Diminishing Returns and the Law of Three
- first published Oct 2011 | updated Aug 2015
- Aug 10, 2014
- 2 min read

This morning as I was listening to the umpteenth video on a “blueprint system” for doing what I already do, I had a flash of insight, and it’s this:
Diminishing returns occur after the 3rd
That might be a bit cryptic, so I’ll explain. Marketing can be a business of riding the latest wave. And if you’re like me — a person who does their homework before jumping into something new — you probably spend a lot of time gathering information.
You might even have a fair number of ebooks, homestudy courses, articles, blogs, videos, and notes all providing a gold mine of guidance for building your practice and getting more clients.
What became very clear to me today is that after the 3rd time I hear about the same process or idea, there is very little to be gained by continuing to collect info like an OCD hoarder if I don’t start IMPLEMENTING these tips or systems.
And then another insight hit me, which was:
Compulsively collecting info, examples, systems, etc, is a form of distraction procrastination that only serves to mask a sabotaging fear of taking a risk for success.
Milana Leshinsky says that only 10% of people who buy self-help materials ever actually implement what they learn when left on their own. It’s not that we intend to waste money, but we get busy or frustrated or confused, or decide that we need to learn more before taking concrete actions with what we already know.
So I’ve given myself a new permission to put ideas into practice without quadruple confirmation of hearing about them from multiple sources. Because the reality is, it hasn’t added a bit to my business bottom line, or my professional expertise, or my confidence level to hear the same info over and over and over again.
Instead, I have what I call my treasure trove of virtual advisors I know I can rely on to have the know-how tips I need.
No more do I have to waste time
and computer memory on
getting the same info from a dozen sources.
My overloaded inbox can stop getting redundant ezines now, and my calendar just gained an extra couple hours a week. Woo hoo!
How do you use info gathering to avoid taking action? What’s missing in your confidence level that you’re trying to gain by overloading on others’ expertise?
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