Get Shit Done: A Case for Taking Action

Ship. Launch. Publish. Implement. Roll out. I don’t care what you call it — just get it done.

In the business world, it seems like everyone is talking about strategy these days. Talking is fine. Strategizing is even better. But without execution, what do you really have? Nothing. Ideas and strategies don’t pay the bills — acting on them does.

Trent Miskin, one of the smartest guys I know, often says that ideas are cheap. What he means is this: a great idea is worthless if you’re not doing anything with it. The value of an idea is found only in its meaningful execution.

Don’t get me wrong — I’m not recommending that we take action simply for the sake of doing so. Action should always be driven by thoughtful ideation. We need visionaries and philosophers to guide us in the right direction.

But, if we’re going to make an impact — if we’re going to change the world — we’ve got to be willing to get shit done.

Launch early and iterate as you go

The easiest way to get shit done is to launch early.

When I started at Lendio almost four years ago, I was introduced to the idea of the minimum viable product, or MVP. The MVP is a concept from Lean Startup that “allows a team to collect the maximum amount of…