Want Results? “Just Take Action”

“Just Take Action” and you will create everything you dreamed and hoped for.

Wouldn’t it be nice if that’s all we had to do?

Easy-peasy.

Although some people may disagree with me but…I call BULLSHIT.

Because if it were that easy then NIKE™, and their “JUST DO IT” tagline, would have the whole personal development market cornered and we would all be in great shape, have a successful business or career, and live in the house of our dreams.

But thats not that case now is it?

So, there has to be a bit more to it.

Now, we all know that we need to take action to get shit done.

And, we need to get shit done in order to create the results we want in our life.

So, of course TAKING ACTION is important.

But the way we go about it is even MORE IMPORTANT. 

So, I am all for it but…

I JUST WANT YOU TO TAKE ACTION THE RIGHT WAY.

ALL THE “JUST TAKE ACTION” QUOTES

Here is where it starts.

Quotes and posts from all the “successful” people telling us that taking action is the key to the promised land.

We have all seen or heard them.

Shit, most of us even rely on these for our daily or weekly dose of motivation and inspiration.

Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn you name it…all with the same message.

Quotes like…

“Success doesn’t just happen…it happens to those that take action”

“Action is the key to success”

“Don’t just talk about it…take action”

“The path to success is to take massive action”

“Thinking will not overcome fear but action will”

And so on and so on.

It’s not that I don’t agree.

I do believe that taking action is CRITICAL when it comes to getting the results you want but…

Like most quotes, or personal development advice, I think that they should come with a disclaimer.

Because, left as stand alone advice, it can actually halt your progress and prevent you from getting the results you want.

How so?

Well let’s take a look at the the problems so I can explain…

THE PROBLEMS WITH THE WHOLE “JUST TAKE ACTION” MOTTO

• Problem #1 – What if you are taking action but NOT getting the results you want? What if you are taking all this action and not getting anywhere? Should you keep spinning your wheels by taking all of this unproductive action? Sounds silly to me. Or as Einstein says “the definition is insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result”. Some people may continue to take the same actions again and again without getting results. But what eventually happens when your action taking doesn’t bear fruit? Let me tell you. You get frustrated and disappointed. YOU FEEL LIKE SHIT. YOU FEEL LIKE A FAILURE. YOU STOP.

• Problem #2 – What if you are taking action and getting good results but don’t know how or why? The point of taking action is to see what works and what doesn’t. You won’t know if you don’t intentionally reflect and evaluate. Most people don’t. So what if you aren’t learning from all this action taking? So what happens when your good results stall or stop working all together? YOU GET FRUSTRATED, DISAPPOINTED, CONFUSED. YOU  FEEL LIKE SHIT. YOU STOP.

• Problem #3 – What if you start taking action and then don’t feel like it anymore? What if you are all excited then create and get started on your great action plan but find yourself not feeling like doing it anymore? What happens when the initial excitement,  inspiration and motivation wanes? What happens when shit gets tough and you don’t feel like taking action anymore? Let me tell you what happens. YOU FEEL LIKE SHIT. YOU FEEL LIKE YOU FAILED. YOU STOP.

• Problem #4 – What if you actually can’t get yourself to take action? What if you know the action to take but aren’t actually taking it? What then? You’re screwed for life? So many of us encounter this issue. We know WHAT WE NEED TO DO but have a hard time ACTUALLY DOING IT! So, if you can’t even get started how are you supposed to succeed? End result? YOU FEEL LIKE SHIT. YOU FEEL LIKE YOU ARE A FAILURE BECAUSE YOU CAN’T EVEN GET STARTED. YOU STAY STUCK.

• Problem #5 – Thinking you need to take Massive Action can OVERWHELM YOU – When things feel SO BIG that they overwhelm us we usually avoid instead of embrace them. If just the thought of having to create and do this MASSIVE ACTION TAKING doesn’t feel good to you then you probably aren’t going to do it. Or if you do you won’t do it for very long. And what happens then? YOU FEEL LIKE SHIT. YOU FEEL LIKE YOU ARE STILL FAILING. YOU STAY STUCK.

MORE HARM THAN GOOD

Now can you see some of the problems I have with the whole “JUST TAKE ACTION” thing?

Yes, you have to take action…but you have to do it the right way.

Because, if you don’t it can become a hidden, EMOTIONAL SHIT STORM that keeps you STUCK instead of being a key to unlocking progress.

So, HOW DO YOU DO IT THE “RIGHT WAY”?

Simply put…

You take BETTER ACTION.

Because BETTER ACTION is EFFECTIVE ACTION that sets you up for success instead of frustration and more…stuckness.

Here are the steps…

Step #1 – Start with BETTER GOAL SETTING –  Most people set goals that are too vague and end up being ineffective. “I want to lose 15 pounds” is a goal. “I want to lose 15 pounds in a healthy, sustainable and enjoyable way” is better. See the difference? Fine tune your goal and once you do you need to tie it to a reason. Think about WHAT you want and then WHY you really want it. You need to have a reason that is important to YOU! Your reason is what keeps you committed to reaching your goal. 

“It’s hard to build commitment for any GOAL that doesn’t have a BIG ENOUGH WHY behind it.”

Step #2 – Create a BETTER ACTION PLAN – Again most people create vague, superficial, ineffective plans when they are trying to accomplish something. When I create an ACTION PLAN I like to look at it this way. I list all of things that I KNOW would get me to my goal. I list everything I would need to do to make reaching that GOAL or RESULT a 100% unavoidable SURE THING. I list as many things as I can think of and go into great detail. I add to the list as I think of more things.

The next thing I do is make a list of all things I need to AVOID or NOT DO to in order to make reaching that GOAL or RESULT a 100% unavoidable SURE THING. All the obvious things that I KNOW would prevent or delay me reaching my goal. Once I do that I now have a solid plan of action in place to move to the next step.

Step #3 – IMPLEMENT – Now that you have listed everything you know you need to do and not do to reach your goal its time to get into the game. It’s all laid out for you so move forward with your action plan. But here is where most people make a mistake. They think it will be smooth sailing now that they started taking action. It won’t. You need to do it differently. You should implement your plan knowing, expecting and accepting that the action you take will be MESSY and FULL OF FAILURES. That’s the point. So commit to taking IMPERFECT action and “learn by doing” with the intent of getting the feedback you need to ultimately create success.

Step #4 – EVALUATE WITH INTENTION – Reflect and determine whats working and what isn’t. But here is a *little warning*. We always want to jump to the strategies and tactics to see what isn’t working and figure out what we need to DO differently. And sometimes it is your strategy or plan of action. But most of the time it’s your current way of thinking. Read that again. Most of time it isn’t the action that is failing. It’s your thoughts and beliefs around taking that action that needs work.

So, for example, let’s just say that you are trying to lose weight but it isn’t happening. Is it the actual “diet” that’s failing? Or is it how you feel about that way of eating that is leading to no results? Commit to taking a good hard look at both your actions and your mindset to determine whats really working or not.

Step #5 – ITERATE – And now that you have determined what’s NOT working it’s time to change something. If you think it was your strategy or action plan then it is time to decide on a new one and put it through the same process. But, if you keep changing your actions but your results don’t change that’s a clue. You can’t create different results from the same way of thinking. So when realize that it’s your mindset (thoughts and beliefs) that need changing then it’s time to get intentional and learn how to think on purpose. Because once you realize that your results come from your thinking the game starts to change.

And that, my friends, is how you do it.

That’s how you get UNSTUCK and actually do the things that you know you NEED TO DO to become successful.

That’s how you take BETTER ACTION to GET BETTER RESULTS.

The “shift” happens when you can learn how to create the thoughts that serve you best on purpose…and create an action plan to match.

So, go create your plan, get out there and kick ass, take names and conquer the world.

JUST DON’T TAKE ACTION IN A VACUUM.

~ Drew