The Dangers of Shiny Object Syndrome as an Entrepreneur

Cass Polzin
Echo Me Forward
3 min readFeb 9, 2021

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As an entrepreneur, it’s easy to get excited about all the opportunities in front of you. If you have a hard time finishing a project because you’re constantly distracted by new ideas, you may suffer from Shiny Object Syndrome (SOS).

What is Shiny Object Syndrome?

Shiny Object Syndrome is a term used to describe a phase entrepreneurs and business owners go through, where they are easily distracted by the next big idea. Typically, these individuals struggle to finish the projects they start, often abandoning progress in favor of a new idea.

This is often common in first-time entrepreneurs. Especially after spending time in a desk job, working for someone else, it can be exciting to finally have so many opportunities and different things to work on. It can be tempting to only focus on the “fun” aspects of entrepreneurship, but this can be detrimental for your business in the long run.

Why is Shiny Object Syndrome dangerous for entrepreneurs?

When you change directions every time you have a new idea, you never make substantial progress on anything. As a result, work is completed inefficiently and haphazardly.

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