We start out with all good intentions, and with reasons strong enough to make us want the results, the goals, the future, that we are heading towards.
But in the middle of it all, we get sidetracked, stopped, distracted, disheartened. We give up.
The only way to move forward is to take action, but that’s easier said than done.
Even in the face of distractions.
Even in the face of fear.
How do you take action, even in the face of tremendous fear distractions?
Decide to do it
The action, comes from a decision.
A decision to follow through, and to make it happen, no matter what it takes.
And the reason for the decision?
That’s up to you.
It’s also up to you to make it as compelling and as strong as possible. That’s the only way that reason is going to survive all the fear, distractions, and naysayers, both within you, and outside of you.
There is no magic bullet to make you feel all fine and ready.
You just have to decide to do it, even if you feel like shit. Even if you don’t know a lick.
Because then, the first step would be to know just enough, to take the first step.
Not all of the steps. Then you’d get stuck studying, researching, but not making any real progress.
Just enough, to take the first step.
Decide to do that, now.
Do one small thing now.
Almost two years ago, I wrote an article about respecting your muse. About listening to what your heart, body, and mind is telling you, and writing that down, sharing that expression, as respect to the creative ideas and gifts your muse is giving you.
Because if you don’t, your muse will leave you, leaving you high and dry when it comes to what and how to do things, differently, effectively, better.
It’s the same thing with taking action.
You can call it your muse, motivation, momentum, whatever it is you call it, when you feel the impetus, the push, or the pull, rather, to do something to make your dreams come true, you better respect that pull and do it.
It makes it all the more easier for you to keep on doing when the going gets tough, when there are distractions, and especially, when you question why and for what you’re doing all of this for.
When I wanted to start exercising, going to the gym, I went and did some light exercise whenever I felt the pull to do it. Doing simple things like one push-up a day, or ten squats a day, slowly built the habits and expectations inside of me, and got me used to taking action when it comes to fitness.
Now, whenever I feel distracted, or begin to doubt if my going to the gym will yield the results that I want, all I have to do is review my goal, recall all the other times I went to the gym, did my exercises, and got out fine and feeling better, and that’s enough to get me going.
Do one simple thing.
Don’t think too far ahead.
Get used to the feeling of moving forward, and succeeding in small steps.
Get out of your head
One reason we don’t move forward and take action, is that we get stuck in our heads.
We get stuck trying to learn everything we can, in the hopes of not making a mistake, or getting everything right the first time.
Well, that doesn’t happen, and that’s not how it works.
What’s faster, is if we learn just enough to do the first step, do that, learn along the way, and then find out how to do the next step, so on and so forth.
Until you get to your goal.
Thinking is different from doing.
Yes there is value in thinking, tremendous value. Many lives have been bettered thanks to the diligent thinkers out there.
Yet, all the thinking and ideas lose their value, if they are not brought out into the world, and shared.
That’s where action comes in.
And if you want an easier time taking action, you’ve got to stop thinking too much, and just get things done!
Make a mistake, then find a way to correct it
Well, don’t deliberately make a mistake.
But allow yourself to make one, several, heck, many mistakes!
And for each and every one, learn what made it, how you can fix it, and how to make sure you don’t do it again.
Find what works.
And to do that, you’ve got to find out what doesn’t work.
Back when I played a lot of online games, I’d ask top players how they got so good, and what they did to learn what were the best practices and skills.
Their answer surprised me.
They got to the top not because they researched, found out what was best, and then did it.
They found out how to be the best, by making a ton of mistakes, and then learning from them all.
They got to be the best by figuring out what were the things that they must not do, to win, they avoided the sure ways to fail, and then found out the possible ways to win.
Mistake, after mistake, after mistake.
Make mistakes, learn from them, and find ways to correct yourself.
Just do it
There is grace and magic in boldness. In moving forward before you deem yourself ready.
We are never fully ready.
And preparation can only take us so far.
Even the best laid plans are seldom followed out and executed to the letter.
Just do it, begin it, and course-correct along the way.
What’s a small thing you can do to take action? Please share in the comments below!
Leave a Reply