Are You An Action Taker?

“It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.” Leonardo Da Vinci

Did you set some goals in the beginning of this year? More than half of 2014 has passed. Have you managed to do what you said you would? Or have you been living in Procrastinationland all this time?

Procrastination is the triumph of short-term mood repair over long-term goal completion, says Timothy Pychyl, Ph.D., a psychology professor at Carleton University in Ontario. The part of your brain that controls emotion (and thrives on instant gratification) is older and often stronger than the part that understands what’s best for you in the long run, Pychyl explains.

Procrastination entertains the delusory feeling that the task at hand may, with time, disappear. It is usually a symptom of some other problem: poor preparation, perfectionism, a fear of failure or rejection, or just a simple lack of motivation and interest. You know very well that if you don’t eventually get into action, you’re wasting your time. So what can you do to cross the barrier between merely thinking about it and actually making it happen?

Everything starts with a decision. You don’t really have to do anything. You always choose what to do. Thinking about things this way removes the “musts”, “shoulds” and “have tos” that take your personal power away and make you feel like you aren’t in control. When you think that you choose to do whatever you do then you regain the control and empower yourself. And it becomes easier to take action.

Get excited. As investor Steve Droke has said “Knowledge is power and enthusiasm pulls the switch.” With enthusiasm things get done and they will always get done better and more easily than if you were just miserably going through the motions.

Take imperfect action. Are you waiting for a perfect time to do this? Are you thinking that maybe now is not the best time because of X, Y, and Z? Ditch that thought because there’s never a perfect time. If you keep waiting for one, you are never going to accomplish anything. Don’t over-complicate things. Perfectionism is one of the biggest reasons for procrastination. The perfect time is now. Not tomorrow, not next week. Today.

Get a grip and just do it. You can do all the strategizing, planning and hypothesizing, but if you don’t take action, nothing’s going to happen. Reality check: I have never heard anyone procrastinate their way to success before and I doubt it’s going to change in the near future.  Whatever it is you are procrastinating on, if you want to get it done, you need to get a grip on yourself and do it.

If getting in shape is one of the things you’ve been procrastinating, you know what to do. Get in the gym!! And if you’re lost and haven’t had success in the past – get some professional help to get you started. You can gain some knowledge from my blog or videos, or get in touch for a personalised programme.