Serve First, Polish Later…

Roughly fifteen years ago, I got a front-row seat to something that taught me a lesson I still lean on today. My oldest son played competitive high school tennis. And when I say competitive, I mean the kind where parents pretend they’re calm while internally doing Olympic-Level stress breathing in the bleachers.

He was good. Really good.

He’s a tall guy, over six feet, and he’s got what you call a “long wingspan.” The kind of reach that makes opponents question their life choices. His forehand was nasty, and at the net he was downright vicious. With those long strong arms, he could reach just about anything on his side of the court in doubles, and it felt like he could cover half the state of Texas in singles.

But there was one problem. His serve.

Now here’s what made it so frustrating. When his first serve went in, it was close to unhittable. Powerful. Well-placed. A serve with a little “sting” to it. The kind of serve that makes the other guy step back and think, “Okay, this might be a long day.”

But the problem wasn’t power. The problem was consistency. He didn’t get it in often enough.

And because of that, he had to rely on his second serve which was a much weaker stroke. So even though he had all these weapons in his game, the forehand, the net play, the athletic ability, it didn’t matter as much if he couldn’t start the point strong.

I used to tell him something like, “No one can see your other strokes or feel the heat when you beat them if you can’t get your first serve in.” And he agreed. So, like many well-meaning parents, we did what parents do. We tried to “solve” it. We took him to several coaches. And the coaches did what coaches do. They adjusted his grip. Over. And over. And over. And over again.

At first, we thought, “This is good. This is coaching. This is improvement.” But what it actually did was confuse him. And that confusion turned into anxiety. And anxiety is basically kryptonite for confidence.

Every time he stepped up to serve, he wasn’t thinking about rhythm or placement or flow. He was thinking, “Is my grip right?” And when you’re thinking about your grip, guess what you’re NOT doing? Serving confidently.

Finally, one day, I asked him a question that changed everything. “What do you want to do?” And he said something simple, “I just want my first serve in consistently.”

Then I asked, “What’s making you not confident to get it in?” And he said it plainly, “All the changes everybody keeps making to my grip.” That hit me like a tennis ball to the forehead. (Which, if you’ve ever been too close to the court, is not as uncommon as you might think.)

So, we did something radical. We stopped chasing “perfect.” We found a grip that felt comfortable for him. We stayed with it. And we practiced. And practiced. And practiced some more.

He didn’t need a brand-new serve every week. He needed a repeatable serve. He needed something he could trust. He needed to get the first serve in. Not perfectly, but consistently.

And once he had his serve under control, everything else started to shine again. Confidence came back. Pressure dropped. His game steadied. He finished his high school career strong, and he ended up playing well in college.

All because he focused on what mattered most. And he stopped stressing over trying to perfect everything all at once. He (and I) learned something powerful. Sometimes it’s better to get it done than to get it perfect.

So, what does this have to do with running an online business? Well, I’m glad you asked!

If you’re trying to build an online business, there’s a good chance you’re dealing with the modern version of “serve anxiety.” You’re not struggling because you don’t have potential. You’re struggling because you’re overwhelmed.

You’ve got gifts. You’ve got ideas. You’ve got goals. You’ve got motivation. But your “first serve”, the basic consistent action you need to start the point, keeps missing. And it’s often because you’re getting too many grip changes.

Different gurus. Different strategies. Different tools. Different platforms. Different advice. One person tells you to start YouTube. Another says TikTok only. Another says build a blog. Another says don’t blog, just email. One says sell digital products. One says affiliate marketing is the easiest. One says affiliate marketing is dead (even though they’re usually saying that from their affiliate link).

So, you end up stuck at the baseline. Not because you don’t have talent. But because you keep changing your grip. And eventually, you lose confidence. You start thinking, “What if I pick the wrong thing?” “What if it’s not perfect?” “What if people judge me?” “What if I waste time?”

So, you don’t swing. You don’t serve. You don’t start. And friend, no one wins a tennis match without serving the ball.

Your first serve in business doesn’t need to be perfect. It needs to be consistent. Because once you’re consistently “in the point,” you can improve everything else. That’s when your confidence grows. That’s when your skills sharpen. That’s when momentum kicks in.

So yes, sometimes it matters to get things right the first time. But most of the time? DONE IS BETTER THAN PERFECT.

Because done creates feedback. Done creates learning. Done creates growth. Perfection creates procrastination.

Here are five practical ways to stop overthinking and start moving:

1) Pick ONE “first serve.” Choose the ONE action that matters most right now. Publish the post, make the video, write the email, set up the simple funnel, list the product. You can’t improve what you never start.

2) Stop changing your grip every week. Stick with one method long enough to build confidence. Constant switching kills progress and creates anxiety.

3) Set a “minimum viable win.” Instead of asking “What’s the best version?” Ask, “What’s the simplest version I can finish?” Simple + Finished beats Fancy + Unfinished every time.

4) Practice consistency, not perfection. Progress in business looks like repetition. Post. Email. Serve. Repeat. Confidence isn’t built through talent. It’s built through reps.

5) Improve AFTER it’s done. Post it. Launch it. Send it. Then go back and sharpen it. Perfect comes from refinement, not delay.

Let me ask you something that might sting a little (in a good way). What’s the “first serve” in your business that you keep missing because you’re trying to make it perfect? And even more importantly, what would happen if you just got it in play this week?

Drop a comment and tell me what you’re committing to finish, even if it’s not perfect.

One of the reasons I’m such a fan of Internet Profits Academy is because it eliminates a TON of the grip-changing chaos. It simplifies the whole process. It puts the training, tools, and step-by-step roadmap in one place, so you’re not chasing twenty tabs, twelve videos, and four “systems” that don’t talk to each other.

Looking back, I’m grateful I finally stopped trying to build a “perfect serve.” I just got the first one in. And once that happened? Everything improved naturally. Because confidence doesn’t come from perfection. Confidence comes from repetition.

So, if you’re sitting there waiting for the perfect plan, or the perfect website, or the perfect time, just remember the best serve is the one that goes in and gets in play.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go practice this same lesson myself. Right after I reorganize my desk for the 43rd time and act like that counts as “progress.” (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.) 😉

 “You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.”— Zig Ziglar

“Winners take imperfect action while losers are still perfecting the plan.” — Tony Robbins

And of course, a few VERY BAD Dad jokes:

I don’t make mistakes. I make “alternate versions.” 🤪

 My wife told me, “Just be yourself.” So I made a list of who I should be. 😉

 Until next time, STAY FRESH, Friends!

 

 

 

 

**If you are curious about this process and wish to know more about an affiliate marketing business, please subscribe to my newsletter here to learn more.  And please continue following my blog.  My hope is not only to create the freedom I so long for but pass on what I have learned to others who have similar aspirations.