“It’s easier to act your way into a new way of thinking than think your way into a new way of acting.”
Jerry Sternin
How many times have you known the right action to take, but for some reason not done so because you didn’t have the energy, the time, or some other ‘excuse?’
What if you took the step, instead of thinking about it and delaying, you were simply focused on the very next right action.
How would your thinking evolve?
What’s the worst that could happen?
“Ideas are easy. Execution is everything.”
John Doerr
All the ideas, plans, goals, and dreams are meaningless if you can’t turn them into action.
So, how are you doing with your 2022 goals? Did you have a written plan? Was it broken down into digestible chunks? Are you holding yourself accountable for your performance thus far? If you aren’t where you want to be, what will you do differently between now and March 1st to change your trajectory?
One of the most impactful ways for me to “keep score” on my ability to execute is to break out the results that I am seeking to achieve and relentlessly focus on only those things that matter. In a world of constant attention shift and merciless distraction, having a “scoreboard” that I review daily keeps my mind in the game and focuses my efforts on the next step to bring the plan to life.
Life is full of people with great ideas. Turning those ideas into meaningful results, that’s where differentiation happens.
“A series of small things do great things brought together.”
Vincent Van Gogh
The small thing isn’t necessarily great. It is just a moment in time, a tiny step in the right direction. But it is the next step that matters, the one where you move forward, the choice to act and bring yourself a little closer to your envisioned future. If you don’t make or take this next step, then the subsequent one is disrupted and then the next, and so on.
So while your next choice might not be the single step that makes greatness happen, it might be just the one that makes it even possible. So what small things will you do today?
“If you have something to do that is worthwhile doing, don’t talk about it, but do it. After you have done it, your friends and enemies will talk about it.”
George W. Blount
Talking about action and worrying about what others might think are activities with low ROEI (Return On Energy Invested). Instead, channel every precious ounce of the finite energy you have into creating meaningful action.
Nike has it right, “Just Do It…”
“The vision must be followed by the venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps – we must step up the stairs.”
Vance Havner
How do you convert “one day” into a reality? It is so easy to dream and ideate, but the magic happens when you convert these dreams into actions. Dr. Covey described this as “begin with the end in mind.” The key word is “begin.” Without that first step, nothing else will happen…
“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life; and the procedure, the process is its own reward.”
Amelia Earhart
It always amazes me how many fears and challenges we can create in our minds. First, the paper tigers create anxiety, paralyzing our bodies, and then the fears that were only in our minds become a reality.
Action is the antidote. Even if the action isn’t perfect, it is an antidote to the paralytic effects we build out in our minds. Decide to act. Act with enthusiasm. Build momentum, and most of the fears we create will cease to be.
“Pretend that every single person you meet has a sign around his or her neck that says, Make Me Feel Important. Not only will you succeed in sales, you will succeed in life.”
Mary Kay Ash
How many people will you meet or speak with today? What if you started every conversation or interaction with this underlying question running through your mind. “What can I very specifically do to ensure this person knows they are important?” It is the action that matters, not the intent. Answer this question through your actions.
“The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and, if they can’t find them, make them.”
George Bernard Shaw
The four most important words in this quote are “get up and look.”
How many people are content to wish, dream, and then they just wait? They will complain that life isn’t fair and that they don’t have the opportunities others have received. But if you want to make something happen, you have to get up and look. Nothing great ever happens to those who are content to wait for dumb luck to occur. Get up and look…
“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
I am continually amazed at how things work out for good when you step forward, serve others, and put your energy towards positive things. Taking the step of embracing a servant’s heart and putting your actions ahead of your words are two of the most important thing one can ever do in life.
Living in this manner is what helps build the staircase…
“You don’t need a new year or a new day to start over. You only need a new mindset.”
Hazel Hira Ozbek
Why wait? What do you know you need to do differently? What action can you take RIGHT NOW to start the process?
Momentum only happens once you begin so forget about how many steps are needed; focus on the next one. It’s always the first step that is the hardest, and then it’s the next step that’s the most important.
The time is going to pass anyway, might as well make it count…
“If you want to know the past, to know what has caused you, look at yourself in the PRESENT, for that is the past’s effect. If you want to know your future, then look at yourself in the PRESENT, for that is the cause of the future.”
Majjhima Nikaya
Do you like what you see in the mirror? Do you like your present self? If you could go back in time and tell your past self to do something different, what would it be? We all have the opportunity every single day.
The real question is; what are you going to do about it right now…?
“Genius is the ability to put into effect what is in your mind. There’s no other definition of it.”
F. Scott Fitzgerald
The worst idea in the world is the brilliant one that never sees the light of day because no one acts. Perhaps genius is simply another name for hard work and decisive action. If that’s the case, then we all have the capability for genius…
“The cucumber is bitter? Then throw it out.
There are brambles in the path? Then go around.
That’s all you need to know.”
Marcus Aurelius
Action is always required. Period. Full stop.
When something isn’t right, then the right thing to do is to take action. Perhaps the right next move is to step back and understand the situation, determine a suitable course of action, and then act. But the solution always involves taking action.
There are 364 days left in 2021, what action are you taking today to make sure your path forward is clear of brambles?
“Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase; just take the first step.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Sometimes it is best not to see the whole staircase that lies in front of us. The number of stairs or the steepness of the climb might intimidate us into not starting at all.
The most powerful thing we will ever do is seize the opportunity to take that first step in faith, trusting that it is taking the action that truly matters.
What important decision lies before you? Have faith, take the step, trust your choice.
“Action cures fear, inaction creates terror.”
Douglas Horton
Isn’t it amazing how choosing to take action can seem to stop fear in its tracks? Just doing something, anything, creates the momentum necessary to move you forward and slows or halts the spread of fear.
Action mobilizes, fear paralyzes…
Where do you need to take action today? Why are you waiting?
“Freedom lies in being bold.”
Robert Frost
It is amazing how much energy can be wasted on time spent worrying and doubting. It is equally amazing how clarifying and liberating it can be when a decision has been made and action is taken.
So, when in doubt make the decision. Take decisive action. Do the thing you know needs to be done. True freedom only follows action and boldness. If you make the wrong decision, you can always make another one.
You just might find that true freedom is simply the ability to make a choice.
“Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.”
Alan Lakein
The key here is that you must have put in the time, effort, and energy into thinking about the future you want to create. So often people seem to simply exist through life or react to the world around them and then they get frustrated that their “plans“ haven’t come true.
You don’t really have a plan if you haven’t defined what you want the future to look like. You just have activities. You have energy expended with no defined return…
Define the future you want to create. Plan your work. Work your plan.
“We all need to get the balance right between action and reflection. With so many distractions, it is easy to forget to pause and take stock.”
Queen Elizabeth
Sometimes it is nice to simply drive with the car radio turned off (hmm, why exactly do we even call it a radio anymore anyway?!) and enjoy some quiet time to think and reflect. Taking a long drive can be my best opportunity to think and be disconnected from all the digital distractions that demand every spare second of our time.
How do you intentionally find time to pause and reflect before tearing into the next task or action? Do you have a distraction free zone that allows you to think clearly?
If you don’t find the time, then you are going to burn out, or find yourself performing at a sub-optimal level. You can’t run the engine at max RPM’s forever without the performance degrading. Take the time to pause and reflect, it’s worth it.
“Do the best you can, with what you have, where you are.”
Theodore Roosevelt
It is easy to spend the finite amount energy we have in our lives worrying about things we cannot control.
