Stop Thinking — Start Doing

If you’re reading this then you are probably someone like me who is interested in growth and development and finding ways to do and accomplish more in your life. And, if you are like me, your mind is a massive freeway of thoughts and ideas flying by at 100 miles an hour. For as long as I can remember this was ‘normal’ and I assume it is for most people but I’m sure there are individuals who are more than happy thinking of what they are making for dinner and what’s on tv tonight. As I’ve started my blog and I am now exploring podcasting and YouTube, there is one concept that keeps coming back to me: stop thinking, start doing.
It’s not rocket science, so what’s the big deal? Why do people talk about this so much, kind of like the saying talk is cheap? I hate to break it to you but doing is hard. As soon as the concept of doing comes into play, resistance will give you a hundred reasons why you should change your mind. Resistance wants you to stay warm and safe and in your comfortable groove of life. Trying something new could be risky. Watching tv and scrolling Facebook is much easier and more enjoyable. Doing could be embarrassing, painful, and bad things might happen.
Think about the people around you, friends, family, coworkers. More than likely a lot of them are in the standard model of life — work, pay bills, find some time to relax on the weekend. It works(ish) and its ‘normal,’ that’s why most people do it. What about that freeway of thoughts and ideas though?
I know you know you can be better, there are things you are thinking of that you can create, that you are curious about, that you might actually ENJOY.
There is one thing you can do immediately if you want to turn that lightbulb on, if you want to give your real self a chance to be more than you are. That one thing is: do. Take action. Take massive action. AND the secret no one tells you is that it can be easy. The trick is breaking it down into tiny, reasonable, doable, not very time consuming steps.
Here are some examples of what I am talking about:
- I want to be a runner: today get/find running shoes; tomorrow go for a walk and after a few blocks run as far as you can — maybe a block or two — and then walk again. Repeat.
- I want to start a podcast: open the voice recorder on your phone and start talking. Listen to yourself, make some notes, do it again. Now you know what you are going to talk about and how you want to talk about it.
- I want to read a book: commit to one page before you go to bed. You might like it so much you read two or five or ten.
- I want to make more sales so I have more money: today talk to one new person who may be a lead or connection. Do it again tomorrow. Be positive and excited about it.
- I have a great idea for an invention: make some quick notes/drawings and start talking about it with the people you know. This will lead you to a prototype/draft/model.
- I want to quit eating junk food: step away from the candy, don’t worry it will still be there in the future if you ever decide to have it.
- I want to turn my hobby into a side gig: stop keeping your hobby a secret, stop caring what people think.
- I want to be a writer: pick up a piece of paper or your notes app on your device of choice and start putting down words with zero plan or expectation of yourself.
- I want my clients to be happy with me and give me repeat business: treat them like the most VIP clients ever.
See? As the well-known Chinese proverb goes: a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
Life is meant to be lived the way you want to live it. That doesn’t mean keeping up with the Kardashians, it means being the person you want to be and experiencing life the way you want to experience it. For me that means engaging people in meaningful conversations, sharing my thoughts and ideas, and doing purposeful work with my clients. For you it might mean be the CEO of a huge company or doing an Ironman next year. Don’t let these aspirations become a should have would have could have. Take action. Take one single step. And keep taking steps. Anything can be worked on if you break it down into doable pieces. Move with purpose and don’t waste your own time. Get things done. Stop thinking, start doing. Start now.
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Photo by Phil Dolby (https://www.flickr.com/photos/126654539@N08/43244738185/in/photolist-28ToA3e-mkJZwa-LvmmiY-HrzE1-qQAofs-pPdiGV-cPBj4b-7Mx2kL-zTwiu-oMHGZ4-55Ldnp-aAMekJ-xqatr-2j1KzK-LTF1-9TBjB-4p4iEF-8795dt-ocxik6-bvzbsP-p4Wz6k-ppjdBR-qa9jrK-3LwUcY-8u9ZLo-5YvCEE-5UgJoC-cUx1t-24og53k-vpNqtu-LZwHGa-8Adf4S-siHTuC-7pGewm-pdfnbg-Kchse9-5R2xos-ayaXL7-264J7qv-q9X45j-EHaVFn-cry3R5-XjUFxv-q9X2Ls-qJzZRr-HmPNHd-qHxTX4-p9FVT-pTVe8-nFv5Dw) CC2.0 via: https://search.creativecommons.org
Originally published at kyrajames.com on September 5, 2018.
