692 words that could change your life
Saturday, September 26, 2009 at 07:12AM In the space between what you want to have happen and what actually happens is action (note: inaction is also a form of action). You cannot define your success based upon what you say your going to do. You can only define your success upon what you actually do. You must do enough of the right actions to cause the right results (or reactions if you're into physics). The formula to creating any result is this:
1. Clearly define and write down what you want to have happen. Simply ask yourself, "What do I want to have happen?" This can be in regards to any aspect of your life or your business. I won't go into detail, but it has been scientifically proven that writing down or visioning what you want immediately engages certain parts of your conscious and subconscious mind to assist you in attaining the result(s) you desire.
(Almost everyone gets this first step, but only a select few DO the following.)
2. Define 3 to 5 daily or weekly actions that you can realistically expect yourself to do consistently and that you believe will directly cause the desired result(s). If you get stuck on deciding what actions will make the most impact, take advantage of any relationships with mentors to ask them for help or search the vast resources available to you via the Internet to get a clearer picture of what you need to do to succeed.
3. Define exactly how many days or weeks of consistent action it will take you to achieve the desired result(s). This is a critical step because if we do not apply a deadline to our goals, we tend to naturally procrastinate. Set a realistic deadline and do whatever it takes to stick to it.
4. Create a spreadsheet (or Action Tracker as I like to call it) that contains the actions you defined in step 2 on the horizontal axis and the number of days or weeks you defined in step 3 on the vertical axis. You can download an Action Tracker Template I've so thoughtfully prepared for you by clicking here.
(Only a select few of the select few that do steps 2, 3, and 4 do the following and final step.)
5. Focus and follow through on the action plan you've just created with relentless single-mindedness and without compromise. This is the quality that the world's most successful entrepreneurs possesses. You must aspire to attain the ability of aggressive execution if you really want to achieve your full potential.
Now, there is a terribly misleading, widely proliferated phrase that peeves me. It is peddled by many personal development "gurus." It says that, "what you think about expands." This is dangerous thinking precisely because nothing is going to HAPPEN simply by thinking about it. There is no getting around it. You must work, put forth energy and focus on a thing with single-minded intensity to make it happen.
It takes consistent, focused, and energetic ACTION to make things happen. Here is what I mean by this: You brush your teeth every morning, right? (I sure hope you do) Why do you do this so easily with such regularity? For two simple reasons; 1. you very clearly known the results or benefits of doing so, and 2. you very clearly know the consequences of not doing so. Plus, and possibly most important, brushing your teeth is habitual. It is an ACTION that you have repeated and practiced over and over and over again for many, many years. Chances are you don't even think about it consciously anymore. You just do it.
That's what this work is about. Making those actions that are most essential to achieving the result(s) you want habitual. Then, execution becomes virtually automatic. It takes a system, tools, and the burning desire to make things happen. I've given you the first two components and the third you must manifest for yourself. Use this system and the Action Tracker Template for at least 90-days and let me and your fellow Evolving Entrepreneurs know how it worked out for you. Post your comments using the 'Post a Comment' feature below.
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Reader Comments (1)
Well said Adam.
If I could add one more step maybe between your 1 & 2 - it would be to address the fears that people have that may stop them going forward with your steps. Maybe Step 1.5 could say something like addressing (re: writing down) all the fear that people associate with their goal, whether personal or business, and then to clearly write down what the worse possible case scenarios would be if they failed and best case scenarios if they accomplished it. Finally, something about how they would realize that most of the time, the worst case scenarios aren't nearly as bad as once thought and the rewards fantastic, so there is no reason to not go forward with the particular goal.