I have talked about this many times before but I am sure it has not reached enough people yet. I watch TV, I read web pages, I follow movies and news but mostly I try to act.
There is an insatiable desire, a longing in all of us to do. The trouble is that most of the time we get caught watching or are paralyzed by indecision, you know that term paralysis by analysis?
Well I was in the gym today and it is sad to think that two or three times the number of people were there 30 days ago at the beginning of January, excited about changing their lives but something got in the way.
Most of the time people that do not act say “Those were my dreams and then life got in the way” Well there are a few things that can get in your way but life is not usually one of them, instead it is our inability to act.
I think I may have a book in me on this point but anyway…
I think that if you do the following 5 things you will stop watching and jump into the action. Try these and then come back next week or even tomorrow and tell us all how well or badly it worked.
5 Keys To Inspire Action
1. To act you need to know what you want. This is critical. If you are going to get involved you need to know what action you want to take.
Maybe you watch a lot of hockey or soccer, well you can easily find a pickup league or team that you can get involved with, heck I got drafted into coaching kids soccer last year without even asking.
2. You need to find your why. Why do you want to do that action? Is it to have fun? To get in shape?
To live a dream that you always wanted? I have said for years that I want to run a 10k, all that talk never got me close because there was a bunch of training involved and I only cared about the finish line of the run.
You need to know what will get you on the track, or in the class, or in the training field.
3. You have to make your schedule. If you do not make a schedule that is yours then TV or a boss, or a wife will fill your days and nights for you.
I watched Up In the Air with George Clooney last week and in the movie he would tell people that had just been fired that the greatest achievements that ever happened were by the people on that side of the table. If you have no one telling you what to do you can do what YOU want.
4. Don’t worry about the process, just the next step. If you wanted to play soccer for a team you don’t have to worry about what time the practices will be or the number of games in the season.
The only thing that matter in the beginning is your very next step, getting a soccer ball or calling to find out if there is a team in the area.
If you look too far ahead it becomes a giant mountain not a bunch of fun.
5. Start everyday with action. This has nothing to do with individual goals of what you want to achieve but instead is an overall way to live life.
You have probably seen these guys that have accomplished 5 or 10 completely different huge things in their life guys like John Glenn, or Richard Branson, or even Arnold Schwarzenegger have done.
You need to start every day with a few things that have to be done, have to be acted on and then no matter what you want you can eventually finish it.
So these are the keys. The biggest key of these is of course to act and get done what needs to be done right now today.
This next step process and the attitude that life is not very complete if you are just a spectator is one of the most important things and principles that I like to live by.
So figure out what you want and start today. This could be the first of many great days that will change your life.