question to ask is this: Is pursuing this bold idea the best way to steward my talents right now? How you answer that question can reveal any mid-course corrections you need to make.
To get you started, here’s my own mid-flight checklist:
- The energy test. When I step back and look at what I’m doing, notwithstanding times of fatigue, am I energized by this venture? Do I genuinely enjoy it and find myself thinking about it often?
- The growth test. Am I a better version of myself because of it? Would those who know me best agree with my assessment?
- The choice test. If I were not doing this thing today, knowing all that I do about it, would I choose again to do it?
- The value test. Does it serve a need that is valued by others beyond myself?
- The purpose test. Does it serve a purpose that is personally meaningful to me?
- The skill test. Am I growing my capabilities in ways that are important to me?
- The freedom test. Do I have the freedom to walk away or do I feel trapped and obligated to continue?
- The vision test. Do I have an inspiring vision for what it can yet become?
- The economic test. Does it produce the income that I need from it, if any?
- The relationship test. Am I able to cultivate and keep my commitments to my most important relationships while pursuing this?
Remember, you’re not indentured to your bold idea; your bold idea serves you on your mission to put your faith to work. Regular, mid-flight reviews like this can keep you from flying the entire journey on autopilot only to find out you ended up somewhere you actually didn’t want to go, or worse, somewhere God wasn’t calling you.
When’s the last time you assessed if your bold idea was still a good fit? Take some time today to do a quick mid-flight checklist and make sure it is.
A version of this post originally appeared on learygates.com.
Leary Gates is the co-host of the BoldIdea podcast and leadership and corporate venture coach. He writes on his blog learygates.com about leadership, transition, productivity and personal venturing. Learn more by visiting Leary’s blog or follow him on Twitter, LinkedIn.