The Indiefield Blog

Carpenter, gardener, plumber, shoemaker - if your goal is a steady stream of "gigs", congratulations, you're building a job. It's a job with multiple bosses (a.k.a. clients) but no actual boss, which sounds great until you remember you still have to do the awkward "please hire me" hustle between jobs.

An entrepreneur, though? Totally different game. For them, the job is building the job. They're not just doing the work - they're building the machine that gets the work.

So, are you crafting shoes or crafting the shoe empire? Either's fine, just don’t mix them up.

Every project has constraints: tight deadlines, small budgets, picky clients, and the non-negotiable day you have to leave the office early. What do you do? You moan and groan about how unfair it all is.

But here's the twist: constraints are where the magic happens. They force you to think differently, spark creativity, and come up with solutions that others wouldn't dream of. That's why the best filmmakers learn their craft with no money - because figuring out how to make a masterpiece on a shoestring budget is like earning a PhD in problem-solving.

Instead of fighting limits, embrace them. Use them as the springboard for your best work. Once you can crush it under tough conditions, imagine what you'll do when things get a little easier.

Constraints aren't obstacles – they are a competitive edge. You could even argue superpowers.

Some jobs are all about process: nail it once, and then just show up, grind, and collect your gold star. Hard, sure, but predictable.

Then there are jobs where you have to tango with stupidity daily. The comedian praying their new joke lands. The writer daring to say something original. The leader winging it through uncharted chaos.

It's tough because - brace yourself - it might flop. And guess what? More and more occupations are like this now.

So, if your job doesn’t make you feel a little stupid sometimes, you might not be doing it right.

In primary school, I read every single book in the little library they had in the entrance hall - all 300 of them.

Why? No master plan, just boredom probably. But along the way, I accidentally became an expert: spotting patterns, defining trends, and understanding the edges of things.

Turns out, going deep into any field - books, trade journals, or even sales strategies - gives you more than knowledge. It gives you perspective, confidence, and the ability to see what matters.

In today's world of infinite options, it's easy to skim. But real mastery comes from diving in, going deep, and truly knowing your stuff. If you want to know anything about the Milly-Molly-Mandy book series, please get in touch.

"Should I worry about...?"

Nope. Don't bother. Worrying is like rocking in a chair - it gives you something to do, but it gets you nowhere.

Instead, pay attention or learn something useful. Then, when it's decision time, you'll actually know what you're doing. If you can't decide it or dodge it, worrying won't help.

So save your brainpower for something productive like deciding what to have for lunch.

Leaders lead. Revolutionary, right?

It's like writers - they write. Want to be a writer? Write something. Bonus points if someone actually reads it.

Same deal for leaders. Want to lead? Stop waiting for a title or an engraved nameplate. Just step up and do it.

Congratulations, you're now a leader. (No cape required).

The naive farmer plants, prays, and blames God when it all goes south.

The pro farmer? Measures, tweaks, and figures out what went wrong.

It's not about money, it's about mindset. The naive marathoner runs until they drop. The pro trains smart. The naive office worker clears emails. The pro clears bottlenecks.

Professionals ask: what's next? Why did this happen? How can I improve?

The catch? You can't sell products or advice to the naive until they're sold on becoming pros. Help them level up, and suddenly, everything clicks.

Half-life: how fast stuff fizzles out. For radioactive material, it's science. For your big idea, it's a ticking clock.

Viral memes? Six hours. Books? Two months. Unless you're To Kill a Mockingbird, which is apparently radioactive in its own right with a 60-year glow.

The trick is knowing: is your project naturally winding down, or does it just need a shot of adrenaline? Either way, don't wait too long because your half-life isn't getting any longer.

You can open a can of paint with a £500 chef's knife, but it's not what the knife was made for - and good luck selling that use case.

Every product or service has a sweet spot: the perfect customer, use, and outcome. Fancy restaurant? Not for stroller-pushing nannies. Library? Maybe not for DVD rental binges. Luxury fashion shop? Probably not suitable for flea market fans. Ask yourself:

• Who's your ideal user?
• What problem are you solving?
• What happens when they engage with you?

Define it, focus on it, and have the guts to say "no" to everything else. Chasing every opportunity just bends you out of shape. Nail your niche, and you'll do better work for the right people.

In the career world, big decisions are rare and dramatic: "Should I take this job?" or "Is it time to switch industries?" Cue the existential music.

But in project world? Crossroads happen constantly. Should you greenlight that new approach? Launch a new tool? Reprioritise your team's focus? Drop a current method to make space for something newer?

Here's the twist: we obsess over the big, infrequent career choices while ignoring the daily project decisions that actually shape outcomes. In project management, those little moments (what to start, stop, or optimise) can be the difference between smooth sailing and a train wreck.

So don't wait for the "big" calls. Treat every project decision like it's pivotal-because, honestly, it is.