Yup, that’s me. In my basement. After Hurricane Ida blew through NJ. I sure hope you all kept safe and that disaster averted you and your families.

So, it’s not the first time my basement has flooded, but it will be the last.

It’s a perfect example of overwhelm, literally. The water was rising so fast and honestly, if we had gotten three more inches of water, it would have been irreparable.

Now I was not completely unprepared, I’m me. I had six different pumps and they were working fine for a while but then the water just got too much. We couldn't keep up with it. It was three in the morning and finally, we looked at one another and said, “We've gotta stop. I know the water's rising, but we need to stop for like 10 minutes and just go upstairs to the kitchen and sit down and try to think of a different approach.”

And we did. We went up to the kitchen, sat down, and decided to use this massive gas-powered pump which you can not run indoors. So we put an extension on it and ran a fire hose (yes I have one) into the basement. And we were able to actually empty out the basement very quickly once we did that and then keep it dry. 

I’m telling you this because it dawned on me after the rain stopped, that my situation was not unlike many entrepreneurs when faced with a harsh reality. People get overwhelmed. You get underwater. Disasters occur. Stuff gets real.  But very rarely, do we stop and say, “Well my first step should be to optimize this process.” We rush in to solve the problem before we even know what tools we have and the best way to use them. 

You can't read the label from inside the jar, especially when the water is up to your knees.  You just can't. 

--Less Doing Labs Voxer message 8.4.2021

Productivity Riffs. The Less Doing Labs is a private group chat that gives you access to me for $12 a month or a hundred dollars for the year. If you're interested, watch this super-fast video for more info.

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Have you checked out my new personal brand website?

Here's the final episode of the Less Doing Podcast. Sniff Sniff.

But never fear, we're relaunching it with a different format. It will be on the same feed, so if you're subscribed, you're all set. If you're not, subscribe anywhere you listen to your podcasts. It'll be an investigation of the world's oldest continuously operating companies. Super cool content about imperialism, rum, and religion.

Keep your powder dry and make it an effective day,