“Knowledge is not enough; we have to report. Wanting is not enough; We have to do.”Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“Don’t wait. The time will never be right.”
Napoleon’s Hill
What makes dreams come true?
I believe that perhaps the most important – and often ignored – thing is to simply take action.
When I was younger, I was really bad at this.
That’s when I usually get stuck.
I was stuck in dreams of what I wanted to do.
I’m stuck in analysis paralysis because of my habit of overthinking. I’m stuck in procrastination and pessimism.
However, a lot has changed since then. I have added many new habits that help me take much more action than before.
I hope this week’s article helps you do the same.
1. Start your day right by doing the most important thing.
I first learned about this about 20 years ago when I was selling computers.
The boss told us that if we tackle the most important task of the day right in the morning – often one of the most difficult ones – the rest of the day will be much easier and lighter.
He was right about that.
Once this first and most important task is done, you don’t have to worry about it. It won’t burden your day. You feel good about yourself.
And for the rest of the day, you will have less internal resistance to taking action.
2. Just take responsibility for your actions and the process.
I love this quote from the ancient Sanskrit Hindu scripture Bhagavad Gita:
“You have the right to the action itself, never to its fruits; do not let the fruits of action be your motivation; and let there be no attachment in you to idleness.”
Why?
Because every time I look at it or remember it, I feel a kind of freedom and relief.
This quote reminds me to understand that I cannot control the results of my actions. I have no control over how someone will react to what I say or do.
It reminds me that I’m usually better motivated to continue doing what I’m doing if I’m doing something I really enjoy.
Basically, I do what I think is right and that is my responsibility. And then the rest (possible outcomes), well, it’s not up to me to decide or try to control.
I gave up.
Taking action becomes a much lighter activity when you simply take responsibility for doing what you believe is right.
3. Don’t feel like it? Start small.
Getting the most important thing of the day done and getting ready for a day full of action sounds great in theory.
But in reality, you will have days without motivation.
Days where you feel emotionally low or when you have to do something you don’t want to do.
This is the life. But there’s no reason to let it drown your day in idleness and self-pity.
I’ve found that the best thing to do in situations like this is to start very small. Simply…
- Write for 1-2 minutes.
- Lift free weights for just a few repetitions.
- Take 1 minute to start something that scares me.
Then I have a choice and I will do something else.
But I rarely do it.
I just need an easy way to get started, and then once I’m on the go, I usually keep going for a while.
4. Don’t hurt yourself.
This is a powerful motivation for me to develop and become a better person.
If I don’t do what I know deep down to be right, I will hurt myself and my self-esteem. What I do – or don’t do – throughout the day sends me strong signals about the kind of person I am.
There is no escape from yourself. And if you don’t do what you think is right, there is always a price to pay.
5. A reminder to focus.
If you don’t frequently remind yourself of what you need to focus on and why you’re doing it, it’s easy to let the days slip by or spend too much time on less important things.
So create a simple reminder on a piece of paper. You can write on it, for example:
- Your top 3 priorities in life right now.
- Your most important goal or new habit for the next 30 days.
- A motto or quote that you want to focus on and live by at this point in your life.
6. Be responsible to the people in your life.
An accountability buddy can help you stay on track and take action toward your goal or dream, even when your initial enthusiasm wanes.
For example, many of you, as readers, help me maintain accountability in providing useful content. I am constantly receiving feedback on whether I am doing something in a helpful or less helpful way. I get a lot of encouragement.
The people in my life who are closer to me help me stay responsible, for example by not eating too much unhealthy things, exercising and not working too much.
Find someone in real life or online who also wants to get in better shape. Or “플레이포커 머니상 시세 ” Motivate each other.
Take care of each other so that you can take action every week and move forward.
7. A cycle of fully focused work and fully relaxing rest.
Buy a kitchen timer or use the stopwatch function on your phone.
Set the timer for 45 minutes. During these minutes, simply work on your most important task/small step forward. Nothing more. No disruptions.
After these 45 minutes, take a relaxing break.
Distract yourself on Facebook if you want. You can also step away from your workspace and take a short walk, stretch, or eat an apple for the next 15 minutes.
By working in these fully focused periods of time, you will:
- Do more and produce higher quality work.
- Be able to concentrate longer during the day and week and tire less.
- Learn to focus on one thing at a time, instead of getting stuck in your mind between work and relaxation and building up friction and stress.
- Be able to enjoy periods of rest without guilt.
Is 45 minutes of work too much?
Try 25 minutes instead.
Are you procrastinating halfway through your 25-minute period?
Set a timer for 10 or 5 minutes and carve out time where you can fully concentrate on your work over the next few weeks and months.
8. Focus more on the how and less on the what if.
If your thoughts start to race when you think about taking action, then mentally shout: STOP!
Don’t allow yourself to get stuck in the negative spiral of analysis paralysis.
Sure, in many cases it’s wise to think before you act, but overthinking becomes a way of controlling things you can’t control, or simply staying away from acting because you’re afraid in some way.
Once you say stop to this train of thought, open your mind to WHAT YOU CAN DO, rather than to all the things that could go wrong in a worst-case scenario.
Ask yourself questions such as:
- What is one small step I can take today to get closer to my goal or get out of this situation?
- What can I learn from this situation?
Write down the answers that come to your mind and take action on them.
9. People don’t care much about what you do, so don’t let that stop you.
When I was younger, I almost always let what people thought or said when I did something keep me from taking action and I got stuck in inaction.
It was more self-centered than accurate.
In fact, in busy lives, people have their own affairs.
They think about work, children, partner, cat, holidays, what to eat for dinner and worry about what you and other people may think about them.
You’re probably not the main figure in other people’s lives. Even if you are like that in your life.
A realization that may be a bit disappointing, but it can also free you from your self-imposed bonds.
10. Use your enthusiasm.
When you dream and start something new in life, enthusiasm flows like a fountain.
After a few weeks it may drop significantly. Don’t let this cause you to give up if you think this is something you want to continue.
Instead, take advantage of the enthusiasm around you.
- Let your accountability buddy’s enthusiasm flow to you and create a backflow to him by showing enthusiasm for his goals and dreams.
- Listen to podcasts or audiobooks from inspiring people.
- Read blogs, websites and take courses that will give you a dose of enthusiasm every week.
- Let the enthusiasm of your friends, children or pets flow to you.
- Listen to music and watch movies or YouTube videos that will increase your enjoyment of life.
Bring the enthusiasm of the rest of the world into your life.
11. Add fun.
Some tasks are just boring or not much fun at all.
Then try this while performing to add some fun:
- Add some music that energizes and inspires you.
- Make it a game where you compete with a friend to see who can finish something first or do the most in 10 or 30 minutes.
Change your perspective on what you’re doing, make things a little clearer, and it will become much easier to take action on what you might have been putting off until later.
12. Celebrate what you did today.
Take 2 minutes at the end of the day to reflect, appreciate and celebrate what you have decided to do today. No matter how small the action was.
It will be: