“There are risks and costs to a program of action. But they are far less than the long-range risks and costs of comfortable inaction.” - John F. Kennedy, American president
If something is important to you and you keep putting it off – whether it’s finishing a project, calling a prospective client, making time for your family or getting physically fit – you need to get honest with yourself.
WHAT is holding you back from taking the first step?
Take a minute to write down your answer to this question. Right now.
If your response includes blaming other people or your circumstances, I challenge you to dig deeper to uncover the real reasons.
It’s easy to make excuses and much more difficult to be totally honest with yourself. The truth is, no one is holding you back but you.
When you fail to do what you know you could be doing, there’s a greater consequence than simply the “thing” not getting done. Now you must also deal with the impact this procrastination has taken on your self-esteem. You lose self-respect when you don’t fulfill a commitment you’ve made to yourself.
The problem then is that your damaged self-image becomes even less motivated to take action because of the bad feelings associated with the previous cycle of intention and inaction.
So what do you do?
Commit to taking one action. Do something you can feel good about. And give yourself credit for taking that step. Celebrate your accomplishment, however small, and take time to experience positive feelings. When you need to take the next step, recall how good you felt after the first one.
Small successes, when acknowledged, strengthen your resolve and your self-respect. And your chances for building momentum have also increased dramatically.
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” - Theodore Roosevelt, American president
"Only he who does nothing makes a mistake." - French Proverb
"Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” - Sun Tzu, Chinese philosopher
Meredith, thank you for your encouraging advice.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your positive feedback, Tom. Thanks!
ReplyDelete"Commit to taking one action. Do something you can feel good about. And give yourself credit for taking that step. Celebrate your accomplishment, however small, and take time to experience positive feelings. When you need to take the next step, recall how good you felt after the first one.
ReplyDeleteSmall successes, when acknowledged, strengthen your resolve and your self-respect. And your chances fo building momentum have also increased dramatically."
I will put this on my Board, Thank you!!
Wow... Very enlighting... It will halp change mi situation... Thank you very much
ReplyDeleteBrilliantly simple & simply brilliant. This is very similar to Solution Focused Brief stops Counseling. Small successes create additional successes. Start small and keep taking small steps in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteI just experienced this when my hard drive crashed and not backed up. Buying another computer meant it might happen again! (That was my thought process- so I put off replacing it). lost some things I can't replace, but the toll it took on me emotionally I hope I never let happen again. I can't believe I let an inanimate object control me that much.
ReplyDeleteWhat hit first:
•hurt from loss
•fear of $/ unknowns
•loss of trust: in myself (I blamed myself, which there is no evidence of), in faith,
•I turned to wishful thinking, which is really temporary insanity I believe.
The reality of losing so much "time" finally woke me up.
I did make a decision and felt so much better and am now back on my projects.
Also, my sense of organization skills returned. It scares me how far I could have gone had I not acted.
Thanks for great post!
Rann, thanks for sharing your experience. I'm glad you were able to put it behind you and get moving. Every day I keep discovering how impactful ACTION is on our self-esteem. Purposeful action, that is, not busy work. The more meaningful things you accomplish, the better you feel about yourself.
ReplyDelete