Instead of doing our best effort, we try to figure out what is the minimum amount needed to meet the expectations…
Instead of giving praise for what we do have, we compare ourselves to others and what they have…
Instead of focusing on what is right in front of us we worry about what might, or might not, happen…
It can be equally easy to focus on what is right in front of us if we choose to do so. We just have to make the choice to be grateful…
I am grateful that I have an opportunity to use the skills and talents God has blessed me with…
I am grateful for all the gifts and things that I have been blessed with…
I am grateful for the time I have right now to spend doing things I enjoy with people that I care about…
Amazing how gratitude can change your perspective on things…
“If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.”
Mother Teresa
There is danger in grandeur. Sometimes it is easy to convince ourselves that if an idea isn’t big enough to change the world, then we shouldn’t even bother with it. Sometimes it feels like only the grandest of things truly count.
But that isn’t true at all. The things that really matter happen in the smallest of moments. They start with the simplest ideas, that then grow and take on steam, not because you set out to feed 100 people, but because you care enough to feed just one…
“Trust only movement. Life happens at the level of events, not of words. Trust movement.”
Alfred Adler
I chose this quote today after reading James 2:14, 17, several times over the past few days and having a conversation at our LifeGroup last night about the value of committed action(s). ‘What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.’ James 2:14,17
From a leadership perspective it is incumbent upon ourselves to create the movement (actions or works) that align with our words. We have to live what we say and believe outwardly through our movements. It’s been on my mind a lot lately as I evaluate my personal leadership in all aspects of life, both at home and at work, and seek to hold myself accountable to a higher standard. That was the thought process from my post on Monday about “The man in the mirror.”
Movement (works and actions) is always what sends the most powerful message. Back to the mirror to ensure my movement is reinforcing my words…
“Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit at home and think about it. Go out and get busy.”
Dale Carnegie
At times sitting and thinking makes a lot of sense. It can be exactly what one needs to gather your thoughts and prepare for action. But sitting and thinking is always about preparing for action. One must have a hard line in the sand that defines when you stop sitting and start doing…
“Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action.”
Peter Drucker
I might amend this quote to say “follow action with quiet reflection.” There is just so much value that comes from taking the time to simply think about what happened and what one can learn from any action, whether it was successful or not.
I had a rare and wonderful privilege today to take time and sit and think about leader ship, growth, and ways to become a more effective leader. It was time that was wonderfully well spent and very enlightening.
I would highly encourage anyone to be very intentional with the practice of active reflection and intentional learning. It will not happen by accident or simply through desire it must be intentional. This means that it must be scheduled and followed through on with the same discipline that one would treat any other meeting.
If you don’t practice reflection then growth and learning is left to chance and circumstance. That doesn’t seem like a very good deal to me.
“Take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly, and try another. But by all means, try something.”
Franklin D. Roosevelt
I had a conversation yesterday with a person whom I greatly admire and respect. During our time together we talked about the importance of understanding the opportunities we have to to serve customers and the incredible value and importance of constantly and continually trying new things, always in an effort to improve and add value to the relationship that a customer has with our respective organizations.
It is incredibly refreshing, and motivating, to share similar beliefs and perspectives with another person and to learn from those who practice those beliefs in their daily lives. That conversation was the reason that I selected this quote today.
It is easy in life to let the pace of the world, or our own internal sense of timing, dictate our ability and willingness to try new things. It is so easy to get caught up in a “pursuit of perfect” and forget that intelligent failure is where real learning occurs. It is so easy to fall in love with your own ideas and measures of success and forget that the customer (or anyone in your life with whom you have a relationship) might have a very different measure of success and value. Is is easy to be lulled into a spirit of contentment, which is only one step removed from complacency and irrelevance.
I am very thankful for the people that God puts in my life to reinforce the value of embracing change and to always push forward with an attitude of “relentless discontent with the status quo.”
Doing something, and learning from what comes from the effort, is critical for growth. There is no growth without first taking action. Try something. Be willing to fail. Learn. Try something else. Do it over and over and over again. That is the secret to growth and change…
“You may never know what results come of your actions, but if you do nothing, there will be no results.”
Mahatma Gandhi
Do you need to know all the results of your actions in order to make the actions worthwhile?
What if you can never know how many lives your actions touched or who’s life is changed forever? Does that make the action less worthy in some way?
Of course not. Do the work, take the action, make a difference. Results matter, taking action matters more.
“If we wait for the moment when everything is ready, we will never begin.”
Ivan Turgenev
Everything can be improved upon. No idea, concept or plan is perfect. In fact, everything we do in life falls far short of being as good as it possibly could be. And that is okay.
Take a deep breath. Let it out. Yes, nothing we ever do will be perfect, and that is okay.
As a person that likes to do things “right” I know how hard it can be to balance between making sure that some idea is “ready” and when is it “ready enough.”
We can always wait one more day, and then begin. We can always rehearse the presentation or pitch just one more time. We can always review and edit the plan (or the blog post) just a little bit more and make it better. But what if “one more day” turns into never? What if the extra time rehearsing makes the presentation feel scripted or canned instead of real and authentic? What the extra time editing and reviewing removes the real and raw emotion and prevents “publish” from ever being clicked? What great works have been lost to the annals of time because the creator of the work spent all their time getting ready, but never actually started on the effort itself?
Seek to find the balance between “right” and “right now.” Know when you have reached the point of “good enough” and then begin. Make the commitment to beginning a higher priority that the commitment to getting ready.
Throughout life I have found that waiting can be contagious, but so is taking action. Be sure that you are a carrier of the contagion of beginning, and not the carrier of the disease of seeking perfection before beginning.
“The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope.”
Barack Obama
There is nothing worst than sitting around feeling sorry for yourself. Get up. Go do something. Anything.
Sometimes all it takes is simply deciding to do something and that is what makes the difference. No one ever accomplished great things sitting on their rear end. Go find something good to do for someone else. Not because you feel like it, but because it will mean something to another person.
That’s why we are here right? To make a difference in the lives of others, to give them hope for a brighter day and a better way.
How are you going to make a difference for just one person today? Don’t answer this question later, answer it now. Then do it.
“Action may not always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action.”
Benjamin Disraeli
What dream, ambition or goal have you been contemplating and thinking about and yet doing nothing with? Have you ever become happier just thinking about something instead of doing it? Of course not. That’s not how we were built to live our lives.
The action you take today to make a dream come true might not work out, but you will be better for having acted. The next action might not be the one that brings the dream to fruition, but it might be the nudge that gets the flywheel moving.
When in doubt do something, even if it turns out to be wrong. Otherwise you are surrendering to be a person that sits idly by while the precious gift of time that we have been given slips through your fingers. The time is going to pass anyway, wouldn’t you rather have used it intentionally and with purpose?
You might regret your actions at times, but you will regret even more having never acted on your dreams… Seize it all…
“Well done is better than well said.”
Benjamin Franklin
This reminds me of the old saying “talk is cheap.” It doesn’t matter what you say you are going to do, it all comes down to doing it, and doing it well. Otherwise you shouldn’t be talking about it…
“It always seems impossible until it’s done.”
Nelson Mandela
Have you ever been in the situation where things are moving so slowly that it feels like nothing will ever get done? That time drags on and more reasons are found NOT to do something? That the focus has shifted to the negative instead of accomplishing the work that needs to happen?
Look in the mirror and ensure that you are ready to say that “the time for planning, thinking, debating, arguing and talking has passed. It is time to execute.” Hold yourself accountable for creating action, not debating the merits of action.
“We generate fears while we sit. We overcome them by action.”
Dr. Henry Link
What are you afraid of? What fears cloud your mind when you are sitting back thinking? How do you turn this into action and put those fears to rest?
Taking action always makes a challenge a little less formidable. Just the sheer act of expending energy towards a solution makes the thing, however daunting it might be, something that isn’t as scary and out of reach. All the planning and thinking in the world doesn’t give me the same relief as the first action towards something. Being a great “doer” is far more rewarding than being a great “thinker.”